The last paragraph showing my rough total for the week was including the hypothetical Trips Bets that I didn’t actually make. So the week’s total after the Orleans correction including the hypothetical bets is: Regular bets +270, Trips bets -135= +135

The week’s total of my actual play (roughly) after the Orleans correction is: Regular bets +270, Trips bets -350, to bring my net to around -$80.

First, for those who play trips, I checked a majority of the casinos all over Vegas for Trips payouts (had a lot of time to kill). As someone reported earlier, Bally’s has succumbed to the 3-4-7-8 (3.5%) payouts like most of Vegas. The pit manager told me they changed the tables about 2 months ago. I saw at least one of their two UTH tables open at 10:30AM one day. I did find some 3-5-6-8 (1.9%) payouts at the following casinos: Planet Hollywood, Stratosphere, Orleans, Plaza. BTW, Orleans has a second table in another pit area towards the back that is only open weekends (“Party” or “Festival” Pit or something like that). Gold coast used to have the 1.9% payout, but it is now 3.5%.

The Plaza is the only live dealt UTH (1 table) downtown. There are two machine dealt games downtown, and the one at Las Vegas Club DOES pay on a straight on the blind bet. Min bet $1, max $100. Even though the machine says $3 min, the $3 means if you are playing that hand (and not folding) it will cost a TOTAL of $3 min). Binion’s has the other machine, it does NOT pay the straight on the blind bet. Min bet $1, Max $25. Both machines have the 3.5% Trips. I did not check the Tropicana to see if they had a machine, which someone earlier thought they might. All the above live tables were always $5 minimum, no matter what time I played or saw them.

All the other casinos that I checked, and it was almost all of them on the strip, all of downtown, and all of the Boulder Strip, had the 3.5% trips. I did not check the far outlying casinos.

So here’s how the week went. I am a strictly $5 player. I play the pre-flop strategy religiously, and the flop and river abbreviated strategy. I used to play Trips in Detroit (1.9% at Motor City Casino), much to my bankroll’s disappointment. I always keep accurate track of what the Trips bet would have done if I played it. I was all geeked up to play the Trips again in Vegas at Bally’s (was .9%), until I discovered it had changed to the 3.5% payout. I played the ante-blind a little over 3 hours. I was Mr. Discipline as I watched myself get straights, flushes, 3 full houses, etc. Yes, I know about trying to “go with the trend”, I’m also sure you know what has happened as soon as I have started plunking down the trips bets in these situations. I ended the session +118, Trips would have been +170. I figured it was a fluke.

Next day was the Plaza. It was Tuesday night around 8:30. The most people at the table including me was 3. I ended up alone after about 20 minutes and took a break (I usually don’t like turning my money over so quickly doing one on one). Went back when I saw another player and played 70 minutes between the 2 sessions and ended with -80, Trips would have been +110. Yes, was hitting nice hands again (and trying to keep that now enlarged vein on my bald head from bursting).

So, I decided that maybe this was just a good all-around week for getting good Trips hands and that I should start playing the Trips Bet, go with the trend. After all, I brought enough bankroll to allow that. I’m sure you know exactly where this story is going…

The next evening I went to Orleans since I knew they had the 1.9% Trips. Played for 3 hours (including Trips) and ended the session -349 regular bets and -250 trips for a total -599! GDMFSOB I was pissed. I cannot tell you how many times this has happened. Remember, I’m only a $5 player. After cooling off and having some dinner, I went to the Gold Coast thinking they still had the 1.9% Trips. It wasn’t until I was paid on my first flush (which contrariwise flushes pay more on the bad pay table) that I realized they had changed to the 3.5%pay table. I seemed to be hitting some decent Trips Bets so I kept playing it…for almost 4 hours. Result: -43, Trips -250= -293. Sheesh.

The next day I played the UTH machine at LV Club for the fun of it (Plaza’s table was closed) while I was downtown (no Trips) for 1 1/2 hours. +14, Trips would have been -65. What can I say, downtown’s the only place I can get deep fried Oreos, and yes, I will make a special trip to get them. Besides, I tire of the strip quickly.

Decided to play at Stratosphere that evening. I decided I would be playing Trips for the rest of this week (today and tomorrow) just to keep consistent and not drive myself crazy. I was winning a lot of the 4X bets, most likely more than probability would dictate, the dealer and the other player couldn’t believe it. It seemed like a giving table, the other player and I were getting a good share of straights, trips, and a full house each. Flushes were nowhere to be seen. A lady sat down who never played UTH before and hit a straight right out the gate, then a few hands later a quad. The guy to my right wasn’t too happy (she was to his right, I was to his left at the end of the table). She moved on after a couple more hands. The table started to get cold for awhile but I was still sensing (probably more like hoping) that it was a giving table, maybe it was taking a little break. Even after all these nice hands my Trips Bets were now down around -100. Finally, he and I started to get some Trips Bet winners again, and finally he got the first flush I had seen at the table since I sat down 2 1/2 hours earlier. All of the sudden, our table filled up. My trips bets got back up to -70 when out of nowhere…I hit the first straight flush of my UTH playing history! Thank you for sitting down, people! And no, unlike my home casino, the pit managers did not take out all the cards and make sure it was a legit deck etc, etc. The dealer paid me and had the pit managers double check the payout, and that was it. I played one more hand, which lost, and got the hell out of Dodge! Result: +320, Trips +130= +450. I decided this was it for this trip, I like to go out with a bang. I would find something else to do for the rest of tonight and tomorrow, which isn’t hard to do in Vegas

Here are my week’s results. I know they won’t exactly equal the previous figures I gave you, but those didn’t include tips and other minor exceptions: Regular bets +78, Trips bets -115= -37 net for trip. Definitely ahead of the game. Yet even winning a straight flush, and many other Trips bets, I still ended up in the red on the Trips Bets. A good lesson. For me, it’s not worth the drama and increased bankroll fluctuations to be messing around with the Trips Bet, only to be in the negative even after hitting many Trips Bet winners, more than my share of full houses, and even a straight flush.