Casino Fun 101: How to go to a casino, have a great time and not lose your shirt..

By Charlie Frair

CASINO FUN 101 IS A SURE BET.  

 

Whether you're a first-time player or a casino regular, Charlie Frair's unique guidebook gives you the tools, skills, and knowledge to go into any casino, anywhere in the world, play casino games, and have a great time-win, lo

• Language: English
• Publisher: Casino Education Company
• Release date: May 7, 2021
• ISBN: 9781649906144

Charlie Frair

Charlie Frair grew up in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, Minnesota, and Colorado. While earning his degree at the University of Colorado, he also served as a VISTA volunteer in Omaha, Nebraska for two years. After spending several years traveling, he settled down in Maine, where he built his own home and eventually founded Partners in Ending Hunger. He served on special commissions for two different Maine Governors and was awarded "Humanitarian of the Year" in New Jersey by Events to Empower Humanity for the work Partners did in that state. At the same time, he led Seminars for Landmark Education for twenty years. Most recently, he worked with a market research firm. Ever since he can remember, Charlie loved playing games. Outdoor games, board games, card games, sports-you name it, and he's played it. His sister Peggy, an Olympic athlete, taught him to love competition and the importance of preparation. He started playing casino games in his twenties and still plays today. Doing so has helped him strengthen his discipline and patience muscles, sharpen his math, and expand his logical thinking skills. In this book, Charlie shares his enjoyment of playing casino games and passes on lots of the knowledge he's gained over fifty years of playing. During that time, he's mastered the art of having a great time while playing, whether winning, losing, or breaking even. He always has fun.

Book preview

Section 1:

Casinos and You

C

asinos are exciting, fun, and extremely entertaining. They can also quickly separate you from your money. I want you to experience a lot of the former and as little of the latter as possible.

The first step for enjoying yourself and having a great time at a casino is to have a basic understanding of how it all works. It's important to know about the different types of players, how casinos operate, the odds of popular casino games, and the common mistakes players make.

You’re about to embark on a thrilling adventure, and you hold in your hands the guidebook to get you through. Let's get started.

Chapter 1

What Kind of Player Will You Be?

It's Up to You

When it comes to gambling, the most deadly sin is to mistake bad play for bad luck.

—Ian Fleming, author, James Bond books

My First Casino Adventure

In June of 1971, I celebrated graduating from college by going to Las Vegas. I was twenty-three years foolish and somewhat big-headed on my first casino adventure. I arrived with great anticipation after driving twelve long, hot hours across the desert on a bright summer day. In less than an hour, I had checked in, and I immediately rushed off to the casinos to play. I was on an adrenaline high and ready to conquer the world.

I wasn’t disappointed. Las Vegas was everything I’d been told and ten times more. People were everywhere, clamoring, rushing, and moving in every direction, each on his or her own special mission. Some were dressed to the nines, and some were barely dressed. Awesome energy filled the air. It was like I’d just broken out of something and into a new reality. Wild and crazy seemed the norm.

After walking around a bit and soaking up all the excitement, I decided it was time. Wanting to make the most of this amazing place, I crossed my fingers, took a deep breath, and leaped into the fray. Putting on my best swagger, I went into one casino then another. I loved the chaos and loud music, and I was over the moon about getting free beer. I felt ready. My destiny was set, and everywhere I turned, there was a slot machine or table game begging to be played. I remember saying to myself, This is going to be a blast.

Not for long, though. When it came to playing casino games, I didn’t know what I was doing. My plan was to learn on the fly. I thought being bold, daring, and a bit cocky (along with being a little lucky) would be enough to make me a winner. It wasn’t. I lost all my gaming money that first night—my entire $500 stash. (ATM cards didn’t exist yet, or I would’ve lost more.) I did learn a valuable lesson: having a good time playing casino games takes way more than just showing up and playing.

I was disappointed, discouraged, and somewhat embarrassed. I was also stuck. I had prepaid for four days and nights at the hotel, and all my playing money was gone. What was I to do? I wasn’t ready to go back home a loser with my head down and tail dragging, and I wouldn’t be able to play casino games much anymore because my play money was gone.

After having one of those difficult conversations you sometimes have with yourself, I ended up deciding to stay, and I challenged myself to have as much fun as possible with the few dollars I had left. In retrospect, that challenge changed my life. Not only did I end up having an outrageously good time, but that was the beginning of what became a most fascinating and intriguing new hobby: learning how to go to casinos and have a great time, win, lose, or draw.

Because I wasn’t able to play anymore, I began to watch other people play and learned from them. I saw plenty of people play the games not really knowing what they were doing, as I had done, but I also saw people who clearly knew how to play. They had a method; they raised and lowered their bets and made more winning plays. When they did lose, they didn’t seem to lose as much as other people did. The biggest difference I noticed was that these better players were having a lot more fun.

I finished that first trip very encouraged and rather confident. I was sure I’d be back to play casino games again. I made a simple, obvious, and important choice on that long drive home: I wanted to have fun when I played casino games, so next time I’d apply what I had learned as a Boy Scout and be prepared. I was choosing and determined to be a good player.

You Get to Choose

The first step of learning how to have a great time playing casino games is choosing what kind of player you’ll be. It doesn’t matter if you’ve never played casino games or if you’re a regular at a local casino; it's never too late or too early to choose. The casino doesn’t get to make this decision; only you do. The type of player you are has nothing to do with fate, luck, or circumstances. It's up to you.

Of course, before deciding, you’ll want to know your choices. There are many different types of players, and if you stand back and watch, you’ll see some having fun, some not, some winning, some losing, some good, and some bad. I’ve divided all these players into four general categories. As you meet each one, remember, you get to choose what kind of player you’ll be.

The Four Types of Players Are:

1. The Bozo

2. The Beginner

3. The Better Bettor

4. The Boss

1. Meet Sam, Who Plays Like a Bozo

A Bozo is foolish, reckless, and hasty. Sam's an uninformed person who plays casino games not knowing how to actually play. He believes the outcomes are based on superstitions and luck, while the truth is that each game is firmly based on mathematical odds.

When he loses, which is often, you’ll hear Sam sharing some of his superstitions. I can’t win with male dealers, he’ll say, or Rainy days are bad for me, or I don’t have my lucky shirt on, etc. If he's winning, which is rare, the illusion that he knows what he's doing or is a good player gets reinforced. It’ll only be a matter of time before he loses, of course, and he will almost always lose a larger amount than he planned.

Playing casino games like a Bozo is like running a marathon without training. You can enter and run, but you’re probably not going to finish, and even if you do, the next day you’ll be depleted, exhausted, and sore. Participating in a marathon without putting in any training will cost between $50 and $300, and the cost includes getting a t-shirt or some other type of merchandise. Playing in a casino without training can cost you a lot more, and casinos rarely give out t-shirts.

2. Meet Lisa, a Beginner

Lisa knows she doesn’t know everything, and that puts her way ahead of the game. Like all beginners, she lacks experience, makes mistakes, and forgets things. Lisa purposefully uses her experiences to grow and develop as a player.

Lisa is cautious and conservative when she plays. She's smart and has dedicated sufficient time to learning and practicing the games before playing in the casino itself. She knows the basic strategies and best plays and applies them.

It's challenging, but Lisa also does the best she can with planning her time, managing her money, and keeping records. She's different from a Bozo in that she doesn’t blame other people, blind fate, or bad luck when she loses. Rather, she learns valuable lessons. She's a rookie and getting better all the time.

Beginners have way more fun than Bozos.

3. Meet Ed, a Better Bettor

Ed is an above-average player. It's obvious he has studied and practiced what he's doing. He's disciplined, patient, and able to make smart, profitable decisions.

Ed plays relaxed, confident, and consistent. You’ll rarely see him making mistakes. He’ll never desperately try to win back losses or let his emotions replace common sense. He manages his time and money and sticks to his plans regarding when he plays and how much he bets. He keeps records and uses them to improve his play.

What's most noticeable about Ed is that he's having fun. He's focused on playing the game and having a good time; he's not worrying about winning or losing. He's in the game for entertainment and enjoying the thrill it gives him.

4. Meet Megan, Who Plays like a Boss

Megan is completely at ease in a casino. She knows when to play, where to play, and what to play. No matter what the casino throws at her, she immediately knows how to handle herself. She has all the attributes of a Better Bettor and has