Ask the Slot Expert: Slot jackpot denied playing with another's card

Question: California casino - I left my card with my niece and she had my ok to use it. She left the card in the machine after the free play was over but continued to play putting her own cash in. Then hit a jackpot of $1,800.

Graton refused to pay. I would think a complaint to the Gaming Commission might help that casino to realize rewards cards are one thing, not paying a legally earned jackpot another. Since when does winning a jackpot even require having a card in the machine, which I believe is what the Graton decision implies? That might have legal ramifications for them.

What do you think?

Answer: I think I'm always amazed at things that players get in trouble for doing in other jurisdictions that wouldn't be that big a deal in Las Vegas. But we're not there yet. Let's take a step back.

You said that you left your players card with your niece and she had your permission to use it. Your niece played free play on your account. Then she continued playing on your card with her own money.

One problem is that allowing your niece to play with your card is not a permission you were authorized to give. The sixth and seventh rules in the How to Get a Graton Rewards Card section in the Graton Rewards Program Rules document are:

6. The benefits of the Graton Rewards Program are intended and solely for the use of the person listed on the account (“member”).

7. Graton Rewards Members may not allow any other person to use their Graton Rewards Card, PIN associated with the card, or access their account. Graton Resort & Casino will not be held responsible for loss of funds due to sharing their Rewards Card or PIN. Graton Rewards Cards are non-transferable. Any violation of this rule can result in immediate revocation of participation in Rewards Program, along with any associated benefits.

According to the rules, the casino is justified in revoking your membership in the rewards program and zeroing out some or all of your benefits. But not paying a jackpot?

Is that one of the things they mean by "loss of funds?" No, I think that phrase only refers to a person collecting cashback or free play on your account.

Casinos in Las Vegas will refuse to pay a valid jackpot under a few conditions, including: player is in the Black Book, player has self-excluded from casino, player is underage, and player is unable to provide valid ID.

I assume neither of the first two conditions are applicable and that your niece is over 21. I also assume that your niece was able to provide a valid ID.

If both of my last two assumptions are true, I don't think the casino is justified in refusing to pay the jackpot.

Casinos in Las Vegas care about who pressed the Spin button and whether the players can satisfy the casino that the Social Security Numbers they gave are legitimate. When I discussed players hitting jackpots while playing with another players card with my slot attendant friend, she said that they could usually tell when the card didn't belong to the player -- especially if the first name on the card is not typically given to people of the player's gender. She didn't say that they would not pay the jackpot.

As you point out, the card is a marketing program and separate from playing a machine. The implicit contract with the slot machine is that the player will put real money into the machine, not cheat the machine during play, and then the casino will pay any winnings.

If you're caught playing with another player's card in Las Vegas, I think you're most likely to be told to get your own card, but I'm sure players will tell me if they had a different experience.

Alas, you're not in Las Vegas. You're at an Indian casino in California. According to the Tribal Gaming page on your Attorney General's site:

The Bureau of Gambling Control (Bureau), California Gambling Control Commission (Commission) and California Tribal Gaming Agencies (TGA) work together to ensure the fair and honest operation of tribal gaming in California in accordance with the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act.

According to the California fact sheet on the American Gaming Association's site:

Regulation of tribal casinos in California is done by tribes and the state. The tribes regulate tribal casinos through tribal commissions, keeping operations in compliance with local ordinances and state compacts. The state gaming commission also has a role in regulating tribal casinos, including helping with inspection of tribal gaming facilities and suitability determinations of applicants.

California will help the casinos with background checks and the like, but it will leave the operation of the casino up to the tribe. You've heard that you can't fight city hall. I've had players tell me that you also can't fight the tribe's commission.

I think your niece should have gotten the money. You can request that the tribe cite the statute, regulation, or published rule that violating the terms of the Graton Rewards program invalidates a jackpot.

You should also consult an attorney familiar with California and Indian Gaming regulations. There might be some rule somewhere that justifies the casino's action.

It's unfortunate, but if you want to continue playing at the casino, you're probably better off letting the matter drop. And getting your niece her own players card.

* * *

I've been watching the Paralympics the past few days. It's fascinating to see how sports are adapted for athletes of different abilities and the technology used to help them compete.

You can see many of the adaptations and devices in the Triathlon, from bicycle adaptations to racing wheelchairs and prosthetics.

The Triathlon coverage consisted of 11 separate races. Why 11 races? Why all in one day? The races were supposed to be run on two different days, but poor water quality of the Seine forced delays and all the races had to be run on the same day.

There were separate races for men and women. The athletes were further divided by their abilities and the equipment they would use during the three phases into separate groups called "classifications". When all was said and done, there were 11 gender/classification combinations.

The different combinations started a few minutes apart. As the day went on, there was one combination finishing the race with the running phase, another doing the cycling phase, and another swimming.

If you thought the Madison in Track Cycling was difficult follow, try to follow what was going on in the Triathlon as the coverage bounced between the athletes in the different phases. Even the commentators were sometimes confused about who was shown in the feed from Olympic Broadcasting Services.

Yesterday, 19-year-old Ezra Frech from California won a surprise gold medal in the Men's 100m T63 (T63 is the track-and-field classification for athletes with a single leg above the knee amputation who run with a prosthesis). Today was his main event, the High Jump T63. He won the gold after Sharad Kumar failed to clear the bar on his third attempt at 6 feet 4.25 inches. Ezra had already set a new Paralympic record at that height.

Ezra already holds the World record at 6 feet 5.5 inches. With the pressure off, he tried to set a new World and Paralympic record at 6 feet 6 inches. He failed on all three attempts. I think he might have succeeded on his third try if had spent less time hyping the crowd and more time visualizing going over the bar. Now he has something to shoot for when the next games are held in his native Los Angeles.

If you would like to see more non-smoking areas on slot floors in Las Vegas, please sign my petition on change.org.

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Send your slot and video poker questions to John Robison, Slot Expert™, at slotexpert@slotexpert.com. Because of the volume of mail I receive, I regret that I can't reply to every question.

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