Lets say I want to play blackjack and have a stop-loss limit of $500 per session, my question is is it better for rating/comp purposes to buy in for the $500 or will it look better if I buy in for $1k or 2k even though I would have no intention of getting that deep?
The standard reply: No, it's not better. Your rating is based on your average bet and time played - your buy in doesn't matter. My thoughts: If you're varying your bets, it might matter a little. Humans aren't perfect, and if your betting is all over the place a larger buy in may subtly influence the dealer's estimation of your average bet. HOWEVER, I think any marginal gains you might see are outweighed by the risk that you'd end up losing more than you're comfortable with. When the adrenaline starts pumping it is very easy to go deeper into that stack than you intended - everything about how a casino operates is designed to make you disregard your preset spending limits. I'm sure you think this wouldn't happen to you, but everyone thinks that, and many are wrong.
Thanks for the reply Ziggy! Yeah I've gone over my stop-loss several times, my intentions are good but the execution isn't always there lol I'll stick to my standard buy ins just in case things get crazy
It doesn't matter. It's all about average bet per hand and time played. I could buy in for $100 and with a little luck I play for 2 hours. It would be the same as you buying in for $1000 and playing for 2 hours assuming we bet equally.
I had a weird experience at the local casino a month back. I buy in for pai gow for $100 as do all my friends. Dealer takes card. PB was busy, finally comes over after 20 minutes, and asks what I bought in for. I tell him $100, then goes, ok I will put you down for 300. If buy in does not matter, why would he say that? I immediately thought, that makes no difference.
it's not that it doesn't matter. if it didn't matter, they wouldn't track it. they use it to track your actual win/loss. it can be to your benefit to show a higher actual loss than you really have. normally they err on the side of increasing your win/lowering your loss.
The buy in matters when they track you to see how much you leave with -- a win or a loss. Over a trip, the losses that build up can turn into a bigger comp, a loss refund, or other consideration. So the actual amount is important to track. But the average bet and time played is what counts.