Comps - a guide to a free weekend in Vegas on the house.

"Comps" is the abbreviation for "complimentaries". The casino will give out gifts from cheap key-chains, to more useful stuff as free drinks, free food, free shows, free golfing, free whiskey, free rooms, free limo.

You don't want the key-chain, that is though of as a joke, not really a comp.

The deal is that the casino wants you to keep playing obviously. And to do that they will give back some of the expected profit. Example playing blackjack where the house has a 3% edge, if you play for a 1000$ during an hour the casino is expected to earn 30$. They would then comp you a 20-40% of that 30$. But that do not mean you have to loose to get your comp, you can be profiting big and then get the comp on top.

Do not be tempted to play for pocket change, and ask for the limo. It's a big chance you will get a key-chain.

Comps come in two categories, soft comps and hard comps. Soft comps are the easiest to get and are cocktails, restaurant expenses and shows that the casinos produce themselves. Hard comps are reimbursements for airline tickets, golf, concerts, off-site casino shows or anything else that cost the casino real dollars. It pretty much comes down to how much you are playing for, big cats can more or less demand what they want.

The people that are handing out comps are the floormen, and the pit manager. The floormen can hand out small soft comps. And the managers are authorized to hand out the big comps.

Play bigger when you see floormen around, bet less when no one is around. This will give them the impression that you are spending more than you actually are.

Play slow. How long you have played is an issue when you want your comp. If you play for an hour and you can slow the pace down to the half you will only spend half as much money.

Be nice, nobody wants to comp an asshole. Remember to tip the waitress when you redeem your cocktail comp. Flirt with the waitress and the floormen guys.

Try to look like a looser. You don't have to be a looser, just look like one. It can't hurt to put on a misery face. The casino loves a looser and wants him to keep playing. The looser is more likely to get some comps than the successful type. This may take some practice winning and looking like a looser.

Try to establish contact with a manager. If you are a frequent visitor to the casino, call him up before you arrive and tell them when you last visited them so and so and now you are coming back, and ask if you can get a discount comp to a room.

In the digital world of online casinos, the casinos have continued the traditions of comping. The comps will tick in automatically. You get among other things bonuses, rewards, cash-back, free rolls, etc etc.

Summary: win big, and then collect your complimentaries on top of your winnings.
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