Casino Bonuses are Crucial to any Gambling Strategy

Learn why online casino bonuses should be a strategic priority, adding value to an otherwise expected negative return on your bankroll.

It’s been said a million times – gambling should be enjoyed for entertainment purposes. It’s a simple matter of logistics. Every casino game in which you play against the house (i.e. everything but poker) has a negative probability. The house edge always favors the casino, no matter what strategy is applied. In the long term, the casino always wins.

Yes, you can get lucky. You can walk away with a huge profit. Or, you may break even after hours of gameplay (usually the best case scenario). This can happen, but it’s no too common.

Maybe you have a good friend who frequents the casino. They told you they won $1,000 playing the slots. That’s great! But did you bother to ask them how much money they’ve won/lost over all the years they’ve been playing? Chances are that $1,000 didn’t put them ahead. And if it did, odds are they’ll be back in the negative after a few more trips.

Casinos are designed this way. There are lucky players, and their are unlucky players. But in the end, 99.99% of players who keep on playing will end up in the latter column. It won’t hurt if you manage your bankroll properly. And if you combine that with one additional strategy, you can actually turn the tides in your favor.

Basics of Bankroll Management

Every good casino strategy talks about bankroll management. Only bring what you can afford to lose. Never go back to the ATM (or a friend) for more money. Only spend a percentage of your bankroll per day on a Vegas vacation. Yada, yada, yada… That’s all good advice.

The reason behind this is the house edge. Probabilities in the house edge state exactly what you can expect to lose over time.

Let’s look at the even-money bets on a European roulette game. Red, black, even, odd, high, low – these all carry a 2.70% house edge. I’ll even increase this, for the sake of argument and easier mathematics, to a 3% edge.

Okay, your bankroll is $100. You play 100 rounds, placing a $1 bet on red every time. With a 3% house edge, probabilities say you will win 48.5% of those bets, and lose 51.5%. After 100 bets, you should have $97 left. The 3% house edge has cost you $3.

Honestly, that’s a cheap price to pay for 100 bets worth of entertainment. But what if you had a little extra money to work with? Free money that didn’t come from your pocket.

Online Casino Bonuses and Promotions

The online casino business is so competitive, that they are all too happy to hand out free promotional money to new players. It could be a deposit bonus (ex: deposit $100, get $100), a few free credits (ex: $10 no deposit bonus), or a some free spins on the slot machines (ex: 20 free spins for new players). Either way, it’s adding value to your bankroll.

If you claim a $10 online casino bonus, it can drastically alter the probable outcome. Now, after placing 100 $1 bets against a 3% house edge, you should expect to end with $107. That’s a profit on your original $100.

Promotions like this are offered all the time at online casinos. Luck still plays a part, of course. As I said, the house edge has a long-term effect. You may win more, you may lose more. But this can be an effective strategy, and should be a priority when playing at casinos.