In Atlantic City, Mr. Trump does deal cards—lots of cards. He also offers his fair share of crap and baccarat tables, slot machines, hotel rooms, and restaurants. With the possible exception of arch-rival Steve Wynn, no persona identifies itself more closely with a gambling town than "The Donald" does with Atlantic City. Not only is he the town's biggest landowner, he's also its leading cheerleader. And he isn't the least bit shy about putting his name out front.

But before we visit Mr. Trump's three (or four, depending on whether you count the Trump Plaza and Trump World's Fair as one casino or two) gambling palaces, let's take a quick Atlantic City slot club course. I love this town and its slot clubs and you can too, but it’s easier when you understand the idiosyncrasies.

A.C. slot clubs share a minimal amount of information with their members—and get away with it. Unless a club member keeps extensive personal records regarding play and rewards, he has no idea how cash, comps, or bounce-back offers are earned. All percentage estimates presented below are based on extensive research done by two Atlantic City players: John Robison (author of the upcoming Inside Atlantic City Slot Clubs) and Jazbo Burns (www.jazbo.com).

A significant part (if not all) of a member's cash benefits are mailed in the form of cash vouchers (a.k.a. bounce-back coupons), requiring additional weekly trips to the casino for full redemption. Recently, in an effort to attract a more national audience, several A.C. casinos, including Trump Taj Mahal and Trump Plaza, have begun strong "same-day" cash rewards, though they still mail additional bounce-backs for their regular day-tripper clientele.

In stark contrast to Las Vegas, Atlantic City's room inventory is limited. As a result, room rates are high and comped rooms are difficult to obtain (almost impossible on weekends). Most player club computers will not grant players any food comp dollars until their "free" rooms have been "paid." (Note: A casino host will override the system and get you a food comp if the casino knows you.)

Now some good news. All Atlantic City casinos offer their frequent customers entrance to special private rooms or "clubs." Almost all of these premium player clubs feature complimentary food and beverage, as well as a big-screen TV and a selection of newspapers and magazines. Membership is usually issued for a limited three-month period. Though entrance criteria are kept rather secret (surprise), most executives have told us that a three-times-a-month, four-hour quarter slot player would usually qualify.

Finally, Atlantic City casinos, including those owned by Trump, always have several on-going promotions, including scratch cards, car giveaways, and daily cash drawings. Any regular A.C. player can (and should) keep abreast of A.C. giveaways by subscribing to the Atlantic City Insider (also published by CJPG).

Trump Plaza and Trump World's Fair

Bookending the original Atlantic City Convention Center (home of "Here she comes, Miss America") are the Trump Plaza and Trump World's Fair. Though the casinos share the same slot club, they are very different in design, product, and specific market appeal.

Trump Plaza, The Donald's original A.C. property, opened in 1984. Like its New York City namesake, also owned by Trump, it is first class throughout. The winner of several awards, the property features luxurious rooms (including nine "super suites"), eight restaurants, an extensive selection of table games, and lots of machines, including big nickel and above play in the new Fifth Avenue premium slot salon. In early 1996, the hotel added the East Tower Casino, with its 58-square-foot video wall, and the largest video poker bar in Atlantic City. Entertainment can be found in any of the four hotel lounges or at the Trump Plaza Theatre. Recent acts have included Frankie Valli, the Duprees, and Lasting Impressions, a production show starring vocal impressionist Bill Acosta.

Trump World's Fair (formally the Atlantis) is closer to what Las Vegans call a "grind joint" (albeit a classy grind joint). Although there are no tables, there's an abundance of nickel and quarter slot and video poker machines, including a few 9/6 Jacks or Better games on the third floor. Along with the machines, the casino offers 500 reasonably priced rooms and three restaurants. One of my favorite features here is the extensive collection of murals depicting famous world's fairs of yesteryear.

According to experts Robison and Burns, the Trump Plaza/World's Fair slot club awards same-day cash at an across-the-board rate of .5 percent. "As for bounce-back cash," says Robison, "I found that a few hundred dollars in action was good for a five-dollar coupon. I received a ten-dollar coupon for a thousand in action." Food comps may be obtained through the slot hosts or at the players club desk located in the center of the Plaza casino. Though I have only played at the Plaza (along with every other A.C. casino) on limited occasions, I have received several valuable offers via the mail. Last summer, the casino sent me a one-night room offer, several two-for-one buffets, two complimentary tickets to the Flashback show, plus several entries into their $150,000 Labor Day drawing. More recently, I was invited to participate in a series of free bingo games ($15,000 in prizes), which also included a free midweek room offer.

Trump Marina

Here is a real A.C. success story. Not so long ago, Trump Castle, with 729 rooms and a 74,000-square-foot casino in the Marina section of town, was a ho-hum property with no real audience. The hotel was out of the way, the casino was boring, and the slot club card was just plain ugly. Today, the renamed Trump Marina has an upbeat atmosphere and is filled with players and parties. Several A.C. locals tell me that Trump Marina is now their favorite place to see and be seen. (And the Marina Slot Card ain't bad either).

What did they do besides change the name? Several things, but most importantly, they upgraded—or better yet, updated—their music. "Three years ago" explains a Trump marketing executive, "we were doing some exploratory discussions with the Hard Rock folks, and though nothing came of it, we realized the value of marketing to a younger audience. Our two showrooms, the Shell and the Grand Cayman, offer the highest quality and most varied entertainment product in Atlantic City. The Atlantic City Insider rated our nightclub, The Wave, the best in town. We even changed our background music. It's now programmed from our own rock CD collection." (Note: Most of the choices are from the '50s and '60s and are quite easy on the ears.)

What I like about Trump Marina is the video poker inventory. They have one of the better selections of my favorite game, dollar Jacks or Better, in Atlantic City. Big nickel ($5) players will especially appreciate the Monte Carlo high-limit slot salon. Besides decent machines in a quiet location, the salon has a full-service cashier and all-around excellent service.

The Trump Marina Club doesn't offer same-day cash, but mails a voucher after every visit that's redeemable for two months. According to our player experts, cash-back varies widely between .4 percent and 1 percent, depending on your game. Comp dollars, which may be immediately accessed via the Marina Club kiosks, accrue at about the same rate.

Though Trump Marina does not run many "general-public" promotions, it does offer Club Marina members several decent deals. Once a month, the casino sends out a mailing containing all member offers in one convenient package. For example, my October mailing contained a coupon for a tote bag, a free-room night, an entry for free bingo, an entry for a free video poker tournament, a scratchcard giveaway entry, and several bounce-back cash coupons.

"Every three months," according to a Trump manager, "mid-level players receive membership in our exclusive Marina Club, a private room featuring an upscale buffet, an open bar, and a great view. Our premium players are invited to join the Yacht Club, which features both high-end entrees and top-shelf liquor."

Trump Taj Mahal

This is the big one—more than 139,000 square feet of casino, 3,828 slot machines, plus 160 tables. If you like an intimate gaming experience, this is not your place. But if you want all the hottest machines, an extensive choice of restaurants, and the finest in high-roller amenities, this is the spot. Personally, I find it easier to navigate the well-designed Taj than most casinos half its size.

On the floor are all the latest: IGT's Wheel of Fortune and Vision series, Williams' Reel 'Em In, Shuffle Master's Five Deck Poker, and all the recent wonders created by Bally, Action, and Aristocrat. Video poker players will find tons of Joker Poker (more popular in A.C. than in the rest of the world) and even a few dollar and up 9/6 Jacks games.

The Taj Trump Card awards same-day cash, which according to our analysts, runs about .2 percent to .4 percent for video poker and about twice that for slots. Comp dollars average about 50 percent of cash dollars and can be accessed via the kiosks. Trump card members can use their comp dollars at seven of the hotel restaurants, including the large Sultan's Feast Buffet or the ultra-gourmet Scheherazade.

The club is especially aggressive with its direct mail program. Besides a steady stream of bounce-back coupons, the casino mails out sweepstakes entries, invitations to free slot tournaments, free room offers, and discounts to see the entertainers (Neil Sedaka, Stomp, Spirit of the Dance) who perform in the hotel's Mark Etess Arena.

Promotions here are also big. There's a slot tournament on Wednesdays and Fridays and a Super Slot Cash Sweepstakes (first prize $10,000) on Thursdays. One of my favorites is the "Taj Card Starter," where the casino reimburses new (as well as inactive) members for first-day losses up to $100 (in the form of a gift of the same value). Trump card members using the Taj Mahal garage recently received a scratch-off ticket redeemable for coupons worth anywhere from $1 to $100. Monday through Friday, all Taj Card members who get a coupon at the promotions booth receive a $3 discount on the $6.99 breakfast buffet.

Taj Card members age 50 and over automatically qualify for a special branch of the club card, the "50-Plus Club." 50-Plus Club members get a special sticker on their Taj Card that qualifies them for year-round discounts on rooms and food, and a monthly calendar of exclusive special events, including free bingo, free slot tournaments, and even free flu shots. Members receive a special room rate on Wednesday or Thursdays, plus a 50 percent discount at the buffet.