Not a big win but a heartbreak for me. #$%^&*

I felt amazed first- and a little sick second.

Yesterday I was playing Pai Gow Poker- I always make the sidebet- and the table is almost generic, just a little stingy.


I put down $100 on the main bet and $10 on the sidebet.

I get handed my cards, wait to see them- and I had:

Ace, King, Jack, Ten, Nine, Eight of clubs- ... and a three of hearts.

OMG. I was 1 card away from a "7-card royal flush" (if you can name it that). I felt sick

and the worst part, the WORST part is that I cant even get a straight flush or a straight out of it- I play the A-3 on top and the King high flush on the bottom.

I end up winning the 3-1 bonus for the flush and pushing on the house having a A-K on top.


1 card away from a $50,000 payoff (5,000 to 1) (also table max pay) and what for me would have been life changing.. no more debt and finish college- maybe a car too.

... I have no words to describe accuratly how I felt to come that stinkin close.

I predict the naysayers making comments about your side-betting costing you more in the long run than you will ever make on the jackpot. I also predict sympathetic people like me giving you an "awww man so close!" I have played thousands of hands of video poker at the casino and even more on my computer game and have NEVER gotten a royal flush, I have gotten 4 to a royal but never that final card. The close calls hurt, but as long as there is no major loss it is ok. Try again tomorrow you will get that progressive!

Quote: NicksGamingStuff

Try again tomorrow you will get that progressive!

Good sentiments! Its like that "Do what you love, the money will follow" career advice. The money doesn't always follow, but at least you will have spent your life doing what you love! If you enjoy going for that progressive.. then go for it.

Quote: FleaStiff

Good sentiments! Its like that "Do what you love, the money will follow" career advice. The money doesn't always follow, but at least you will have spent your life doing what you love! If you enjoy going for that progressive.. then go for it.

Thank goodness, I was worried I was alone. An unpopular sentiment, but we must absolutely acknowledge the emotional aspects of gambling. We do it because we LIKE it. Knowing the odds makes us aware of our folly; it makes our decisions informed. It might not change them, but at least we know what we're doing.

Quote: NicksGamingStuff

I predict the naysayers making comments about your side-betting costing you more in the long run than you will ever make on the jackpot.

Not me. If anyone wants to spend his money on side bets, it's his money and he's entitled to do so.

Besides, the long term can be very long. Suppose you play a few times a year only, and not very many hands either (say 2-3 hours/day for two days). That may not be long enough to catch up with the house edge, or to let it catch up to you. Suppose you win big money with a side bet in such conditions, you may then come out ahead even if you keep playing for several years.

deleted

This is probably the main reason that I don't play the jackpot sidebets. In addition to the horrendous house edge. For every time that you win something decent, there are 10, 50, or 2000 times that you come "so close" that it makes you miserable.

I don't play side bets either, but...

Quote: PapaChubby

This is probably the main reason that I don't play the jackpot sidebets. In addition to the horrendous house edge. For every time that you win something decent, there are 10, 50, or 2000 times that you come "so close" that it makes you miserable.

Doesn't hitting something decent without the bet up make you equally miserable?

I have a general rule of thumb when it comes to pai gow poker side bets, if I bet the side bet it will never come up and if I do not bet the side bet it will come up frequently. I have found this to occur 95% of the hands I play probably because of those hands I only do the sucker side bet 5% of the time! I did get the envy bonus once on a straight flush it was around $25 I think, everyone at the table got it we were all quite happy!

Quote: DJTeddyBear

I don't play side bets either, but...Doesn't hitting something decent without the bet up make you equally miserable?

Even if it did, it happens waaaaay less often. But it really doesn't bother me at all. I guess it helps to know that I would've already lost $5000 if I'd played the side bet throughout my career. So I'd need to hit 10 straight flushes in a row just to break even.

Here's my sidebet story: One time the dealer requested that I play her toke on the side bet instead of the main bet. This is one of the few times I've hit a straight flush. The dealer made $50, I think. She tried to split it with me, but I insisted it was all hers. And all the other players at the table were playing the envy bonus, so they each made $20. I only had a 5-2 to place in front of my straight flush, so I could only push the main bet. I was the only one at the table who didn't win something off of my hand. Some of the players at the table tossed $5 my way, and I bought the next round of free drinks.

deleted

Quote: DJTeddyBear

I don't play side bets either, but...Doesn't hitting something decent without the bet up make you equally miserable?

Not necessarily. And the "oh so close!" also works in reverse.

I've told these stories before, but let's put them in this context.

1) At Bally's playing 3 card poker I did not make either the pair+ or the 6 card bonus bet. At one point I hit three of a kind (three fours), which would have been a nice pair+ pay-off. Worse yet, the dealer had the other 4 to complete 4 of a knid in the 6 card bonus, which was an even bigger pay-off.

However, I had not hit anything else significant beforehand. I'd won a few hands, but not many. So if I had been playing the two side bets, I'd have lost my buy-in and left the table long before I hit the trips. I was close to leaving anyway as it was. With the win on the ante and play, and the ante bonus, I mananged to pull myself up. I do have a rule to play only the buy-in per session.

2) At Excalibur, again at 3 card, I was not making the pair+ or the progressive bet. I got distracted by the waitress at one point and missed placing the ante bet. The dealer got "my" cards for that hand. It was three sevens.

Naturally I'd have liked to get that hand, pair+ or not, as I'd have won the hand and gotten the ante bonus anyway. But in this case coming that close is less frustrating :P

The last 2 times I've played 3 card I've had the same thing happen to me. I never play pairs plus (my casino doesn't have this 6 card bonus bet), and both times I ended up having 4-5 hands in a row hitting on the pairs plus. At one point this included a straight flush, which would have paid 40-1 if I had played pairs plus. It was a little annoying, but I had a very nice night both times despite not getting those pairs plus bets (I walked away with $150 in winnings one night, and $100 the other. That might not seem like much for many of you, but I'm just a small time player so being able to win consisently like that is nice. I'm currently up nearly $500 for my last 2 trips to the casino, which is almost 1/3 of my monthly take home salary as a teacher, and up about $300 for all my trips to this casino.) I've actually got to the point now that I'm a little superstitious about it, and am afraid that if I started playing the pairs plus the cards would turn bad for me, so even despite the math saying to avoid it, there's no way I'll touch it now.

The worst part of the story is that you didn't have a straight flush. Usually, because of the joker, hands like that end up getting straight flushes at least - which would have been $500, and no one feels bad for you. If any of the 7 cards (except the 10) are replaced by a joker, you either have a straight flush or a royal. I definitely feel your pain on that one.

The other worst part of the story is that you're playing a pai gow bonus that only pays 3-1 for a flush. Hopefully you just mis-remembered that part.

Yea- it sucked not getting the str. flush. someone else said the same thing- that every str flush they saw had the joker.. and here I am jokerless.

And no, it really was a poor offer- 3-1 on a flush- the seminole casinos are very... stingy on their payouts. the 7-card was 5,000 to 1 and a straight was 2-1 and a flush 3-1 and a fullhouse 5-1 ... no bonus for three pairs or low pai gows.

I have never had anything better playing pai gow then a full house.... the last time I was playing the dealer gave herself 4 A's on the same had she gave me a 10 high pai gow. but that wasnt the same trip at the one mentioned here lol.