A Beginner’s Guide to Casino Bonuses
Think casino bonuses are just for –EV gambling suckers? Think again. Despite the common perception, certain casino bonuses are virtually risk-free and basically a license to print money. This post is a general strategy guide to getting started in casino bonuses, pulling together assorted tips and tricks I've learned after embarking into the world o' casino bonuses.
Yeah, I know. Only suckers and degenerate gamblers play at online casinos. The house always has an advantage. You’re guaranteed to lose money if you play long enough. Don’t be a chump.
Yes and no. The house does always have an advantage. But in games such as blackjack, that advantage is very, very small, usually around 0.5%. If the casinos were crazy enough to, oh, say just give you $100 or $200, you could very easily overcome the house advantage and make money playing blackjack. In fact, if you’re smart and disciplined, you’re virtually guaranteed to make money, usually around $30-40/hr for the better bonuses. And you only need a bankroll of $100 to get started.
Online casinos are more than happy to hand out fat welcome bonuses to new players each and every day. Why would they do that? Because they know that most people are true gamblers, and aren’t smart and disciplined enough like you are to seek out the best bonuses and to play in the necessary fashion to maximize the value of the bonus. So for every smart player who takes the bonus and runs, they get three suckers, netting them a hefty overall profit.
All bonuses aren’t created equal, though, so you have to be careful, especially when just starting out. The #1 rule in casino bonuses is to always check the terms and conditions, as they often change and the terms are very, very important, as they can greatly influence your strategy.
While the best bonuses let you play games with a small house advantage like blackjack or craps, don't just assume that a slots-only bonus is a bad one. It all depends on the size of the bonus that you're getting and what the wagering requirements for the bonus are, as even slots-only bonuses can be profitable given the right conditions. One thing to keep in mind with playing slots, too, is that there's always the chance (albeit a longshot) that you could hit a huge jackpot, as some online slots have paid out winners millions of dollars for just a single spin of the reels.
So be sure to check out the casino bonus terms before you get started, as not all bonuses are created equal. Another thing to keep in mind is that it's sometimes good to go ahead and signup for a bonus that's not so great, as you may get better reload bonuses later that can be very profitable.
Casino Bonus List (updated October 25th, 2010):
Rome Casino: up to $10,000 in signup bonuses
Millionaire Casino: 100% up to $5,000 signup bonus
Cherry Red Casino: up to $7,777 in signup bonuses
Rushmore Casino: 100% signup bonus up to $888
Slots Oasis Casino: 400% signup bonus up to $4,000
Casino Bonuses Only for non-US Players
Bet365: 100% signup bonus up to €100
888casino: 100% signup bonus up to $200
William Hill: new player signup bonus of up to $150
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10 comments:
Good luck, if you make the plunge. I wish I'd done it sooner myself, as it's pretty mindless, easy money. Lemme know how it goes.
Yeah, I should have pointed out that they all accept Neteller payments, and process withdrawals through Neteller, too.
Four of those casinos listed (PlanetLuck, StarLuck, CasinoCounty, and AceClub) all use the same processing systems as Party, via IGM-Pay, so the deposit/cashout procedure is basically idential to what happens at Party and assorted skins.
Most of them also offer bonuses for using the IGM-Pay transaction system, too, just like Party, so after you clear the innitial bonus you can usually get a decent bonus for depositing again via IGM-Pay.
Sorry to hear about busting out, web. I completely whiffed on one, too, cashed out down forty bucks on another, and broke even on one. So it's obviously not all gravy, with buxom Swedish supermodel twins handing you serving platters filled with cash.
Betting the boring minimum really is key, if you want to ensure an overall profit. It's definitely hard, though, especially if you're prone to gambling. And especially if you get ahead early on a bonus, as it seems like "fun" money, and you start increasing your bet size, seeing as you're on a roll, etc.
Then you hit a bad streak and, instead of dropping back to the minimum bet, locking in an eventual small win, you start betting bigger, trying to get back all that profit that is suddenly gone. Then suddenly you account is showing zeros and you're looking for the magic button on your keyboard that lets you rewind time twenty minutes.
In the long run, though, the math is with you, if you stick to minimum bets and only target the fat, juicy bonuses.
started on Starluck last thursday.. within an hour, i was down to $120.. with $123 wagered.. following that BJ religously... not good... easy math there..
switched to video poker.. within two hours.. back up to $167 with $820 wagered....lil tuffer math, but much better...will keep up plan, only staying with video poker...
Slayre,
Blackjack really is the way to go with these, even if you didn't immediately have success with it. Like a great man named Axl Rose once said, "Just a little patience, yeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhh..."
The problem with video poker is that the payout numbers you see are skewed towards the potential of hitting a royal. While a particular video poker game like Jacks or Better may return 99.46%, more often than not you'll get creamed playing it with a typical $100 bonus on a $100 deposit. Your bankroll is too small and the game is too high variance for you to last long enough to hit a bigger payout that effectively reduces the house advantage.
Scurvy,
That sounds good, it really does... however... since it COST me, 80 dollars to WAGER 120 dollars.... then from there, I got PAID 47 dollars to WAGER another 680 dollars... don't you think that I should stick with what is working, for me at least.....
Right now, I've got another $750 to wager with a bankroll of $157...... I just play Jacks or better and I never try to double...
I am not disagreeing with you... I am just saying, since VP is 'working' for me, right now, I am gonna stick with it....
Thanks for your comments.. I will keep updating here...
Slayre,
I'm definitely in favor of doing what's working for you, especially if you're having fun playing video poker and making money.
All I'm really saying is that losing $80 after wagering $123 at BJ (making minimum bets) is really, really unusual. Freakishly unusual. Which sucks in and of itself, but it especially sucks since this is the first one you tried, as it sort of skews your perspective and leads to hating on the blackjack. Which, based on the cold hard math, is by far the best way to go when clearing these casino bonuses.
But yeah, like I said, whatever works. Hit a royal at video poker and shut me up. Heh.
Well, shut up then, or at least be quiet, cuz, I hit a straight flush... paying 100x's, I was betting $1... but, before that, I hit quad 3's, 50X's ( .50 bet ), but before that, I hit quad 2's, 50x's ( .50 ).
Here is what happened... I had hit quad Jacks on the standard J's or better machine... putting me at 197 with about 650 or so left to wager.... next day.. today.. the machine is cold... I get all the way down to 100 in my bank... still have 300 or so to wager.. doable, but, looking like no bonus... so, I switch back to BJ... lose 5 hands in a row... down to 95 bucks... go back to video poker, this time a new machine.. 'The Vegas Club', betting .50cents... The cool thing was the bonus feature.. if you get 3 sets of dice after the hand, you get to play a bonus game for free... paying you your bet times the roll of the dice.. easy money..
anyway.. quad 2's put me at 112 or so.. the threes put me at 137... and I was at 117 when I hit the SF... putting me at $217, with $9.25 left to wager... I played 9 hands at a dollar bet, lost every damn one.. heh.. then won with a quarter bet...
then i blew about 30 bucks playing around with the other machines...
leaveing me $170, zero left to wager... :)
Didn't do all that well on Planet Luck... mostly due to just being an idiot... was at $75.00 when met the wager, and figured I would spend 25 to try to get back to $100... I got to $175 and should have stopped, then down to $101, and still should have stopped... ended up busting out with zero...
my own damn fault... debating on the next step or not... prolly should let my wound heal some first.
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