# Could there possibly ever be a "run" on Casinos? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [April 28, 2009, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-there-possibly-ever-be-a-run-on-casinos/494591 "2009-04-28T04:15:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Meeko](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e495f1/32.png) [@Meeko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meeko)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2009, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-there-possibly-ever-be-a-run-on-casinos/494591/1 "2009-04-28T04:15:57Z")
Granted the Odds of the following are not likely. I just saw a commercial with the Maytag Repairman. In the commercial, he is called to repair, slot machines. All of the slot machines are paying off Jackpots. (Surprisingly, they were all paying off in physical coins, but the commercial wouldn’t work with current machines.) If by some Incredible stroke of luck, everyone in the casino all hit a jackpot at the exact same time. I’m talking the biggest payout possible, on each and every machine being played. Excluding Progressives Could it be DEMONSTRATED\* that a casino can in fact be in a position where it can not pay off all the gamblers in the house? - I’m sure some one will point out legal fine print that loopholes out of a Casino paying out X amount of money in a day. I welcome those comments, but I am actually looking after the theory of gambling, not actual accounting practice on the books. ---
**Author:** ![glee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b5a626/32.png) [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2009, 9:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-there-possibly-ever-be-a-run-on-casinos/494591/2 "2009-04-28T09:04:42Z")
I don’t see how it can be demonstrated. If every high-stakes player wins every hand of blackjack and every spin of roulette for an hour, plus at that point all the slots pay off the jackpot - then the casino has to find a LOT of money. It’s just unlikely. ---
**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2009, 10:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-there-possibly-ever-be-a-run-on-casinos/494591/3 "2009-04-28T10:42:43Z")
What “theory” of gambling are you looking for?? Your question is quite unclear, making me think you really haven’t quite formulated it for yourself yet. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2009, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-there-possibly-ever-be-a-run-on-casinos/494591/4 "2009-04-28T13:03:44Z")
> [@Meeko](#): > > Could it be DEMONSTRATED\* that a casino can in fact be in a position where it can not pay off all the gamblers in the house? > > - I’m sure some one will point out legal fine print that loopholes out of a Casino paying out X amount of money in a day. I welcome those comments, but I am actually looking after the theory of gambling, not actual accounting practice on the books. What legal fine print would there be that gives a casino the right to avoid paying out a winner? Unless the machines were tampered with, the winners have the right to the payout. The only legal “fine print” is the concept of Bankruptcy. If the casino doesn’t have the money to pay off its debts, debts like jackpot payouts, they go bankrupt, and the winners get X cents on the dollar based on the bankruptcy proceedings. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2009, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-there-possibly-ever-be-a-run-on-casinos/494591/5 "2009-04-28T13:30:31Z")
Isn’t there a law that the casinos have to have enough money to cover all the bets on the floor? (Although I’m not sure how that works for slot machines.) Did I just get that from _Ocean’s 11_ or is that a real law? ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2009, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-there-possibly-ever-be-a-run-on-casinos/494591/6 "2009-04-28T13:37:27Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > Isn’t there a law that the casinos have to have enough money to cover all the bets on the floor? (Although I’m not sure how that works for slot machines.) Did I just get that from _Ocean’s 11_ or is that a real law? In _Ocean’s 11_, the very fictional law was that they had to have enough **cash on the premises** to cover every bet. This is not really the case, for obvious reasons. There are probably laws about how much money they have to maintain in liquid form, but that’s easily done with banks and paying off large winners with checks. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2009, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-there-possibly-ever-be-a-run-on-casinos/494591/7 "2009-04-28T13:47:19Z")
I think pretty much any business is subject to being “broken” is some incredibly unlikely catastrophe hits it. The scenario of the OP seems much more unlikely than most. As an example, if every WalMart in the world happened to burn down on the same day, would the WalMart Corporation go broke? ---
**Author:** ![Theodore\_Striker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/74df32/32.png) [@Theodore\_Striker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Theodore_Striker)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2009, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-there-possibly-ever-be-a-run-on-casinos/494591/8 "2009-04-28T13:55:26Z")
There are disclaimers with slot machines at least that winnings can be ruled invalid in cases of machine malfunction. ---
**Author:** ![Meeko](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e495f1/32.png) [@Meeko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meeko)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2009, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-there-possibly-ever-be-a-run-on-casinos/494591/9 "2009-04-28T15:39:42Z")
> [@DSYoungEsq](#): > > What “theory” of gambling are you looking for?? Your question is quite unclear, making me think you really haven’t quite formulated it for yourself yet. 🙂 Not a Strategy of play. We can all agree that on an actual floor, my quesiton will never happen. I stated the word “Theory” to contrast against “Practice”. I Was after the exact law mentioned in Ocean’s 11 (Apparently) and I wasn’t aware that I was. Restating: What would happen if a Casino can not pay off all legit bets made by all slot machines paying off? ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2009, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-there-possibly-ever-be-a-run-on-casinos/494591/10 "2009-04-28T16:31:38Z")
Speaking without knowledge I’d be astonished if they didn’t have insurance for this sort of thing. And I’ll bet they have the math worked out to the penny what they’d be likely to have to cover under the worst likely scenario. ---
**Author:** ![dotchan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@dotchan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dotchan)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2009, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-there-possibly-ever-be-a-run-on-casinos/494591/11 "2009-04-28T16:44:18Z")
I am not a statistician (where’s good old Blaster Master when ya need him? 😉 ), but the odds of all of the machines on the floor hitting the jackpot in the same span of time by _pure coincidence_ is so infinitesimal that it’s not worth the risk of having enough cash in the house to be able to cover it. The large stacks of cash they show off for the Texas Hold 'em tourneys and stuff are most likely brought in from the outside via armored trucks and it’s a gimmick to draw in customers. Nobody is going to be walking out with a giant sack of money like that, or for that matter not even the giant (decorative, I’d imagine) check they get their picture taken with. IIRC large payouts are always negotiated to either be lump sum or installments payed directly into the winner’s bank account. ---
**Author:** ![Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troy_mcclure_sf/32/4150_2.png) [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troy_McClure_SF)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2009, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-there-possibly-ever-be-a-run-on-casinos/494591/12 "2009-04-28T16:56:29Z")
> [@dotchan](#): > > the giant (decorative, I’d imagine) check they get their picture taken with. > **[Can you write a check on any old piece of paper?](https://www.straightdope.com/21341724/can-you-write-a-check-on-any-old-piece-of-paper)** ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2009, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-there-possibly-ever-be-a-run-on-casinos/494591/13 "2009-04-28T23:24:00Z")
> [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](#): > > [Can you write a check on any old piece of paper? - The Straight Dope](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/562/can-you-write-a-check-on-any-old-piece-of-paper) Yes, but the big check could have a disclaimer on it that says it isn’t valid, and a smaller, easier legit version could be issued. ---
**Author:** ![Cyberhwk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7993a0/32.png) [@Cyberhwk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyberhwk)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2009, 7:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-there-possibly-ever-be-a-run-on-casinos/494591/14 "2009-04-29T07:21:31Z")
Tables aren’t a problem. As long as the amount of chips you have on the floor is less than the amount in the bank your golden. And YOU BET they know how many chips they have on the floor. As far as slot machines I have no idea. I know the big jackpots are sometimes linked through many casinos so that debt may not be on the property. My guess is they could probably handle most of the jackpots. $2,000 average jackpot (not everyone’s playing the $20 machines) X 5,000 machines = $10 million. It’d sting like a MOFO but I think larger casinos probably have enough liquidity to cover. No doubt they’d be one HELL of an investigation though. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2009, 7:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-there-possibly-ever-be-a-run-on-casinos/494591/15 "2009-04-29T07:33:15Z")
> [@Theodore\_Striker](#): > > There are disclaimers with slot machines at least that winnings can be ruled invalid in cases of machine malfunction. Yes they do. I’m sure they will get sued anyway if they refuse to pay but they have an out and would probably win in my opinion. In slots not only are the big jackpots linked through many casinos all the machines that I have seen with big or progressive payouts have in the fine print on the machine a statement which explains that payouts will be an annuity paid out over 40 years. Or 30, I don’t remember if they are the same everywhere but I remember that it is usually longer than states take to payout lottery wins. Payouts on tables are also controlled. Each table has a sign stating the maximum allowed bet and the maximum payout. Above that you need to get special permission from management. ---
**Author:** ![glee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b5a626/32.png) [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2009, 9:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-there-possibly-ever-be-a-run-on-casinos/494591/16 "2009-04-29T09:23:56Z")
> [@Cyberhwk](#): > > Tables aren’t a problem. As long as the amount of chips you have on the floor is less than the amount in the bank your golden. And YOU BET they know how many chips they have on the floor. Certainly they know exactly how many chips they’ve got. But what if they’re all in play - and then every player wins?! ---
**Author:** ![Dead\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9fc29f/32.png) [@Dead\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Cat)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2009, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-there-possibly-ever-be-a-run-on-casinos/494591/17 "2009-04-29T14:17:44Z")
> [@glee](#): > > Certainly they know exactly how many chips they’ve got. But what if they’re all in play - and then every player wins?! That’s not normally possible due to table limits. In the normal course of events, the dealer always has a large stack of chips available. Should he run low, he will get more chips from the cashier. If he runs too low on chips to pay out all potential winning bets, the table can simply be closed. In the event of a casino being unable to pay out all winnings in cash, they can simply pay winners by cheque as previously noted. People seem to forget that the casino is permitting gambling on its own terms, not those of the gamblers. Now, if the casino were to go bankrupt, gamblers who were owed money would presumably be dealt with just like the creditors of any other insolvent company. I don’t know if there are any specific laws for casinos on this, though. ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2009, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-there-possibly-ever-be-a-run-on-casinos/494591/18 "2009-04-29T14:37:26Z")
> [@dotchan](#): > > I am not a statistician (where’s good old Blaster Master when ya need him? 😉 ), but the odds of all of the machines on the floor hitting the jackpot in the same span of time by _pure coincidence_ is so infinitesimal that it’s not worth the risk of having enough cash in the house to be able to cover it. I saw Penn & Teller in Las Vegas a few years ago. In one bit, Penn lay on his back and Teller placed a large cinder block on Penn’s chest. Penn explained that Teller is about to smash the block with a slegehammer, and when he does so, the molecules in the block will respond by converting the energy in the hammer to random movement, thus shattering the block. But there’s a _chance_, he explained, that _all_ of the molecules will randomly move in the same direction, thus plunging the block through his chest. So watch closely, because you might be about to see something you can really tell your friends about. Of course, Teller smashed the block and Penn was unharmed. And of course, despite the _chance_ that he’ll be killed, Penn still allows a cinder block to be smashed on his chest every night and twice on Sundays. He presented the whole scenario as an analogy to the house edge at the casinos. ---
**Author:** ![DJBFivE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@DJBFivE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DJBFivE)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2009, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-there-possibly-ever-be-a-run-on-casinos/494591/19 "2009-04-30T04:54:57Z")
I made a little over 20K at the WSOP a couple of years back, they gave me the option of getting 1)casino chips, 2)cash, or 3) a check drawn at BofA, or any combination of the above that I wanted to come up with to meet the total. ---
**Author:** ![Cyberhwk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7993a0/32.png) [@Cyberhwk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyberhwk)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2009, 7:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-there-possibly-ever-be-a-run-on-casinos/494591/20 "2009-04-30T07:12:04Z")
> [@glee](#): > > Certainly they know exactly how many chips they’ve got. But what if they’re all in play - and then every player wins?! Say a table has $8,000 in it. Even if somebody bought the ENTIRE TRAY and put it all on one hand of BJ, the house is only out $12,000 maximum. IF it gets to the point where “Oh wow, we’re running out of money they’d simply close the tables and not allow any more bets.” Sure, maybe $8000 X all 7 spots (they’d have to fill the table 7 times) but that just pushes over the edge a hypothetical that is absurd in the first place.