If you are staying on a casino hotel you can use your room key to access the casino games and slots

If you play slots, you will find almost any game you want at any denomination-even if you (like me) prefer traditional reel slots over the latest 300-coin video reel wonders. (Does anyone out there really understand the payout tables on these?) While the quarter and half-dollar video poker is quite tight (my advice is to play these games elsewhere), dollar and higher players will find ample 9/6 Jacks or Better, 9/7 Double Bonus, 8/5 Bonus and 9/6 Double Double Bonus games. Personally I love Jacks or Better, so lots of 9/6 is great (which returns 99.5 percent with perfect play), but I wish there was a better offering of Deuces Wild. The best game I found returns 97.6 percent-and thats if you play perfectly, which I certainly do not.

Wynns players club is discreetly named the Red Card. As I have long grown tired of cutesy names (e.g., American Can Club, What Players Want Club) or boring names (The Players Club), I am really in the mood for this combination of understatement yet convenience. Both club booths are easy to find and well staffed. Furthermore, if you are staying in the hotel, you do not have to sign up for tlle card at all-just use your room key (if, and only if, the room is registered in your name and address). The Red Card can be used to track not only your machine play but also all games throughout the casino, including tables, poker and the race- and sportsbook.

In fact, Wynns management is putting a strong emphasis on data collection for all their players, not only about the games they play but also regarding all other aspects of the experience, including where they eat, sleep, laugh, golf or whatever. This information is collected through various methods, including the Red Card. From what I hear, the data will be made available to the player development staff to encourage you to visit and make that visit as pleasant as possible. Again, this may appeal to you (I am finally getting offers I can use) or come across as more Big Brother.

The Red Card awards points at a rate of one point per $9 of coin-in for video poker and $3 for slots. Once a player earns 500 points ($1,500 coin-in on slots and a high $4,500 coin-in on video poker), he can then download $10 at the machines. Note that the player must play it through at least once. Personally I prefer this setup to having to stand in a line at the booth and then at the cashier, but I also realize that the freedom-of.choice crowd prefers getting old-fashioned cashback. As each point is worth two cents, the return on video poker is worth 0.22 percent, which is lower than average for the Strip, and the return on slots 0.67 percent, which is about average.