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How much are you willing to risk?

Discussion in 'Misc. Vegas Chat' started by parallax, Nov 10, 2014.

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  1. parallax

    parallax High-Roller

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    The other day I was having lunch with a group of colleagues from work. One had just gotten back from Vegas and talked about he had no luck while he was there and lost a shit load of money. We came to find out that his losses were a $1000. Based on his position in the company, he could easily absorb this loss. He is just conservative with his bankroll when he went to the Vegas.

    The resulting discussion was how much would people to bring to gamble toVegas. Are you aggressive, conservative or somewhere in between? In order to avoid discussing one's individual finances, we created a fictional person. This person's income, which includes the income of the spouse, is 300,000. After paying the mortgage and the bills, making car payments and contributing to the 401k and 529s, the person has 5k per month for discretionary spending. The average bankroll among the group was 5k. I was somewhat higher at 7.5k. How much would you have this person bring?
     
  2. thecarve

    thecarve Misanthrope

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    I would have this person put off any Vegas trips for a while…if this dude has car payments, he has no business in Vegas! :poke:

    Seriously though…how many trips per year are we talking about? One? Many? Only once every decade or so?
     
  3. Auggie

    Auggie Dovahkiin

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    With this guy from work you mention its really going to depend on just what he is used to as far as how he spends his money. I know people who have large incomes that still live paycheck to paycheck because they spend just about everything they make each month and others who make a decent income but hem and haw on every purchasing decision over $50.

    Personally, I was always a paycheck to paycheck type: didn't matter how much money I was making, I found a way to spend it all each month. Now, I am in my early 40s but have the option to retire in the next 1-2 years so I've really tightened up on how I spend our money because I money to sock away and stock options to buy - last few trips to Las Vegas we could have reasonably taken at least five times the amount of money we did, but didn't because I was trying to sock money away... now its at the point where we haven't even been to Las Vegas in a year and a half, so it doesn't get much tighter than that :) :) :)


    Using your example person I would probably still only do about $3-4K per trip, going twice per year. Thats not a lot of money and then considering that my wife and I don't dine out, don't go to the movies, don't go see shows or even just go to a bar for drinks it seems pretty tight, but then when we are in Las Vegas thats usually the budget we have now and are still able to enjoy ourselves quite nicely.

    Like my wife has as much fun playing slots at 25-50 cents per spin on a video slot than she would if she were playing at $2-3 per spin, and thats the same for me. Like I have played video poker at 25c per credit, 50c, $1 and $2 and realistically its all just as entertaining no matter what I bet,
     
  4. parallax

    parallax High-Roller

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    In the example, this person would travel once or twice a year to vegas.
     
  5. BayouBengal

    BayouBengal VIP Whale

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    What one can afford to lose and what they're comfortable losing are two very different things. Length of trip and how often I'm expecting to go will affect my bankroll. Though I've never done vegas for less than 4 or 5 days so I don't know how much more aggressive I might be if I went for 2 or 3 days.
     
  6. DeMoN2318

    DeMoN2318 The DERS

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    I would take 30% of the 5k per month and put that aside for gambling, then depending on the number of trips I am planning for the year I would take the appropriate amount...but I probably wouldnt go over $1k a day. With $1k a day it would still be fun and thrilling.


    I am against saving up and having a huge bankroll for a single trip, you dont get the same rush and excitment when you have to reduce your play level on a later trip because your bankroll is smaller... going from $100/hand BJ to $15/hand BJ would be boring...
     
  7. bubbakitty

    bubbakitty Doing retirement again and happily so....

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    How much would I have this person bring?

    As always it is what they can lose and come home with happy thoughts should they lose it all. As stated above, some hem and haw over losing 1000 $ and others sneeze and miss how they lost the last hand which was 1000 $ and make another bet similar to the last. Depends on the thickness of the skin and the thrill of the chase. I think it more mental than the actual dollar amount which is discretionary within the budget. But that's just me.....interested to hear others figure$......
     
  8. Snidely

    Snidely VIP Whale

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    I agree with much of what Auggie posted above. My wife and I spend more money in Vegas on shows and meals than we do on gambling. So, while we might have the same vacation bankroll as others, it's not dedicated to gambling. To me, $1000 loss would be a shit load of money. If I get down a couple hundred I tend to lose the fun of gambling.
     
  9. ken2v

    ken2v This Space For Rent

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    It's irrelevant. The guy in the opening scene could open a $100+ bottle of wine nightly and most here would cringe over that. Or maybe he's three deep into Bentleys.

    And it's not aggressiveness or even risk. Risk isn't necessarily leaving behind X dollars gambling. Risk is doing that when you don't have X dollars to piss away. (And that would be the same thing however that money is spent "recreationally.") Plus, as others have noted, some/many here spend far more on non-gambling vacation costs than gambling-related vacation costs.

    However, at the risk of being accused of not playing nice, in the scenario as set out, we'd probably go to Vegas once a year and take a grand with which to gamble.
     
  10. Electroguy563

    Electroguy563 Vegas Joker

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    If I was this person I could visit Vegas 4 times a year for 5 to six days and a thousand a day gambling budget separate from transportation and food/entertainment/tip costs.

    But this is because I'm a red/green chip player and I rarely (if ever) do fine dining. Shows maybe once out of the 4 times I visit. The comps from going 4 times a year will free up money to do other things. Lodging and some food will be "free".
     
  11. bobby jones

    bobby jones VIP Whale

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    I remember coming back from Vegas once all depressed because I lost my entire $500 bank over the three days. After being on this board for a bit, I realize I am definitely an amateur! I still seem to get all kinds of offers though on my low rolling - happy with that. I am one who doesn't get any more rush from $5 BJ to 100 BJ. The highest I have ever played was $25 once and that was enough. My biggest slot win ever was $1,400 on a penny machine - I am ok with that, no need to go to high limit slots for me!

    In my life I always try to tie things to something I like in terms of financial decisions. For instance someone was shocked I was paying $150 for a round of golf. My reply was how long does it take to lose $150 in a dollar slot? I think my five hours out enjoying something I really like trumps that time at a machine. Of course if that $1 turned into , $1,500, I may change my ways but, it is rare...
     
  12. ken2v

    ken2v This Space For Rent

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    Yep, THAT right there is the true theory of relativity.

    I'm glad we all can find ways to enjoy what we enjoy, and in the fashion that we enjoy.
     
  13. scottydoog

    scottydoog Low-Roller

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    Gambling does funny things to people, some will drive 10 miles across town to get $1 off a buffet, but think nothing of feeding $20 bills into a slot or VP machine for hours on end. I think its a mindset, and something that is hard to nail down between one individual and another.At the end of the day he should take what he can afford to lose. ( But that isnt as exciting is it:wink2:)
     
  14. Tree DA

    Tree DA High-Roller

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    If your friend lost more than he had planned, or that he wanted to, then it doesn't really matter how much he can 'afford' to lose. A $1000 is still $1000. Maybe your friend gets more utility for that $1000 on a fancy bottle of wine or just putting into his retirement fund.

    Your fictional scenario is hard to relate to visualize. With $60,000 'extra' per year that's a considerable amount of additional money that can go into savings funds of some kind and accelerate the date at which I can retire. I can have a great time in Vegas for a couple thousand dollars and if I had double my income or had an extra $5k per month I would still probably have a similar same budget.
     
  15. bardolator

    bardolator Lifelong Low Roller

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    Our income is far lower than the amount mentioned. Our monthly "discretionary spending" is- I have no idea what it is. A lot less than five G's. We would not go to Vegas at all if we had debts other than a mortgage. I take an amount I could lose without feeling a nasty sting after we got back home. My wife takes a lot less because she feels the sting if she loses fifty bucks.

    Under the scenario in question, I could afford-mentally, and probably financially- to lose up to $5000 annually. But I don't ever go to Vegas planning to lose my stake- thinking of it as a budgeted amount I will spend.
     
  16. parallax

    parallax High-Roller

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    To be honest, I assumed that people on the board would be more aggressive based on some of the posts that I have read. We have always viewed the money that we take as entertainment expense. If we win that is great but we always assume that we will lose.
     
  17. Snidely

    Snidely VIP Whale

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    I think just the more conservative folk have replied. Either that or the bigger gamblers that frequent these parts are making a few million a year.
     
  18. speedfile

    speedfile Tourist

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    if i was the "made up" person, i would probably bring 10-15k to vegas per trip.
     
  19. REELmoneySlotFan

    REELmoneySlotFan High-Roller

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    If I had $5000 to spend every month and I was living in the US I would go to Vegas 3 times a year, stay for 6 or 7 nights and bring a bankroll of $1000 per day.
     
  20. ken2v

    ken2v This Space For Rent

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    Conservative? I don't know that gambling expenditures are an indicator of a particular money mindset.
     
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