Being a winning slot machine player is impossible. All slot machines are developed specifically as a way to give the house a long-term edge, so the house will always come out ahead if you play long enough. The only real way to counteract the house edge on slot machine games is to play a game with a really big jackpot, bet the max every time you play, and hope that you hit the jackpot. Then when you do hit the really big jackpot, guess what you do next? Stop playing that game.

Don't get me wrong. I am not saying that you shouldn't play slot machines. The truth is, I think slot games, particularly the really good ones, are a lot of fun. But you want to keep in the forefront of your thoughts that mathematically, what you are doing when you are playing a slot machine on a long-term basis is paying for entertainment. You may calculate the amount you are paying for that entertainment by multiplying the home edge times your average bet times your range of spins every hour.

One example is if you're playing a slot game with a payout of 95%, then the house edge is 5%. (The casino keeps 5% of every bet you make long-term.) And if you're average bet is $3, then you're going to pay the average of 15 cents per spin to the house. (5% times $3.) Assuming you are making 500 spins per hour, that game costs you $75/hour to play, which may or may not be a reasonable price for you entertainment. That depends upon your bankroll.

Something else to factor into your calculation is just how much the perks and bonuses you're getting back from the excellent online casino slot are worth. In case you are playing in a land-based casino where you are getting free drinks while you play, in which case you can subtract the price of those drinks from you are hourly cost. (Or you may add the price of those drinks to the value of the entertainment you are receiving--it's just a matter of perspective.) My recommendation is to drink top-shelf liquor and premium beers so that you can maximize the entertainment value you are receiving. A Heineken can cost $4 a bottle in a nice restaurant. Drink two Heinekens an hour, and you have just lowered what it costs you to play each hour from $75 to $68.

Slot clubs also give back a percentage of your losses each hour, so definitely be sure you join the casino's slot club and ALWAYS use your card to track your play. There is absolutely no reason not to do this. Casinos also reward their larger slot players with comps like meals, show tickets, and free rooms, which all add up to reduce the amount of cash you're spending each hour that you're playing on their machine.

So, just how to be a winning slot machine player? I'd sum it up by saying know just how much it's costing you to play each spin and each hour, take advantage of all of the comps and also the perks, and go for the big progressive jackpot.