High rollers

Big players can be any age. A couple stays ago at the B, I heard a regular who was friends with the dealers talk about playing craps in the high limit area the night before at the Grand and a 22 year old kid was betting a combined $100k on the line and place bets. When he lost, he acted like it was just pocket change. Appearently, he inherited a Canadian publishing chain and had a credit limit of $1,000,000+

 

I was strolling the main floor at Bellagio last year and watched a guy play solo blackjack at $2,000/hand. To me, that dude was high-rolling! I could imagine spending that much money per hand. I just stood off to the side and he didn't seem to mind.

 

I was at the Grand (CET property) in Biloxi about a year ago. Just came down stairs for some breakfast and saw 2-3 people playing craps. I decided to play before breakfast and I buy in for $200, table min of $5. me and this older guy in his 60s/70s were on one side of the table and doing pretty well. He was doing mostly come bets with full odds. I couldn't figure out why he was getting paid so much (blacks and purple sometimes but mostly red). Then I took a close look, those were not red $5 chips but orange $1000 chips. He must have had 40-50k in his rack. When it became my turn to shoot I passed and looked at the High Roller and said I don't want you to lose you money because of me. He laughed and said he doesn't care who shoots. Anyone can be lucky at anytime. I shortly colored up my not $1000 chips and had some breakfast.

 

yeah it most definitely wasn't "how's your day going?"

 

The guy was betting 3-5 K on the don't. Shooter next to me hit two points, then 7'd out. I picked up the dice and said "Here comes a 7", and rolled a 7. Guy gave me a dirty look and picked up his chips and went to the other table..much to the relief of the other players. I can't remember exactly what my buddy asked him, but he wasn't being sarcastic or obnoxious. This guy was just being a dick (with a lot of money). I walked up to a table at Bill's (of all places) earlier this year and saw a guy betting a huge stack of blacks(2K) on the don't along with a large collection of black chips on the rail in front of him.... glanced at the table and moved on..there was five other people at the table and none of them looked like they were enjoying themselves.

 

Sounds like the Thomson family. Old money.

 

Troll comment <> innocent question. Just the opposite, in fact.

I was thinking something like 'how's it going today?' as an innocent question.

 

lol...who knows, if the guy was a ****** it could have been anything, or nothing at all. All the big player had to do was complain and presto, someone gets tossed.

 

It could happen but most players that play at public tables no matter how much they bet are reasonable people. How's your day going is very unlikely to cause that type of reaction. Usually when you hear stories like that there's more to it than the teller is letting on.

 

I mainly play blackjack and craps and from my experience with higher level bettors on the main floor, most seem to be playing outside their means and chasing losses. You will get a lot the bigger bettors that do it because they enjoy the social aspect of being out there, but I'll say that more times than not from personal experience the purple/yellow chip players I've ran into on the main floor were irritable assholes. I'm not saying this is a rule of thumb, but it's what I've encountered. I'm a pretty socialable person and easy to get along with, so if I'm calling you an jerk you must really have a stick up your ass.

Disclaimer - I've never ran into a true high roller on the main floor, the highest I've seen bet on the level of game I play [$10 min craps and $25 min BJ] was a yellow so your experience may be vastly different than mine if you run into guys betting more than that -

 

This is pretty interesting analysis, and now that I think of it it's pretty true from my experience as well.

 

that's certainly possible, but those types of players don't usually have the pull to get the pit boss to make someone leave the table. only known players with large CLs are able to carry that kind of weight. but i'm sure there's jerks everywhere and gambling can bring out the worst in some people.

 

I disagree with that. If a player is betting purple and yellow, regardless of history, they are going to have enough pull to get a red chipper thrown off the table. It may not happen right away like this story, but if they push it enough the pit critters will comply. Casinos like money.

 

Not if you distinguish between High rollers Vs whales. The latter usually have a whale of a time at casinos (if you can get to see them).

Agree though that some players that consider themselves "high rollers" can be total jerks. best to avoid their company.... you can tell when someone's chasing losses and when they're just having a good time.

 

I don't think a persons bet level has anything to do with whether or not they are above their means. People betting reds may not have enough for their rent.
And people are people anywhere. Some are cool and some are a$$es. Rich, poor, it doesn't matter. Too much to drink or bets lost matters way more.
I've been at Vegas tables since high school in the late 1960's and I've encountered way more camaraderie than antagonism from old timers DT to Encore HL.

 

I'm not a high roller, but do play HL slots, so I would like to add, please don't watch me play....it's creepy, it creeps me out and feels like bad juju
I hate when people stand behind me and watch me play, regardless of denomination played

 

Completely agree. It IS creepy and weird to hawk someone in a casino. And this isn't limited to slots - it applies to anything. Don't stand there and watch me gamble. I'm not here to amuse you or provide you with free entertainment on my dime. I'm not here to provide you with a vicarious gambling experience. I'm also not here to be the subject of your craps lesson - there are free craps lessons at 8AM almost everywhere.

 

I'm sorry, but you are incorrect. a $500 player at Bellagio, or even a $1000 player would not be able to get someone else thrown off a table. On a weekend, they would barely even be noticed by pit boss, let alone floor man at the nicer properties.

 

LOL, I agree totally! It always seems to happen to me, and I usually just light up a cigarette and turn around and stare at them until they leave!:Þ

 

Many times, I have seen purple/yellow bettors on the main floor ask "can we raise the minimum?" if they don't like the looks of someone sitting down to play low stakes. The bosses usually agree. Yes, these players are usually a$$holes, and they are usually losing.

There is something relevant to this thread that has not been mentioned--legally in Nevada, any and every gaming area is a public area. Anyone is welcome to observe any game from a respectful distance. Not all high limit players know this. However, the casino employees who hover around high limit games and may try to look intimidating definitely DO know this.

Yes, in reality there are very private rooms with very high limits where in practice the intimidation factor works and non-players are for practical purposes not admitted--but the law states that all gaming areas are public areas.