Casino Chip of the Day
July 14th, 2013 at 10:10:11 PM
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Quote: rdw4potusState: Arizona
City: Pinetop
Casino: Hon-Dah
Today's chip of the day comes from the Hon-Dah casino in Pinetop, AZ. Pinetop is about halfway between Phoenix and Albuquerque just off of US 60. It's a very beautiful and rugged high desert area. The interweb tells me that it's popular with people looking for "multi-season second homes." I visited in the summer, and the altitude (about 6,500 feet) certainly made the temperatures pleasant.
Hon-Dah opened in 1993 when the State began allowing casinos. It's a small place - about 20,000 sqft - but manages to have 800 machines and a half-dozen table games. Hon-Dah was easily the most crowded casino that I visited in AZ. The property also has about 350 hotel rooms associated with it, and it's in the middle of a touristy area.
I mentioned a few days ago that I spent too much time at one casino and got to Apache Gold much later than I wanted to. Hon-Dah was where the wheels came off. The drive to Pinetop and back (different routes) took much longer than advertised. That alone would have been "bad" enough, but when I got to Hon-Dah I also needed to wait until the table games opened at 6pm. The I settled into a BJ game and played for about 90 minutes longer than I'd planned to. I was winning, and I just couldn't pull myself away. I wound up being up about $150 at the end of my session. But then I had to work my way back down to Globe starting at dusk. Thats not the right time to start a westward drive across uneven terrain.
My chip is a Paulson RHC. Like with Harrah's, this chip is in good shape but MOGH lists only one variation. I don't believe that this chip is 20 years old, so I assume that it's a newer issuance that just didn't have an updated design.
I was in pinetop for a summer heat getaway for about 5 days over july 4th weekend. I stopped at hon dah to collect a chip. I have to say it was the least impressive table games casino I have ever seen. 3 poker tables and 3 blackjack tables. The 3 blacksjack tables are squeezed in a room about 20 ft long and 6 feet wide. I've been to a lot of casinos in many states and was really disappointed here. Anyway I just bought a $1 chip at the cashier instead of even bothering to play. The wife and I got $10 each for signing up for the players club. We put in a $20 in order to access the free play loaded on the cards. We cashed out about $42 total (our own $20 and then $22 from slot play) and then lost it all on a lobster mania slot. We then left. Total time spent about 45 minutes. I don't think I'll be back even if I'm in the area again. If you're a slot player you'd love this place. Tons of machines, but nothing really for a table games player
July 15th, 2013 at 8:34:33 PM
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State: Colorado
City: Central City
Casino: Century
Today's chip of the day comes from the Century casino in Central City, CO. The casino opened in July of 2006. It has a 60,000 sqft gaming floor with 500 machines and 11 tables. It's a very odd/unique location. The casino is in several small rooms. That makes it good for some things like escaping noise, but it also makes it feel cramped and it also makes it difficult to navigate through the property.
The table games are in a room on the northwest corner of the property. The room is very tightly arranged. So much so that I had a hard time leaving the table and getting out around the other tables and over to the cashier. I collected my chip by playing Wild 6 card poker. I thought that was a fun and interesting game. It's probably a little too involved and slow-moving to earn wider placement, but it was a nice change of pace and it's a perfect placement for a quirky market like Central City.
Here's a picture of the casino. There are many entrances to the casino, but if my geography is correct the door in the center of this photo leads to the room with the tables.
My chip from the Century casino in Central City is a Chipco product. I'm not sure what the image on this chip is supposed to be. Fireworks? A flower? some sort of bird or insect?
City: Central City
Casino: Century
Today's chip of the day comes from the Century casino in Central City, CO. The casino opened in July of 2006. It has a 60,000 sqft gaming floor with 500 machines and 11 tables. It's a very odd/unique location. The casino is in several small rooms. That makes it good for some things like escaping noise, but it also makes it feel cramped and it also makes it difficult to navigate through the property.
The table games are in a room on the northwest corner of the property. The room is very tightly arranged. So much so that I had a hard time leaving the table and getting out around the other tables and over to the cashier. I collected my chip by playing Wild 6 card poker. I thought that was a fun and interesting game. It's probably a little too involved and slow-moving to earn wider placement, but it was a nice change of pace and it's a perfect placement for a quirky market like Central City.
Here's a picture of the casino. There are many entrances to the casino, but if my geography is correct the door in the center of this photo leads to the room with the tables.
My chip from the Century casino in Central City is a Chipco product. I'm not sure what the image on this chip is supposed to be. Fireworks? A flower? some sort of bird or insect?
"So as the clock ticked and the day passed, opportunity met preparation, and luck happened." - Maurice Clarett
July 16th, 2013 at 7:17:35 AM
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The Century Casino does, indeed, have an unusual layout. For that matter, the entire town seems to be a bit awkward to get around in. Perhaps it's something about being plastered into the crevices of a mountain where they were mining.
My wife and I approached the Century from the Famous Bonanza casino, across the street to the right in rdw's photo, which had been our first stop in Central City after driving up from our visit to Cripple Creek the day before. We entered the Century through a door about half way down the block in the photo, and I had to wander around a while to find the table games. I'm not really sure whether they are in the room that rdw indicated or not. Yep, it was yet another casino inside of which I got lost. I played $3 craps for fifteen minutes and won $65. Then I had to ask directions from two different people in order to find the cashier!
This was a little after 3 in the afternoon, and we were really starting to feel the need for some lunch. They have a rather nice little restaurant known as the Mid City Grill, located on a lower level (basement?) of the facility. In spite of all the short flights of stairs we traversed up and down going from room to room in the casino, they actually have an escalator down to the restaurant level. (Should that be "descalator"?) One of the dealers had told me that the Grill has some nice discounts on the specials there if you show them your players club card, so I went for it and picked up the only club card I got from any casino in Colorado. Almost two weeks ago, I posted an image of that card in the Casino Club Card of the Day thread in an attempt to get that thread rejuvenated, but there were no responses, so I guess interest in that topic has died. I think I'll just throw my card away, since I am skeptical that I will ever get back to Central City.
In departing the Century, we left by a street-level door from the "basement", at the corner of the facility most-distant from the camera position in the photo. We then climbed the hill to Johnny Z's casino, down the hill to the left in the photo. After that came the downhill-uphill trek back to our car. Yes, there is some awkwardness in getting around Central City, at least for a lazy geezer like me.
My souvenir $1 chip is also a Chipco product. Either it never had the horizontal bands shown on rdw's $5 chip, or they have worn off. Mine does have a "CI" logo, but it looks more like "CT" given the degree of wear.
My wife and I approached the Century from the Famous Bonanza casino, across the street to the right in rdw's photo, which had been our first stop in Central City after driving up from our visit to Cripple Creek the day before. We entered the Century through a door about half way down the block in the photo, and I had to wander around a while to find the table games. I'm not really sure whether they are in the room that rdw indicated or not. Yep, it was yet another casino inside of which I got lost. I played $3 craps for fifteen minutes and won $65. Then I had to ask directions from two different people in order to find the cashier!
This was a little after 3 in the afternoon, and we were really starting to feel the need for some lunch. They have a rather nice little restaurant known as the Mid City Grill, located on a lower level (basement?) of the facility. In spite of all the short flights of stairs we traversed up and down going from room to room in the casino, they actually have an escalator down to the restaurant level. (Should that be "descalator"?) One of the dealers had told me that the Grill has some nice discounts on the specials there if you show them your players club card, so I went for it and picked up the only club card I got from any casino in Colorado. Almost two weeks ago, I posted an image of that card in the Casino Club Card of the Day thread in an attempt to get that thread rejuvenated, but there were no responses, so I guess interest in that topic has died. I think I'll just throw my card away, since I am skeptical that I will ever get back to Central City.
In departing the Century, we left by a street-level door from the "basement", at the corner of the facility most-distant from the camera position in the photo. We then climbed the hill to Johnny Z's casino, down the hill to the left in the photo. After that came the downhill-uphill trek back to our car. Yes, there is some awkwardness in getting around Central City, at least for a lazy geezer like me.
My souvenir $1 chip is also a Chipco product. Either it never had the horizontal bands shown on rdw's $5 chip, or they have worn off. Mine does have a "CI" logo, but it looks more like "CT" given the degree of wear.
July 16th, 2013 at 7:50:50 AM
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Quote: DocAlmost two weeks ago, I posted an image of that card in the Casino Club Card of the Day thread in an attempt to get that thread rejuvenated, but there were no responses, so I guess interest in that topic has died. I think I'll just throw my card away, since I am skeptical that I will ever get back to Central City.
I keep meaning to post my player card from the casino in Monterrey, but I also keep forgetting. I ahven't even uploaded it to "the cloud" yet...
You should offer your Colorado card first to any collectors here. Just saying.
BTW, I like the two Century chips. They're so cheerful!
Donald Trump is a fucking criminal
July 16th, 2013 at 8:16:36 PM
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State: Colorado
City: Cripple Creek
Casino: Century
Today's chip of the day comes from the Century casino in Cripple Creek, CO. This property is the sister property to the Century casino in Central City. The Cripple Creek property has a 45,000 sqft floor with 438 machines and 6 tables. This is yet another casino located on a short stretch of Bennett Street. It really was fun walking around in Cripple Creek - just one cute little casino after another, all decorated for the holidays. Sure, it was -15 degrees and windy, but it was sure quaint!
I collected my chip by playing BJ. There weren't a lot of other options, but the BJ game was very well run. Like many other Colorado casinos, this one is in a storefront - or, rather, several connected storefronts. Here's a picture:
My chip from the Century casino in Cripple Creek is a beautiful chip. It looks to me like it's the "3 color standard" Icon Phase II model, but there are similar blanks available from Gemaco and Matsui as well. The MOGH's page doesn't list a manufacturer, except to say that the chip is apparently "plain." The MOGH does list Icon as having made one of the commemorative chip series, which may support the case for my claim that Icon made this chip as well.
City: Cripple Creek
Casino: Century
Today's chip of the day comes from the Century casino in Cripple Creek, CO. This property is the sister property to the Century casino in Central City. The Cripple Creek property has a 45,000 sqft floor with 438 machines and 6 tables. This is yet another casino located on a short stretch of Bennett Street. It really was fun walking around in Cripple Creek - just one cute little casino after another, all decorated for the holidays. Sure, it was -15 degrees and windy, but it was sure quaint!
I collected my chip by playing BJ. There weren't a lot of other options, but the BJ game was very well run. Like many other Colorado casinos, this one is in a storefront - or, rather, several connected storefronts. Here's a picture:
My chip from the Century casino in Cripple Creek is a beautiful chip. It looks to me like it's the "3 color standard" Icon Phase II model, but there are similar blanks available from Gemaco and Matsui as well. The MOGH's page doesn't list a manufacturer, except to say that the chip is apparently "plain." The MOGH does list Icon as having made one of the commemorative chip series, which may support the case for my claim that Icon made this chip as well.
"So as the clock ticked and the day passed, opportunity met preparation, and luck happened." - Maurice Clarett
July 16th, 2013 at 8:57:12 PM
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Quote: DocSo, Beardgoat, does your $1 Hon-Dah chip look like the one I posted here, or do you owe us an image?
;-)
Same chip from hon dah. They could probably use the same series for 50 years with the low amoumt of tables being offered lol! I do have some different chips out of some of the spots you've posted, but I am ashamed to say I don't really understand how to host photos and then post them here. I tried last year when this thread was relatively new but I failed miserably.
July 17th, 2013 at 6:34:59 AM
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I think I picked a better time (late May) to visit Cripple Creek than rdw4potus did. Weather was beautiful for us, and we really enjoyed the time we spent in the town.
I started playing at this edition of the Century Casino just ten minutes after leaving the table at the Brass Ass. I played $2 blackjack and won a total of $5 after tokes. Yep, I'm really a high roller.
As rdw mentioned, this is a sister property of yesterday's casino, both being owned by Century Casinos, Inc. These two seem to be the smallest casinos that the company owns, unless there is something smaller among the dozen casinos they operate on cruise ships. They also have casinos in Calgary, Edmondton, Poland, and Aruba. I haven't checked the web sites for all of their properties, but I noticed one thing on the sites for the Colorado properties that strikes me as particularly open and friendly: if you click on their "About us" link, it shows a list of the casino management personnel, with photos and phone numbers. It's not like they're trying to hide from the customers!
My Century Casino Cripple Creek $1 chip looks a whole lot like a less-colorful version of rdw's $5 chip. I agree that both of these look more like the Ikon designs than anything else I can pick out -- the edge inserts on the Gemaco and Matsui chips have different, distinctive shapes, unless the center inlay is covering up the tips of the inserts on these two chips, and I don't think that's the case. On the other hand, I have not seen any other examples of Ikon chips with that little inner band with the four suit pips and the long connecting lines.
I started playing at this edition of the Century Casino just ten minutes after leaving the table at the Brass Ass. I played $2 blackjack and won a total of $5 after tokes. Yep, I'm really a high roller.
As rdw mentioned, this is a sister property of yesterday's casino, both being owned by Century Casinos, Inc. These two seem to be the smallest casinos that the company owns, unless there is something smaller among the dozen casinos they operate on cruise ships. They also have casinos in Calgary, Edmondton, Poland, and Aruba. I haven't checked the web sites for all of their properties, but I noticed one thing on the sites for the Colorado properties that strikes me as particularly open and friendly: if you click on their "About us" link, it shows a list of the casino management personnel, with photos and phone numbers. It's not like they're trying to hide from the customers!
My Century Casino Cripple Creek $1 chip looks a whole lot like a less-colorful version of rdw's $5 chip. I agree that both of these look more like the Ikon designs than anything else I can pick out -- the edge inserts on the Gemaco and Matsui chips have different, distinctive shapes, unless the center inlay is covering up the tips of the inserts on these two chips, and I don't think that's the case. On the other hand, I have not seen any other examples of Ikon chips with that little inner band with the four suit pips and the long connecting lines.
July 17th, 2013 at 8:51:35 PM
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State: Colorado
City: Cripple Creek
Casino: Double Eagle
Today's chip of the day comes from the Double Eagle casino in Cripple Creek. Like most of the other Cripple Creek casinos, it's on Bennett Street. The casino opened in 1996, and has 515 machines and 3 tables on it's 16,000 sqft gaming floor.
I collected my chip by playing BJ. I didn't play or stay at the property for very long. Partly, there were a lot of casinos to hit in a short amount of time. Partly, it's just a tiny place. The casino is on the left side of the photo below. Like many of the Colorado casinos, it's in a storefront.
My Double Eagle chip is a Chipco production. Like some of the others that we've seen recently, it has a well-placed white line that helps to mask the wear around the rim.
City: Cripple Creek
Casino: Double Eagle
Today's chip of the day comes from the Double Eagle casino in Cripple Creek. Like most of the other Cripple Creek casinos, it's on Bennett Street. The casino opened in 1996, and has 515 machines and 3 tables on it's 16,000 sqft gaming floor.
I collected my chip by playing BJ. I didn't play or stay at the property for very long. Partly, there were a lot of casinos to hit in a short amount of time. Partly, it's just a tiny place. The casino is on the left side of the photo below. Like many of the Colorado casinos, it's in a storefront.
My Double Eagle chip is a Chipco production. Like some of the others that we've seen recently, it has a well-placed white line that helps to mask the wear around the rim.
"So as the clock ticked and the day passed, opportunity met preparation, and luck happened." - Maurice Clarett
July 17th, 2013 at 9:19:05 PM
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Quote: Doc
BTW, as you can see on the chips, they spell the name of the town "Black Hawk", and not "Blackhawk", though I suspect it is a very common error.
Considering the official city page spells it like the chip, it's not an error.
http://www.cityofblackhawk.org/
And the Chicago Blackhawks were spelled similarly until the mid '80s, from Wiki:
Also, prior to the 1986–87 season, while going through the team's records, someone discovered the team's original NHL contract, and found that the name "Blackhawks" was printed as a compound word as opposed to two separate words ("Black Hawks") which was the way most sources had been printing it for 60 years and as the team had always officially listed it. The name officially became "Chicago Blackhawks" from that point on.
July 18th, 2013 at 5:55:42 AM
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Quote: tringlomaneConsidering the official city page spells it like the chip, it's not an error.
I guess I wasn't clear. I know that the correct form is "Black Hawk." However, in his post with his chip, rdw4potus had typed it as one word, and I think he made what is a very common error.
July 18th, 2013 at 6:28:15 AM
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Quote: rdw4potusToday's chip of the day comes from the Double Eagle casino in Cripple Creek. Like most of the other Cripple Creek casinos, it's on Bennett Street.
By the time I made it to town, there was only one operating casino not on Bennett Street. While walking down Bennett Street, I could see a building on the parallel street a block to the south. It had a sign for the Wild Horse Casino. I asked and was told that the place was closed. I don't know that it ever had table games, but if it did, I guess we'll find out in about a week and a half as to whether rdw picked up a chip from there.
There are several others that had closed or changed names or shut down their tables before I got to town, and one or two had converted to only offering poker. Since we have skipped the Colorado Grande Casino in this thread, I'm guessing rdw doesn't have a chip from there either (unless it's being sequenced as the "Grande".) They told me that their table games had closed as of March 2012, though my pre-visit notes said I should expect them to be offering blackjack.
My visit to the Double Eagle lasted a full ten minutes, and I played $5 blackjack, winning $15. One side of my $1 chip has a design with an emblem similar but smaller than the one on the $5 chip posted by rdw, with a completely different design on the opposite face. The MOGH catalog says that my chip was issued in 2003, with a slightly different $1 chip having been issued in 2006 to commemorate the casino's 10th birthday.
July 18th, 2013 at 6:32:37 AM
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Quote: DocI guess I wasn't clear. I know that the correct form is "Black Hawk." However, in his post with his chip, rdw4potus had typed it as one word, and I think he made what is a very common error.
Why sir! Whatever are you talking about? I assure you that Black Hawk is now written correctly in all of my posts:-)
"So as the clock ticked and the day passed, opportunity met preparation, and luck happened." - Maurice Clarett
July 18th, 2013 at 6:54:24 AM
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Quote: rdw4potusI assure you that Black Hawk is now written correctly in all of my posts:-)
I suppose I could quote a former president: "It depends on what the meaning of the word 'is' is."
Of course, my geezer eyes had great difficulty picking out that 1 point font you used for a critical word in your declaration!
July 19th, 2013 at 6:12:36 AM
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State: Colorado
City: Central City
Casino: Famous Bonanza
It appears that my tablet is incapable of successfully posting to this site. I tried it again last night, thought I'd succeeded again last night, and apparently failed again last night instead. So, here is yesterday's (hastily repeated) post, and there will be another chip posted this evening.
Today's chip of the day comes from the Famous Bonanza casino in Central City. I thought briefly about alphabetizing this one under the Bs, but decided that "Famous" was a part of the casino name and not just an adopted adjective like in Pete's famous fireball chili. This is another case where I think that CasinoCity's info can't possibly be right. They list a 3,930 sqft floor, with 234 machines and 5 tables. 234 machines do not fit on 3,930 sqft, and I'm quite comfortable that they've erred on the size stat. Maybe they dropped a leading 1 from 13,930.
The Famous Bonanza was the first chip that I collected in Central City. I'd parked in a triangular parking lot across the street from the mouth of Main Street, and proceeded to walk down the left (west) side of Main to start my journey. I played BJ for a few minutes to collect the chip. I wasn't in a hurry like I'd been the day before in Blackhawk, but I wound up leaving the Famous Bonanza relatively quickly as I reached my loss limit faster than I'd hoped to.
The casino fills a substantial part of one side of the street. Here's a picture of the front of the casino. I thought the window awnings were a nice touch:
My chip from the Famous Bonanza is a Paulson SCV. It features an angry looking dude with a beard, and I'm not sure what to think about that.
City: Central City
Casino: Famous Bonanza
It appears that my tablet is incapable of successfully posting to this site. I tried it again last night, thought I'd succeeded again last night, and apparently failed again last night instead. So, here is yesterday's (hastily repeated) post, and there will be another chip posted this evening.
Today's chip of the day comes from the Famous Bonanza casino in Central City. I thought briefly about alphabetizing this one under the Bs, but decided that "Famous" was a part of the casino name and not just an adopted adjective like in Pete's famous fireball chili. This is another case where I think that CasinoCity's info can't possibly be right. They list a 3,930 sqft floor, with 234 machines and 5 tables. 234 machines do not fit on 3,930 sqft, and I'm quite comfortable that they've erred on the size stat. Maybe they dropped a leading 1 from 13,930.
The Famous Bonanza was the first chip that I collected in Central City. I'd parked in a triangular parking lot across the street from the mouth of Main Street, and proceeded to walk down the left (west) side of Main to start my journey. I played BJ for a few minutes to collect the chip. I wasn't in a hurry like I'd been the day before in Blackhawk, but I wound up leaving the Famous Bonanza relatively quickly as I reached my loss limit faster than I'd hoped to.
The casino fills a substantial part of one side of the street. Here's a picture of the front of the casino. I thought the window awnings were a nice touch:
My chip from the Famous Bonanza is a Paulson SCV. It features an angry looking dude with a beard, and I'm not sure what to think about that.
"So as the clock ticked and the day passed, opportunity met preparation, and luck happened." - Maurice Clarett
July 19th, 2013 at 8:13:35 AM
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Not sure why they would have a Sikh on their chip. Maybe the owner?
Be careful when you follow the masses, the M is sometimes silent.
July 19th, 2013 at 8:22:34 AM
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It appears that rdw4potus and I followed the same route into Central City (Central City Parkway), parked in the same, free (casino-sponsored) parking lot, and started our play at the same casino. I, too, played blackjack briefly at the Famous Bonanza but with slightly better results -- I played a $5 game for 15 minutes, winning $15 before heading across the street to the labyrinthian Century Casino.
This time, my souvenir chip is completely different from the one that rdw posted -- mine is a token with a mint date of 1991. I haven't found a mint mark to indicate the manufacturer. I think this token shows the same angry looking dude with a beard, this time sitting on a bench with his legs crossed, but the image is worn enough that I am not certain that it is the same figure. The MOGH catalog does show a $1 Chipco chip from the Famous Bonanza, supposedly issued in 1992, but I did not see any of them in play while I was there.
Edit: The MOGH catalog lists this token as "Mold: GD", suggesting that it is from the Green Duck mint. I still cannot find a mint mark on either my token or the images at the MOGH site, so it seems that their identification of the source either is a guess or is based on other information.
This time, my souvenir chip is completely different from the one that rdw posted -- mine is a token with a mint date of 1991. I haven't found a mint mark to indicate the manufacturer. I think this token shows the same angry looking dude with a beard, this time sitting on a bench with his legs crossed, but the image is worn enough that I am not certain that it is the same figure. The MOGH catalog does show a $1 Chipco chip from the Famous Bonanza, supposedly issued in 1992, but I did not see any of them in play while I was there.
Edit: The MOGH catalog lists this token as "Mold: GD", suggesting that it is from the Green Duck mint. I still cannot find a mint mark on either my token or the images at the MOGH site, so it seems that their identification of the source either is a guess or is based on other information.
July 19th, 2013 at 9:04:16 PM
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State: Colorado
City: Black Hawk
Casino: Fitzgeralds
Today's chip of the day comes from the Fitzgeralds casino in Black Hawk. It appears to me that this property has changed names and is now the Saratoga casino. I don't know which property Doc visited, but I do not have a chip from the new casino so this would be a good place to post Saratoga chips. The property has a 10,000 sqft gaming floor with 585 machines and 5 table games. It has a bit of an odd format - there are multiple levels and many smallish rooms. At the time that I visited, one of the smaller rooms housed the table games area. I played BJ there to collect my chip. The game itself was fine, but the room was a bit claustrophobic, so I didn't stay very long before moving on to the next location.
Here's a picture of the property:
My chip from Fitzgeralds is a Chipco product. The MOGH shows a satin version and a linen version of this chip. This is the linen version, which has less of an orange hew than the satin version does.
City: Black Hawk
Casino: Fitzgeralds
Today's chip of the day comes from the Fitzgeralds casino in Black Hawk. It appears to me that this property has changed names and is now the Saratoga casino. I don't know which property Doc visited, but I do not have a chip from the new casino so this would be a good place to post Saratoga chips. The property has a 10,000 sqft gaming floor with 585 machines and 5 table games. It has a bit of an odd format - there are multiple levels and many smallish rooms. At the time that I visited, one of the smaller rooms housed the table games area. I played BJ there to collect my chip. The game itself was fine, but the room was a bit claustrophobic, so I didn't stay very long before moving on to the next location.
Here's a picture of the property:
My chip from Fitzgeralds is a Chipco product. The MOGH shows a satin version and a linen version of this chip. This is the linen version, which has less of an orange hew than the satin version does.
"So as the clock ticked and the day passed, opportunity met preparation, and luck happened." - Maurice Clarett
July 19th, 2013 at 10:47:57 PM
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Quote: rdw4potusIt appears to me that this property has changed names and is now the Saratoga casino.
Oh, jeez! Are you telling me I have to go back to Black Hawk?
It was still called Fitzgeralds when I was there at the end of May, and I don't recall having heard anything about the name changing. Fitzgeralds was the first casino I went to in Black Hawk after driving over from Central City. I played $2 craps and managed to lose $50 in just 10 minutes. I considered that reason enough to step down the street to a different establishment.
My chip looks a lot like rdw's except for the colors and denomination.
July 20th, 2013 at 8:40:07 PM
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State: Colorado
City: Black Hawk
Casino: Gilpin
Today's chip of the day comes from the Gilpin casino in Black Hawk, CO. According to Casino City, the casino has 400 machines and 8 tables on an 7,894 sqft gaming floor. This is another case where I don't have much confidence in the size stat that Casino City is listing. The floor at Gilpin just doesn't feel as cramped as it would have to for these stats to be correct.
The Gilpin is on the same block as Fitzgeralds. It was the second casino that I visited in Black Hawk. I picked up my chip by playing blackjack. I wish I'd played longer at Gilpin. The game was fast and fun, but I wanted to move on to make sure I got to everything in town before any of the smaller shops closed their tables for the night. Here's a picture of the property:
My chip from the Gilpin is a Chipco product. Like many of the other chipco chips from Colorado Casinos (including yesterday's from Fitzgeralds) this chip has a well-placed white line around the edge.
City: Black Hawk
Casino: Gilpin
Today's chip of the day comes from the Gilpin casino in Black Hawk, CO. According to Casino City, the casino has 400 machines and 8 tables on an 7,894 sqft gaming floor. This is another case where I don't have much confidence in the size stat that Casino City is listing. The floor at Gilpin just doesn't feel as cramped as it would have to for these stats to be correct.
The Gilpin is on the same block as Fitzgeralds. It was the second casino that I visited in Black Hawk. I picked up my chip by playing blackjack. I wish I'd played longer at Gilpin. The game was fast and fun, but I wanted to move on to make sure I got to everything in town before any of the smaller shops closed their tables for the night. Here's a picture of the property:
My chip from the Gilpin is a Chipco product. Like many of the other chipco chips from Colorado Casinos (including yesterday's from Fitzgeralds) this chip has a well-placed white line around the edge.
"So as the clock ticked and the day passed, opportunity met preparation, and luck happened." - Maurice Clarett
July 21st, 2013 at 7:34:02 AM
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In my reply to the previous Casino Chip of the Day (Fitzgeralds), I said of my experience in that casino:
As rdw4potus said, the next casino down the block is the Gilpin. There, it was (in words sometimes attributed to Yogi Berra) like déjà vu all over again. I played $2 craps and lost another $50, that time making it last for 20 minutes. The next casino down the street is the Canyon, which has already been discussed in this thread. My post about my third gaming experience on that street in Black Hawk said:
Do you see a pattern there? A string of craps "variance" like that is something I do not enjoy at all. Fortunately, it did not continue all day.
My souvenir $1 chip from the Gilpin, like rdw's $5 chip, is from Chipco. One side shows the original building, the Gilpin Hotel, while the other side shows the current renovated state. (Yes, I realize that rdw and I have posted the two sides in opposite orders. Deal with it.) On the side of each chip showing the newer form of the building, near the 4:00 or 5:00 o'clock position, just below the (yellow?) spade pip, you can see the manufacturer's "CI" logo. Probably not in the small images posted in this thread, but you can see it if you click on the image(s) to view the larger versions.
Yes, both the $1 chip and the $5 chip say "Poker Room", but they are the chips in play throughout the casino.
Quote: DocI played $2 craps and managed to lose $50 in just 10 minutes. I considered that reason enough to step down the street to a different establishment.
As rdw4potus said, the next casino down the block is the Gilpin. There, it was (in words sometimes attributed to Yogi Berra) like déjà vu all over again. I played $2 craps and lost another $50, that time making it last for 20 minutes. The next casino down the street is the Canyon, which has already been discussed in this thread. My post about my third gaming experience on that street in Black Hawk said:
Quote: DocAt the Canyon Casino, I played $2 craps and managed to lose $50 in just ten minutes.
Do you see a pattern there? A string of craps "variance" like that is something I do not enjoy at all. Fortunately, it did not continue all day.
My souvenir $1 chip from the Gilpin, like rdw's $5 chip, is from Chipco. One side shows the original building, the Gilpin Hotel, while the other side shows the current renovated state. (Yes, I realize that rdw and I have posted the two sides in opposite orders. Deal with it.) On the side of each chip showing the newer form of the building, near the 4:00 or 5:00 o'clock position, just below the (yellow?) spade pip, you can see the manufacturer's "CI" logo. Probably not in the small images posted in this thread, but you can see it if you click on the image(s) to view the larger versions.
Yes, both the $1 chip and the $5 chip say "Poker Room", but they are the chips in play throughout the casino.
July 21st, 2013 at 9:22:36 AM
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To the best of my knowledge the Gilpin has and still has the best craps game in the U.S.A. $2 minimums with odds up to the jurisdictional maximum, $100. So nominal 50x odds with very limited H.E. exposure. Best if you are a rightside player, of course.
"Dice, verily, are armed with goads and driving-hooks, deceiving and tormenting, causing grievous woe." -Rig Veda 10.34.4
July 21st, 2013 at 10:17:31 AM
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In case anyone is wondering, the answer is, "No." My series of $50 losses at the $2 games did not involve 50x odds or anything close to that.
July 21st, 2013 at 8:11:56 PM
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State: Colorado
City: Cripple Creek
Casino: Gold Creek
Today's chip of the day comes from the Gold Creek casino in Cripple Creek, CO. Gold Creek is on the same block as, and connected to the Double Eagle casino. Since the lines are blurred indoors, I'm not sure how the table/machine/footage calcs are done. Casino City lists Gold Creek as having 21,000 sqft of casino floor, with 117 machines and 12 tables.
I did not actually play at Gold Creek. The tables were closed at the time that I visited (the Double Eagle tables were open instead). I looked for a Gold Creek chip in the Double Eagle trays, but didn't find one. So I bought a chip at the cage and played a slot to be able to say I'd "played" at Gold Creek.
It occurred to me this evening that I have my own picture of this property to post. When I was in town in early January it was still decorated for the holidays. Here's my pic of the Double Eagle and Gold Creek all lit up:
My chip from Gold Creek is a Chipco product. It has a white line around the rim. I'm starting to think that's more common than I'd initially assumed. It sure does make sense as a way of combating the one weakness (wear) that these chips have.
City: Cripple Creek
Casino: Gold Creek
Today's chip of the day comes from the Gold Creek casino in Cripple Creek, CO. Gold Creek is on the same block as, and connected to the Double Eagle casino. Since the lines are blurred indoors, I'm not sure how the table/machine/footage calcs are done. Casino City lists Gold Creek as having 21,000 sqft of casino floor, with 117 machines and 12 tables.
I did not actually play at Gold Creek. The tables were closed at the time that I visited (the Double Eagle tables were open instead). I looked for a Gold Creek chip in the Double Eagle trays, but didn't find one. So I bought a chip at the cage and played a slot to be able to say I'd "played" at Gold Creek.
It occurred to me this evening that I have my own picture of this property to post. When I was in town in early January it was still decorated for the holidays. Here's my pic of the Double Eagle and Gold Creek all lit up:
My chip from Gold Creek is a Chipco product. It has a white line around the rim. I'm starting to think that's more common than I'd initially assumed. It sure does make sense as a way of combating the one weakness (wear) that these chips have.
"So as the clock ticked and the day passed, opportunity met preparation, and luck happened." - Maurice Clarett
July 22nd, 2013 at 12:40:19 PM
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By the time I made it to Cripple Creek at the end of May, the Gold Creek Casino had eliminated all of their table games except poker (not my game), so I have no chip to present here.
:-(
:-(
July 22nd, 2013 at 3:06:39 PM
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>>Oh, jeez! Are you telling me I have to go back to Black Hawk?
I live in Denver.
Yes it just reopened a couple of weeks ago as the Saratoga.
The next time I go up ( in August ) I can grab a chip from Saratoga for ya. Let me know.
I live in Denver.
Yes it just reopened a couple of weeks ago as the Saratoga.
The next time I go up ( in August ) I can grab a chip from Saratoga for ya. Let me know.
July 22nd, 2013 at 4:11:00 PM
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Thanks, DenDexter, but my "rule" for my collection is that I have to play in each casino myself. I'll have to put Saratoga on my list of "chips I want to get some day."
July 22nd, 2013 at 7:48:41 PM
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State: Colorado
City: Cripple Creek
Casino: Gold Rush
Today's chip of the day comes from the Gold Rush casino in Cripple Creek, CO. The Gold Rush was at 209 East Bennett Street. It closed in 2010, was remodeled, reopened in August of 2012, and closed again in late January of 2013. I barely made it before the casino closed for the second time. The remodel is/was beautiful. They really did a great job of making the casino feel like it was the original inhabitant of the storefront that it occupied.
I collected my chip by playing one of the 4 blackjack tables that the casino offered. The felt was band new, bearing the casino's redesigned logo. It was a bit slow when I visited, but it was also about midnight on January 1st (24 hours after the new year started). I really like what they were trying to do with this property - going hip and modern(ish) in an otherwise sleepy town. If it didn't require such a big investment to attempt, I think this could have worked in time.
Here's a picture of the front of the casino. It's cute and fits right in with the rest of town.
My chip from the Gold Rush is a brand-spanking new Icon model. The chip, like the felt on the table, shows the casino's short-lived new logo and tradestyle.
City: Cripple Creek
Casino: Gold Rush
Today's chip of the day comes from the Gold Rush casino in Cripple Creek, CO. The Gold Rush was at 209 East Bennett Street. It closed in 2010, was remodeled, reopened in August of 2012, and closed again in late January of 2013. I barely made it before the casino closed for the second time. The remodel is/was beautiful. They really did a great job of making the casino feel like it was the original inhabitant of the storefront that it occupied.
I collected my chip by playing one of the 4 blackjack tables that the casino offered. The felt was band new, bearing the casino's redesigned logo. It was a bit slow when I visited, but it was also about midnight on January 1st (24 hours after the new year started). I really like what they were trying to do with this property - going hip and modern(ish) in an otherwise sleepy town. If it didn't require such a big investment to attempt, I think this could have worked in time.
Here's a picture of the front of the casino. It's cute and fits right in with the rest of town.
My chip from the Gold Rush is a brand-spanking new Icon model. The chip, like the felt on the table, shows the casino's short-lived new logo and tradestyle.
"So as the clock ticked and the day passed, opportunity met preparation, and luck happened." - Maurice Clarett
July 22nd, 2013 at 9:32:43 PM
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Quote: rdw4potus... and closed again in late January of 2013.
Yep. Completely dead in May 2013, when I got there. That makes two days in a row that I haven't had any chip images to post. And my pre-trip notes said that I should expect to find them dealing blackjack but no craps; guess the notes were about four months out of date.
July 23rd, 2013 at 7:38:43 PM
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State: Colorado
City: Black Hawk
Casino: Golden Gates
Today's chip of the day comes from the Golden Gates casino in Black Hawk, CO. Golden Gates is on Main Street, south of the Gilpin and about a block from Ameristar. Golden Gates has a 22,000 sqft gaming floor with 268 machines and 4 table games. There is also a large poker room. I don't play poker anymore unless I have to in order to collect a chip, but I got the feeling that the poker room was the focus of the property.
I collected my chip by playing BJ. There was only one open table, and that table was full. It was like that annoying situation when a poker room has a waitlist that is just short enough to not quite be able to open a new table. It took about 20 minutes for a seat to open up on the BJ table. I was happy to hang out and wait that 20 minutes, as it was well below 0 and windy outside. Even with the extreme temperature, this northerner was able to walk through town without much issue. And it's sure handy that there are all these strategically placed warming huts complete with entertainment and firewater.
My chip from the Golden Gates is a Chipco product. It has a satin finish and a white line around the rim. There's also an alternating suit pattern around the rim of both faces of the chip.
City: Black Hawk
Casino: Golden Gates
Today's chip of the day comes from the Golden Gates casino in Black Hawk, CO. Golden Gates is on Main Street, south of the Gilpin and about a block from Ameristar. Golden Gates has a 22,000 sqft gaming floor with 268 machines and 4 table games. There is also a large poker room. I don't play poker anymore unless I have to in order to collect a chip, but I got the feeling that the poker room was the focus of the property.
I collected my chip by playing BJ. There was only one open table, and that table was full. It was like that annoying situation when a poker room has a waitlist that is just short enough to not quite be able to open a new table. It took about 20 minutes for a seat to open up on the BJ table. I was happy to hang out and wait that 20 minutes, as it was well below 0 and windy outside. Even with the extreme temperature, this northerner was able to walk through town without much issue. And it's sure handy that there are all these strategically placed warming huts complete with entertainment and firewater.
My chip from the Golden Gates is a Chipco product. It has a satin finish and a white line around the rim. There's also an alternating suit pattern around the rim of both faces of the chip.
"So as the clock ticked and the day passed, opportunity met preparation, and luck happened." - Maurice Clarett
July 23rd, 2013 at 8:22:56 PM
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As I reported a few days ago, my visit to Black Hawk began with an abysmal streak of three craps sessions at adjacent casinos. That streak was broken at the Golden Gates, when I actually won $25 in a twenty-minute session of $2 craps. Some minor relief before stepping into a chasm at the next place down the street. :-(
My souvenir $1 chip from the Golden Gates Casino is also a Chipco product, though it has a very different pattern from the $5 chip posted by rdw4potus. The CI logo is evident at the 10:00 position on my chip and at 6:00 on rdw's.
There are three other things I think are interesting about the layout on my chip. One is the inverted "$1" designation at the bottom. The second is the design of the "O" in the word "Golden." Third, there is the designation that this is from a casino and "Poker Parlour." Yep, the British variant on a Colorado chip. No idea what that's all about.
My souvenir $1 chip from the Golden Gates Casino is also a Chipco product, though it has a very different pattern from the $5 chip posted by rdw4potus. The CI logo is evident at the 10:00 position on my chip and at 6:00 on rdw's.
There are three other things I think are interesting about the layout on my chip. One is the inverted "$1" designation at the bottom. The second is the design of the "O" in the word "Golden." Third, there is the designation that this is from a casino and "Poker Parlour." Yep, the British variant on a Colorado chip. No idea what that's all about.
July 24th, 2013 at 7:27:50 PM
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State: Colorado
City: Black Hawk
Casino: Golden Mardi Gras
Today's chip of the day comes from the Golden Mardi Gras casino in Black Hawk, CO. The Golden Mardi Gras has 660 gaming machines and 18 table and poker games on its 55,000 sqft gaming floor. It is the sister casino to the Golden Gates casino, combining with the Golden Gulch (slots only) to form the Golden Casinos. I didn't think that Golden Gates had much of a motif, but the Golden Mardi Gras definitely plays up the NoLa theme. Golden Mardi Gras is connected to Golden Gates by a skyway, and is across Main Street towards Ameristar. Without knowing any better, I crossed from casino to casino at street level. That was fine, and there was a cross walk, but with the cold I'd have used the skyway if I'd known about it.
I collected my chip by playing BJ. My session was pretty unremarkable. I mostly passed chips back and forth with the dealer while taking in the decor. Here's a pic of the outside of the building (and of Golden Gate). It's pretty amazing how plain the outside is, given the strong attempt at an interior theme.
My chip from the Golden Mardi Gras is a Chipco product. Many of the Chipco chips we've recently looked at had an intentional white line to help mask wear. I'm not sure if that's the case here, or if this chip just has an imperfect seam that has fairly uniform white wear around it. When I visited the casino, there was a group of employees(?) who were wearing masks similar to the one on the chip. I couldn't tell if that was a regular thing, or if it was a hangover from the new years' holiday, or if there was some other special event. At any rate, the mask seems to support the Mardi Gras theme and have some level of importance to the casino.
City: Black Hawk
Casino: Golden Mardi Gras
Today's chip of the day comes from the Golden Mardi Gras casino in Black Hawk, CO. The Golden Mardi Gras has 660 gaming machines and 18 table and poker games on its 55,000 sqft gaming floor. It is the sister casino to the Golden Gates casino, combining with the Golden Gulch (slots only) to form the Golden Casinos. I didn't think that Golden Gates had much of a motif, but the Golden Mardi Gras definitely plays up the NoLa theme. Golden Mardi Gras is connected to Golden Gates by a skyway, and is across Main Street towards Ameristar. Without knowing any better, I crossed from casino to casino at street level. That was fine, and there was a cross walk, but with the cold I'd have used the skyway if I'd known about it.
I collected my chip by playing BJ. My session was pretty unremarkable. I mostly passed chips back and forth with the dealer while taking in the decor. Here's a pic of the outside of the building (and of Golden Gate). It's pretty amazing how plain the outside is, given the strong attempt at an interior theme.
My chip from the Golden Mardi Gras is a Chipco product. Many of the Chipco chips we've recently looked at had an intentional white line to help mask wear. I'm not sure if that's the case here, or if this chip just has an imperfect seam that has fairly uniform white wear around it. When I visited the casino, there was a group of employees(?) who were wearing masks similar to the one on the chip. I couldn't tell if that was a regular thing, or if it was a hangover from the new years' holiday, or if there was some other special event. At any rate, the mask seems to support the Mardi Gras theme and have some level of importance to the casino.
"So as the clock ticked and the day passed, opportunity met preparation, and luck happened." - Maurice Clarett
July 25th, 2013 at 6:43:01 AM
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Quote: rdw4potusWhen I visited the casino, there was a group of employees(?) who were wearing masks similar to the one on the chip. I couldn't tell if that was a regular thing, or if it was a hangover from the new years' holiday, or if there was some other special event.
I can't remember exactly when you said that you were in Black Hawk other than after the New Year's holiday -- was it six or eight weeks later and close to the real Mardi Gras?
When I visited in May, I went first to Golden Gates (breaking my losing streak) then over to the Lodge and Ameristar (two more losing sessions) before walking back to the Golden Mardi Gras. All of that path was at ground level, but I did take the sky bridge back to the Golden Gates to rejoin my wife, who was getting bored with casinos by that late in our 14-casino day and skipped going into a few.
They didn't have a crap table at the Golden Mardi Gras, or at least none that I could find, so I too plaid blackjack for my souvenir chip, winning $55 in twenty minutes -- a second reprieve.
My souvenir $1 chip is similar to rdw4potus's $5 chip other than the colors, the denomination mark, and the width of the imitation edge inserts. The Chipco "CI" logo is just left of the bottom. It may not be clear enough to see in the image, but there are five spade pips on the mask in five different colors. I think the same is true of rdw's chip.
BTW, I'm heading out on the road for a few days to a high school reunion, so I'm not sure I will be able to make it onto the forum to post my chips while I am away. If not, I'll catch up after the weekend.
July 25th, 2013 at 6:48:50 AM
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Quote: DocI can't remember exactly when you said that you were in Black Hawk other than after the New Year's holiday -- was it six or eight weeks later and close to the real Mardi Gras?
I was in Cripple Creek on 1/1, in New Mexico and Western CO on 1/2, in Black Hawk on 1/3, and in Central City on 1/4. So, I really don't know why there were masks involved during my visit to Golden Mardi Gras.
"So as the clock ticked and the day passed, opportunity met preparation, and luck happened." - Maurice Clarett
July 25th, 2013 at 7:10:52 PM
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State: Colorado
City: Black Hawk
Casino: Isle
Today's chip of the day comes from the Isle casino in Black Hawk, CO. The Isle has 1080 machines, 18 table games, 15 poker tables, 4 restaurants, and a 400 room hotel. Casino City lists the casino floor at just over 20,000 sqft, but I don't think it felt crowded enough for that stat to be right. The Isle is on the 400 block of Main Street, which is a bit south of the Golden Casino Group's locations on the strip in Black Hawk.
I played BJ to collect my chip from the Isle. The session went reasonably well, and I eked out a small win without many swings. I'd wanted to stay at the Isle for the 2 days that I was in the area, but the rack rate was $440/night. That is not a typo - there is a 0 at the end of that number. I decided instead to drive back down to the interstate and stay in nearby Evergreen for $80/night instead.
The Isle is one of Black Hawk's larger resorts. Here's a picture of the property:
My chip from the Isle is a Chipco product. There are 4 light blue faux-inserts on the face and on the edge of the chip. The markings on the top and sides of the chip to not line up, but the marks on the two faces of the chip are mirrored perfectly. In other words, the faces of the chip would make it look like the insert was "real" of only the edge marking was also lined up.
City: Black Hawk
Casino: Isle
Today's chip of the day comes from the Isle casino in Black Hawk, CO. The Isle has 1080 machines, 18 table games, 15 poker tables, 4 restaurants, and a 400 room hotel. Casino City lists the casino floor at just over 20,000 sqft, but I don't think it felt crowded enough for that stat to be right. The Isle is on the 400 block of Main Street, which is a bit south of the Golden Casino Group's locations on the strip in Black Hawk.
I played BJ to collect my chip from the Isle. The session went reasonably well, and I eked out a small win without many swings. I'd wanted to stay at the Isle for the 2 days that I was in the area, but the rack rate was $440/night. That is not a typo - there is a 0 at the end of that number. I decided instead to drive back down to the interstate and stay in nearby Evergreen for $80/night instead.
The Isle is one of Black Hawk's larger resorts. Here's a picture of the property:
My chip from the Isle is a Chipco product. There are 4 light blue faux-inserts on the face and on the edge of the chip. The markings on the top and sides of the chip to not line up, but the marks on the two faces of the chip are mirrored perfectly. In other words, the faces of the chip would make it look like the insert was "real" of only the edge marking was also lined up.
"So as the clock ticked and the day passed, opportunity met preparation, and luck happened." - Maurice Clarett
July 25th, 2013 at 8:31:06 PM
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Trying to compose and post from my little tablet is a bit of a nuisance, so I won't say much. At the Isle, I played $5 craps and won $55 in 25 minutes. Better than most of my experiences that day.
My souvenir chip's design is quite similar to rdw's chip, with an additional S stripe down the middle. The CI logo is at the bottom.
My souvenir chip's design is quite similar to rdw's chip, with an additional S stripe down the middle. The CI logo is at the bottom.
July 26th, 2013 at 7:06:08 PM
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Really? What days of the week were you in town? I've stayed at the Isle both times I've been in BH and had no problem getting it comped both times (weekdays).Quote: rdw4potusI'd wanted to stay at the Isle for the 2 days that I was in the area, but the rack rate was $440/night. That is not a typo - there is a 0 at the end of that number. I decided instead to drive back down to the interstate and stay in nearby Evergreen for $80/night instead.
"Dice, verily, are armed with goads and driving-hooks, deceiving and tormenting, causing grievous woe." -Rig Veda 10.34.4
July 26th, 2013 at 7:45:52 PM
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Quote: teddysReally? What days of the week were you in town? I've stayed at the Isle both times I've been in BH and had no problem getting it comped both times (weekdays).
It would have been Thursday and Friday the 3rd and 4th of January. Friday was the cause of most of the average daily rate at both Ameristar and Isle, and both sold out (at least online) by mid-day wednesday. If I'd ever been there before, or if I'd been willing or able to give then any significant play at all, maybe comping could have been an option. But I wasn't willing to pay that rate and beg/fight later for a discount on this first visit.
"So as the clock ticked and the day passed, opportunity met preparation, and luck happened." - Maurice Clarett
July 26th, 2013 at 8:34:44 PM
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State: Colorado
City: Central City
Casino: Johnny Z's
Today's chip of the day comes from Johnny Z's in Central City. According to Casino City, the casino has a 35,000 sqft gaming floor with 288 machines and 6 table games. Johnny Z's is across the street from the Century Casino, on the North side of Lawrence Street in downtown Central City.
I'm a little confused by Casino City's accounting of the games offered by Johnny Z's. They list 1 poker table and indeterminate numbers of BJ and craps tables among the 6 total tables on-site. But at the time of my visit there were two 3 card poker tables and a LIR table. I don't remember seeing a craps table, but I'm sure Doc can & will shed light there. I'm left thinking that there must be more than 6 total tables - maybe there's a second pit that I didn't see.
I collected my chip by playing three card poker. I actually spent quite a while playing the game. The progressive was quite high, high enough to bring the whole game to +EV. I didn't hit anything of note during the session, so I lost a fair bit chasing that progressive prize.
Here's a picture of the casino:
My chip from Johnny Z's is a Chipco product. Unlike some chips we've seen recently, this one does not have an intentional white line around the rim. It does, however, have some wear. The Chipco trademark appears at the 12 o'clock position, directly above the Z in the logo.
City: Central City
Casino: Johnny Z's
Today's chip of the day comes from Johnny Z's in Central City. According to Casino City, the casino has a 35,000 sqft gaming floor with 288 machines and 6 table games. Johnny Z's is across the street from the Century Casino, on the North side of Lawrence Street in downtown Central City.
I'm a little confused by Casino City's accounting of the games offered by Johnny Z's. They list 1 poker table and indeterminate numbers of BJ and craps tables among the 6 total tables on-site. But at the time of my visit there were two 3 card poker tables and a LIR table. I don't remember seeing a craps table, but I'm sure Doc can & will shed light there. I'm left thinking that there must be more than 6 total tables - maybe there's a second pit that I didn't see.
I collected my chip by playing three card poker. I actually spent quite a while playing the game. The progressive was quite high, high enough to bring the whole game to +EV. I didn't hit anything of note during the session, so I lost a fair bit chasing that progressive prize.
Here's a picture of the casino:
My chip from Johnny Z's is a Chipco product. Unlike some chips we've seen recently, this one does not have an intentional white line around the rim. It does, however, have some wear. The Chipco trademark appears at the 12 o'clock position, directly above the Z in the logo.
"So as the clock ticked and the day passed, opportunity met preparation, and luck happened." - Maurice Clarett
July 27th, 2013 at 5:49:21 AM
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Quote: rdw4potusI don't remember seeing a craps table, but I'm sure Doc can & will shed light there.
Of course. Unless I am/was hallucinating, I played $3 craps at Johnny D's for half an hour and broke even. That was my last casino in downtown Central City, and we drove to the one on the outskirts of town before heading to Black Hawk.
Here's my chip -- similar to rdw4potus's:
July 27th, 2013 at 10:05:00 PM
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State: Colorado
City: Black Hawk
Casino: Lady Luck
Today's chip of the day comes from the Lady Luck casino in Black Hawk, CO. The Lady Luck has 524 gaming machine and 14 tables on its 16,500 sqft gaming floor. It's located at 340 Main Street in Black Hawk, which is south of Golden Casinos and northish of the Isle (I think the Isle also owns the bulding directly across from Lady Luck, but it's not used).
I collected my chip from Lady Luck by playing BJ. This was one of the last casinos I hit on my trip to Black Hawk, and I was getting pretty tired by the time I got to Lady Luck. It was between 12 and 1am when I got to Lady Luck and I kept my session pretty short, but I managed to win $30 during the shoe that I played. I was surprised how busy the casino was at that hour on a weekday night. I suppose there were probably some folks who took the short-week after New Years off and went skiing/gambling.
The Lady Luck is a pretty generic casino, and it doesn't try too hard to look like its more quaint neighbors (though, it's no Ameristar either.). Here's a picture:
My chip from Lady Luck is an Icon product. I really like Icon's chips. They seem to support a clear and complex image, they don't show wear like chipcos, and they don't wind up with rounded edges like Paulsons.
City: Black Hawk
Casino: Lady Luck
Today's chip of the day comes from the Lady Luck casino in Black Hawk, CO. The Lady Luck has 524 gaming machine and 14 tables on its 16,500 sqft gaming floor. It's located at 340 Main Street in Black Hawk, which is south of Golden Casinos and northish of the Isle (I think the Isle also owns the bulding directly across from Lady Luck, but it's not used).
I collected my chip from Lady Luck by playing BJ. This was one of the last casinos I hit on my trip to Black Hawk, and I was getting pretty tired by the time I got to Lady Luck. It was between 12 and 1am when I got to Lady Luck and I kept my session pretty short, but I managed to win $30 during the shoe that I played. I was surprised how busy the casino was at that hour on a weekday night. I suppose there were probably some folks who took the short-week after New Years off and went skiing/gambling.
The Lady Luck is a pretty generic casino, and it doesn't try too hard to look like its more quaint neighbors (though, it's no Ameristar either.). Here's a picture:
My chip from Lady Luck is an Icon product. I really like Icon's chips. They seem to support a clear and complex image, they don't show wear like chipcos, and they don't wind up with rounded edges like Paulsons.
"So as the clock ticked and the day passed, opportunity met preparation, and luck happened." - Maurice Clarett
July 27th, 2013 at 11:28:47 PM
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The Lady Luck is probably my favorite casino in BH. They offer excellent product. The decor is nice. Way nicer than you'd expect the typical LL to be. They are the ones who comp the room -- the building across the street is the LL hotel (connected to the Isle hotel; basically one property).
"Dice, verily, are armed with goads and driving-hooks, deceiving and tormenting, causing grievous woe." -Rig Veda 10.34.4
July 28th, 2013 at 4:42:41 PM
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My last couple of posts have been abbreviated, because I have been traveling and posting from my 7" tablet, which still gives me some trouble with editing text. Back home now.
In my post about the Golden Mardi Gras, I said that after playing at the Golden Gates, I had left my wife there to rest while I walked to the Lodge, Ameristar, and Golden Mardi Gras before going back to join her. We then headed down to the Isle, one casino not yet covered in this thread, and finally the Lady Luck as our last casino of the day before starting back to our hotel on the outskirts of Denver.
At the Lady Luck, I played $2 craps and managed to win $15. My souvenir chip does not have an obvious manufacturer's logo, and I am not sure of the source. It has a very different scroll-work pattern than does rdw4potus's chip and lacks the edge insert pattern to suggest it is from Ikon. It does have two features very similar to rdw's chip: the denomination mark is quite small and located in an oval at the 11:00 position, and there are a large number (didn't count them) of tiny suit pips around the perimeter. On my chip even the diamonds and hearts are in black, all on a faint yellow background, while on rdw's chip the heart and diamond pips are white (rather than red on the red background). I don't know whether those similarities suggest the same manufacturer or just a similar chip layout for the same casino.
In my post about the Golden Mardi Gras, I said that after playing at the Golden Gates, I had left my wife there to rest while I walked to the Lodge, Ameristar, and Golden Mardi Gras before going back to join her. We then headed down to the Isle, one casino not yet covered in this thread, and finally the Lady Luck as our last casino of the day before starting back to our hotel on the outskirts of Denver.
At the Lady Luck, I played $2 craps and managed to win $15. My souvenir chip does not have an obvious manufacturer's logo, and I am not sure of the source. It has a very different scroll-work pattern than does rdw4potus's chip and lacks the edge insert pattern to suggest it is from Ikon. It does have two features very similar to rdw's chip: the denomination mark is quite small and located in an oval at the 11:00 position, and there are a large number (didn't count them) of tiny suit pips around the perimeter. On my chip even the diamonds and hearts are in black, all on a faint yellow background, while on rdw's chip the heart and diamond pips are white (rather than red on the red background). I don't know whether those similarities suggest the same manufacturer or just a similar chip layout for the same casino.
July 28th, 2013 at 9:17:24 PM
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State: Colorado
City: Black Hawk
Casino: Lodge
Today's chip of the day comes from the Lodge casino in Black Hawk, CO. According to Casino City, the Lodge has a 22,000 sqft gaming floor with 985 machines and 17 table games. The Lodge is located on the 200 block of Main Street, across Main from Golden Gates and across route 119 from Ameristar. I thought that the Lodge felt pretty much like my/a local casino. It was friendly and well laid out, with just enough variety of games and restaurants to not be boring. It wasn't quaint like some of the other Colorado casinos, but it also wasn't over the top like Ameristar.
Here's a picture of the casino:
I collected my chip at a Pai Gow Poker table. This was one of the few times in CO when I was able to find this game, so I took advantage and played for a while. Nothing too interesting happened during the session, but it was more fun than playing BJ for the umpteenth time.
My chip from the Lodge is a chipco product. There's a little big of edge wear, but its in reasonably good shape. It's part of a series of state-themed chips. This one features Washington (the Evergreen State). I looked for a Colorado chip, but couldn't find one. So I just went with the one in the best shape.
City: Black Hawk
Casino: Lodge
Today's chip of the day comes from the Lodge casino in Black Hawk, CO. According to Casino City, the Lodge has a 22,000 sqft gaming floor with 985 machines and 17 table games. The Lodge is located on the 200 block of Main Street, across Main from Golden Gates and across route 119 from Ameristar. I thought that the Lodge felt pretty much like my/a local casino. It was friendly and well laid out, with just enough variety of games and restaurants to not be boring. It wasn't quaint like some of the other Colorado casinos, but it also wasn't over the top like Ameristar.
Here's a picture of the casino:
I collected my chip at a Pai Gow Poker table. This was one of the few times in CO when I was able to find this game, so I took advantage and played for a while. Nothing too interesting happened during the session, but it was more fun than playing BJ for the umpteenth time.
My chip from the Lodge is a chipco product. There's a little big of edge wear, but its in reasonably good shape. It's part of a series of state-themed chips. This one features Washington (the Evergreen State). I looked for a Colorado chip, but couldn't find one. So I just went with the one in the best shape.
"So as the clock ticked and the day passed, opportunity met preparation, and luck happened." - Maurice Clarett
July 29th, 2013 at 10:03:38 AM
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Sorry if this has been asked before but why do you guys collect mostly red chips? White certainly would be cheaper.
Many people, especially ignorant people, want to punish you for speaking the truth. - Mahatma Ghandi
July 29th, 2013 at 10:22:08 AM
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Quote: 1BBSorry if this has been asked before but why do you guys collect mostly red chips? White certainly would be cheaper.
I started collecting red chips because I was a primarily red-chip bettor and I didn't want to mess with asking for whites to grab one for my collection (note: most midwest casinos have $2.50 pinks, so whites aren't really in play). Also, I thought my collection would be a couple dozen chips at most. Then I took a high-travel job and went to Vegas for a conference and decided to continue the collection at the $5 level. After that, I was pretty much committed to collecting at the $5 denomination.
"So as the clock ticked and the day passed, opportunity met preparation, and luck happened." - Maurice Clarett
July 29th, 2013 at 11:34:39 AM
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It should be obvious that my collection is strictly the $1 chips. It's fitting for my being a cheapskate. They certainly are not all "whites", even though that's what we call them. Particularly in Nevada there is a lot of color variety. The display on the top of my desk is really quite colorful. I have noted before that my wife has pointed out that the green chips are much prettier, but that just wouldn't work for me, and she immediately agreed with my approach when I pointed out the difference in the denomination.
July 29th, 2013 at 11:45:46 AM
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The Lodge Casino was the site of my largest single-casino loss during my visit to twenty casinos in Colorado this past May. In spite of some bad sessions in those casinos, I came out ahead in Cripple Creek and Central City while losing in Black Hawk, winning a net $130 in the state. In my bad session at the Lodge, I dropped $100 in twenty minutes of $5 craps.
My souvenir chip is similar in design to one face of rdw4potus's chip, other than the denomination mark and the colors. Mine also doesn't have that center glow that his seems to have either. My chip has the same pattern on both sides. It does not have a manufacturer's logo, but I suspect it is from Chipco.
My souvenir chip is similar in design to one face of rdw4potus's chip, other than the denomination mark and the colors. Mine also doesn't have that center glow that his seems to have either. My chip has the same pattern on both sides. It does not have a manufacturer's logo, but I suspect it is from Chipco.
July 29th, 2013 at 8:46:06 PM
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State: Colorado
City: Cripple Creek
Casino: Midnight Rose
Today's chip of the day comes from the Midnight Rose casino in Cripple Creek, CO. The casino has 385 machines and a gaming floor of about 10,000 sqft. Casino City lists 9 BJ tabes and 1 three card poker table at Midnight Rose. I didn't see any of that on my visit. Instead, there was a very busy 3 table poker room. I visited at about 12:30am on the morning of January 2nd (the night of the 1st). I guess the tables are not open 24 hours, and they were not taking new players at that time. Still, even with the freeze on new entries, there were only a couple open seats. Since I couldn't play poker, I was forced to buy a chip at the cage. Thinking about it now, I'm not entirely sure that I played anything at Midnight Rose. If I really did forget to play a slot, then this is one of only a couple establishments where I have collected a chip without risking any money at the property.
Midnight Rose is on Bennett Street, and is in a very cute storefront. The casino looks like it was recently renovated. Now it looks and feels like it's a brand new old-west casino (edit: with fancy new slots - I think that's a Deal or No Deal multi-player machine in the lower left corner of the picture). They really did it well. Like the old-west casino equivalent of walking into a well-presented 50's diner. There's also a small hotel on-site. I wonder if it's as well done as the casino. Here's a picture of the outside of the casino:
My chip from the Midnight Rose is a Chipco product. It seems as though that company has quite the stranglehold on the Colorado market. My chip has a significant amount of edge wear. I get the feeling that this small batch of chips gets quite a bit of use in the casino's poker room.
City: Cripple Creek
Casino: Midnight Rose
Today's chip of the day comes from the Midnight Rose casino in Cripple Creek, CO. The casino has 385 machines and a gaming floor of about 10,000 sqft. Casino City lists 9 BJ tabes and 1 three card poker table at Midnight Rose. I didn't see any of that on my visit. Instead, there was a very busy 3 table poker room. I visited at about 12:30am on the morning of January 2nd (the night of the 1st). I guess the tables are not open 24 hours, and they were not taking new players at that time. Still, even with the freeze on new entries, there were only a couple open seats. Since I couldn't play poker, I was forced to buy a chip at the cage. Thinking about it now, I'm not entirely sure that I played anything at Midnight Rose. If I really did forget to play a slot, then this is one of only a couple establishments where I have collected a chip without risking any money at the property.
Midnight Rose is on Bennett Street, and is in a very cute storefront. The casino looks like it was recently renovated. Now it looks and feels like it's a brand new old-west casino (edit: with fancy new slots - I think that's a Deal or No Deal multi-player machine in the lower left corner of the picture). They really did it well. Like the old-west casino equivalent of walking into a well-presented 50's diner. There's also a small hotel on-site. I wonder if it's as well done as the casino. Here's a picture of the outside of the casino:
My chip from the Midnight Rose is a Chipco product. It seems as though that company has quite the stranglehold on the Colorado market. My chip has a significant amount of edge wear. I get the feeling that this small batch of chips gets quite a bit of use in the casino's poker room.
"So as the clock ticked and the day passed, opportunity met preparation, and luck happened." - Maurice Clarett
July 30th, 2013 at 7:18:30 AM
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Yes, the non-poker table games are gone from the Midnight Rose, and I don't have a souvenir chip at all. It didn't even occur to me to buy a chip and play a slot machine, even though I may be the one who suggested that strategy when I played a slot machine at the Yavapai Casino in Prescott, AZ last March. I did that to justify keeping in my collection the Yavapai chip I got while playing blackjack at the sister property Bucky's, just up the hill. I think if I began buying chips at places that just have poker rooms I'd wind up touring the zillion card rooms in California, and I don't want to start that -- I'll just leave it to rdw4potus to show us what all of those chips look like.
In fact, I think I only have chips from three more Colorado Casinos, so unless rdw has chips from a lot of poker rooms, or from casinos that closed between his visit and mine, then he will be needing to decide soon as to which state's chips to present next. Maybe it will be those California card rooms, but I think he said he wanted to complete that set before presenting them.
In fact, I think I only have chips from three more Colorado Casinos, so unless rdw has chips from a lot of poker rooms, or from casinos that closed between his visit and mine, then he will be needing to decide soon as to which state's chips to present next. Maybe it will be those California card rooms, but I think he said he wanted to complete that set before presenting them.
