I checked into the Mirage March 30th, right after they began putting the systems into place. I had no idea the process was in place, and in fact had never heard about it before hand.

After checking in, I went down to the Lobby Bar and started playing my usual preference of 25 cent, 5 coin max bet, single line video poker. I bought in for $20 and the bartender served me a bottle of Bud, no charge. It was my first beer after arriving in Las Vegas following a relatively long day of traveling, so The first Bud did go down fairly quickly. However, I don't play VP slowly, and had to have played at least $30 through the machine - I was up a little and just plugging along as I usually do. I ordered another Bud and the bartender delivered it with a bill for $7.57! He didn't explain why the 2nd beer wasn't comp'd, he just wanted the money. I paid it and kept playing. A little while later, a free drink ticket about the same size as a TITO hit my right wrist - the drink tickets are dispensed on the opposite side of the machines from the cash in/cash out devices on those particular machines. I kept playing, and when I was ready for another Bud, I gave the bartender the free drink ticket and asked him how much play generated the individual drink tickets. He didn't know. HE DIDN'T KNOW! That was almost 8 months ago, and I haven't yet read any info published by a casino or casino management that identifies a specific dollar number for the amount of play that will generate a free drink ticket! I know that playing strictly for comps is not a good casino strategy, but I think the casinos should at least let you know what level of play is necessary to receive what recently didn't have a specific cash number. With table games, most places will tell you the minimum bets required to be rated, and if you ask a pit boss what betting levels and time played will get you automatic free room offers (and more), they'll tell you.

So far, these machines are ONLY at the video poker equipped bars. They aren't on the casino floors. There are no requirements for free drink tickets for drinks ordered from cocktail waitresses while playing VP or slots on the floor. I happen to prefer playing at the bars because floor service can be spotty or non-existent. It's much easier to wave at a bartender while sitting at the bar than flag down a waitress sometimes...

I have read that the bean counters claim the reason for this new drink comp practice at the bars is not to crack down on people who slow play the games for free drinks. It is to reduce bartender theft. Apparently some bartenders have been selling drinks at the bars (to people not playing, or friends of people playing), pocketing the cash, and ringing those drinks up at the register as being comped. That makes sense! It's sad that the problem is large enough for them to change policy and spend the money involved in adding the ticket dispensers to the machines.

I've also read that some places (not MGM Casinos) have installed a red light - green light configuration on their VP bar machines instead of a ticket system . I suspect those too would not record the free drink info onto your players cards.