TABLE GAMES By Al Moe
YOUR ARIZONA GAMING BANKROLL Examining Minimum Wagers At Table Games
J
ust because Arizona raised the maximum per-bet limit on table games to $100,000 (yikes!) doesn’t mean you have to bet more money to have fun. The slots are still ringing, “Bingo” is still getting screamed, and you might even find some $5 or $10 limit table games at six in the morning. Want the prices low? Go when it’s slow! Yes, the casinos adjust their limits based on the crowd, so slow crowds bring lower limits and busy weekends and holidays bring premium prices. Now that you know, go with the flow. But keep your eyes open. Check the on-table signage or ask the dealers to avoid confusion about table game limits. They won’t mind. While blackjack with a $15 to $500 limit is pretty straightforward - $15 minimum wager, $500 maximum - other games can be confusing. When I was a kid in Nevada, you could play craps for 25 cents. That won’t ever be the case in Arizona, but hamburgers don’t cost 59 cents anymore either. Most craps games in Las Vegas and Arizona start at $15 or $25. There aren’t that many craps games. It takes four workers to deal the game and, because the games take up the space of several blackjack tables, they aren’t cheap to offer or to play. Still, that $15 minimum wager is deceiving. It’s $15 to bet on the Pass line, but you can bet less on proposition bets like “12” or the “hardways.” Again, ask the dealers and you’ll know more. ROULETTE MINIMUMS The roulette signs might also be confusing for new players. You might be walking around looking for a game and quickly read “Minimum $1” and think, “Wow, that’s cheap.” And it is. But read the whole sign. They usually say, “per chip,” so when you buy in and get your own colored chips, that’s the minimum for each chip. Higher limits are likely! In addition, when you take a color, there’s a minimum number that you must wager each spin, and it’s usually three chips. If the table says “$5 per chip - minimum three,” you must wager $15 or more each spin. The other sign you see, such as $10 to $500, means that’s the minimum wager for a bet with regular casino chips, not the colored roulette chips.
16 Arizona Gaming Guide | June 2022 | azgamingguide.com
That $10 wager can be bet on any combination of numbers, or it can be on a column, color, or section. When you win, you’ll get paid in regular chips, not the colored chips designed for players who are mostly wagering on numbers. Confused? That’s alright; it’s easy once you’ve played. Confused about craps? Go ahead and be - seven you win, seven you lose, it’s tough at first. But after you’ve played for an hour, it’ll all make perfect sense. As for your bankroll, nothing has changed with the introduction of new games. If the game takes multiple mandatory bets like Let it Ride, you need to know your bankroll must be higher than single-wager games like blackjack or even craps if you just bet the Pass Line and take odds. If you are playing roulette mostly on individual numbers, they only hit once in 38 spins on average so, yes, you’ll probably need more of a bankroll or less expensive chips each spin to survive! $
Writer Al Moe has worked in the casino industry for many years. He has lived and worked in Las Vegas, Reno, and Lake Tahoe. He also attended the University of Nevada, Reno. He is an avid writer and blogger. His book, “Vegas and the Mob," is available online at Amazon.com. He is also the proud father of four beautiful girls.
