The bonus issue!

[flukey luke]

One of my pet hates is reading gambling forums and finding players repeating the same bad advice over and over.

The bonus issue.

What is so bad about taking a bonus?

Suppose I deposit 100 euros into my online casino account and get a 100 euro bonus on top.

Let's also suppose I have to wager this money (deposit+bonus) x25 to complete the wagering requirements.

So after wagering 5k worth of bets, I now have my grubby little hands on 100 euros of casino money which I got for NOTHING!

The next time I deposit 100 euros (my free casino money) and get another 100 euro bonus, guess what? My potential loss is ZERO apart from maybe my time.

So what are the excuses for not taking bonus money?

1. I can draw my money out any time. (that's fair enough, but are you saying you will never play roulette again. Chances are you going to make another deposit fairly soon)

2. The wagering requirements are too steep. (I love this one when the poster claims he is a long term winner. Hmm!)

I just don't get it! Bonus money can take your profits up another level if you are clever and creative enough to manipulate the situation.  I honestly think not taking bonus money is very short sighted and a deeply negative tactic.

[vundarosa]

I play at playtech casinos and always take their  bonus offer; i'm no long term winner so its a good feeling to know i'm playing for "fun" for its with the casino money only. When i eventually lose and it gets closer to risking my bank I just withdraw it, deposite back at much latter time and am usually given more free money 

vundarosa

[GARNabby]

Simple. 

Anyone who can turn that "0.5% overall edge into millions" wouldn't, nay couldn't, give a hoot about the "bonus boogie".

[flukey luke]

Simple. 

Anyone who can turn that "0.5% overall edge into millions" wouldn't, nay couldn't, give a hoot about the "bonus boogie".

I disagree. Free money is free money whichever way you look at it. It might just be a good starting point to boost a bankroll and also allow for a few variance issues before you start getting the hang of things.

[GARNabby]

Free money is free money whichever way you look at it.

Didn't say that there was nothing good about it.  I meant just that the good player has to be able to "fight fire with fire", ie, to be prepared to move around incognito, etc.

But now that you put it that way, the whole pt of money is to have a universal measure of account.  So that a money's source really doesn't matter; nor, practicably speaking, its destination.

It follows that this sort of truly-free, real money places no bearing on where, or how, it's spent... no conditions.

[ausguy]

Fluke - It all sounds good in theory?  What's the real story with your play long term? Are you in profit or loss overall? At the end of the day it's only the bottom line that matters.
Your philosophy of zero loss play is not much different to betting on red and black at the same time, provided zero doesn't drop you can boast a zero loss also.

Fluke & Vundarosa I don't see the value in casino bonus play? The ridiculous play restrictions reduce the odds of winning to almost nil? Have you ever managed to make the bonus play conditions and therefore finish up a winner and ACTUALLY withdrawn money won from the bonus stake? If so what's your strike rate been? How many bonus wins vs how many fails? Like don't you also play with your money too at times?

You may as well just play roulette in free fun mode.  Depositing and withdrawing funds are not free  yes/no ?
My bank charges 3% on debit card transactions. At that rate 50 (25 in 25 out) transactions in a year on a 100 Euro base costs you 150 Euro. Rather a flawed money management strategy in my view?

All this is hardly "critical mass" play when you relate 100 Euro or $100 to the general cost of living year by year. Things like food, rent or mortgage, family costs, even girlfriends/wives are expensive, clothing, buying a car, petrol, savings & holidays.

Each to their own on this I suppose. For me there are greener pastures elsewhere.

[flukey luke]

Good post ausguy with some good questions.

You are correct in saying that it's only the bottom line that matters and that's why I raised the bonus issue because taking them can improve your bottom line.

There are live casinos out there offering 150% bonus deals. This is worth as much as 300 euros when you deposit 200. The point is you could be starting out wanting to try out something which you think is pretty solid. Now why not take advantage and keep reinvesting the winnings taking more bonus offerings along the way. You are soon playing with casino money and it can be worth several thousand before you have done the rounds. That would be a nice start to anyone's online playing career.

How easy is it to clear wagering requirements?

You either have a playing strategy or you don't. There is no middle ground here.  I managed to clear 2 over the past 2 weeks. The first one was a 150% bonus which required a playthrough of 40 times the deposit+bonus. One of the stringent rules with this particular casino is that you could not place a bet on more than 15 spots. So that would rule out anybody playing a strategy based on even chance bets. The second one was more forgiving having a playthrough of only 25 times the deposit+bonus and allowing the player to cover up to 24 spots. This was only a 100% match bonus. Playing through 30k using 5 euro bets only takes a few weeks if you are prepared to put the hours in. I made more than 5% profit on my turnover which really only equates to a working wage. But hey, it's as good as any other way to make some money!

I am surprised your debit card charges a percentage for transactions. I have heard credit cards making charges but never debit cards before. And I thought our banks were rip off merchants. I have certainly never had to pay any processing fees using debit cards for depositing or withdrawing money.

I brought up this point after reading the thread started recently by Skakus. Someone might be wanting to take the plunge and try out a method putting it to the test (and more importantly put themself to the test as well). Why risk all your own money. The casinos can help you along in building a half decent bankroll. You certainly won't have lost as much of your own cash if the strategy turned out to be a losing one.

[flukey luke]

All this is hardly "critical mass" play when you relate 100 Euro or $100 to the general cost of living year by year. Things like food, rent or mortgage, family costs, even girlfriends/wives are expensive, clothing, buying a car, petrol, savings & holidays.

I was thinking about this early today. You know when you see a job advertised in the paper.
Imagine if it was a 3 page glossy like someone promoting a roulette system. It kinda made me laugh. Imagine the plumbing job with the picture below of the guy in the sports car with the good looking girl (hopefully the guy still doesn't have the overalls on)