Casino Ethics: Cheques

I usually refer to the ones I collect as "chips", but I do accept that either "checks" or "cheques" is the proper term. Not sure which is really right. It is my understanding that "chips" is the proper term for the ones that do not have an imprinted value, such as the ones at the roulette table, ones in home sets, or ones sometimes used in tournaments that may have different values at different times.

I don't think there is any basis for considering it "unethical" for casinos to use them for the table games. To do otherwise would be inconvenient for most everyone and would basically be silly.

Quote: Doc

It is my understanding that "chips" is the proper term for the ones that do not have an imprinted value, such as the ones at the roulette table, ones in home sets, or ones sometimes used in tournaments that may have different values at different times.

If you care to know, "cheques" is also the term used for Roulette or tourney BJ play, they just have the distinction of "non-value cheques" (although "non value" to us means expressly Roulette, whereas we call the BJ tourney cheques, um, "tourney cheques" ;) And by "us" I mean specifically my place, not necessarily "the industry". Maybe others can comment...)

I call home sets "chips" because I rarely play with industry people, and non casino people never hear of "cheques". When in rome, and all that...

Bingo is always chips, or at least that's the way I've always known it. I don't have much professional Class II experience, but I played tons of Bingo with my gram when she was alive and I've never heard them called otherwise.

Same with Poker, I don't have the professional experience, but I've never heard them called anything but "chips".

Haven't you ever heard a dealer call out "cheque change" ?

He doesn't say "chip change", does he?

Quote: kp

Arguments for no:
They don't want the player to realize they are gambling with real money

That isn't it at all. In the old OLD days, when roulette first
started, they only used cash. Any cash, from any country.
It was a nightmare. They ususally averaged 3 spins an
hour because of the arguments that happened on every
spin about who bet what. There were men who made a living
by falsely claiming bets they never made. So cheques were
invented and it sped up the game tremendously. Can you
imagine a layout covered in paper money and gold and
silver coins, so that the board itself was almost invisible?
And having to figure the payouts?

Here, the business reasons overwhelmingly outweigh any of the minor effects on the player thinking about pieces of plastic instead of hard earned dollar bills or making jocular references to "a green" or " a quarter" when meaning twenty-five hard earned dollars.

Casinos can keep cash in the cashiers cage and vault and bank account and customers can physically handle cheques which are more tactile than scraps of similar paper currencies.

I have had a lot of players put a $100 bill down and say they only want $50 in cheques and $50 cash back. I offer them $50 in red and 2 green chips. That has always seemed to make them happy. I guess they are scared they might bet the full hundred.

Quote: DJTeddyBear

Haven't you ever heard a dealer call out "cheque change" ?

He doesn't say "chip change", does he?

Actually, I always thought "check change" was short for "pit boss, come check that I gave this guy the right amount of change".

Every other time I've heard dealers talk about chips, they refer to them as chips.

Also, if you do a search on google images for "casino cheques", less than half of the results are actual pictures of chips. Of course, if you google "casino chips", virtually all results are images of chips.

I think we all agree that most players refer to them as chips, and probably do not know the term "cheques". I now understand that they were at some point in history commonly referred to as cheques. I am a little perplexed why industry experts continue to use the archaic term, but its not really a big deal. I'm not in the industry so I can accept that those who are use a different term. Thanks for the info guys.

Quote: Face

If you care to know, "cheques" is also the term used for Roulette or tourney BJ play, they just have the distinction of "non-value cheques" ...

... with Poker, I don't have the professional experience, but I've never heard them called anything but "chips".

Face, thanks for the clarification. I'm a little confused on the poker issue, perhaps since I have only played poker in a casino two or maybe three times. Aren't the poker "chips" identical to the casino "cheques"? Why do they change name when moved into another room?

As for the other topic of cheques/chips being used "unethically" by casinos that don't want players to think of them as real money, I am reminded of the very first cruise I went on back in 1976. That was before the cruise ships operated like now -- these days you have a room key with a magnetic stripe that serves as your on-board credit card. It was also before the days that ATMs were everywhere. Cruise ship passengers brought travelers' checks and cashed them at the purser's desk/cage, and we used cash for everything purchased on board or on shore. On that first ship, the purser only issued crisp, new, U.S. currency, usually in the highest denomination appropriate for the transaction. Some of my fellow passengers laughed that it was like having Monopoly money and that we weren't supposed to think of it as real. Same idea as the concept of chips-aren't-real-money, but I guarantee you that I thought of those crisp currency notes as real money, and I do with the chips/cheques, too. (Perhaps that's why I'm only willing to collect the $1 variety as souvenirs.)

Quote: Doc

Some of my fellow passengers laughed that it was like having Monopoly money and that we weren't supposed to think of it as real. Same idea as the concept of chips-aren't-real-money, but I guarantee you that I thought of those crisp currency notes as real money, and I do with the chips/cheques, too. (Perhaps that's why I'm only willing to collect the $1 variety as souvenirs.)

Funny, I regard chips as more real money than actual real money :)

Consider. Chips are heavy, substantial and you can't help but notice them if you're carrying them. Paper notes (ie real money) are less substantial and you can't help not noticing them when you're carrying them.

Maybe that explains why when playing poker for ultra-low stakes, I still take the game seriously. The lot of chips we used might represent only $3 per person, but even the one we valued at $0.10 is more "real" than a $20 note, or so it feels to me anyway.

Wasn't there a thread about making cash bets at the tables?

Quote: Doc

Some of my fellow passengers laughed that it was like having Monopoly money ...

I think a lot of people made similar comments when they first changed the design after having it unchanged for so many years.