I just got an email from the Golden Nugget about some slot tournament, and it got me thinking: Is there any actual strategy that one can employ? The only strategy I can come up with is to push the button as fast as possible. Never understood it... you might as well by a lottery ticket with the entry fee.

no entry fee = good slot tourney

strategy = push button very fast

if it is a video poker tourney, you "might" stray from perfect strategy to maximize the possibility of high paying hands (like royals). Once again, with Video Poker, speed is King.

as baccarat_king said, press button really fast, schedule for the early rounds to get it over with early and then just enjoy the rest of the day. Any winnings is a bonus.

strategy = push button very fast


What if one of your first couple of plays is a winner so you are up even a few units? Are you better off stopping at that point? If you get up at all, do you have a chance of winning something? Is there a minimum number of plays you have to make to be a winner in a tournament?

What if one of your first couple of plays is a winner so you are up even a few units? Are you better off stopping at that point? If you get up at all, do you have a chance of winning something? Is there a minimum number of plays you have to make to be a winner in a tournament?

Slot tournaments are timed, usually 10 minutes so you would want to get in as many spins as you can during the 10 minutes. Everyone else will be furiously pushing the spin button so the more you spin the higher point total you'll have. Some tournaments do give consolation prizes for the lowest scores but if they see that you are not really putting in an effort then they'll disqualify you. Video poker tournaments have a set number of credits to play within a 20 minute period.

My stragety so far has been to stay away. I can honestly say it has worked every time, I HAVE NEVER LOST! (I never win either but I find it helpful to overlook that little bit of info).

Good Luck!

I just got an email about some slot tournament, and it got me thinking: Is there any actual strategy that one can employ?

1. Get offer for free slot tournament in mail.
2. Send wife (who would otherwise be dumping coins into machines).
3. Do something fun (e.g. craps, blackjack or golf) while wife pushes buttons as fast as possible.
4. Eat free dinner at awards ceremony.

What if one of your first couple of plays is a winner so you are up even a few units? Are you better off stopping at that point? If you get up at all, do you have a chance of winning something? Is there a minimum number of plays you have to make to be a winner in a tournament?

You are thinking that you "spend" credits to play. You don't. The spins are free and the wins just accumulate.

QL

I just don't understand...
What is the appeal of slot tournaments?

I just don't understand...
What is the appeal of slot tournaments?

Assuming you have been offered a freeroll entry in a slot tournament, the expected value (EV) thereof = $((total prize pool/# of entrants)+any associated free room/food/beverage comps+EV of money contestant would have lost playing slots during same time period).

Mrs. kaukau and I are just about getting ready to depart from JHM for LAS and the Las Vegas Club's Uno de Mayo slot tournament.

$10,000 Prize Money
Free Entry
3 comp room nights

1st Place: $3,000
2nd Place: $1,500
3rd Place: $750
4th Place: $500
5th Place: $250
6th-15th: $150 each
16th-30th: $100 each
31st-50th: $50 each

Sunday April 29: Registration
Monday April 30: Round 1 @ 9:00am; Round 2 @ 2:00pm
Tuesday May 1: Round 3 @ 9:00am; Prize Presentation @ 9:00pm

Wish us luck, and if you're in LV, please join us and a bunch of fun-loving FTers Wednesday night at Swish! on W. Sahara for the Shabu Shabu DO! Click here: http://flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=685985

no entry fee = good slot tourney

strategy = push button very fast

if it is a video poker tourney, you "might" stray from perfect strategy to maximize the possibility of high paying hands (like royals). Once again, with Video Poker, speed is King.

Mathematically, I'm not sure that makes sense. The highest paying hands don't pay that high (a royal is 750 -- I guy next to me hit a royal, and wound up finishing 40th. I had no big hands, and finished 11th.).

Mrs. kaukau and I are just about getting ready to depart from JHM for LAS and the Las Vegas Club's Uno de Mayo slot tournament.

$10,000 Prize Money
Free Entry
3 comp room nights

1st Place: $3,000
2nd Place: $1,500
3rd Place: $750
4th Place: $500
5th Place: $250
6th-15th: $150 each
16th-30th: $100 each
31st-50th: $50 each

Sunday April 29: Registration
Monday April 30: Round 1 @ 9:00am; Round 2 @ 2:00pm
Tuesday May 1: Round 3 @ 9:00am; Prize Presentation @ 9:00pm

Wish us luck, and if you're in LV, please join us and a bunch of fun-loving FTers Wednesday night at Swish! on W. Sahara for the Shabu Shabu DO! Click here: http://flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=685985

Good luck, and eat well :).

As long as the slot tourneys are free, they are mindless fun. (Never pay to get into one!)

If it is just a typical three-wheel slot, press that button like a madman and don't stop. Often you have unlimited coins to be used in a certain amount of time - though sometimes they too have limits.

If it is video poker, you usually have a certain amount of "money" to spend, so you don't have to play wild and fast - slow down a bit, play smart and try to win some bigger sums of money.

Generally, the winners are those who are, well, lucky - they hit the jackpot one or more times on the slots, or get a Royal Flush or two on the video poker. I doubt there is much strategy that goes into it other than speed (for simple slots) or playing smart (for video poker).

Still - fun to play the slot tourneys and it kills some time - and sometimes it give you an insight that even if you had put real money in the machine, the results would be pretty dismal - keep that lesson in mind the next time you want to go to the ATM and pull out more money because your daily budget is gone after 20 minutes.

Slot tournements involve playing on specially programmed machines, where nearly every play is a win. From the moment you press play for the first time the machine counts down and stops after a pre-determined amount of time, usually 10 or 15 minutes. Since the time is fixed the faster you press play the higher your potential score. Some tournements have multiple rounds, sometimes separate round prizes are offered. If you don't pay an entrance fee and the room is comped (up front) you have little to lose except the playing time. Why do the casinos have these? Most likely to attract their "regular" players to come and hopefully they will gamble (and lose:rolleyes: ) The prize structure can be quite high, the total pot reaching well over $100,000 with top prizes over $50,000--well worth a free entry.
[Once I had an invite to a tourn. at mgm, where the highest score got top prize but the 83 got 2nd prize and the other prizes were randomly scattered.]

Mrs. kaukau and I are just about getting ready to depart from JHM for LAS and the Las Vegas Club's Uno de Mayo slot tournament.

$10,000 Prize Money
Free Entry
3 comp room nights

1st Place: $3,000
2nd Place: $1,500
3rd Place: $750
4th Place: $500
5th Place: $250
6th-15th: $150 each
16th-30th: $100 each
31st-50th: $50 each

Sunday April 29: Registration
Monday April 30: Round 1 @ 9:00am; Round 2 @ 2:00pm
Tuesday May 1: Round 3 @ 9:00am; Prize Presentation @ 9:00pm

Wish us luck, and if you're in LV, please join us and a bunch of fun-loving FTers Wednesday night at Swish! on W. Sahara for the Shabu Shabu DO! Click here: http://flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=685985


Tourney's over! Mrs. kaukau finished 54th - just barely out of the money. I didn't come close.

I won $100 and $50 in my first two tournaments a few years ago, nothing since. :(

I won $100 and $50 in my first two tournaments a few years ago, nothing since. :(

Video poker -- won $300, $2000 (3rd place, missed $5000 by 5 points), $100 and $300 -- in four tries, never finished out of the money.