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23-10-2010, 06:29 AM
Special report on Casinos today. Will be posted the articles in piecemeal fashion....
Oct 23, 2010
Gambling in casinos makes you greedy, obsessed
By Wong Kim Hoh, Senior Writer
BEFORE I took on this assignment, I had never set foot in the casinos at Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) and Marina Bay Sands (MBS).
Not because I was loath to pay the $100 entry levy or because I was not curious or interested. I was, very.
But I was also rather wary. You see, like many Chinese folk, I love a good punt. I grew up in Kuala Lumpur neighbourhoods where almost every adult, and many minors, bought 4D or the lottery and could find their way around a mahjong table. By the time I was eight or nine, I already knew all the circles, bamboos, dragons, winds, seasons and flowers in a mahjong set and could explain the difference between a pong (three of a kind), kong (four of a kind) and chee (three in a sequence).
While New Year blackjack sessions with family and friends were fun, I never really understood the allure of gambling until I visited a real casino for the first time about 20 years ago. While in Perth on holiday, my friend and I decided to visit Burswood Casino on a lark. For the first time, I saw hundreds of people in a huge complex designed especially for them to spend lots of money playing baccarat, roulette, blackjack and games I'd never heard of - Casino War and Caribbean Stud Poker.
We spent a few hours in there, and I came out immensely chuffed because I was a few tens richer playing blackjack. That first visit certainly removed whatever preconceived notions I had of casinos being sleazy, dangerous places to visit.
Since then, I've spent a few nights out in casinos in cities like Auckland, Melbourne, Cape Town and Las Vegas. I would describe these outings as recreational. I went with no intention other than to have a little fun taking small risks, and hopefully, winning a little money.
By and large, that's what I've managed to do but I have also learnt on more than one occasion that innocuous intentions can go awry and firm resolves - 'I will not spend more than $300 or three hours here tonight' - can dissolve when Lady Luck gives you the cold shoulder.
I remember walking out of Crowne Casino in Melbourne one morning at 7am when I had planned to do so at 10pm the night before, just because I was very sore about having lost $500 and wanted to chase my losses.
I did, after more than eight long sleep-deprived hours. But that's not the point. I was horrified at my weak will, or was it my perverse tenacity? Whatever happened to 'I'm educated, disciplined, and know when to leave'?
The episode sobered me but not enough to deter me from ever setting foot in a casino again. And while gambling is not an itch I feel the need to scratch, I did tell myself I should stay away from the local casinos when they opened. At least with a casino in a foreign city, you are protected and buffered by distance.
A casino a mere 15 minutes away is another story. And spending five nights observing what went on, as well as interviewing punters in both RWS and MBS, made me glad I've stayed away.
I came across grandmothers in their 70s shelling out crisp $1,000 notes carefully kept in plastic bags to exchange for chips in the wee hours of the morning. I saw heartlanders waging $500 in a single bet on blackjack tables. I observed housewives glued to jackpot machines for hours on end.
One Monday evening, I saw a woman in her 60s blow at least $3,000 in half an hour at the pontoon table. Cursing under her breath, she was goaded - by her irritation about losing - to wager bigger and bigger bets, and in the process losing even more and more.
She could have been my mother, or my aunt. Was she spending her savings? Was she irresponsibly blowing the allowance her children gave her? Did she borrow all that money from loan sharks? All those questions, and more, crossed my mind.
That's the problem with gambling and casinos. They make you greedy. When you win, you hope to get even more. When you lose, you become obsessed about making your money back.
As I was to see many times in RWS and MBS, punters become irrational when they lose. Anger, ego, disbelief and desperation will conspire to tempt you to wager more until your empty wallet or bank account forces you to concede defeat.
When I was given this assignment, I asked my boss cheekily if I could have a punting allowance.
He said no: 'All it takes is just one weekend for a non-gambler to become a problem one.'
I agree. And that's why I plan to - and I hope I can - stay away.
Oct 23, 2010
Gambling in casinos makes you greedy, obsessed
By Wong Kim Hoh, Senior Writer
BEFORE I took on this assignment, I had never set foot in the casinos at Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) and Marina Bay Sands (MBS).
Not because I was loath to pay the $100 entry levy or because I was not curious or interested. I was, very.
But I was also rather wary. You see, like many Chinese folk, I love a good punt. I grew up in Kuala Lumpur neighbourhoods where almost every adult, and many minors, bought 4D or the lottery and could find their way around a mahjong table. By the time I was eight or nine, I already knew all the circles, bamboos, dragons, winds, seasons and flowers in a mahjong set and could explain the difference between a pong (three of a kind), kong (four of a kind) and chee (three in a sequence).
While New Year blackjack sessions with family and friends were fun, I never really understood the allure of gambling until I visited a real casino for the first time about 20 years ago. While in Perth on holiday, my friend and I decided to visit Burswood Casino on a lark. For the first time, I saw hundreds of people in a huge complex designed especially for them to spend lots of money playing baccarat, roulette, blackjack and games I'd never heard of - Casino War and Caribbean Stud Poker.
We spent a few hours in there, and I came out immensely chuffed because I was a few tens richer playing blackjack. That first visit certainly removed whatever preconceived notions I had of casinos being sleazy, dangerous places to visit.
Since then, I've spent a few nights out in casinos in cities like Auckland, Melbourne, Cape Town and Las Vegas. I would describe these outings as recreational. I went with no intention other than to have a little fun taking small risks, and hopefully, winning a little money.
By and large, that's what I've managed to do but I have also learnt on more than one occasion that innocuous intentions can go awry and firm resolves - 'I will not spend more than $300 or three hours here tonight' - can dissolve when Lady Luck gives you the cold shoulder.
I remember walking out of Crowne Casino in Melbourne one morning at 7am when I had planned to do so at 10pm the night before, just because I was very sore about having lost $500 and wanted to chase my losses.
I did, after more than eight long sleep-deprived hours. But that's not the point. I was horrified at my weak will, or was it my perverse tenacity? Whatever happened to 'I'm educated, disciplined, and know when to leave'?
The episode sobered me but not enough to deter me from ever setting foot in a casino again. And while gambling is not an itch I feel the need to scratch, I did tell myself I should stay away from the local casinos when they opened. At least with a casino in a foreign city, you are protected and buffered by distance.
A casino a mere 15 minutes away is another story. And spending five nights observing what went on, as well as interviewing punters in both RWS and MBS, made me glad I've stayed away.
I came across grandmothers in their 70s shelling out crisp $1,000 notes carefully kept in plastic bags to exchange for chips in the wee hours of the morning. I saw heartlanders waging $500 in a single bet on blackjack tables. I observed housewives glued to jackpot machines for hours on end.
One Monday evening, I saw a woman in her 60s blow at least $3,000 in half an hour at the pontoon table. Cursing under her breath, she was goaded - by her irritation about losing - to wager bigger and bigger bets, and in the process losing even more and more.
She could have been my mother, or my aunt. Was she spending her savings? Was she irresponsibly blowing the allowance her children gave her? Did she borrow all that money from loan sharks? All those questions, and more, crossed my mind.
That's the problem with gambling and casinos. They make you greedy. When you win, you hope to get even more. When you lose, you become obsessed about making your money back.
As I was to see many times in RWS and MBS, punters become irrational when they lose. Anger, ego, disbelief and desperation will conspire to tempt you to wager more until your empty wallet or bank account forces you to concede defeat.
When I was given this assignment, I asked my boss cheekily if I could have a punting allowance.
He said no: 'All it takes is just one weekend for a non-gambler to become a problem one.'
I agree. And that's why I plan to - and I hope I can - stay away.
My Value Investing Blog: http://sgmusicwhiz.blogspot.com/