Atlantic City sucks!

Preston

Well-Known Member
#1
Is it me, or does Atlantic City suck?

Most of the games there are 8 deck or CSM. The place is fucking cold, mostly ghetto and the only ways to get there are New Jersey's pain in the ass toll roads and the gas stations where you can't even pump your own gas.

The only playable game is Borgata. In fact, that's the only casino there I consider to be worth my time.

And I hate Donald Trump too, and seeing his name on a quarter of the buildings pisses me off further.
 
#2
It does suck, but it is playable.

The conditions around the city and in the casinos I find to be awful. People are sullen and vulgar and this includes the dealers. However there are a lot of weak dealers that can be exploited through mispays, misunderstanding of the rules of the game (especially the BJ derivatives and carnival games) and poor card-handling skills.

In an environment like AC, 6D vs. 8D means jack-diddly-squat, so don't obsess with the Borgata but instead look all over the city for good pen if you are straight counting, and by all means concentrate on getting into games when you have good counts and out of games when you have bad ones. That's the key. There is no heat, in fact banning players is prohibited by law, so you can stand around all you want waiting for your count and then jump in.

Where did you see CSM's?
 

21forme

Well-Known Member
#3
Preston said:
Is it me, or does Atlantic City suck?

The place is fucking cold, mostly ghetto and the only ways to get there are New Jersey's pain in the ass toll roads and the gas stations where you can't even pump your own gas.
Yes, it's cold in the winter, and hot and humid in the summer. So you should be glad someone else is pumping your gas. Speaking of gas, you can't beat Joisey prices. I paid $1.93/gal yesterday on Atlantic Ave., just before getting back on the AC Expwy. BTW, I don't pay tolls, I use an EZPass :D

Does it suck? Nah. It keeps me entertained. That's all that matters.
 
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Preston

Well-Known Member
#4
I got EZPass too :) probably burned most of my account balance driving through this state.

Monkey --

I hear you about the sullen ploppies and dealers. I do find the dealers to be better than those in Vegas, though. I do like to talk to the dealer and just shoot the shit with them, but in Vegas every dealer we had was a douche or barely spoke English, with the exception of one. but I did get a dealer who literally paid me 2 to 1 on an insurance bet and forgot to take my initial wager away. :)

I was in AC a few months ago when I saw the CSM's. I don't remember specifically which casinos I saw them in, but I remember them being in a couple of them. I remember Borgata being my favorite place there and that is where I went. The World Poker Tour was in town this weekend with a $10k buy-in tourney and the famous players from Vegas were playing there. I got my picture taken with Scotty Nguyen. :)

Wonging proved to be a pain in the ass though, so I stuck to jumping in at the top of a shuffle and wonging out when the count went negative.
 
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#5
You may have been confusing the shufflemonkeys they have at Trump Marina and the lower stakes area of Borgata with CSM's. According to CBJN there were no CSM's int he city as of January. All the 6:5 SD games in town also use shufflemonkeys, if I remember correctly.

Wonging out is perfectly good strategy and that's what I usually use. Pain in the ass is right, this game is never easy. But I agree that Borgata has the nicest atmosphere.
 

shadroch

Well-Known Member
#6
Yes,the Jersey Shore is cold in the winter. And dark at night.
How unexpected. I used to go there weekly from NYC,and hardly ever drove.
Rode the Greyhound,slept or read on the bus and got casino bonuses that came close to paying for the trip.It used to run me about $7 a visit roundtrip. Its gone up a bit but Tropicana has a buy ten,get one free program that saves you even more.
A bunch of good places to eat,easy comps and friendly staff.
Yes,its mostly 8 decks,but not all 8 deck games are equal.
If you are there to gamble,stay out of the ghetto. Its easy enough to avoid.In fact,you have to go out of your way to even see the rough neighborhoods these days.And they are nothing compared to North Las Vegas,or the wrong side of Biloxi.
 

ChefJJ

Well-Known Member
#7
Hey Shadrock,

Where are your favorite haunts in AC? We're heading there for the first time since moving out this way in a couple of weeks. Obviously, the Borgata sounds like a good place, but what others do you prefer?

Thanks
 

shadroch

Well-Known Member
#8
I used to play BJ at the Sands,but its gone now.
I'm heading down tomorrow to build up my comps at the Showboat,but BJ there is very poor.However,its 5X points day,I have $58 in cashback,$50 in free slot play and they will add $50 in comps as soon as I swipe my card in the kiosk. My GF has the same,except a bit less cash.
They usually give 1 reward point for every $5 you cycle in slots,or $10 in video poker.On a 5X day,its 1/5th the regular days.
An afternoon of slow video poker and a bit of slots will add about $75 to our comp balance,just about enough to offset our losses,but we'll be using their money to begin with.Then we'll have a nice buffet dinner( using a postcard,so it doesn't come off our comp balance)take in the 8PM Rat Pack show and head back to NYC.
Some people like to laugh at machine players,but the fact of the matter is that casinos comp a 25 cent VP player better than a green chipper,and if you know how to work the system,you get the best of both worlds.
 

ScottH

Well-Known Member
#9
shadroch said:
I used to play BJ at the Sands,but its gone now.
I'm heading down tomorrow to build up my comps at the Showboat,but BJ there is very poor.However,its 5X points day,I have $58 in cashback,$50 in free slot play and they will add $50 in comps as soon as I swipe my card in the kiosk. My GF has the same,except a bit less cash.
They usually give 1 reward point for every $5 you cycle in slots,or $10 in video poker.On a 5X day,its 1/5th the regular days.
An afternoon of slow video poker and a bit of slots will add about $75 to our comp balance,just about enough to offset our losses,but we'll be using their money to begin with.Then we'll have a nice buffet dinner( using a postcard,so it doesn't come off our comp balance)take in the 8PM Rat Pack show and head back to NYC.
Some people like to laugh at machine players,but the fact of the matter is that casinos comp a 25 cent VP player better than a green chipper,and if you know how to work the system,you get the best of both worlds.
5X points day sounds pretty sweet. You could play a spread low enough to play a break-even game and just make money from the comps. Or find a full-pay dueces wild machine and sit there all day.

I always timed the visits to my casino on double points days and it really helped build comps. Since I've left they now have triple point days. But 5X days would be just great!
 

shadroch

Well-Known Member
#10
It would be great if such a thing as FPDW existed in AC,but it doesn't. Even NSUDW is extinct.
With the dinner and show,its hard to lose much on a 3X or 5X day.
 
#11
Just keep in mind that the variance in VP is enormous compared to BJ. Until you get a RF, you are playing a losing game even with generous comps. And if you are playing at the 50 cent level or higher, Uncle Sam is going to want a share of your RF.

For comp building, I'd recommend either full-pay JoB or BP, because they pay 2:1 for two pair. This can allow you to get a lot of action in per drop and action is what you get comped for. Pick 'em is great for this too, if you can find the 99.9% pay table anywhere.
 

ScottH

Well-Known Member
#12
shadroch said:
It would be great if such a thing as FPDW existed in AC,but it doesn't. Even NSUDW is extinct.
With the dinner and show,its hard to lose much on a 3X or 5X day.
Remember that casino with the cashable comps and 90% penetration double deck game? Oh yeah, they have a couple full-pay dueces wild VP machines. Also, every once in a while they have a killer promotion. This is what I meant by having oppurtunities that you can't find in Vegas. There just aren't very many AP's looking around to eat up the good oppurtunities, and for good reason, in the middle of nowhere is not the place to play for any real money. But for me, there are some good oppurtunites, for low stakes.
 

jetace

Well-Known Member
#13
21forme said:
Yes, it's cold in the winter, and hot and humid in the summer. So you should be glad someone else is pumping your gas. Speaking of gas, you can't beat Joisey prices. I paid $1.93/gal yesterday on Atlantic Ave., just before getting back on the AC Expwy. BTW, I don't pay tolls, I use an EZPass :D

Does it suck? Nah. It keeps me entertained. That's all that matters.
Under $2 a gallon??? I'm Jealous!!!
 
#14
Comps?

Shadroch, how much VP do you play to the the level of comps you get, and is it all VP or do you play slots? And do they have quarter FP JoB there? I've only seen it for dollars, but I don't usually pay much attention to VP.

As for AC in general, it really does suck-- primarily due to the crowded conditions. I like to play 2 hands at all times and have a hell of a time being able to do that at the $10 tables. However, there are some good games, if you know where to go. I got 85%+ pen on a recent trip to one of the off-the-boardwalk stores, and from several different dealers. Also, don't forget that there is a non-Borgata store with almost all 6-deck games-- tables that are way less crowded, as well. Keep your eyes peeled!
 

shadroch

Well-Known Member
#15
I play slots- but only with the cash back I recieve and whatever Free slot play they give me. Recently its been between $50 and $75 a day in free play,not including cashback.But I only play on 3X or better days.I also have another way of building comps that I won't discuss on a public board,or to anyone I don't know fairly well.But its nothing that anyone can't do,if they thought about it.
The point is to make at least Platinum level at Harrahs. This will get you pretty much unlimited free rooms(except Sat nights),line passs for eating and some discounted airfares. You also will get invites to many tournaments that have multiple payouts and cost you nothing.
You need to accumalate 4,000 regular points to achieve this status.Once you do,you have it for two years.
They also have what they call Diamond in a Day.Its usually 10,000 points to reach Diamond,but if you get 4,000 in a gaming day they give you special status.This entitles you to suites,VIP rooms with free drinks and food,and much,much more.Playing a FP VP machine,you can do Diamond in a Day with an expected loss of about $500,less if you get a little lucky.But it will give you about $25,000 in comps if you use them frequently.
 
#16
Thanks for the info, Shadroch. Does platinum status get offers in Vegas as well? AC is a day trip for me, so that would be much more valuable to me. Also, do you know if there's any kind of 'platinum in a day'? I don't think that diamond would be that much more valuable than platinum for me, and even the 4000 points might be more than I could swing at my bankroll.
 

shadroch

Well-Known Member
#17
The reason I gamble in Harrahs is that Platinum or Diamond status is good worldwide.
I read recently on the LVA board about someone who did a platinum in a day,but they were extremely short on details.I sent Harrahs an email asking about this, They generally anwer,but it can take week or two.
You get 1 point for every $5 in slots or $10 in VP.
If you go twice a month,you need to average about 180 points a trip.
My latest trip I got 454 points without using more than $60 of my own money,but I had a nice run on a machine,getting well more bonuses than I should have.
 

ScottH

Well-Known Member
#18
shadroch said:
I play slots- but only with the cash back I recieve and whatever Free slot play they give me. Recently its been between $50 and $75 a day in free play,not including cashback.But I only play on 3X or better days.I also have another way of building comps that I won't discuss on a public board,or to anyone I don't know fairly well.But its nothing that anyone can't do,if they thought about it.
The point is to make at least Platinum level at Harrahs. This will get you pretty much unlimited free rooms(except Sat nights),line passs for eating and some discounted airfares. You also will get invites to many tournaments that have multiple payouts and cost you nothing.
You need to accumalate 4,000 regular points to achieve this status.Once you do,you have it for two years.
They also have what they call Diamond in a Day.Its usually 10,000 points to reach Diamond,but if you get 4,000 in a gaming day they give you special status.This entitles you to suites,VIP rooms with free drinks and food,and much,much more.Playing a FP VP machine,you can do Diamond in a Day with an expected loss of about $500,less if you get a little lucky.But it will give you about $25,000 in comps if you use them frequently.
I understand playing with free slot play, but why would you play with the cash back? You can try to rationalize by saying it was earned through slot play, so use it on slot play, but using cashback from slots is just like using your own money to go play. Cash is cash, why put it into a slot? You might as well just give it to the casino.

Of course you wont hear me asking why you use free slot play, but using cash is not the AP move.
 

shadroch

Well-Known Member
#19
Getting to,and maintaining Diamond Status is much more of an AP play than worrying about keeping the cash back.My rooms for Monday and Tuesday would have been 168.00,my meals and drinks were at least another $100,Rat Pack tickets were $70 each.
My cost $22 in taxes and about $30 in tips.
Were I able to play enough using only the free play I recieved to maintain my status,it would be great,but until then,I do what I need to do to keep my comps coming.Coming up I have three nights at Paris,two nights down at Harrahs Laughlin,and then back to Vegas for three night at Harrahs.Thats about $1,000 worth of rooms comped and I'll be snacking in the Diamond lounges most days.
Sometimes you have to spend a little to get a lot.
 
#20
Hey any news on when they are going to finish that rail link between NYC and AC? What a pleasure that will be! I'll have to find a way to get from GST to Penn to use it but it will still be a so much better trip than the bus.
 
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