Baccarat Finally!.....

Yesterday (Monday, April 12th), I finally returned to a casino. I rented a car and drove up to Mohegan Sun. It had been over a year (actually, exactly13 months) since I'd stepped a foot inside any casino, and I was excited, albeit also a bit anguished given all that's been going on, to get back to some Baccarat play.

I walked over to the high-limit area to scope it out, but, much to my dismay, there really was no action there at all. They had a disinfectant towel stand at the entrance, and, frankly, it appeared very closed off. There were a couple of dealers at a couple of tables, but no Bac players. So I went back over to the main Bac area, and there was a couple of Bac tables going there, albeit with a max of three players at each.

I took a seat at a table where I recognized both of the active players as "regulars" (read: I know them and they know me; not by name, but a quick nod suffices). The shoe was about half-way through, which, to me, is the optimal buy-in time.

To get quickly to the bottom line, I had a rather successful session. I never lost more than two hands in-a-row, and my trending was, simply put, relatively "spot-on". I completed the session within about the length of one total shoe...in other words, I played the last half of the current shoe and about half of the following shoe. Although I wanted to pick up my max win goal of ten full units, mostly because things were going rather well, I wound up cashing out with just a bit over nine units of profit.

Let's delve a bit more into that:

I had hit my 10 units of profit, but my over-all commissions left me a bit short. So I decided, again because of the relative ease of the session, to play for another unit to cover my commissions and even a part of my "driving expenses" (read: gas money). Needless to say, I lost that next bet.

Now, some of you may remember an experience that I related a few times in these forums:

It was the end of a weekend in Atlantic City and myself and my "playing partner" at that time had decided to play one more session before the long drive home. Well, another relatively easy session saw us up our 10 units, but we owed about a unit in commissions, so we decided to play for that one more unit.

Well, my friends, that unit never did come to us, and we wound up turning a rather easy, and, more importantly, WINNING session, into a loser. We wound up chasing that stupid unit for a couple more hours, all for naught. Can you imagine our anguish at that long drive back home?!

Well, you've heard the expression "Experience is the best teacher". That experience had me coloring up yesterday as quickly as the dealer had scooped up my chips from that last losing bet. I'll gladly accept the "90%" of my max win goal, any day. A.N.Y. D.A.Y.! Never, EVAH, put yourself into the unfortunate position of turning a winning session into a loser!

And just a little bit more about that:

I get a bit of a laugh when I read posts regarding certain methodologies of Baccarat play. Especially when I read something like: "If you have the edge (read: an advantage), why cut your winnings short? Why not simply continue on playing?"

Well, I'll tell you "why not":

First of all, take my 52, 53, even 54% average strike rate and STUFF IT! My average strike doesn't mean a gosh-darn thing over the next 10 or 20 hands (read: bets)! One never knows exactly when their next dozen or so bets will fall in the low 40's as far as strike rates go. Why the heck would I risk my current profits over a very real possibility of a fall-off such as that? It would be sheer lunacy on my part.

And let's not forget about our mental trials and tribulations at this game. When you're up a certain amount of units, any dent (ANY DENT) in that prior profit can wreck havoc with your current mindset. Now, maybe you're not looking to settle with a 6-unit win when you were previously up 8 units...so what happens now...do you "chase" to get those 2 lost units back? And then, where does that chase end? Why put yourself in that untenable situation? Moreover, why do it so NEEDLESSLY?

It's all about learning how to win, my friends. Learn to both enjoy and appreciate that "winner's walk" to the casino cage. In that way, you'll decide then and there to try your absolute hardest to make it a habit. A VERY, VERY REWARDING HABIT! A win, ANY WIN, is STILL a win. Take it; you've earned it.

As always, I wish it so for all of you. Take care and stay well.

 

A class Zookeeper in total control of the Chimp. Congrats gr8player!

 

Thank you, my friend. Your response is at the same time respected and appreciated.

Especially as one who is all too familiar with the "loss of total control" and its unfortunate ramifications.

And so we learn over the years to avoid those terrible habits as expediently as possible.

And, hopefully, rather replace them with as many positive habits as we are able.

That, my friend, was essentially the point of my thread; I thank you again for pointing that out. Stay well.

 

God help the chimp, probably end up on the dinner table

 

People will think there is no control for accurately predicting B or P but there is control for how you deal with when winning or losing. The sad part is EVEN with control, people still mess up BIG TIME. There MIGHT be a handful of people that can manage beautifully but winning and losing has a funny way of getting to you.
By having a process to deal with winning and losing is JUST the same as predicting B or P. You think you have control with money management but you don't.

 

B or P can run like W or L. Take a shoe and change all B to W and all P to L. Now use your money management control and see what results you get at the end. Has anyone EVER practise this?

 

Nice lesson and reminder on how the risk of chasing one unit can have negative ramifications. Agree it’s better to just get up and walk a winner.

Curious why the rental car? Is it to not add mileage on your personal car or to keep anonymity when at a casino? I personally like to stay away from attention and just focus on my session when I’m playing

 

Hello, Bill, and welcome to the forum.

Yes, whenever we get caught in "chase mode" the "negative ramifications" can be absolutely destructive, both to our psyches and our bankrolls.

And so we learn over time to recognize the warning signs in advance and then have the common sense to terminate the session. Better too early than much too late...we all know where the "much too late" leads us.

Regarding the "rental car"...yeah, I just chalk it up as just another "business expense"...no biggie, I expect to make it up, over time, at the tables.

Take care and stay well, my friend.

(Sidenote: I read somewhere earlier today where you have certain "preferred reads"...members from which you trust their insights into the game...that's a valuable trait right there, Bill. Otherwise, you might find yourself "spinning your wheels" trying to ascertain what might...or might not...be worthy of your time to explore deeper. My two words of advice to you: Be careful. These forums tend to be a breeding grounds for all sorts of anonymous people whose intentions could most certainly be brought into question; truth be damned. One's ability to tell the difference between the "real" and the "fake" in these forums will forever be the most important factor in their true enlightenment and/or enjoyment there.)