Without much to do in Macau, I recently found myself playing Texas Hold’em at the Grand Lisboa. A serious-looking, middle-aged Chinese man joined the table and positioned himself next to me, carefully placing a large jade fish on top of his hole cards. Good luck charms are fairly common in Macau, but this was the largest one I’d ever seen. It stood upright like a trophy, at least 2.5 inches tall and about 3 inches long.
The man had a friendly demeanor, spoke passable English and did not belch or blow smoke in my face, making him one of the nicer poker players in Macau. (One night I sat next to a guy who repeatedly lifted himself out of his chair and loudly passed gas in my direction. Which was more shocking—the act of him doing this or the fact that nobody at the table even blinked after he did—I still can’t decide.)
After a few uneventful hands I was dealt a pair of kings, a fairly strong hand. I was engaged in a round of betting with some of the players at the table when the man with the fish loudly boasted, “I know what you have! Pocket kings!”
Not wanting to confirm or deny his statement, I playfully asked how he came to this conclusion. He gestured to the fish and said, “My partner.”
Moments later, when I won the hand and exposed my cards, a satisfied look appeared on his face. He was incredibly proud of himself and his fish.
Sadly, my friend didn’t stay at the table much longer. Soon he went all-in on a pair of 5s and was cleaned out of chips. This may seem like a risky move, but it is not uncommon in Macau. Players go all-in so often (someone is all-in on almost every hand), they could call the game All-In Poker.
Western poker players in Macau generally curse All-In Poker, most often after they’ve lost chips on a bad beat (when a seemingly weak hand beats a seemingly strong hand). These Westerners say the Chinese don’t know how to play poker and that their all-in style of play turns a game of skill into a game of chance. But like all casino games, poker is a game of chance! I’ve found that Chinese players grasp and understand the game, its strategies and probabilities just as well as Westerners, but the difference is this: Sometimes the Chinese just feel lucky.
Luck and skill are valued differently in our culture. Interviews with casino customers in the United States reveal patrons who are “good” at gambling. They insist they know how to play perfect basic strategy blackjack and keep count of face cards to boot. Slot players often claim to “know” which slots are hot and ready to pay off. These claims may seem silly, but our overly logical Western minds really can’t think of it any other way. We prefer our success to be earned, not given, and successes are earned through skill, not luck. A skilled person will always find success no matter the circumstances.
But the concept is different in China. Skills are OK, but luck is better. A lucky person will always find success no matter the circumstances—and they don’t even have to work for it! This belief is convenient in places like China, where there are more people and fewer opportunities than in the United States.
I’ve found there are two schools of thought when it comes to luck. The first is that luck is in the air and can be cultivated. The second is that some people are just chosen to be lucky. These guys are really lucky!
For those of you interested in cultivating luck, there are tried-and-true (according to the Chinese) methods of doing so, some specifically designed for the casino environment. First, invest in a jade fish. Second, follow the wisdom of this list of Chinese Gambling Do’s and Don’ts compiled by Desmond Lam, a former University of Macau gaming researcher, for an article posted on Urbino.net.
Chinese Gambling Do’s
• Wear red underwear or undergarments when gambling.
• Go to the bathroom. It can bring good luck if you’ve been losing money.
• Women are more likely to win when they’re menstruating.
• Turn on all the lights at home before going to gamble.
• Check into hotel rooms with lucky numbers like 8, 18, 13, 168, 198 and 798.
• Behind every gaming table is a baby ghost. Feed the ghost (by throwing sugar) and the ghost will not stop you from winning—it may even help you win!
• When playing baccarat, players should call out “Deng” before revealing a card. (I actually do hear this a lot in Macau.)
• Pray and make offerings to the gods before a major casino trip.
• Pray and make offerings to the gods when playing the lottery.
• Winning lottery numbers surround you and are waiting for you to interpret them.
Chinese Gambling Don’ts
• Don’t speak of books when you’re gambling. In Chinese, “books” sounds similar to “lose.”
• Don’t count the money you win or lose during gambling.
• Avoid seeing nuns or monks before gambling.
• Don’t hit or touch one’s shoulders while he or she is gambling.
• Men should avoid females before gambling.
• Don’t enter a casino via its main entrance—it is cursed by the feng shui masters.
• Don’t try to win money at the start of a gambling session; if you do, you’ll lose a lot of money by the end.
• Don’t check into hotel rooms with inauspicious numbers like 4 and 14.
This list may seem ridiculous, but consider this: Westerners are fortunate enough to live in an economy that can support almost any skill. We don’t have much use for luck in 2008, but just a few centuries ago an average person’s wellbeing may have hinged on their ability to avoid black cats, walking under ladders and breaking mirrors. Many of us still avoid stepping on cracks in the sidewalk out of childhood habit (and kindness to Mom). China’s economy is not nearly as advanced, and the Chinese still have a strong need for luck. Casinos are emerging all over Asia, and their profitability will depend on their ability to provide that feeling of luck in exchange for the casino advantage. When players know luck is there for the taking, going all-in becomes an enjoyable experience—even when losing.
Noah Acres leads the Asian offices of Acres-Fiore, a third-party development company and inventor of the innovative slot machine Halo. He can be reached at noah@acresfiore.com.
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