Slot Machine Tips

Be Prepared for Long Playing Sessions

If you intend on playing slots to win, don't expect to succeed in an instant. Instead, be prepared for long playing sessions. How long? No one can say for sure, but most experienced slots players recommend you should have at least 200 coins as a bankroll. If you're playing 25-cent machines, this means you'll need $50 in quarters. With $1 machines you'll need $200 available. Have it ready on your person, and don't plan on visiting the cashier. If you do you risk losing the machine to someone else, along with all the money you've already put in it.

Getting the Most out of Slots

1. Play slots with a minimum bet that you are comfortable with. If $5 is too rich for your blood, switch to a quarter or $1 machine.

2. Gamble in sessions. Set a time limit and a spending limit - then stick to it. Self-discipline is the cornerstone to slot machine success over the long run.

3. Test every machine you play by using a 'personal pull number'. This means play a certain number of pulls or spins (say, 10), then gauge how well the machine is responding. After 10 spins, stop and add up what the machine has paid out. If you are not close to breaking even, move on.

4. Slow down and enjoy the ride. Fast play in slots will just empty your account faster. Here's the math: if you do 600 spins an hour for 3 hours, your expected losses would be exactly the same as if you played only 200 spins an hour over 9 hours. Result: six hours more fun for the same coin.

Go Slow to Beat the Odds

Slot machines are becoming more and more complex as the technology they are built on evolves and progresses. Whereas thirty years ago a slot machine simply required you to pull a lever and hope for the best, modern machines often have at least one feature - such as a nudge or a hold - that gives the player the opportunity to exercise his skill and judgement. To make the most out of these opportunities, go slow when playing. It is all too easy to become an automation, and mindlessly feed the machines coin after coin without thinking about what you are doing. Go slow, stay awake, concentrate on the opportunities the machine gives you, and you may well find that your gaming becomes more profitable.

Avoiding Poor Slot Machines

Do you want a quick rule for avoiding poor slot machines? Okay then, here it is: Never play a slot machine that is situated in a room smaller than the ground floor of an average suburban home. This rule will automatically rule out any machine located in a gas station, fast food outlet or small slots parlour. And since these places generally set their machines to be as "tight" as possible, that's a good way to hold on to the cash in your pocket.