Bounce back money? What do you do?

[Alan Mendelson]

This question is about "monthly bounce back money." Some casinos will send you a "rebate" on your previous month's slot or table game play in the form of a voucher. At some casinos bounce back money replaced "cash back" which could be redeemed at the end of each visit.

Suppose you got in the mail your monthly "bounce back coupon" and for this discussion let's put the value at $300. As usual, with this "bounce back money" you must show up at the casino to redeem the coupon and you have a 30-day window to do it. For this example, the casino is close enough for a day-trip and no overnight stay is required.

Here are your choices:

1. Go to the casino, and play your $300 of bounce back money at your favorite game.

2. Go to the casino, cash in your $300 coupon but do not play it. You could elect to have lunch or spend the money in the gift shop, but you do not bet the money. You might even put the $300 in your pocket and leave after parking in the self-parking area saving yourself the tip for the valet.

3. Ignore the bounce back coupon for $300 and put it in your desk drawer keeping it because you have no plans now to go to the casino but you might within the 30-day window for redeeming the coupon.

4. Throw the coupon away. $300 of bounce back money won't make you plan a trip within the 30-days and you have no trip planned.

Do any of those choices appeal to you, or what you would do?

[arcimede$]

A casino I used to play at had a BB system similar to what you described. I would only consider the BB once I had narrowed my plans down to a specific week. Then, I might go on a particular day over another one if that day had better BB. For example, the BB was often broken into parts (semi-monthly in this case). If I went the last day of one BB award and stayed overnight, I could pick up the next BB award on the same trip.

The casino I currently play at provides BB as freeplay on a weekly basis. It turns out that if I play about once a week I can achieve a tier level status that also maximizes my CB. In addition, gifts and promotions show up now and then as well. So, I plan my play to optimize all of these variables. As it turns out this is quite easy and works into my schedule perfectly. Now, if they changed the way it works in the future I might have to forgo some of the freeplay. Interestingly, I haven't taken one extra trip to the casino in years. I only go when I have freeplay to collect.

There are casinos in Vegas where freeplay is given out in much smaller chunks and several days a week. There were many times it was not worth the effort to go to the casino to collect the pittance they were offering.

[Alan Mendelson]

Good point, Arc: "There are casinos in Vegas where freeplay is given out in much smaller chunks and several days a week. There were many times it was not worth the effort to go to the casino to collect the pittance they were offering."

Some of the Indian casinos here in Southern Cal a few months ago changed their free play, bounce back plans to space out when you get the various money so that dates don't overlap as much as they used to.

You used to be able to go to a casino one night and at midnight get a whole slew of additional cash. Now these offers are spread apart.