Bipartisan effort begins to repeal gambling portion of big, beautiful bill.

The big, beautiful bill may have been too big.

Buried in the 900-plus-page piece of legislation was a provision that makes it much harder to gamble for a living by limiting deductions to 90 percent, not 100 percent, of losses.

Three days after President Trump signed the bill into law, a trio of legislators from both sides of the aisle are backing a bill that would repeal the gambling portion of the big, beautiful bill.

Via FrontOfficeSports, representative Dina Titus (D-NV) introduced the FAIR Bet Act on Monday. The law would restore the gambling deduction to 100 percent.

It's not a tax break for gamblers. It's a recognition of the reality that winning is always offset by losses. If someone wins $100,000 while gambling and loses $100,000 while gambling, nothing has been gained. Under the old law, the income would be zero. Under the big, beautiful bill, the gambler will be regarded as having $10,000 in income. It's simply not fair, and it defies common sense.

"While I proudly voted for the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which prevents the largest tax hike in American history, the Senate's version contained a provision that I strongly disagree with," Nehls told Front Office Sports in a statement. "Prior to the passage of the OBBBA, the tax code contained a 100% deduction for gambling losses and expenses up to the amount of the individual's winnings. This deduction was not changed in the House-passed version of the bill."

Nehls is being disingenuous. If he had a problem with the gambling provision of the version of the bill that came back to the House, he could have insisted that it be changed back — or he could have voted no.

Better known for celebrating the passage of the bill by smoking a cheap-looking cigar with both hands bandaged, Nehls also has proven the folly of the big, beautiful bill. With a massive collection of provisions jammed into one up-or-down bill that was being pushed by an administration that enjoys having Congress under its thumb, there will inevitably be provisions that some of the "yes" men (and women) would say "no" to, if those provisions were considered one at a time.

Which means that the cleanup process is beginning. Starting with the provision that makes it harder to be a professional gambler.

Of course, the effort to fix the flaws of the big, beautiful bill won't be easy. Especially since Congress won't be operating with the kind of hair-on-fire urgency that the chief executive demanded.

Lots of gambling start up and early on operations with drawing in various mob/mafia people.  Italian, Jewish and Irish pooling their resources under the vision of Luciano.  Read on.

From: (Wiki and other sources):

Meyer Lansky (born Maier Suchowljansky; July 4, 1902 – January 15, 1983), known as the "Mob's Accountant", was an American organized crime figure who, along with his associate Charles "Lucky" Luciano, was instrumental in the development of the National Crime Syndicate in the United States.

Meyer Lansky

Lansky in 1958
Born, Maier Suchowljansky
July 4, 1902
Grodno, Grodno Governorate, Russian Empire
Died January 15, 1983 (aged 80)
Miami Beach, Florida, U.S.
Resting place
Mount Nebo Cemetery, Miami, Florida
Nationality, American
Known for Mafia associate, Mafia financier
Spouse(s)
Anna Citron

(m. 1929; div. 1946)
Thelma Schwarz (m. 1948)


A member of the Jewish mob, Lansky developed a gambling empire that stretched around the world. He was said to own points (percentages) in casinos in Las Vegas, Cuba, Miami, and New Orleans. Lansky had a strong influence with the Italian-American Mafia. He played a large role in the consolidation of the criminal underworld by introducing money laundering and offshore banking in 1932, used in the 1950s for cash from the heroin trade. The full extent of this role has been the subject of some debate, as Lansky himself denied many of the accusations against him.

Despite nearly 50 years as a member/participant in organized crime, Lansky was never found guilty of anything more serious than illegal gambling. He was one of the most financially successful gangsters in American history. Before he fled Cuba, Lansky was said to be worth an estimated US$20 million (equivalent to $184 million in 2023).  When he died in 1983, his family learned that his estate was worth only around $57,000 (equivalent to $150,000 in 2023).

Contents
Early life

Maier Suchowljansky was born on July 4, 1902, in Grodno, Russian Empire (now Belarus), to a Polish-Jewish family. When asked his native country, Lansky always responded "Poland".  In 1911, Lansky emigrated to the United States through the port of Odessa[10] with his mother and brother Jacob, and joined his father (who had immigrated in 1909) living on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, New York.

Lansky met Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel when they were children. They became lifelong friends, as well as partners in the bootlegging trade, and together managed the Bugs and Meyer Mob, with its reputation as one of the most violent Prohibition gangs. Lansky was also close friends with Charles "Lucky" Luciano; the two met as teenagers when Luciano attempted to extort Lansky for protection money on his walk home from school. Luciano respected the younger boy's defiant responses to his threats, and the two formed a lasting partnership.  They later associated with veteran gangster Arnold Rothstein until his murder in 1928.

Career

Gambling operations, 1929–1945

Luciano had a vision to form a national crime syndicate in which the Italian, Jewish, and Irish gangs could pool their resources and turn organized crime into a lucrative business for all—an organization he founded after a conference in Atlantic City organized by himself, Lansky, Johnny Torrio, and Frank Costello in May 1929.

Lucky Luciano, Lansky's partner in the American Mafia

Also, as early as 1932, Lansky shifted money from illegal activities in New Orleans to Swiss offshore accounts. The Swiss secrecy law from 1934 sanctioned the money laundering by "banks whose officials knew very well they were working for criminals".  By 1936, Lansky had established gambling operations in Florida and Cuba. These gambling operations were founded upon two innovations:  Lansky and his connections had the technical expertise to manage them effectively based upon Lansky's knowledge of the mathematical odds of most popular wagering games.

Mob connections and bribed law enforcement were used to ensure their establishments' legal and physical security from other crime figures and law enforcement.
There was also an absolute rule of integrity concerning the games and wagers made within their establishments. Lansky's "carpet joints" in Florida and elsewhere were never "clip joints", where gamblers were unsure whether the games were rigged. Lansky ensured that the staff administering the games were of high integrity.

World War II involvement, 1938–1945

In the 1930s, Lansky and his gang stepped outside their usual criminal activities to break up rallies held by the pro-Nazi German-American Bund. He recalled a particular rally in Yorkville, a German neighborhood in Manhattan, that he and 14 associates disrupted:
The stage was decorated with a swastika and a picture of Adolf Hitler. The speakers started ranting. There were only fifteen of us, but we went into action. We threw some of them out the windows. Most of the Nazis panicked and ran out. We chased them and beat them up. We wanted to show them that Jews would not always sit back and accept insults.

When Judge Nathan D. Perlman offered to pay Lansky for his services, he declined:  I am a Jew, and I feel for the Jews in Europe who are suffering. They are my brothers.

During World War II, Lansky was instrumental in helping the Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI)'s Operation Underworld, in which the government recruited criminals to watch out for German infiltrators and submarine-borne saboteurs. Lansky helped arrange a deal with the government via a high-ranking United States Navy official that secured Luciano's release from prison; in exchange, the Mafia provided security for the warships being built along the docks in New York Harbor. German submarines were sinking Allied ships in great numbers along the eastern seaboard and the Caribbean coast, and there was great fear of attack or sabotage by Nazi sympathizers. Lansky connected the ONI with Luciano, who reportedly instructed Joseph Lanza to prevent sabotage on the New York waterfront.

Flamingo Hotel, 1946–1947

In 1946, Lansky convinced the Italian-American Mafia to put Siegel in charge of Las Vegas, and became a major investor in Siegel's Flamingo Hotel. To protect himself from the type of prosecution that sent Al Capone to prison for tax evasion and prostitution, Lansky transferred his growing casino empire's illegal earnings to a Swiss bank account, where anonymity was assured by the 1934 Swiss Banking Act. Lansky eventually bought an offshore bank in Switzerland, which he used to launder money through a network of shell and holding companies.

In 1946, Lansky attended a secret meeting in Havana to discuss Siegel's management of the Flamingo Hotel, which was running far behind schedule and costing Siegel's Mafia investors a great deal of money. The other bosses wanted to kill Siegel, but Lansky begged them to give his friend a second chance.

Despite this reprieve, Siegel continued to lose money on the Flamingo. A second meeting was then called. By the time the meeting occurred, the casino had turned a small profit. With Luciano's support, Lansky convinced the other investors to give Siegel more time. When the hotel started losing money again, the other investors decided that Siegel was finished. It is widely believed that Lansky was compelled to give the final okay on eliminating Siegel due to his long relationship with him and his stature in the organization.

On June 20, 1947, Siegel was shot and killed in Beverly Hills, California. Twenty minutes later, Lansky's associates, including Gus Greenbaum and Moe Sedway, walked into the Flamingo and took control of it. According to the FBI, Lansky retained a substantial financial interest in the Flamingo for the next 20 years. Lansky said in several interviews later in his life that if it had been up to him, "Ben Siegel would be alive today".

Siegel's death marked a power transfer in Vegas from New York's Five Families to the Chicago Outfit.[citation needed] Although his role was considerably more restrained than in previous years, Lansky is believed to have both advised and aided Chicago boss Tony Accardo in initially establishing his hold.

Cuba, 1946–1959

After World War II, as a reward for his wartime service, Luciano's sentence was commuted to time served. His release was conditioned on his agreeing not to contest the revocation of his American citizenship and accept deportation to his native Italy.  After arriving in Italy, Luciano settled in Sicily. He secretly moved to Cuba, where he worked to resume control over Mafia operations. Luciano also ran a number of casinos in Cuba with the sanction of Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista. Upon discovering Luciano's presence in Cuba and resumption of criminal activity, the U.S. government pressured Batista into deporting Luciano to Italy.

Batista and Lansky formed a renowned friendship and business relationship that lasted a decade. During a stay at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York in the late 1940s, it was mutually agreed that, in exchange for kickbacks, Batista would offer Lansky and the Mafia control of the country's casinos and racetracks.

Batista would open Havana to large-scale gambling, and his government would match, dollar for dollar, any hotel investment over US$1 million, which would include a casino license. Lansky would put himself at the center of Cuba's gambling operations. He immediately called on his associates to hold a summit in Havana.
The Havana Conference was held on December 22, 1946, at the Hotel Nacional. This was the first full-scale meeting of American underworld leaders since the Chicago meeting in 1932. Present were such figures as Joe Adonis, Albert "The Mad Hatter" Anastasia, Frank Costello, Joseph "Joe Bananas" Bonanno, Vito Genovese, Moe Dalitz, Thomas Luchese, from New York; Santo Trafficante Jr. from Tampa; Carlos Marcello from the New Orleans crime family; and Stefano Magaddino, Bonanno's cousin from Buffalo. From Chicago there were Accardo and the Fischetti brothers, "Trigger-Happy" Charlie and Rocco Fischetti; and, representing the Jewish interest, Lansky, Dalitz and "Dandy" Phil Kastel from Florida.

The first to arrive was Luciano, who secretly traveled to Havana on a false passport. Lansky shared with the attendees his vision of a new Havana, profitable for those willing to invest the right sum of money. According to Luciano, the only attendee who ever recounted the events in any detail, he was appointed as kingpin for the mob, to rule from Cuba until such time as he could find a legitimate way back into the U.S. Entertainment at the conference was provided by, among others, Frank Sinatra, who had flown to Cuba with his friends, the Fischetti brothers.

In 1952, Lansky offered then-President of Cuba Carlos Prío Socarrás a bribe of US$250,000 to step down so Batista could return to power. Once Batista retook control of the government in a military coup in March 1952, he quickly put gambling back on track. Batista offered Lansky an annual salary of US$25,000 to serve as an unofficial gambling minister. By 1955, he had changed the gambling laws again, granting a gaming license to anyone who invested US$1 million in a hotel or US$200,000 in a new nightclub. Unlike the procedure for acquiring gaming licenses in Vegas, this provision exempted venture capitalists from background checks. As long as they made the required investment, they were given public matching funds for construction, a ten-year tax exemption and duty-free importation of equipment and furnishings. The government would get US$250,000 for the license, plus a percentage of the profits from each casino. Cuba's 10,000 slot machines, even the ones that dispensed small prizes for children at country fairs, were to be the province of Roberto Fernandez y Miranda, the brother of Batista's wife, Marta Fernandez Miranda de Batista.

A Cuban army general and government sports director, Fernandez was also given the parking meters in Havana as an extra bonus. Import duties were waived on materials for hotel construction, and Cuban contractors with the right "in" made windfalls by importing much more than was needed and selling the surplus to others for hefty profits. It was rumored that besides the US$250,000 to get a license, sometimes more was required under the table. Periodic payoffs were requested and received by corrupt politicians.
Lansky set about reforming the Cabaret Montmartre, which soon became the "in" place in Havana. He also installed a casino at the Hotel Nacional, relying on Batista's support.

Cuban Revolution and flight to Bahamas (1959 and the 1960s)

The 1959 Cuban Revolution and the rise of Fidel Castro changed the climate for mob investment in Cuba. On New Year's Eve 1958, while Batista was preparing to flee to the Dominican Republic before settling permanently in Francoist Spain, where he died in exile in 1973, Lansky was celebrating the US$3 million he made in the first year of operations at his 440-room, US$8 million palace, the Habana Riviera. Many of the casinos, including several of Lansky's, were looted and destroyed that night. Lansky fled on January 7 to the Bahamas. In Nassau the Bay Street Boys were ruling. On January 8, 1959, Castro and his revolutionaries took control of Havana, setting up a command post in the Hilton. The new Cuban president, Manuel Urrutia Lleó, took steps to close the casinos. In October 1960, Castro nationalized all the island's hotel-casinos and outlawed gambling.

After the revolution, Lansky sought compensation for losses in Cuba from the U.S. government.

Sexual blackmail and J. Edgar Hoover

Lansky is credited with having "controlled" compromising pictures of a sexual nature featuring former FBI director J. Edgar Hoover with his longtime aide Clyde Tolson. In his book, Official and Confidential: The Secret Life of J. Edgar Hoover, Anthony Summers cites multiple primary sources regarding Lansky's use of blackmail to gain influence with politicians, policemen and judges. One stage of the acquisition of blackmail materials was orgies held by late attorney and Hoover protégé Roy Cohn and liquor magnate Lewis Rosenstiel, who had lasting ties with the Mafia from his bootleg operations during Prohibition.

The 2019 release of FBI files on Lansky revealed extensive monitoring and investigation, which makes it harder to explain why Lansky was not pursued to conviction, unless he evaded it by blackmail. Cohn copied this model of blackmail to control politicians and evade conviction himself.

Attempted emigration and trial (1970–72)

In 1970, Lansky fled to Herzliya Pituah, Israel, to escape federal tax evasion charges in the United States. He was a strong sympathizer with Israel.  At the time Israeli law did not permit the extradition of Israeli citizens, and under the Law of Return, any Jew could legally settle in Israel and naturalize. The Israeli government reserved the right to exclude Jews with a criminal past from settling in the country. Two years after his arrival, Lansky was deported back to the U.S. The federal government brought Lansky to trial with the testimony of loan shark Vincent "Fat Vinnie" Teresa. Lansky was acquitted in 1973.

Personal life and death

In 1929 Lansky married Anna Citron, with whom he had three children, before divorcing in 1946. In 1948 he married Thelma Schwartz.

Lansky retired in Miami and spent his last 10 years quietly at his home in Miami Beach, Florida. He died of lung cancer on January 15, 1983, aged 80.

Equity

On paper, Lansky was worth almost nothing at the time of his death. At the time, the FBI believed he left behind over US$300 million in hidden bank accounts but it never found any money. This would be equivalent to $771 million in 2023.

Lansky's biographer Robert Lacey describes his financially strained circumstances in the last two decades of his life and his inability to pay for health care for his handicapped son, who eventually died in poverty. For Lacey, there was no evidence "to sustain the notion of Lansky as king of all evil, the brains, the secret mover, the inspirer and controller of American organized crime". He concludes from evidence including interviews with the surviving members of the family that Lansky's wealth and influence had been grossly exaggerated. His second wife's granddaughter told the author T. J. English that at the time of his death in 1983, Lansky left only $57,000 in cash, equivalent to $147,000 in 2023 terms.  When asked in his later years what went wrong in Cuba, Lansky said, "I crapped out". He told people he had lost almost every penny in Cuba and was barely getting by.
Hank Messick, a journalist for the Miami Herald who spent years investigating Lansky, said that the key to understanding Lansky lay with the people around him, "Meyer Lansky doesn't own property. He owns people". To him, the FBI, and Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau, the reality was that Lansky had kept large sums of money in other people's names for decades and that keeping very little in his own was nothing new to him.

In 2010, Lansky's daughter Sandra publicly said that her father had transferred $15 million to his brother's account sometime in the early 1970s, when Lansky was having problems with the IRS.  How much money Lansky really had will probably never be known. Since the warming of relations between the U.S. and Cuba in 2015, Lansky's grandson, Gary Rapoport, has been asking the Cuban government to compensate him for the confiscation of the Riviera hotel his grandfather built in Havana.

Three high-profile Illinois casinos have now faced allegations over contractors with reputed mob ties

https://chicago.suntimes.com/casinos-gambling/2025/07/03/ballys-casino-chicago-illinois-gaming-board-grand-victoria-elgin-rivers-casino-des-plaines-pritzker-fines

There are winners and losers.  Period.  End of story as well as the start of refreshing chapters for countless players of all types. 'Real' players that engage in the game of Baccarat experience both. 

Realize it.  Seriously,  when you chase and attempt recouping, you will normally not recover and lose further amounts.  Problem that compounds the losing session is the few times we all have recovered in the past.  Come on guys, admit it and be honest with yourselves. 

IMO and that of so many other well seasoned players is to take the loss up front and walk away.  No, not easy to do.  But starting another day on a 'clean slate' is to your advantage heads over heels. 

Negativity and frustration are the two worst factors at the table, none worse.  Why?  Because a losing player is going to focus on what they want to happen rather than what is actually happening.  And that applies to the shoe/session in front of you as well as a period of time for a losing player. 

Hence, everything can either be interpreted with simplicity or complexity at the tables within the game of Baccarat.

You must figure out the simple and the complex issues in playing the game of Baccarat that pertains to yourself. Because the complex issues ultimately build you up and cause you frustration, emotional disturbance and financial losses. The simple issues allow you to concentrate and profit the majority of times if you can find advantages and have a rock solid Money Management Method that you employ.

The simple and complex issues both establish the difference and define the good and bad while playing the game. They make the difference between existing within the grind and loss and of course, knowing the path to walk down while playing for some kind of profit.

I witness it time and time again with virtually every casino visit.  Winning in the short run with clear and fresh approaches to the session and then the player's over thinking and overwhelming themselves with the complexities of issues/agendas/protocols/wagering plans/what the shoe is presenting/etc.  Then their win money, buy-in and additional buy-ins are voluntarily donated to the casino, while they overwhelm themselves in the complexities they cannot remove themselves from. 

So totally impress yourself and show yourself that you are better than before. Convince yourself it's not about beating the others at the table or even the casino. Realize and live with, it's only you versus you.

Define the difference between the simple and the complex issues/agendas/protocols/wagering plans/what the shoe is presenting/etc., within the game.  You will be a better player once you can take advantage of them with a simple understanding.

Real life examples will be summarized later tonight. 

Later, stay safe, stay well.

Almost there with another bac friend.  Stopped to get gas and had a late breakfast. 

Seems these Chinese players got caught as most all eventually do because of their own greed and believing they can outsmart the system. 

Anyone remember the Tran Organization??


https://www.casino.org/news/multi-state-baccarat-scam-nets-1-5m-cops-hunt-cheating-ring/

https://cdcgaming.com/brief/six-charged-in-1-5m-baccarat-cheating-scheme-at-casinos-across-the-usa/

IMO they brought it all on themselves.  They took their bread and butter and made it so others can profit on it from their own customers and future customers in other jurisdictions. 

https://www.8newsnow.com/news/local-news/las-vegas-casino-dealers-face-layoffs-amid-tourism-slump/

Read into anyway you want but I know they caused it all themselves.  It all began around 2013-2015 with the revamping of the two largest brands, points and promotional programs.  Then the rising on all prices by the branded chains as well as the local establishments, etc., and so on. 

The payment could be split among more than a million people in the class-action suit, and after lawyer fees are taken into consideration, it could result in as little as $2 per person.

Despite the low relative payment to get out of the situation, O'Neal is still going to lose out. He was paid roughly $750,000 to promote FTX, and will now pay out more than $1 million in damages after the company's collapse.

https://www.mensjournal.com/sports/shaquille-oneal-agrees-to-pay-1-8-million-settlement

I posted earlier that the Chicago gaming destination market was getting extremely aggressive.  I will tell you they have some of the highest table maximums by far, for 'Off The Street' walk in, no front money players. 

Lots to do in and around Chicago with great food as well!  Prices all around are cheaper as a plus for your out of pocket expenses.

From Timeout:

News

A new study says Las Vegas isn't the best casino city in America—here's what beat it

How could this happen?!

For gamblers—both high-stakes players and people who can barely push a dollar into a slot machine—there's one destination that comes to mind when you think of casinos. It's a city famous for its neon, its enormous themed hotels, its successful ad campaign that promises secrecy and blanket forgiveness for whatever happens there, and a reputation for constantly coming up with new things to entertain visitors. That city is Las Vegas. But shockingly, a new study says that, despite all of that, Vegas isn't the number-one casino city in America—so what the heck is?

RECOMMENDED: The most fun city in America? Las Vegas, of course

In fact, in the list of best casino cities in the U.S. by gaming aggregator SlotMatrix, Las Vegas isn't even in the second or third spot. Somehow, Sin City came in fourth, while a city that few people associate with casinos—Chicago, Illinois—managed to wind up in first place.

Let's look at how that's even possible: The study looked at a variety of data, including how many casinos there are per 100,000 residents of the city; how many casinos have connected hotels or restaurants; the number of slot machines, table games and poker tables in each casino; the number of late-night bars open in the city; average hotel price; and  the percentage increase of online searches since 2022 for casino-related travel to that city.

After crunching all those variables, Chicago shows up as the clear winner. Okayyy.

To be fair, Chicago does have the highest number of table games and poker tables per casino—159 per casino—and the third highest number of slot machines, at 2,100. Interest in traveling to Chicago for its casinos has increased by 258-percent since 2022, according to an analysis of Google searches. Yet both Detroit and Philadelphia have higher percentage of online interest, with 340 percent and 336 percent, respectively.

In second place is Detroit, Michigan, another destination we don't necessarily associate with gambling, yet it came out with the most slot machines per casino and the largest increase in travel-related searches. Atlantic City—finally, a city that does have a casino-based reputation—came in third place overall, with the highest number of casinos per 100,000 people.

As for Vegas, well, darn it. The Nevada town does have one of the highest densities of casinos per 100,000 people, but its hotels are expensive (that's because you can literally pretend you're in Venice, Paris, Egypt or medieval England while you're there, fantasy elements that cost a pretty penny). However, the priciest hotel night actually is found in Detroit, where an average night costs $304. In comparison, the average hotel cost in Vegas is $210, the fourth highest behind Pittsburgh ($285) and Chicago ($232).

We're all little unsure of how all the metrics are weighted because scrutinizing the data actually makes it look like Detroit should win out over Chicago—and Atlantic City and Las Vegas should be worlds above those cities. Ah well, whatever happens in Chicago will be immediately shared with your significant other.

Here's the list of the top 10 casino destinations in the U.S.:

1. Chicago, Illinois

2. Detroit, Michigan

3. Atlantic City, New Jersey

4. Las Vegas, Nevada

5. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

6. Everett, Washington

7. Prior Lake, Minnesota

8. St. Louis, Minnesota

9. Biloxi, Mississippi

10. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Deadly shooting outside the Bellagio last night concerning online YouTube social media posting between two competitors.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=_aDS6eJp_uM&pp=ygURQmVsbGlnaW8gc2hvdHRpbmc%3D

This next one will explain it all.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=0QR49os0UNI&list=RDNSdS-Qm2Mof4I&index=5

There are many parts to good solid MMM. Probably the most important Single aspect of one is the drawdown.  A drawdown is the amount of buy-in you will lose before you really start winning.

You and the results of your wagering have to do the management of your money. The Management of your Money is the Method. Money Management Method.

From what I have observed over the years, there is a large misconception of win money.  Most all players are under the belief that they must replenish their last lost buy-in to get 'EVEN' and then accumulate some kind of a unknown profit amount as well. 

You must reserve your buy-in after you have won, do not risk it any further. You must divide up your winnings when you do win. Towards Bankroll. Towards Pocket. Towards Continued Play.  Those three revert back to my 1/3rd, 1/3rd, 1/3rd, I have often wrote about.

All the testing you desire, will only add real confusion along with misrepresentation of what the game is actually about. Seriously be careful what you practice and attempt to figure out. Live it in real play and be serious.  RNG's and their results are not awfully similar to live baccarat.  RNG's in free play mode are much more predictable and use as a definite 'suck in' to whatever online game they are promoting you to be part of.  BE CAREFUL!

RISK CAPITAL.  I use the term 'Risk Capital' within my writing.  It is paramount in gambling MMM protocols.  Most will not recognize that.  But it is by far and large.  Please understand Risk Capital and the purpose of classifying your Bankroll and Buy-ins as strictly and solely Risk Capital.  Same as any other investment for a pathway to earn a profit.  You have to be willing to lose your Buy-in with little to no emotions and frustrations or you will suffer harm in many many ways that will be detrimental to your gaming pursuits. 

I have witnessed countless players in brick & mortar casinos, that maintain no Bankroll and their Buy-ins are what they consider their Bankroll.  If they lose the session, they have to wait until they have additional funds to gambling again.  Hence, their Buyin is their Bankroll.  And that my friends is completely wrong and extremely mind boggling when they gambling.  It creates pressure and emotional city to the max! 

It is generally a Catch-22 to gamble that way.  Lose and your falling into an emotional and frustrating pit.  Win and your mind is battling with building a Bankroll or larger and larger and longer play at the table, which will 99.99% of all times grind you right down. 

So, what is one to do!  What is a good player advantaged and solid Money Management Method? 

Bank Rolls, Buy-Ins, Money Management, Wagering, Believes, Etc.

Money Management Methods tailored for your style and profit goals, etc., is the way to fuel your $$$ into your pockets when you gamble!

Lack of it will make you unsuccessful, not your choice of wagers or most other things, but lack of a money management system will hurt you more than any other thing in gambling, period!

The whole picture is your Bank roll and what you risk when you play out of your bank roll.  Personally, when I am playing locally and not staying for a week, say in Las Vegas or another major gambling destination, I only take my buy-in which is a small percentage of my dedicated bank roll.  Personally, I do risk my buy-in for the session without a stop loss.  More times than not, meaning the majority of times I can profit.  The few times I do loss my buy-in, it is far outweighed by my wins, because I use a 1/3rd Money Management System that, I refined to allow myself to leave with win money and as well?replace my original buy-in without further risk to that either. 

Buy-Ins.  So, buy-ins are totally separate from the bank roll.  They have to be, there is no other way! My recommendation is a 5-10% buy-in at the most of the bank roll.  Personally, I cannot envision playing every day as many state they do or desire to do, unless it is for a small few units profit and the gambler has an extremely large drawdown Bankroll of sheer risk capital available.  The fallacy of winning every day or having large enough bank rolls to survive hundreds of units of down swings to make a few units, is still 'dreamsville' to me after playing for around 40 years, at least for aggressive play anyways.  Personally, once or twice a week is about it, at least on a regular basis, IMO and experience.  My other rock solid iron clad rule that I might break once every 100 trips, is never buying in a second time if the buy in was lost without being able to play on win money. 

Win Money.  Personally, I employ my 1/3rd-1/3rd-1/3rd money management system which cannot and will not fail me to replace my buy-in and always leave with win money.  Period. 

What so many baccarat players I have played alongside, observed and been associated with over the years, make a single mistake.  Which is, the continued buying in after they lose their initial buy-in.  They have no structure or self-control, none whatsoever.  They will drain themselves in the worst catch-22 situations they create and entrap themselves in.  If you lose, you lose.  That is it.  If you can't get past this, nothing can or will ever help you.  Nothing, zip.  I promise you from the bottom my heart.  Keep losing your units and keep flat betting or even negative progression and all you do is sink yourself worse and worse.

Win money causes more clouded vision and obnoxious behavior at the baccarat table.  Get over it.  Know what wins are and how they come or do not come in proportion to losses.  You will do yourself a huge justice by learning what I just said. 

Stop believing what you play on paper using a free game, such as the one on Wizard of Odds website or any of the other on-line casino websites where they offer practice shoes.  There are other factors within a casino that come into play that do not exist on the internet. 

If you have no plan or a haphazard notion, or you sometimes do this or that with your win money---you will risk it and lose it every single time.  Those that use their win money to fuel their positive session they start to encounter will eventually lose it all, because you will play until you get back all your losses, you will lose it all plus anything you have access to.  Happens over and over, each and every single day at the casinos.

Do not keep adding to your bank roll.  You will doom yourself.

Do not play larger because you won a few sessions.

1-2-3-4 or 2-4-6-12, etc., positive progression will kill you if you religiously do them over and over.  I talked about this numerous times in other posts I written.  It is easy to win one or two wagers, it is really hard beyond comprehension to continually win 4 or more in a row.  300 to 600 to 1,200 to 2,400 will happen rarely, your lost units will outweigh by huge amounts, your won units!  That is why I subscribe to 1-3-2-6 and other versions of that style.  If I win one or two, then I ride free to win larger.  Another story and like I said, I wrote and explained that in detailed before on the board.  I promise you that it is the only way to do good-okay or at least better in the long run. 

Concerning playing every day or say 5 to 6 times a week, your mind will not allow you to play level headed and repeatedly profit a set amount of profitable units and continually build you bank roll.  So many preach it, it is not realistic or doable for beginning or less experienced players IMO.  Sorry to harp on it, but I see it all the time.  It is not going to happen.  You will lose more than you win.  Again, looks great on paper and in theory, but you cannot and will not do it and religiously profit every week, week in and week out.

So much talk about 1's, 2's and 3's.  With it or against it.  The times you are correct you will eventually (seriously 100% of the time over say a period of sessions) give it all back by continually believing and wagering the way you just won.  That same shoe will produce just as many 1's, 2's and 3's and "cuts", the opposite way that you wager on, and if that one does not---the subsequent ones you will be playing that same day or the following days, will.  Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but it will happen the absolute highest majority of the times. 

The way you can be successful at something like that, is to be there when it happens with a certain wagering thought, but immediately after you profit from it, you have to religiously subscribe to 'refreshing and resetting' and forgetting about that.  Not particularly easy as the psychological effect will attempt to steer you to what just made you $$$ and made you delightful and feeling good all over.  Then as you attempt the replication of that same series of wagering, the shoe presentments went the opposite ways. 

Money Management Methods.  M.M.M. is much more than a negative or a positive progression.  Much more than a win-stop or a loss-stop.  That is where so many will fail as well.  They play all the time, every session as if attempting to repeat their best one or copy in real life as to what they learned on paper or the internet.  Real life is a bit different than Doctor Seuss books once you are older than say 10 years old, IMO.  Realize it.

There are coincidences and phenomena in baccarat, and that is what will cloud your vision and confuse you, more than anything else in this game!  Instilling a bad sense of knowledge you will (I promise you!) wager on.  Meaning, what you saw altered your good vision or your good sense of judgement and you believed the shoe will present the hands according to what you desire through wishful thinking or fallacy beliefs.  Once you figure all this out through experience and losses, you can become a very profitable baccarat player.  Real life analogy.  Think of what I just said in this paragraph as erotic foreplay you seen in a movie.  Translate that to yourself and your erotic desires.  How many times will you lay your eyes on a female, grasp each other, go buy the bottle of wine and strip each other's clothes off and find yourself on those silk and satin sheets with the wind blowing through the open window and the dove that, suddenly flew in and perched himself on the bedpost as you make love to the most beautiful girl you happened to meet in your life and you don't even know her name?

Playing wagers of -?-, -?- or -?- of the shoes or only wagering after ever 4th repeating banker or player for the '1s' or the 'cuts', does not matter.  As many times as you win those, you will lose when those do not happen.  Simple.  But those that go into dialogs, real convincing and real slick ones will probably convince you otherwise.  Counting, waiting and looking for an event will not work in the long run.  It might for the same day-one session and if you only play once or twice a year, but it will not if you play on a regular basis.  Playing that way will kill you, it will wipe you out, I promise you!

As Asym has highlighted numerous times, fewer wagers are better.  Although most all will not care to engage in an everything in, one-time wager for each session, there are ways to gain advantages IMO.

The following has suited me well.

Take for instance a $1,000.00 buy-in.  You can adjust with anything you feel comfortable with of course.

I favor a 4 attempt to get the feel for a session.  Although grinding has not (NOT) suited me well over the years, personally need a visual and physical stack increase to really start my session wins and get power along with clearer mind-set, etc., etc., and so on.

So like I said a $1,000.00 buy-in. 

Split into 4 attempts of $250.00 each. 

Attempt 1.  $250, if won full parlay to $500.  If won full parlay to $1,000.  If won, pull it all (ALL) down and move on to attempt #2.

So you are shooting for 3 wins and then reset with each base wager, in my example cases that is $250.00.  If I lose my other 3 attempts I still almost doubled my money.  That is winning any one of the 4 attempts anyways.  Win 2 and really start getting ahead.

To those 10 or so members that emailed me and PM'd me, here is my way of thinking and why it is better IMO and long time experience.

* Because small number are a sheer and dangerous grind.
* Because grinding will suck you in and hurt you.
* Because grinding wears you down.
* Because grinding forces most all to chase.
* Because it is much easier to win quicker.
* Because you can only win a smaller amount of wagers in any session unless it is a rare session.
* Because if you are going to win, you will generally do it from the beginning or near the beginning of your play without harming your session.

If I won 3 out of the 4, I would continue into another session of the same type but pocketing double and/or triple my buy-in along with my buyin. 

Win more with greater safety!

Here it is and it is audacity with a capital 'A'. 

But fees and service charges will be charged and paid by those because, well.............just because.

https://www.casino.org/vitalvegas/fees-gone-wild-mgm-resorts-charges-for-plates-forks-and-napkins/

Yes Chicago is a super aggressive casino market with extremely high table limits.  Table limits are anywhere from $25,000 to $1000,000 without front money required.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2024/02/20/us-casinos-best-year-ever-chicago/#:~:text=Nevada%20remains%20the%20nation's%20top,with%20%2415.5%20billion%20in%20revenue.

And for example here is Ameristar's description of their baccarat room.

BACCARAT ROOM
The newly renovated Baccarat Room is the best place to play in Chicagoland featuring 11 Baccarat tables.
PLACE YOUR BETS


You'll find our newly expanded and renovated Baccarat Room on the casino's third floor. This new state-of-the-art gaming room is complete with 11 Baccarat tables, offering minimum bets of $15 and maximum bets up to $25,000.

We offer a wide variety of games including:

-Dragon Bonus, a bonus side wager that pays on the margin of your win

-2 EZ Baccarat, an exciting variation on Baccarat where no commission is taken

-Dragon 7

-Panda 8

Plus, after 30 minutes of rated play, receive a comp at our Red Lotus Asian Kitchen which specializes in authentic Pacific Rim dishes and conveniently located inside the Baccarat Room.

Looking to play Baccarat but in an exciting high-stakes action environment? Visit our High Limit room which also includes two new Baccarat tables.

And as far as I know, the highest table maximums are at Rivers Casino in the Chicagoland area. 

A brief background reference Indian gaming and what got them to the point they are at today.

Because of the decision, the Seminole Tribe was able to build and operate the nation's first tribally-owned high-stakes bingo parlor on their reservation in Florida, even though bingo for profit was illegal under Florida law at the time. Many other tribes later followed the Seminole Tribe's lead by building their own bingo parlors on their reservations, leading many scholars to call the Seminole Tribe's victory in this case the "birth" of modern commercial gambling on reservations

And let's not forget the following:  "In March 2007, the Seminole Tribe of Florida acquired Hard Rock International, Inc. and other related entities from The Rank Group Plc. Today, Hard Rock International is one of the most globally recognized companies in the world and has venues in over 70 countries; Cafes, Casinos and Hotels."


https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seminole_Tribe_v._Butterworth

"Lin and Zhongqui are in the United States as political refugees from China, their attorney said. Both men took plea deals on a charge of possession of stolen property, court documents said. Neither admitted guilt but took Alford pleas, meaning they agreed prosecutors had enough evidence to sway a jury."

My take on it:

1). From California and go to Vegas to pick up cash they defrauded out of people.  Seriously?

2). They need a translator in court but to defraud the victims they were just fine.  Seriously?

3). Plea deals for extremely less time it would have took them to legally earn the money in China.  Seriously you can bet your A*s on that!

4). What about the others that never came forward because of being embarrassed or something else? 

5). Can you imagine what the consequences would be if they committed the same type of acts in China and were caught?

6). "Lin and Zhongqui are in the United States as political refugees from China, their attorney said."  OMG Holy Sh*t!  I'm totally floored by that one!  (I'm being a bit comical)

The perpetrators summary of it:

"I just want to apologize to all the victims," Zhongqui said through the help of a translator during his sentencing last month. Lin also apologized.




https://www.8newsnow.com/investigators/las-vegas-police-arrest-12-in-3m-fraud-scheme-don't-be-embarrassed/

Come on!!!  You have to love this:  "Wynn reached a "non-prosecution agreement" with the U.S. Department of Justice to resolve the 10-year-old investigation over unlicensed money transfers from around the world funneling funds to gamblers at Wynn Las Vegas."


https://cdcgaming.com/wynn-resorts-third-las-vegas-strip-operator-to-face-multi-million-dollar-fine-in-the-past-two-months/

When you win big for yourself, think!  Wins do not come large all the time no matter who you are or how skilled you think you are or might be.  Read the following article this morning and had to do a double take on it.  Great thinking on Sanders part.

Point being, all in proportion to what you normally do or infrequently accomplish. 


NFL rookies often go viral for their first big purchase after getting drafted. Some rookies will buy an expensive car. Other rookies will buy some luxurious jewelry or clothing. Of course, some will choose to spend on family, buying their parents a house or paying off a sibling's college tuition.

Sanders, whose father, Deion Sanders, made tens of millions of dollars in the NFL and is now a multi-millionaire head coach at Colorado, is already pretty well off. However, no one would blame him if he decided to make a big purchase now that he has been drafted.

The fifth round NFL Draft pick is making roughly $4.6 million over the next four years. Sanders has announced what he'll be spending his first NFL paycheck on.

BEREA, OHIO - MAY 09: Shedeur Sanders #12 of the Cleveland Browns walks off the field after rookie minicamp at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus on May 09, 2025 in Berea, Ohio. (Photo by Aaron M. Sprecher/Getty Images)
Aaron M. Sprecher/Getty Images
Sanders made an announcement on what he'll be spending his first NFL paycheck on:

Nothing.

That's right, Sanders has announced that instead of spending on a car or a house or jewelry, he's choosing to save his money instead. He'll be investing it, rather than spending it.

"I'm not tryna buy anything," Sanders told reporters. "My signing bonus ain't that high right now."

Sanders made it clear that he has one goal right now: making the roster.

"I'm extremely grateful for the opportunity," Sanders said. "I don't ever focus on the negative or even think about the negative. I've just got to prove and show what I'm capable of. What fuels me is my purpose in life and understanding the route that we're going to have to take. Understanding that I was able to get an opportunity when a lot of people didn't want to give me an opportunity. So that's what I'm truly thankful for."

It's a mature, classy answer from Sanders. And it shows real character that he knows that he has his work cut out for him. While his contract is worth $4 million over four years, there's no guarantee that he'll even make the team.

https://www.8newsnow.com/news/local-news/2-las-vegas-strip-hotels-sued-over-bed-bugs-after-hotel-guests-were-allegedly-bitten/

I have made a decision not to write and post any threads or in any threads for quite awhile.

I will still Admin and monitor all threads as normal.

Thanks,
Stay well,
Alrelax

What happens to the plants when the Bellagio Conservatory changes themes?


https://www.ktnv.com/news/what-happens-to-the-plants-when-the-bellagio-conservatory-changes-themes

I entered the shoe right after the 8-IAR player streak, bought in as soon as the single Natural Banker appeared.

Lost my first hand to players, wagered Banker base bet, Fortune 7, heavenly 9s and blazing 7s. Next hand I hit my first Fortune 7, BOOM!

I looked and studied the previous play posted on the scoreboard, which I don't always do and don't always subscribe to, but I did. Chops, 2s, 3s and strong players. I missed the 3 card 200:1 blazing 7s, as you see right after the panda 8 at the start of the 8 players IAR.

My decision was only wagering banker base bets and 3 side bets for one section at least. Reason being, equalization and strong platforms forming. Like I've said in the past until I was blue in the face, "Wager with what is being presented". And to me that's what was being presented.

Lost two players. Won one bankers. Lost two players. I won a 3 card 9 on player side.

Boom!  Another Fortune 7 and two more bankers. Also the tie was a beautiful 50:1 two card 7-7 win!

Lost the two players. Won a bank. Lost three players.

Then a banker win.  Won 3 card 9 on bankers and another banker.

Then another Fortune 7 for my scrumptious amazing hit!

Lost two players and won the 3 card 9 on players side as well.

Won a banker.

Lost a player. Then won a beautiful 75:1 on the 3 card 9-9 tie.  (A few of us had terrific amount of energy while the rest were losing. What happened on this hand, I would like to say. The players pull a blackjack and the bankers had a 9 and a 2. The players pull an 8 and those wagering on the players were fist pumping their hands in the air and telling everybody how they won the hand.  Myself and one other had maximum Wager on the heavenly 9s.  We look at each other and call for a snowman and we both stand up and tell everybody, "it's not over til it's over". And sure enough the dealer flops a snowman, gotta love it!).

Lost the next 2players. Won a banker. Lost a player. Won the 3 bankers with parlays. Stopped didn't play the last three or four hands of the shoe, which it was the same as what just happened.

NEW SHOE:

Next shoe played the first 10 hands. I have written until I was blue in the face about the first 10 to 16 hands in the past. Research it and see.

First hand was a 2 card 7-7 tie, a beautiful 50:1 win.  Won the 2 Fortune 7s, BADDA BING BADDA BOOM!. Won the 3 card 9 on the playerers side. Stopped end of session.  Won 7 bankers and 2 Fortune 7s and the 3 card 9 on the players side.  Enough.  Done.  If I played longer, I knew I couldn't reset to what is the equivalent of starting a new session.  My next session in a week or so, I most certainly can.  That's me, I know how I am. 

NOTE:  Resetting yourself and being oblivious to recent wins is vital to maintaining a clear thought vision, IMO.   

Yes I wanted to play more. Yes I had visions of winning more. But I was in reality, took the handsome profit cashed out and left.

The game is Baccarat.  You decide how to wager, when to wager and how long to stay.

POST CASINO:  HMoney, another and myself went to one of the restaurants we favor to chill out.  We had a special blend of Vietnamese iced coffee that brews at your table and PHO.  It drips and drips into the concentrated cream and then you stir it extensively.  Then pour into the tall ice filled glass. Add a bit of iced water.  See pictures.  Talk, chill and leave the casino out of it.

Las Vegas
A Panoramic Vision

By:  David Miller
12 X 17"
256 Pages
Published 2007

A beautiful oversized amazing book!  So much history and great shots of everything in a casino, the buildings and around Vegas.

I don't believe it is being published any longer but maybe some are available through auction sites, etc.

Highly recommended x100!

7-20-22.

Why?  I don't know, but the few times I observe I would witness those hit.

A Clark County District Court judge has ruled that Las Vegas-based gaming equipment manufacturer Light & Wonder jumped the gun by marketing a no-commission baccarat game from the British Columbia Lottery Corp. called Ruyi Baccarat before an agreement it had with a rival gaming provider had expired.

Read On:

https://www.reviewjournal.com/business/casinos-gaming/judge-rules-vegas-gaming-company-breached-agreement-by-marketing-baccarat-game-3316135/?utm_campaign=widget&utm_medium=recommend

See attached picture of mine, I play on a Light & Wonder 5 Treasures.