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What info goes in your gambling log?

Discussion in 'Casino Gaming' started by gambler, Aug 26, 2014.

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  1. gambler

    gambler VIP Whale

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    For years I've kept track of how much we take to Vegas, what we come home with, where we stayed and the cost of our air tickets. There always comes a time though when I regret not putting to paper a bunch of other details that I'd like to refer back to. So before this next trip, I want to get organized so I know what to record. Now that the time has come to create a proper log though, I'm stumped on what details to keep.

    So what goes in your gambling log? And how do you keep track in Vegas? Phone notes, paper notes or just memory when you get home?
     
  2. Hobofrank

    Hobofrank Prime Minister of Idiocracy

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    nothing, just like with hopping up my cars or buying gadgets?, if I really looked at it...I'd probably stop

    I don't want to look that close, unless it's a huge drain on real expenses of course
     
  3. PayTriple

    PayTriple VIP Whale

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    I'm with frank67, I don't keep details anymore.
    But I used to track EVERYTHING:
    Transportation costs (airfare, cabs/limos), meal costs, room extra charges, tips (to dealers and to waitresses, housekeeping, hosts) etc etc.
    I keep ALL my baccarat sheets, all dated with win/losses per shoe...I had hundreds and hundreds of these sheets.
    I was even tracking rolls in craps for a while!

    It came to the point where I realized that during my winning streaks, the baccarat shoes were all in my favor, and could last for many shoes in a row, while during losing streaks, the shoes were mostly not in my favor. There was nothing I could do about it, and these streaks were unpredictable. So I just stopped even recording the outcomes, and just count how many winning or losing bets I have in a row.

    I realized that NONE of this tracking gave me any more enjoyment of the games, and in fact, actually detracted because it caused me to stress out if I forgot something!

    So now I have a pre-fixed bankroll at the beginning of the year, and when I run out, I am done for the year, but if I am up or the bankroll survives a trip, then I get to go again!
     
  4. Joe

    Joe VIP Whale

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    I keep track of handpays, what casino, what machine. I also keep track of how much I left with and how much I came home with. Besides that, nothing.

    If ever audited, I could provide a gambling log.:wink2:
     
  5. tringlomane

    tringlomane STP Addicted Beer Snob

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    You'd think after what I tossed up yesterday, I'd keep a lot of notes. But not really. I keep only a rough record of wins/losses. We hop around too much. Since I got a good camera phone, I have been taking pics of most VP quads now. 100 since Sept. last year...lol
     
  6. wormhole

    wormhole VIP Whale

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    Never kept one. It never even occurred to me the first few years I gambled.
     
  7. boxofbirds

    boxofbirds Royally Flushed

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    Since 2013 (when I caught the BJ gambling bug) I've kept a gambling log. I take notes in the notepad app on my phone after I get up from a table or a machine. In my notes I record the date, the casino, the game, my buy in, and the amount of money I leave the game with. I also try to keep track of any tokes. If I play multiple slots in one day, or multiple table games sessions in one day I group them together by game in my notes. Sometime after my day at the local casino, or when I get back from Vegas I put my info into a Google spreadsheet. It is separated by type of game with columns for Date, Session Win/Loss, and Casino name. The Win/Loss column gets summed below for each game and the cumulative Win/Loss gets summed in another cell so I know my overall Win/Loss for the year. All the table games are separated out, but slots are all considered one game, and all video poker is considered one game.

    I used to also record comps received, and theo, but haven't kept up with that as much recently.
     
  8. VPDana

    VPDana High-Roller

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    I've never kept track of any Las Vegas trip related info, and probably never will. I use a pouch to keep all our travel documents, rental car info, hotel info, etc., and this pouch goes with us. After we get home, I don't empty it until I need it for our next trip. All previous info is then tossed. I know how much money we take and how much we bring home. Guess I'm not too big on the details.
     
  9. aaisack

    aaisack VIP Whale

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    I keep track of gambling pluses and minuses on a sheet of paper throughout the trip. That's about it, I keep planning and records to a minimum.
     
  10. Jordan

    Jordan Caveman

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    Now a days, sine every trip is a loss, I simply try and keep a mental note of what good restaurants we ate at :)
     
  11. ScubaStever

    ScubaStever Tourist

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    I log date, time, casino, what I am playing, machine number, denomination, what I buy in and what I cash out to get a win or loss. I consider each day a session. At the end of the day if I am a winner that Is considered income or if there are losses they are claimed as an itemized deduction up to the amount of the wins. Each day I start a new sheet.
     
  12. jamesxnj

    jamesxnj VIP Whale

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    I try to do a complete one every trip,using the notepads from the hotel room.A page a day,but usually that goes by the wayside after day 3..I pretty much remember wins per day,but it's the missing $ that goes out in tips and gift shop purchases,food $ I want to account for
     
  13. RockyBalboa

    RockyBalboa Front Line Winner

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    I have never kept a log - just what my trip bankroll looks like.

    I have seen my end of year W/L statements and a couple times it hurt to see it in print. So yeah...I prefer not to lol
     
  14. tringlomane

    tringlomane STP Addicted Beer Snob

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    It's pretty sobering at times. My best year in recent years might have been -$4 when barely played machines/table games at the time (live poker doesn't track w/l records). Considering what I have seen since then...maybe I should go back to live poker. :eek:
     
  15. VegasChic-

    VegasChic- VIP Whale

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    I have a journal that I keep for Vegas trips, and write it out similar to a trip report. I'll show what airline & cost, what comps I'm coming in on, and my bankroll that I'm leaving with. I play slots, and the money I take I presume I will lose. That said, I do track how many tier credits I earn at each property for the trip, which restaurants/food experiences I had and any notable experiences like shows, big wins, or places that I saw that I'd like to remember to try for next time. I'll include what I ended up paying at the backend after comps etc, and what amount of $$ I came home with.
    For me, a win/loss statement will keep track in the end, I'm doing it more to gauge how much coin-through I'm getting with my bankroll, and watching my comp offers to see if it's relative. I've heard a lot of people complain of reducing or eliminated offers, so I'm keeping an eye on that. So far Ive been getting increased coin through, and my offers continue to reflect that. I'm not, so far, having any of the problems others have described - not sure if their experience is because they didn't realize they were playing less. I play mostly Cosmo & Cet.
     
  16. Ty

    Ty ?

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    I carry a small note pad, about the size of a deck of cards, a new one for each trip. On the outside of the back cover I write my flight info. The first few pages in the front are notes on VP paytables at various casinos I might want to check out starting with downtown followed by Strip. Next few pages are notes of things we might want to do, food/sights. When we are gambling I start at the back of the book, two sessions per page to include info like, Location, Denomination, Start time, End time, Coin-in, Win/Loss, Points, Cocktail waitress name.
     
  17. SBTX

    SBTX Low-Roller

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    My last few trips I have been trying to keep better track of Tier Credits (mlife) earned each trip - resort spend, slots, VP, Tables. From there I can gain a better grip on my Theo. Other than that, I use a credit card to track spending on room charges, airfare, limo and food. I take a set amount of cash and use it for gambling, cabs, tips and occasionally drinks when I'm not getting free one while gambling. When I get home I can figure out exactly what my trip cost. I have found I can't go anywhere else for less than what I can go to Vegas on including gambling.
     
  18. samanthaelizabeth

    samanthaelizabeth Low-Roller

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    Are you talking about taxes? I was told you could not deduct losses at all, even up to the amount of wins......???
     
  19. 44inarow

    44inarow VIP Whale

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    If you're itemizing, then you can absolutely deduct gambling losses up to the amount of your gambling wins (that is, if you have $5k in winnings and $10k in losses, that $5k is above-the-line reportable income, which you can then offset with a below-the-line deduction of $5k). The documentation required gets tricky, though, because you technically need records on a per-session basis.
     
  20. Joe

    Joe VIP Whale

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    If you itemize, you certainly can deduct losses against wins on Federal. Most states have eliminated that deduction.
     
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