Is signing up for player's cards a no-no?

[Mimosine]

I just got a copy of American Caisno Guide and was dismayed to find that so many of the coupons in there require signing up for player's cards. From an aspiring AP's perspective, signing up for a player's card seems like a bad idea to me. in most of my life i prefer to remain as anonymous as possible... inside the casino even more so.

are there ways to sign up for them without using your real information, or do they typically require a driver's liscence?

are there 1 or 2 that are worth signing up for in Vegas?

 

[CarlB]

Player's card????

Like you I want to "remain as anonymous as possible". I took my first and only player's card last month because they were offering a free $5 bucks. I found out later a $10.00 buffet was free. In the mail two weeks later I got another $5 bucks and a $10.00 buffet free. So $30.00 ahead when I showed up one month later.


The card is like a time clock. punch in and then punch out. Worth 50 cents per hr and since I am putting over $200.00/hr thru the casino it is like a slap in the face. If you skip a neg shoe and come back later your clock is still running. Have played maybe 3 hrs total over two months there. .50 times 3 = 1.50. other perks 30.00. Total 31.50 that I would not have without the card, and I do not think the casino has a clue that I am an advantage player. ( I hope).

 

[EasyRhino]

Especially at the red-chip levels, the little comps and coupons are worth more than the gameplay itself.

From 4 local joints, I got about $100 a month in cash, slotplay, and match play coupons, and I was little more than a "warm body" by their standards. Plus I did a lot of damage in terms of free food, which is probably harder to get without a card. (The mailers at one place went from $5/week to $10/week a month after I was recorded with $100 bets one session.)

Hell, John Acasauga's Nugget in Reno sent me a $50 freechip in the mail a while back, and I had only been there once. (And I'm pretty sure they knew I was counting at the time!)

However, on the flip side, when blundering into a strange casino for the first time, you might want to avoid the player's card. Especially if you're playing aggressively. Especially if you don't have a feel for their heat. Especially if you don't need to be a regular at that place.

Why? Well, if you get backed while using a player's card, you've probably lost the ability to earn comps with that card any more (or worse, if they have your real name and feel like advertising it). But still, the risk of losing future comps is worth forgoing them on the first day.

I have not, for instance, requested to be rated at El Cortez.

Of course, they're going to ask you for a player card on that first session. And they're going to ask you again if you start flashing big money (by their standards). Hopefully by that point in the game, you have a slightly better feel for how they feel about you.

(Actually, in Vegas, I let the floor supervisor badger me into getting a card after I had lost a few hundred, and she came back to the table and told me that I already had one. Turns out the casino was owned by the same people as some other place I had been to, and didn't know it)

 

[shadroch]

Signing up for a card is a good thing.Even if you are a hi rolling Ap,sign up for the card. Just be discreet when using it.No rule says you need to use it all the time.

 

[TENNBEAR]

I have two players cards at two of the casino's I frequent the most, one with my middle name, and another without. If I have a good winning session I will simply buy-in at my next table with my other card. I have also bought-in with a freinds players card, after a winning session. This way I can work the comps to my advantage as well as disguise my winnings.

 

[Automatic Monkey]

Yes I like Rhino's way of putting it that it depends on what you play, where you play and how you play it. Foxwoods has no heat and comps table game players pretty well, and I walk out with a $100 gas card after every 8 hours of play. That's the same as a $100 bill and a significant portion of my EV, with no variance either. On the other hand, in Nevada where the heat is high, the comps are poor for BJ and I only go a few times a year anyway, there's no point in getting a player's card and there remains no casino in Nevada who knows who I am.

So I'd say if it's a local game with comps you can use, and you are playing shoe where you can accrue a lot of comps before being backed off, get the card. If not, don't.

 

[shadroch]

There are casinos in Vegas that give great offerings for signing up for their players cards. The Strat,for years,gave a 100% rebate on your first days slot losses,up to about $250. Under those circumstances,not playing slots is stupid. The Wynn recently offered two buffets(an $80 value) for a minimal amount of play. Many casinos give t-hirts,hats,buffets,ect,ect just for signing up and send discounted room postcards on a regular basis.
Pitbosses don't have x-ray vision. They have no way of knowing that you have joined the players club unless you hand them your card.

 

[21forme]

I recently hit the level for a premium card where I play most. No more long lines at check-in or the restaurants, etc. I haven't paid for a room or a meal since I started playing there. For me, the perks are worth it.

 

[Automatic Monkey]

There are casinos in Vegas that give great offerings for signing up for their players cards. The Strat,for years,gave a 100% rebate on your first days slot losses,up to about $250. Under those circumstances,not playing slots is stupid. The Wynn recently offered two buffets(an $80 value) for a minimal amount of play. Many casinos give t-hirts,hats,buffets,ect,ect just for signing up and send discounted room postcards on a regular basis.
Pitbosses don't have x-ray vision. They have no way of knowing that you have joined the players club unless you hand them your card.

Now that's a good idea, because a place like the Strat is a place where I'd never play BJ. So maybe picking a casino in each venue with offerings like that and easy room comps would be a good idea so you always have a place to stay, and it won't compromise your AP anonymity at all. I use the Trop in AC like that- the BJ is poor for counting but they have so much hotel space room comps are easy, and I give them a bunch of 9/6 JoB courtesy play (with cashback) to keep it coming.

One thing though, if someone remembers seeing you playing with a player's card and then you say "I don't have one" when asked and refuse to get one, they will know something is up.

 

[ScottH]

The Strat,for years,gave a 100% rebate on your first days slot losses,up to about $250.

That's a nice promo.