Gambling in Las Vegas Comes With New Challenges

It’s every gambler’s dream to travel to Las Vegas and come home rich. But you better hope for a lucky spin at slots because casinos are making it harder and harder to win at table games and roulette.

For instance, gamblers lost $1 billion on blackjack alone in 2022. Why? Because it costs more to play, and the payouts are less for winning.

"You're bringing in higher value customers, and we're already full," Tom Reeg, Caesars Entertainment CEO, told Wall Street analysts. "So, you're kicking out the lowest end. I see no reason that that needs to stop or would stop."

Instead of winning $15 for every $10 that they bet on blackjack, gamblers are now winning $12 for every $10 bet. At the same time, casinos are raising the table limits in order to even sit down and play.

Even playing roulette has become more expensive. Many Las Vegas Strip hotels have added a triple zero to their roulette wheels, making it harder to win any appreciable money. Think about it. The odds of winning in roulette with an exact number are 36 to 1. Even adding one number to the wheel increases the odds.

It will be a boon for the downtown hotels that still offer nickel slots. It is a line of demarcation between the Strip hotels and downtown regarding the high-volume gamblers.

It also confirms another Las Vegas truism – no matter how much a gambler bets, keep them at the table for as long as possible. Eventually, the house edge kicks in and the gambler will end up betting it all back.

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