Green Dice at Midnight

What is your gambling-related superstition?

“I will stand on my head to beat all deals”. That was a sales line that a man named Cal Worthington once used in his TV commercials to try to get people to come down to his lot and buy a car. I don’t know if he ever actually stood on his head for anyone. I doubt it. It was just something to say to get our attention. It worked. His dealership expanded to several states.

All he really had to do to beat any deal was sell a car for a penny less than the dealer across the street.

That line worked better for Cal than any of the truly meaningless things some of us do to try to get a table game or slot machine to pay off. I see people tapping screens, hitting them, rubbing them, blowing smoke on them, and more, in the hope of conjuring up a jackpot from an otherwise reluctant machine. Where in the world anyone gets the idea that might work is beyond me.

An old friend, Neal, insisted that finding a craps table that offered a chance to play green dice at midnight would bring good luck. We never found any, but it wouldn’t have mattered.

Aristocrat Gaming provides us with many the most played machines on casino floors today, including the extremely popular line of Buffalo machines. Allow me to quote directly from a page on Aristocrat's web site:

All of Aristocrat’s real money, gambling products are games of chance. This means that there are no playing methods or external factors that can have any effect whatsoever on whether players win or lose on a gaming machine. Each symbol that comes up is chosen randomly. It does not make a difference whether:

• You play a machine straight after someone else has had a big payout from it.

• You play a machine that has not had a big payout over a long period of time.

• You play at certain times of the day or night

• You play on certain days of the week or

• You press the buttons a certain way.

Gaming machines are designed purely to deliver a great entertainment experience for adults who enjoy games of chance.

Having said that, I understand that for some, superstitions or rituals are what makes playing fun for them. Like smoking and drinking while gambling. Some folks set themselves up quite comfortably in front of a machine, with their drink, ashtray, and cell phone positioned just so.

Far be it from me to suggest folks stop doing these things. OK, I could do without the cigarette smoke, and I stopped drinking in casinos years ago after my dad was slipped a mickey in his drink following a huge winning dice session - then escorted to his room to sleep it off - minus his winnings.

Do what makes it fun for you – but realize it’s only a game. It’s not whether you win or lose. It’s how you play. A very old saying, but truer than ever for gamblers.

Thanks for reading.

Send comments to jeff@NevadaPlayersClub.com.

More tips from Aristocrat:

> Resources Hub - Aristocrat

> All Aristocrat games and where to find them: Come Play Aristocrat

Aristocrat did not sponsor this message. As of this writing, they don’t even know we referenced them. We thank you for common sense comments, Aristocrat.