Casino The Adventures of MDawg

I was thinking about the +$20,600. figure Cosmo has me down for 2020. The entirety of play I did at Cosmo this year was over these five days, because the prior Dec 2019 - Jan 2020 trip we did not go to Cosmo at all:

As reported above, we have:

2/28/2020
Cosmo Day 1 ($6400. win)
$8000. marker paid

2/29/2020
Cosmo Day 2 ($14,100. win)
$8000. marker paid

3/1/2020
Cosmo Day 3 ($300.)
$8000. marker paid
$10000. marker paid

3/2/2020 ($1000. win)
$8000. marker paid
$20000. marker paid

3/3/2020 ($1000. win)
$8000. marker paid
$10000. marker paid
$10000. marker paid

By the way, these winnings were reported by me as they happened, session by session, day by day, posted WEEKS ago. At the time I was posting them, I didn't even know that Cosmo would update my winnings so quickly, and I had no idea that it would post a 2020 Win/Loss even before the year was out. I also had no plans to post a video of my win/loss portal online. Point being that I just post stuff as it happens, in real time, not with some eye to the future of someday corroboration. It's much easier to just report the truth than to make something up, and by posting the truth I don't have to think about what I am posting, just tell it like it is.

Anyway, as you may see in the video, Cosmo has me down for $20,600. This makes sense in a way, because that encompasses the first three days of play $6400. win, $14,100. win, $300. win, which equals $20,800. but they have $20,600., I mean close enough.

But what is interesting, is that they somehow missed entirely the grand times two I won at the two subsequent sessions. But I am sure those pit bosses at those last two sessions turned in my play as it is because of all that play over six nights that they comp'ed that 1200 square foot wrap around terrace suite, all the food and even all the spa/massage/treatments, and entered me into the Baccarat tournament free. I just wonder how the pit bosses could have missed the two grand I walked from the table with those last two sessions.

All the pit bosses also missed all the chips I tipped out. Evidently, the first three sessions the pit bosses simply looked at what chips I walked with, and got it right, within a couple hundred dollars, but didn't bother to consider what their table was missing - all the chips that had ended up in the dealer's toke box via my dealer side bets. And somehow they also had missed the two yellows I had taken from the last two sessions.

I always knew that these win/loss statements were not entirely accurate over a decade ago, but I figured that these days they were closer to 100% right on. Evidently not so. I'd say that they are often close to 100% right, but clearly not always so.

And this explains also why you will never get a W2G for table games winnings - no one is able to attest under penalty of perjury that you won exactly that amount. So while those three casinos have me down for about a 76K win, the actual number is higher.

 

Honestly I would have thought that at the majors the bigger chips would all have RFID tags embedded in them and the tables would have read sensors at each station to do a live accurate count after each play, or whenever a color up/leave is done.

Maybe the tech isn't there yet or the accuracy isn't sharp enough to make a pit boss eyeballing the stacks obsolete, but I'm surprised they missed a significant portion of your play.

 

It surprised me too that they missed my winning two yellow chips, one per session.

As far as the chips, the $5000. and higher Baccarat chips at the Wynn/Encore have a serial number on them. (I couldn't find a pic of Wynn chips from my recent play, but I do post some pics of other chips below.) But - what this serial number is good for, I couldn't tell you. Whether the Wynn really knows who has what exact $5K chip at any given moment, is unclear.

There is no serial number on the $5000. or even $25,000 Baccarat chips at the Cosmopolitan, and at the Palms, I haven't handled a $25K Baccarat chip but their $5K Baccarat chips not only have no serial number but even come across as rather phony - flimsy in weight, and unimpressive in coloring.

Same with Treasure Island $5K chips, no special marking, no serial numbers.

As far as RFID or serial number tracing, a friend of mine says that he had two $5000. WYNN chips and some other property stolen from his room at the Cosmopolitan last year. He filed a report with the hotel and he was led to believe that the Wynn was going to trace them from his casino tableside win to show that they were never cashed and to reimburse him, but when push came to shove the Wynn casino did not help him or reimburse him and all he got back was a statutorily capped $1500. payout from the Cosmo hotel's insurance carrier ($750. for the chips stolen, and $750. for his personal property stolen). This leads me to believe that RFID is not as much a factor in casinos as one would think.

Also, whenever I am playing, the pit bosses seem to be very fanatical about keeping track of my bigger bets and entering them into their screens, and also pretty strict about recording exactly how many chips I walk from the table with, which makes me wonder how they missed the two yellow chip wins, but also convinces me that that bet tracking is done visually not via any RFID. Whenever I make a huge bet after I am done with the afterglow of winning it, I start crowing at the pit boss to remind him to be sure to enter that huge bet into their system. It's more of a ritualized comedy routine than anything else - I bet a huge stack of yellows, I win, and then I start joking about making sure they log the bet, or make some joke about how I want a "discount" on the commission "for this bet only" if I won on the Bank. Another joke I love tossing out there is when I haven't opened my sixth card yet on a situation where the opposing side has already hit to zero. "I'll take five hundred to walk!" I quip, referring to how much I'll take on a discounted basis if the casino will just pay me now to not even look at my cards, versus opening, winning, and getting paid my full bet. In all my years of play, only one pit boss, years ago, has picked up on it - declaring, "I'll give you five hundred to walk!" after the other side had hit to zero on a thousand dollar bet of mine, and before I had a chance to look at my draw or even say a word. The guy must have been standing there the whole shoe, waiting for his chance to toss my own line back at me.









Take a look also at this article:
https://www.rollingstone.com/cultur...as-biggest-casino-and-almost-got-away-105349/
it's quite a great read, and shows how hard it is to trace chips.

When the story first came out, it was put out there
https://singularityhub.com/2011/02/12/1-5m-robbery-of-bellagio-casino-foiled-thanks-to-rfid-chips/
that all of the stolen chips were RFID deactivated, but the subsequent 2016 article I posted above from Rolling Stone, makes clear otherwise.
By the way, that article mentions that "Somewhere deep in the Bellagio’s computer system was a list of all the men and women who had ever gambled high enough stakes to have legitimately won so many big chips" and my name is on that list, as there was one trip in particular where I amassed a Baccarat win over a period of days of twelve of these $25,000. "melons" is what I called them, due to their color at that time that I was winning them right and left in my very high rolling days (early 2000s).

 

All right here we go again. I posted video of some of the 2019 and 2020 WINS here
https://www.gamblingforums.com/threads/the-adventures-of-mdawg.17775/page-2#post-92725
2020 (to date) Cosmo: 20,600
2019 Palms: 11,400
2019 Wynn: 44,125.

---

AND NOW, by popular demand (someone asked for this), here are the rest:
2019 Cosmo: 11,150
2018 Cosmo: 3850
2019 T.I.: 48,350
2018 T.I.: 2200

As I explain in the video, I went to Cosmo only once in 2018 (this was the year I started up playing again, and our first trip of the year to Vegas was in September as I recall - hadn't played for about a decade - decade or so hiatus), and as I described in one of my WOV posts before we even actually stayed at Cosmo and soon after I got my line there, I went in and dumped three grand at this 6:5 BJ table before I even realized that it was a 6:5. So then at some point after that we checked in to the Cosmo, and I won seven grand, which made the sum total for the year 3850 or so.

And then also, the reason the Cosmo 2019, win is only 11,150, is there was that ONE NIGHT I described at WOV where I DUMPED a bunch of money at Cosmo in one session, then WALKED all the way down the Strip to T.I., and won a gang in one session or so. This is why the T.I. win is 48,350 almost all of that was in one session, a "spite" win used partially to pay off Cosmo (I dumped a bunch at Cosmo that one session). Once I had the T.I. money to pay off Cosmo, I didn't really care about the one session loss at Cosmo.

But in any case, ALL wins, and this is on top of the maybe a hundred grand a year these casinos are comp'ing us for the full RFB treatment, spa comps and events. Hell I even have a second barbecue at home now, a two thousand dollar job, and she has yet another pair of high end thousand dollar or so sunglasses, both courtesy of Steve Wynn. Or rather, courtesy of whoever his successor is. No, little things like that don't mean much, but when they come on top of WINNING, they actually do.

The point of all these corroborations - is that I post the TRUTH. It's much easier to post the truth play by play, than to make things up. I've been posting MDawg Adventures for two years now and if I were making things up I would have contradicted myself many times by now - I have not. And if you compare these win numbers with my stories going back two years, they should match.

 

According to this, just released yesterday, many Vegas casinos are looking to reopen as soon as April 17th:
https://travelzork.com/vegas-news-march-29-2020/
Included in this article are various notes about extensions on player card rewards.

When they reopen, if the casinos ban all smoking, that would be great!

But otherwise, the sort of thing described here as some international casinos reopen
https://www.wsj.com/articles/casino...-a-glimpse-of-the-future-in-macau-11585280952
-no drink service (no drinking or eating at the tables at all), players must wear masks and have their temperatures checked upon entry and perhaps regularly, doesn't sound like so much fun. Players must also stay away from each other and the numbers allowed at each table are limited.

However players having to stay away from each other wouldn't bother me - I generally prefer to play, especially Baccarat, alone.

In general though what they describe in Macau sounds like a downer. I think you'd really have to be desperate to gamble to deal with all that. I'd pass.

 

Back then, (by back then I mean before I took about a decade hiatus), when I was playing really big, the way I wound up over all ahead is that I kept my money at risk pretty consistent at $20,000. I had one trip where I got them for just a tiny bit under a half million, and more than a few trips when I won over a $100,000. I had a few trips where I won around $60,000. The rest of the trips I'd either win around twenty or lose the full twenty, these were mixed, and more or less cancelled out. They just never managed to get their win money back from me, and when I quit because I had too many opportunities in real life I needed to pursue and couldn't keep spending so much time in Vegas/Tahoe, I was very much ahead. I also didn't really like the stress of the high average bet action, another reason I gave it up. I did miss it for about a year, but after a year had passed by I really didn't think about much, if at all. And we kept going to Vegas and Tahoe but I never gambled a penny until 2018, when I started up again.

Back then too, the value of the comps alone was probably a couple hundred grand a year. But, it was my entourage of friends and my gfs who enjoyed most of that, I just cared about winning. Back then I was on a plane to Vegas or Tahoe every other week, or just stayed there for a month and a half and didn't come back.

A lot of my friends were amazed that I could have kept going to Vegas after I quit and not gambled, but I am very disciplined and once I make my mind up about something I follow it. Same goes for how I play today. Very disciplined.

This past couple years I haven't had the huge wins but I haven't had any losses yet either.

I like to write about my past. Even if no one ever read a word, it still is fun to relive by writing.

 

Just received an email from Wynn about how they are accepting reservations for anytime after April 17th, offering cook-at-home tips from Chef David Walzog, and a link to an online portal walk through Wynn to show off the resort and its art.

Mentions that they are donating all this money to the community, too.

 

Perfect, thanks for posting the rule sheet and filling in the blanks...excellent information.

 

Vegas resorts were booking for April 18th, but obviously that's not happening. May 1st is the new date.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/las-vegas-resorts-already-booking-185351462.html

It occurs to me that resorts that planned to be closed during this period anyway, such as the Hard Rock for its transformation to a Virgin resort, and Resorts World, are the only winners in Vegas right now, assuming they are able to keep construction going.

We're hurting over the Vegas office building we closed escrow on not so long before this mess started.

It's empty, of course, and we can't even get a contractor to complete tenant improvements at the moment.

We (meaning my one partner and I, he maintains a Vegas residence) had planned on its being empty for a while, but the timeline would have included tenant improvements being on schedule for completion soon. We actually had (verbal) commitments for all of its 16,000 or so square feet but all dropped out.

The long term plan remains to develop the parking lot (total lot size about 3 acres) into an apartment complex. The zoning allows it.

We bought it well below market (partly because it was unoccupied - anchor tenant had moved out) and it was a cash deal, so we have no one breathing down our necks, but no income coming in anytime soon either.


Also of the properties I own locally, it remains to be seen whether my residential tenants will pay the rent at the end of the month. When I spoke to them a couple weeks ago they said no problem, but that was before Cali was shut down. I'm considering maybe applying some of their rent, if unpaid for April, to their security deposits and lowering their security deposits, but I don't want to propose that unless I must.


Due to factors such as the above, I would assume that especially income / investment properties are not so much in demand right now, and the prices should drop, at least temporarily.

 

I think we're looking at a solid month before Vegas reopens. And I don't think I'd want to be one of the first to pile back in anyway. Looks like Vegas is going to get at least a short term respite from MDawg's pillaging them for lucre.

 

If you are undercapitalized in a casino, then at best you'll be able to flat bet - won't have the money to vary your bet. And we know that flat betting is a sure loser no matter what you are doing, counting cards at BJ, or whatever. And the same applies, in a way, at the stock market, with trading. If you are undercapitalized, you'll be able to buy only one "chunk" (lot) of shares, versus being able to average in, and your chances of winning will be lowered. This could be somewhat compared to flat betting (one bite - one bet at the stock only, versus multiple).

 

I moved this to my thread.

If it wasn't clear, essentially casinos want you to deposit your large wins with them, versus cash them out. For a credit line player like me (all my lines are $50,000. USD each) that means that when I have a win over about 10,000. versus cashing it out, I just hold on to the chips until the end of the trip, then convert them to a casino check or ask for a bank wire to my bank account at home.

Whenever I have tried to cash out too much winnings mid-trip, they have threatened to close my credit line temporarily, stating that "you don't need a credit line right now with all that money you won!" Of course what they really mean, is, Please deposit all that with us so that if you get on a bad run, you'll be more likely to lose it all. Think about it, if I have say thirty five thousand in chip winnings locked up in the hotel or room safe, and I am playing with an open $50K line, really, all they have that they can get from me is $15K, at least at that moment. If I get on a really bad run and lose it all, by the time I think about going to get my chips, I might have cooled down and decided to stop playing. At least, this is their theory - I'm actually a very disciplined player and I don't just keep drawing if on a losing streak, but they don't know that. Anyway, their hope is that I will deposit the winnings, say, the $35K, now have $85K available, and keep losing, quickly! even after I lose the $35K.

As far as HOW you get a credit line at a Nevada casino, I could write a book on that, but basically you must have good personal credit, good casino credit (good history of repayments of casino credit lines), and a high enough average balance in your bank account over at least the last 90 days to substantiate the requested line.

 

Thanks I appreciate the information, as per usual it was a good informative read. And thanks for moving post here as it’s more relevant here, and can remain in context with further questions, answers and discussions. Cheers

 

Everyone who has a credit line has a cage account in that funds, chips, whatever may be deposited into the account for use on top of the credit line but this may be done only at the cage, at least that is the only way it works in Nevada casinos.

 

Hi MDawg,
Thank you for sharing your successful trip reports and side stories. Quite entertaining.

I have a question for you:
Rolex: I'm looking at my 1st Rolex ever. Been thinking about it hard & been saving for it.
I'm debating between a used Daytona and a grand new DateJust. Budget is $12-$15k.
Also I plan to have only ONE Rolex (quite a luxury item).
I know it's personal reference (you mentioned you like factory not aftermarket) and you can't tell for me.
But I still want to hear your perspective on this.... Thanks.

I'll have another post to discuss about your Diary... ​

 

Hi MDawg,
Your gambling success is rare. It's a LOT harder to be successful in gambling than any other type of business ventures.
Since I'm trying to become good at it too, let's me try to dissect your success:

I. About you, MDawg:
Let me guess:
You're a successful lawyer/businessman. A multi-millionaire at that. Caucasian, in your 50s.
Well dressed, well groomed. Into luxury personal items and other high-end lifestyles.
Married to a beautiful wife (got hints from your waitresses' assessments). More importantly, a supporting wife.
You're CONFIDENT and extremely DISCIPLINE. (Not just in gambling but in life in general).
---> You pretty much have the backing of your family on gambling because of who you are, and your past success.
YOU FEEL GOOD about your life.

II. About your gambling:
-You have an innate gambling prowess. Somebody just got "IT" and it's you.
-That + early success (maybe more luck at early stage of your gambling career) gives you a strong foundation to build upon.
KEY reasons:
-You never let the "Greed" monster takes control of you <-- which led to many downfalls, but not you.
-You never really become addicted to gambling. (A decade away is amazing, hard to believe esp. you were that successful).
-Extremely DISCIPLINED. <--We say this all the time, but hardly anyone really have the discipline like you do.
-Be able to cut losses on losing sessions and maximize profits on winning ones:
KNOW WHEN TO QUIT. (Both when losing and winning).
….

Ok, I'll stop here. Or else other posters will say I'm kissing your arse lol

Conclusion:
All in all, I think you have many attributes, characteristics and qualities of a truly successful businessman (gambling is somewhat of a business venture for you). I really wish that I can learn more from you.
I hope you continue to have success on your gambling career and continue to share with us. Quite refreshing... Thanks in advance.

 

Play2Win,

Great post. No further comment .


ND

 

I do believe that gambling requires more discipline than most other "enterprises" that you may consider. Stock trading too
https://www.gamblingforums.com/threads/mdawgs-stock-trading-adventures.18102/page-2#post-94169

Rolex. We're talking modern Rolex here, not vintage:
If you plan to spend between 12 - 15K, I would spend it on a S/S Daytona.

If you buy a S/S Datejust, buy a pre-owned one, and then you won't be spending 12 - 15K on it - you should be able to get it for a lot less, especially if it is a 36mm model, but even one of the newest 41mm models still will come in under $10K. I would suggest the stainless model with the 18K white gold bezel.

For the S/S Daytona, new or used, the price is about the same. That particular model is just hard to get, which is why it holds its value so well. You won't be able to get the newest stainless Daytona with the ceramic bezel for that 12 - 15K, but you might be able to find a nice 116520 with a stainless bezel.

You could also buy an older, used two tone (18K and stainless) Daytona for that 12 - 15K. For whatever reason these two tones do not hold their value as well as the stainless.

I posted a video of some of my watches in this thread.

The main advantage of the stainless is that you may wear it every day without much worry of scratching - precious metals scratch quite easily. There are periods when I just don't care and wear a solid gold or solid platinum watch all day long, but there is no way to avoid scratching it.

 

By the way, don't ever buy or wear a fake Rolex. Besides the fact that it supports nefarious underworld counterfeiters, the bottom line is that you can fake the watch, but you can't fake how it makes you feel.

(To wear the real thing).

And this is what many don't "get" about why anyone would spend big money on a watch. It just feels good. It makes you feel powerful. It also lets your peer group, who are also wearing nice watches, know that you are with them.

One problem though, as with any other habit, is that as your success grows, your taste in time pieces elevates. Eventually you'll find that while a Rolex is fantastic, and nothing wrong with a Rolex, that there are other watches that are actually higher on the totem pole.

Still, over all, for durability and presence, a Rolex is top notch.