Revisiting Questions About The Tropicana's Slot Club Promotion

I will be going to Las Vegas in two weeks. I have done a search here as to how to play the Tropicana's First $200 on us promo. I have not found a nice breakdown. Does anyone know the particulars (games allowed) of the promo. Can anyone tell me the "best way" to approach the game? I am willing to hit them early in the morning, in order to "lose" that $200 and get my rebate started. Help a cheapskate out, if you will.

C'mon, folks. Maybe it's the weekend, but not one of you has any suggestions? How about links to past messages on this board? My guess is high limit (as high as possible) video poker, hope for quads, etc. and never get the $200 rebate for slots. Would most agree that is my best play?

Quote: bushman

C'mon, folks. Maybe it's the weekend, but not one of you has any suggestions? How about links to past messages on this board? My guess is high limit (as high as possible) video poker, hope for quads, etc. and never get the $200 rebate for slots. Would most agree that is my best play?

I don't know what slots you can use. But the paradox of loss rebate promotions is that you actually want to maximize your chance of winning, not losing.

$1 slots have a good return. So wouldn't you just find the best $1 slot you can find and pick a reasonable win goal - ($500). If you hit it, stop.

I would have to agree - $1 slots, $2 or $3 max bet, see what you can get going. When I'm doing a promo like that, I like the old Wild Cherry 1 line 3 reel, where the cherries pay within 1 stop from the center line.

FWIW, I made a trip to the Trop in May to sign up for that promo. Turned out I was still on their books from over ten years ago, which must've been the one and only time I ever went there for a single night. Don't even remember how or why I got there; I must've been drunk and out with friends or something. Is it possible they're connected with the AC Trop player's club? I know I have cards from that one about that time, and played there a couple of times. But I thought it was a separate company. So, anyway, the Trop claimed I wasn't qualified and had no other promo to offer. Wasted trip to that part of the strip.

Quote: bushman

C'mon, folks. Maybe it's the weekend, but not one of you has any suggestions? How about links to past messages on this board? My guess is high limit (as high as possible) video poker, hope for quads, etc. and never get the $200 rebate for slots. Would most agree that is my best play?

Everyone is going to have a different opinion on what the best strategy is. I don't know anything about the trop promo so the advice is just general slot rebate advice.

You can either
1. Find a $25 video poker and do 1 hand on that and then 1 hand on $10 video poker and 1 had on $5 video poker.
2. Play something like $.25 slots and hope to either hit a nice pay or rack up a bunch of points for future offers.
3. Play your normal game whether it is VP or slots and then quit when you lose $200 or win whatever your goal is.

here is WoO page on slot rebates as well. I have not read it but a simple search found the page.
https://wizardofodds.com/games/video-poker/loss-rebate/

Quote: beachbumbabs

Is it possible they're connected with the AC Trop player's club? I know I have cards from that one about that time, and played there a couple of times. But I thought it was a separate company.

They are separate now, but ten years ago they were part of the same company, called Columbia Sussex (and before that Aztar). That company defaulted on their debt due to losing their NJ gaming license at the Tropicana Atlantic City, and the Las Vegas Tropicana property was later purchased out of the subsequent bankruptcy process in 2009 as a separate stand-alone property by a partnership of a Canadian private equity firm and a former MGM-Mirage President.

And I don't know anything about how they handled their player rewards accounts through all this.

That joint in Las Vegas has always had a rather notoriously turbulent, confusing, and you might say (*ahem*cough*cough*) "colorful" sort of history for fifty some-odd years, including getting busted in connection with multiple mob skimming operations multiple times under different owners in some of its earlier incarnations, with the looting being repeated about every other decade by yet another batch of 'goombahs' off and on all the way back to 1957.

Quote: GWAE

Everyone is going to have a different opinion on what the best strategy is. I don't know anything about the trop promo so the advice is just general slot rebate advice.

You can either
1. Find a $25 video poker and do 1 hand on that and then 1 hand on $10 video poker and 1 had on $5 video poker.
2. Play something like $.25 slots and hope to either hit a nice pay or rack up a bunch of points for future offers.
3. Play your normal game whether it is VP or slots and then quit when you lose $200 or win whatever your goal is.

here is WoO page on slot rebates as well. I have not read it but a simple search found the page.
https://wizardofodds.com/games/video-poker/loss-rebate/

Thanks for your input. I had found the linked page in an earlier post I made, but wanted to know if others had gone for it. I agree, what is "best" will vary, but, again, wanted to know of anectdotal outcomes.

I believe that high-denomination video poker is how I will play, provided it is allowed, and hope for a huge payout, never again to return to the Tropicana (I am mostly a downtown guy.) Otherwise, take the free slot play and hope to hit it big either this trip (first 50%) or my next trip in May (final 50%.)

Any others care to weigh in? Thanks.

This could be wrong, any other locals chime in if you know this to be wrong ...

I would take a close look at the fine print: the first $200 is on us*

My understanding of this promo is ...
1. it's for locals only. Trop was making a move on the locals market a while back.
2. it's not like you lose $200, go to the players club, and get $200 cash. I think it comes in the form of free play, something like $50 a week over the next four weeks.

Again, could be wrong, but when I took a closer look at this about six months ago, I decided it wasn't worth it.

Quote: MrWarmth

My understanding of this promo is ...
1. it's for locals only. Trop was making a move on the locals market a while back.
2. it's not like you lose $200, go to the players club, and get $200 cash. I think it comes in the form of free play, something like $50 a week over the next four weeks.

Again, could be wrong, but when I took a closer look at this about six months ago, I decided it wasn't worth it.

When I played it a while ago, it was $100 free play same day and then $50 free play over the next two days. I believe my wife and I both played $5 video poker.

Rules are linked here

Information is linked here

I don't see locals only, but I do believe at one time that was correct. It appears that 50% is returned same day, and 50% is redeemable the following month, up to a year.

The rules for "Even the Odds" are here. from Trop's website.

Rules (for the lazy ones who don't like clicking):

- New members only, cannot be member of any Trop player club in the past.
- Cannot be a resident of Clark County
- Up to $200 in Free slot play, 50% reimbursed the same day you sign up, other 50% available in 30 days from the sign-up date.
- Actual loss must be SAME DAY as enrollment.
- Loss redemption must occur at a Trop Plus Promotional kiosk prior to 11:59pm on the day you enrolled.
- One time only (makes that clear three times).

Reimbursement schedule:

Actual loss: now / 30 days

$20 - 39.99: $10 / $10
$40 - 59.99: $20 / $20....
$180 - 199.99: $90 / $90
$200 +: $100 / $100

Ok?

Quote: MrWarmth

This could be wrong, any other locals chime in if you know this to be wrong ...

I would take a close look at the fine print: the first $200 is on us*

My understanding of this promo is ...
1. it's for locals only. Trop was making a move on the locals market a while back.
2. it's not like you lose $200, go to the players club, and get $200 cash. I think it comes in the form of free play, something like $50 a week over the next four weeks.

Again, could be wrong, but when I took a closer look at this about six months ago, I decided it wasn't worth it.

There was a version for locals and a version for non-locals, which is where the confusion comes from. The $200 loss rebate is for non-locals. Locals get something different.

I played it. It seemed like a good deal. $100 now and $100 later. Even if I never got the $100 later, a 50% loss rebate is a very good deal. The best game I could find was 3-play $1 9/6 DDB. So I signed up for the card, put $200 into that machine, and played. I got lucky and hit 3333+kicker on a hand when I drew to 33 so I never used the loss rebate -- I cashed out up about $650 or so. I probably should have kept playing (with $850 in the machine it's still a 20%+ rebate) but I was ready to leave.

It is a good deal
Signed up yesterday, played last night and this morning.
At 1st played vp double bonus 25 cent progressive of 1.6k
Even with the progressive, pay table still sucks
Checked vpfree, moved over to the 5 cent 50 play bonus 99.17, thats 12.50 bet per hand.
More then my typical 1.25 a hand.
Doing real well, up 260. need to lose 200 by 5pm.
Cant decide if I want to go back.

Well, its such a good deal I went back.
Never hit a royal in Vegas and thought, here is my chance.
I get to the Trop at about 345 pm.
I have 1 hr 15 min to lose 460 since I am up 260 and willing to go down 200 because of the promotion.
That's a lot of chances and a good deal.
Hit up the 5 cent 50 play bonus poker game since its the best according to VPfree.
I generally play 1 play games, 50 play games is kind of an eye opener on how hard it is to hit a royal.
I would get 3 to a royal, 50 chances for a royal, nada. This happened several times, 3 to a royal, nada.
I quickly go on a losing streak and even with about 30 min left.
I figure at 12.50 a bet can quickly lose 200.
Gambling is weird, seems whenever I want to win , I lose.
On the flip side, I don't mind losing, and well,, come out ahead.
So I am sitting at this machine determined to lose 200 to take advantage of the promotion.
I go negative about 140 , 15 min left in the 24 hr promotion.
I hit a flush with 4 to a royal flush.
I throw away the flush and go for the royal.
I hit it twice, my 1st 2 royals in Vegas. Thought about taking a picture but naw, its only 5 cent x5 bet royal and I only got 2
If I got several to win 1k, that's picture worthy because a real royal nets 1k or more.
Was minus 140, now well above 200 profit and my 24 hrs is up.
Decide to hit up the players club, who knows, maybe some glitch shows that I lost.
Of course the players club congratulates me for winning and throws me a 10 dollar free play.

I tried to lose 200 and probably walked away with around a 250 profit :-)

While we are at it, I would appreciate any other similar promotions for first timers. I have a friend visiting Vegas for the first time, in sept and want to sign her up for all the bonuses. It has been so long since I signed up, I don't remember many. Pm if you feel that is best.