The Adventures of MDawg II

To me, ordering a filet mignon is like ordering a Jack-n-Coke. Someone who knows what they’re doing would never do such a thing

Fat is very nutritious. It’s good for you as long as it’s grass-fed / organic. Eat all you want

One of the most basic yet most delicious foods (IMO) is a slice of rye toast slathered with grass-fed butter.

Maybe what you are saying is that grass fed beef has less fat than grain fed beef, but saturated fat is saturated fat no matter from what grain the meat containing the fat is derived, no?

For example - vitamins in pills derived naturally or vitamins synthetically produced are chemically identical, all that might matter are the impurities added to them.

That’s not what I’m saying or what I said

Well if what you are saying is that the specific types of fat from grass fed meat are any different from the same specific types of fat from grain fed meat - that is flat out wrong.

The composition of the fat in grass fed beef is what is different; in grass fed beef the fat tends to have less saturated fat in it, and then also more beneficial fatty and linoleic acids.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8728510/

But, if you ate globs of pure saturated fat that came from grass fed beef versus globs of the saturated fat from grain fed beef you would end up just as bad off. You cannot "eat all you want" of any saturated fat.

Grass fed beef is a healthier beef, no doubt, but saturated fat in beef is saturated fat in beef. If you don't agree with that last sentence, then you're in your own realm of science.

I just wanted to know why you think ribeye steaks are one of the best things you may eat, but if it's based on a misunderstanding of the sameness of identical types of fat in beef, then I don't need to hear more.

Or if you are saying that saturated fat in beef is good for you, why would that be?

Not only are saturated fats essential for proper cellular and hormonal function, but they also provide a concentrated source of energy in your diet that does not cause a surge in blood sugar or insulin, which means they help you lose excess pounds and maintain a healthy weight.

Saturated fats from animal and vegetable sources provide you with a number of important health benefits and help in the proper functioning of:

• Immune system
• Liver
• Cell membranes
• Bones
• Heart
• Hormones
• Lungs
• Genetic regulation

They also promote satiety, reducing your hunger pangs so you avoid binge eating and unhealthy food cravings. By following a high-fat, low-carb diet, you will be able to optimize your weight and avoid virtually all chronic degenerative diseases.

We definitely do need a little saturated fat. But we get enough in everyday foods.

The American Heart Association sets the bar for saturated fat at less than 7 percent of daily calories. For instance, if your total calorie goal is 2,000 a day -- reasonable for moderately active adults -- you should aim for no more than 20 grams of saturated fat to keep your intake to 10 percent or so.

Is getting more saturated fat than what we need daily good or bad for us? Well, there are many studies that seem to show that saturated fat leads to increased LDL (bad) cholesterol, which in turn seems to lead to increased risk of cardiovascular disease. You will find some who claim that these studies are old, and don't prove that saturated fat is bad, but no one claims that saturated fat is good, just that it might not be as bad as claimed, or might not be the actual culprit in raising LDL cholesterol.

But, even recent studies seem to show the same though:
This 2015 Cochrane Review of long-term randomized controlled trials on saturated fat, for example, found that reducing one's saturated fat intake can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease (including heart disease and stroke), but it really depends on what you replace that food with. People who replaced saturated fat with unsaturated fat got the most benefit.

There is another fairly recent study (from 2016), that seems to indicate the same:
Consuming high amounts of saturated fats linked to increased heart disease risk

The average person needs 1500 to 2000 calories per day. So that would be 10 - 15 grams per day of saturated fat, optimally, at the 7% AHA recommended rate. If you're very active, such as say on the days when I work out with extremely heavy weights for 2 hours straight, maybe you'll need 500 - 1000 more calories per a day, which would add say 4 - 7 more grams of saturated fat to what you might need in a day.

But, consuming more than 10% of those needed calories per day in saturated fat, most everyone agrees is not a good thing.

I love ribeye steaks, but when I start eating them too often, I am aware that this is not entirely healthful. I was hoping you had some new angle to make me feel better about eating those ribeyes. Won't stop eating them, but we'll continue to try to eat fish or chicken or no animal protein at all most days.

This thread has devolved into talking about fat. MDawg, you need to go back to Vegas! Or else rename this thread ‘The lack of adventures of MDawg’.

You're more persuasive than any casino marketing!

Multiple tournaments and promotions coming up, will dip in and dip out...to Collect! I won't even play. Do you believe me?

Quote: MDawg

Multiple tournaments and promotions coming up, will dip in and dip out...to Collect! I won't even play. Do you believe me?
link to original post

Who goes to a restaurant just to scoop the free gravy?

I mentioned the same to a family member and added that I had gone to Vegas for a decade or so, without playing at all.

"Yes, but did you have millions in credit lines at that time?"

That's the point. It's one thing to have to go to the Bank, get a cashier's check, come back to play, that takes real effort. But to have open lines, all you have to do is walk up to the table and ask for chips.


One thing though - if you haven't used a line for 90 days, most casinos will put a hold on it and do a check before re-opening. Mostly just Central Credit which monitors only casino credit, but then also Bank checks as well to verify that you still have enough on deposit. Not an issue for me, but this is just the way it works. Once a year most casinos will re-run your personal credit too, although only with soft pulls.


I don't know though. Merely writing about casino play, for me, gets me a charge enough to not have to play actually. Writing about actual experiences from the past is second place to doing it for real that day.

Winner takes all, million dollar tournament coming up soon!

Actually I didn't mention yet because it would have been too easy to track me down, but I did win a pretty big tournament last trip. So that makes four tournaments where I have either won or at least placed in past couple years.

I don't play at regional casinos, only Vegas, but people I know have been telling me that the casinos in Commerce, CA are giving chip increase bonuses to Baccarat players (the people who told me about this, play Baccarat only, so maybe the bonus applies to all tables games).

The bonus works like this:

Deposit funds with the casino one day of the week. A couple days later, the casino increases your initial deposit by 20%. Yes 20% is the figure mentioned to me. You cannot withdraw this deposit, so it works effectively like promo chips, and must be played before the end of the week. I was told that the deposit must be made on Monday, and then the bonus comes into play on Wednesday.

The people I know, told me they are depositing in the realm of $100K - $200K. Whether this bonus is publicly advertised, or only for players who have played for a while and achieved legendary status, I don't know.

None of this has been verified personally by me.

The rains in southern Cal finally subsiding!

The news said it’s raining in New York.

Quote: MDawg

I don't play at regional casinos, only Vegas, but people I know have been telling me that the casinos in Commerce, CA are giving chip increase bonuses to Baccarat players (the people who told me about this, play Baccarat only, so maybe the bonus applies to all tables games).

The bonus works like this:

Deposit funds with the casino one day of the week. A couple days later, the casino increases your initial deposit by 20%. Yes 20% is the figure mentioned to me. You cannot withdraw this deposit, so it works effectively like promo chips, and must be played before the end of the week. I was told that the deposit must be made on Monday, and then the bonus comes into play on Wednesday.

The people I know, told me they are depositing in the realm of $100K - $200K. Whether this bonus is publicly advertised, or only for players who have played for a while and achieved legendary status, I don't know.

None of this has been verified personally by me.
link to original post

I have a friend who deposits $5M cash every time he plays. I am actually now negotiating on his behalf to try get him some % bonus similar to the above in Vegas. This will be unprecedented as far as I know, in Vegas. I've called in an independent host I work with to help me with this as well.

Quote: MDawg

Quote: MDawg

I don't play at regional casinos, only Vegas, but people I know have been telling me that the casinos in Commerce, CA are giving chip increase bonuses to Baccarat players (the people who told me about this, play Baccarat only, so maybe the bonus applies to all tables games).

The bonus works like this:

Deposit funds with the casino one day of the week. A couple days later, the casino increases your initial deposit by 20%. Yes 20% is the figure mentioned to me. You cannot withdraw this deposit, so it works effectively like promo chips, and must be played before the end of the week. I was told that the deposit must be made on Monday, and then the bonus comes into play on Wednesday.

The people I know, told me they are depositing in the realm of $100K - $200K. Whether this bonus is publicly advertised, or only for players who have played for a while and achieved legendary status, I don't know.

None of this has been verified personally by me.
link to original post

I have a friend who deposits $5M cash every time he plays. I am actually now negotiating on his behalf to try get him some % bonus similar to the above in Vegas. This will be unprecedented as far as I know, in Vegas. I've called in an independent host I work with to help me with this as well.
link to original post

Meaning he transfers $5,000,000 from his bank/brokerage account directly to a casino’s account?

You think a Las Vegas casino will just add some multiple before he plays? I understand giving loss rebates. I understand giving some promo chips based on prior play. I really don’t understand just adding a million to the 5 million you transfer. Will there be a contract that he has to guarantee X hours of play at Y dollars per bet?

They’d have to track your play closely. Otherwise, make a deposit for 5x your normal bankroll and then play only with the house’s money. All losses on them but you keep all wins

New month, new session. - Win/Loss statement

The way it works at the Commerce, CA casinos is as I outlined above. Deposit one day, two days later get the promos.

Whether Vegas will go for something like that, at a 20% rate, I don't know yet.

I’d wear my bulletproof vest in commerce, ca

For now, the response we've been getting is the standard, promo chips are handed out only according to existing guidelines, only during certain periods, for certain promotions, etc.

But - just as I was able to negotiate well above average concessions, so maybe we'll be able to do the same here. There are a lot of casinos in Vegas, and if one doesn't want to go out of its way for a $5M per trip cash player, another might!

(From the AI man.)

Quote: MDawg

link to original post

The initial statement lacks understanding.
Other than #3 the rest can possibly only help you loose slower. Perhaps the initial state should read what is the
best way to loose slower at..( insert game)

It does look like a pretty good time actually.

I am in a couple of very large Baccarat tournaments shortly (am in Vegas now).

I have been in both Blackjack and Baccarat tournaments.

All have been free entry (complimentary based on prior sufficient action at the real dollar tables). Based on my level of prior play at the real dollar tables, in some of the tournaments I am advanced automatically to the second round, sometimes even to the quarter or semi finals such as advancing simply ONE MORE ROUND puts me in the guaranteed money.

In some of the tournaments, there are Wild Card drawings that advance you to anywhere from somewhere in the quarter or semi finals, to directly to the final winner's (big money) table. In some tournaments, entry into the Wild Card drawing is complimentary simply for being in the tournament. In others, to get a Wild Card drawing entry, you must put in some actual play at the real dollar tables during the time period that the tournament is going on - the more real dollar play at the regular tables during the tournament, the more Wild Card entries. At some, the Wild Card drawing is a sort of hybrid, with say, 1 entry complimentary simply for being in the tournament, but additional entries in the Wild Card drawing based on real dollar play.

The actual tournaments work like this:

Most involve 5 or 6 prizes (almost always paid in promo chips, so not a reportable event - winnings are not reported to the government) given to the final participants who make it to the final table. Along the way, with an average of 5 or 6 players per table, anywhere from 1 to 4 of the players advance. Generally, the closer you get to the final "money" table, the less persons per table move on. The one(s) who move on per table move on based on having the highest chip total after the final hand.

There are a couple "winner take all" tournaments per year in Vegas, where the final prize is a cool million - just one winner. There are generally at least several hundred participants in such a tournament, but even so, a say 1/450 chance of winning a million is not bad at all.

As far as the tournaments where 5 or 6 final players win something, I've been in such tournaments where there are as few as forty entrants, or as many as a hundred or so. Still not bad odds. These are all high end tournaments only for bigger players.

For each round of the tournament, the order of play is determined by a single die roll before play is commenced, and the final hand is sometimes secret (you write down your final hand choice and amount on a slip of paper that is revealed only after everyone has turned in his slip), sometimes last hand is not blind. The secret bet aspect eliminates the advantage of betting last on the final round. Typically there are anywhere from 9 to 14 hands dealt per round of a tournament.

When I play a blackjack tournament, obviously I am counting the deck as best possible given that we will never get past a dozen or so hands (which depending on how many players are at or remain at the table, might burn through a full deck or more, but also might not), but also tournament strategy is different from regular play, and you will see people, especially on the final hand, doing crazy things like splitting tens, doubling down on a hard hand even on a hard 16, doubling on a blackjack, and so on - it depends a lot on how aggressive they are, and how behind they might be, especially on that last hand.

In a Baccarat tournament sometimes I will employ a strategy of simply betting against everyone if all or most of the players are on one side, and other times I will just go with the direction the shoe (and everyone else) has been taking and not try to be tournament clever.

While the general strategy for all tournaments is to bet low until the final 5 or so hands, this doesn't always work, and sometimes leaves you so far behind some more early aggressive player that you can't catch up no matter what at the end. The other general strategy of mirror your opponent's bet placement and amount if you are ahead, bet opposite your opponent's bet placement and amount if behind, do work in general, but of course, not always.

Obviously no matter what betting or other skill you might bring to the table, you also need some luck in order to win.

The four tournaments I have won have all been Baccarat. Have not won a Blackjack tournament yet.


I have had some crazy Blackjack tournament hands where I was the chip leader and would have advanced either to the semi finals or all the way to the final table, where the only reasons I didn't advance are that my opponent got a blackjack, or doubled down on a hard hand, got a low card and didn't bust but still didn't make any kind of hand where, I had hit to say, 21, and then the dealer busted, just blind luck absurd bad odds bets that somehow paid off for my opponents when everything was in my favor. You know - like those poker hands where you're holding two aces and the flop includes another ace, and some clown called your huge pre-flop raise with a crappy pair of nothing non suited non connected cards, hung in there as you kept raising, but somehow ended up with a straight and beat you.

Have you played in Macau ?

Not yet. I have been all over Asia, but, never played in Asia.

From what I understand, their Blackjack isn't very favorable (do they even have other than CSM?), and their Baccarat tables are just too crowded unless you have your own table. I assume that getting your own private Bacc table in Macau would be harder than in Vegas.

Quote: MDawg

Not yet. I have been all over Asia, but, never played in Asia.

From what I understand, their Blackjack isn't very favorable (do they even have other than CSM?), and their Baccarat tables are just too crowded unless you have your own table. I assume that getting your own private Bacc table in Macau would be harder than in Vegas.
link to original post

I have no idea, but would think that a credit line of sufficient size would get the job done.

I find it odd that someone with a $5mm bankroll would play in a locals casino in Commerce, CA....

Quote: MDawg

I am in a couple of very large Baccarat tournaments shortly (am in Vegas now).....
link to original post

What kind of action do you have to be involved in to get invited to these Baccarat tournaments?

They're not advertised online. I've asked casino employees and they tell me they don't know about any Baccarat tournaments. So, I'm assuming you need to be a pretty big bettor before you're even told of their existence.

What will get me there... yellow chip level? More?

TigerWu, to clarify what I wrote about here:

I wrote about how people I know have told me that they get 20% in promo chips added on to their bankrolls under the circumstances that I outlined, in the Commerce, CA casinos. I mentioned that these people were depositing something like 100 or 200K.

Then I mentioned someone I know who plays in Vegas and wires in $5M each trip, to Vegas.

For that Vegas player, we (by we I mean I and an independent host I work with) have been trying to get a similar to the Commerce casinos deal in Vegas. So far, the casinos are unwilling to come up to anywhere near the 20% level.


Tournaments,

All of these tournaments have different criteria. Some of the larger prize money ones require credit lines or front money deposits of $250K or $500K, but if enough invitees decline to participate, the criteria may be lowered on a case by case basis. Obviously besides the minimum credit line / front money criteria the player also must have shown some strong, regular action to get into the larger tournaments (no "shot takers").

An independent host would know about most every tournament going on in town, especially at the casinos where that ind host has players. Sometimes these tournaments are listed in the emails that are sent out by in house or independent hosts, sometimes not. I don't know if any of the tourneys are actually "advertised" but if sending out emails to qualifying players is advertising, then yes, they do that - but for some tournaments, they aren't even listed on any emails I get, and a host or the tournament director simply texts me as the tournament date approaches and asks if I would like to participate.

By the way, in general, for most every casino, to participate in a tournament (or a promotional stay, for example), all outstanding markers must be cleared - the credit line must be clear.

While some of the tournaments do have set criteria, many don't and are simply offered to players who put in sufficient regular play, at a high enough level.

The more elite the casino, the higher the criteria to get into their tournaments. But as well, the more elite casinos also have larger aggregate prize pools for their tournaments. An off Strip casino's entire prize pool might equal $50K (in promo chips), while at another the prize pool might be over a million. I generally don't bother with any tournament where the prize pool is much under $100K, especially if there is a scheduling conflict and more than one tournament is going on that day.

I have actually pulled off two tournaments in one day many times, but this works most easily if you get knocked out quickly in one of them. If you start advancing in both, you'll end up with conflicts and - decision time.

Quote: TigerWu

I find it odd that someone with a $5mm bankroll would play in a locals casino in Commerce, CA....

Quote: MDawg

I am in a couple of very large Baccarat tournaments shortly (am in Vegas now).....
link to original post

What kind of action do you have to be involved in to get invited to these Baccarat tournaments?

They're not advertised online. I've asked casino employees and they tell me they don't know about any Baccarat tournaments. So, I'm assuming you need to be a pretty big bettor before you're even told of their existence.

What will get me there... yellow chip level? More?
link to original post

I am sure if you ask your host they can tell you the requirements or expected play levels.

Quote: DRich

Quote: TigerWu

I find it odd that someone with a $5mm bankroll would play in a locals casino in Commerce, CA....

Quote: MDawg

I am in a couple of very large Baccarat tournaments shortly (am in Vegas now).....
link to original post

What kind of action do you have to be involved in to get invited to these Baccarat tournaments?

They're not advertised online. I've asked casino employees and they tell me they don't know about any Baccarat tournaments. So, I'm assuming you need to be a pretty big bettor before you're even told of their existence.

What will get me there... yellow chip level? More?
link to original post

I am sure if you ask your host they can tell you the requirements or expected play levels.
link to original post

Why would you possibly think TigerWu has a host? I would surmise if he had a host he’d be asking the host, not a bunch of anonymous internetters!
What I’m interested in is the EV. In one of the million dollar tourneys are you competing as one of a hundred invitees? EV $10k as an example. I do a bunch of online sports betting type events with an EV of around $1! Most less…..

Quote: SOOPOO

Quote: DRich

Quote: TigerWu

I find it odd that someone with a $5mm bankroll would play in a locals casino in Commerce, CA....

Quote: MDawg

I am in a couple of very large Baccarat tournaments shortly (am in Vegas now).....
link to original post

What kind of action do you have to be involved in to get invited to these Baccarat tournaments?

They're not advertised online. I've asked casino employees and they tell me they don't know about any Baccarat tournaments. So, I'm assuming you need to be a pretty big bettor before you're even told of their existence.

What will get me there... yellow chip level? More?
link to original post

I am sure if you ask your host they can tell you the requirements or expected play levels.
link to original post

Why would you possibly think TigerWu has a host? I would surmise if he had a host he’d be asking the host, not a bunch of anonymous internetters!
What I’m interested in is the EV. In one of the million dollar tourneys are you competing as one of a hundred invitees? EV $10k as an example. I do a bunch of online sports betting type events with an EV of around $1! Most less…..
link to original post

I have played in a lot of smaller tournaments and even won twice, but I have never been involved in a big one. I was invited to a $500k giveaway at the Venetian once where everybody invited earned drawing tickets for their play. I would guess that I had the most tickets, or at least close to the most, they drew 30 tickets to win prizes from $5k up to $250k, I didn't have a single ticket drawn (electronic drawing not physical ticket) and based on my rough calculations that was highly improbable. The next year Nevada Gaming fined Venetian millions of dollars for drawings rigged for their high rollers. I am convinced I was cheated.

Venetian did get in trouble for a rigged tournament, at least once

https://www.lasvegasadvisor.com/question/venetian-rigging-a-drawing/

which might mean it was done more than once.


SooPoo, the winner takes all $1M tournaments always have hundreds of participants and only one wins. Typically four or five hundred entrants,

The tournaments where $1+M is pooled don't have nearly as many participants, mainly because the qualifying criteria are much higher. In those the odds of winning something are the 5 or 6 prizes divided by approximately 50 - 100 entrants.

I'd say the best odds I've had are drawings where only 40 or so participants were involved (I won, something substantial, twice), and tournaments with 50 - 100 participants (won a couple of those). I've also won two tournaments that had between 100 - 200 participants.

All free entry, so no reason not to participate if invited and in town.

Luck is of course a factor. I've won a drawing where I had only one ticket in the drum, and others had maxed out at whatever the max was and won nothing. I didn't win the grand prize (or else we could say...hey! that was rigged for MDawg) but I did win a pretty nice all cash prize on that tournament.

It's nice to quote watered-down articles. I was there playing at the time. There was so much shit going on there, it wasn't funny.
Pros were locking up 50k slot tournaments. Pros were dominating the drawings before they were blatantly rigging the drawings that were previously bought out. I assume the rigged drawing was actually due to countering AP from winning.

The Venetian was actually one of the first places that helped kick off the AP free-play mail game.

Quote: MDawg

For each round of the tournament, the order of play is determined by a single die roll before play is commenced, and the final hand is sometimes secret (you write down your final hand choice and amount on a slip of paper that is revealed only after everyone has turned in his slip), sometimes last hand is not blind. The secret bet aspect eliminates the advantage of betting last on the final round. Typically there are anywhere from 9 to 14 hands dealt per round of a tournament.
link to original post

The die roll is done on the Blackjack tournaments. If there are less than 6 participants, and a 6 comes up, the die is rolled again. With the Baccarat tournaments your spot on the table based on picking randomly your entry slip sometimes is all they use to assign the order, with the order going 1 - X on the table for the first hand.

Southern Cal weather has heated up. Vegas, not so much.

Not a particularly busy weekend in Vegas. The crowds I have seen are touristy crowds.




I have not remained a tourist. I have been playing, although not particularly hard, with my highest bets being some 5 - 15K hands.

Day 1 play.

Baccarat.

Two sessions. First one I played pretty big - up to 15K on one advantage hand - but over all walked just maybe 500 ahead. Second session bet much smaller won with ease.

+6500

Note: Lately, for security reasons, session reports are not necessarily presented in real time corresponding directly to the day played.

And this is the MDawg challenge.

Day 2 play.

Baccarat.

Long Bank run - got it all!

+15500

Note: Lately, for security reasons, session reports are not necessarily presented in real time corresponding directly to the day played.

And this is the MDawg challenge.

Day 3 play.

Baccarat and DD Blackjack.

Three sessions. First, few thousand win, second few hundred win, third, big win.

+14800

Note: Lately, for security reasons, session reports are not necessarily presented in real time corresponding directly to the day played.

And this is the MDawg challenge.

Day 4 play.

Baccarat.

Two sessions one lost big one won not quite as big.

-24000

Note: Lately, for security reasons, session reports are not necessarily presented in real time corresponding directly to the day played.

And this is the MDawg challenge.

Day 5 play.

Baccarat.

Somewhat long session, pretty slow and steady.

+11000

Note: Lately, for security reasons, session reports are not necessarily presented in real time corresponding directly to the day played.

And this is the MDawg challenge.

But at least you ended up on the plus side today

Yes, I had a lot on my mind that day not related to gaming but I persevered and played through to a successful conclusion.

Day 6 play.

Baccarat.

Pretty steady. Took a little while to build up the momentum though.

+10700

Note: Lately, for security reasons, session reports are not necessarily presented in real time corresponding directly to the day played.

And this is the MDawg challenge.