Posted by The Penetrator on January 01, 1997 at 18:11:29:
Just returned from a five day trip to Reno. Unfortunately, not a good trip for my bankroll but overall pretty decent playing conditions for SD and DD players. Mostly SD though.
Sundowner:
Stayed here to keep expenses to a minimum. $23 a night even on the weekend. One $25 SD game with 70% pen and immediate scrutiny from the pit. Don't eat at the coffee shop! Probably the worst food in Reno. Yes this place is old and dumpy. So are it's players.
comstock:
Another low roller joint. Played green here with little or no heat. Probably because I was losing. Spread 1-4. Dealers were friendly. While taking a break from 21 played craps for about 30 minutes and won $250. Everyone was winning until the pit boss came over and told the roller to "pick up the dice and roll them". What the hell does this mean? Is it possible to roll the dice without picking them up? Well the lady who had been rolling the dice got pissed off and left. It was now my turn to roll and I started rolling point after point until I got the same comment from the pit. This tme they explained that you cannot tap the dice on the table or "practice roll" (pick them up and set them down) before rolling. When I told her "with all due respect, that's chicken shit of the casino" she said these policies were consistent with all the other local casinos. She must have meant with the exeption of the rest of the casinos in this post which did not seem to have a problem with these "apparent methods of cheating".
Siver Legacy:
Great 2 deck pen from most dealers and Strip rules (double on any first two cards). Shuffle masters. SD are NN rules and usually had at least 2 players at every open table. Casino now offers "Twist-a-Jack" game. Looks like a six deck 21 game with various side bets available. Sorry I left the pamphlet with the rules in my hotel room.
Flamingo Hilton:
Decent pen on DD games with Strip rules and DAS. Dealer hits soft 17. Lots of open seats at the pit near the bar. Probably because of all the noise from the band. If you can concentrate with loud music, you won't have to worry about anyone trying to talk to you while you play. Never got asked for my players card here either. Green spread 1-10 with little or no heat.
Harrahs:
Still cuts off 20 cards from DD game before dealing. Since I had no intention of playing here I asked the pit boss why. He was happy to step outside the pit and explain that they had hired efficiency experts to come in and evaluate...blah blah blah...less carpal tunnel for the dealers...blah blah blah...two decks hard to hold blah blah blah blah...and we deal out almost all of the other cards (yeah right). Anyways, if carpal tunnel were the real problem, couldn't they just go to SD or 2 deck shoes? Skip this place, even the lounge act was bad. Nothing like the Harrahs in Vegas.
Eldorado:
Decent 2 deck pen but NN rules. No heat though.
Circus Circus:
Great pen on SD game. NN rules. Minimal heat on $25 table. Spread 1-5.
Reno Hilton:
Stopped in here three days in a row looking for DD game. Never could find one. SD with NN rules $10 min. Tables were always crowded.
Ascuaga's Nugget (Sparks)
Great SD pen with Strip rules. Little heat. Friendly pit personnel and generous with comps when asked. There is another 21 pit on the opposite end of the hotel. Even the coffee shop has great food.
Peppermill:
Still great rules for SD but pen seems to vayr quite a bit depending on the dealer. No heat with 1-5 spread. Good food here too.
Atlantis:
Good pen SD with Strip Rules. Wants everyone to have a players card. Buffet voted Reno's best. I really don't like buffets but this one was pretty decent.
Fitzgeralds:
Good SD pen with NN rules. Little heat at $25 table. All the attention here was on a couple of Asian ladies who each had about $5,000 worth of black chips in front of them and were high fiving each other whenever the dealer busted or they got a blackjack. The dealer I was playing said they had been winning all night.
Harolds:
How long does it take to remodel a casino?
If your going to Reno bring tire chains. The drive from Auburn to Reno
took 5 1/2 hours when chains were required.
Overall this is the worst trip I've had in over a year. My total loss was
just under 200 units for five days of play. I'm sure this is partly due
to the rules in some of the games I played. Negative fluctuations can hurt.
I'll be in LV for the CES show and return on Jan. 15. I'll try to post
a report on the LV page as soon as I return.
Mike