Do Players Feel Luckier on Their Birthday?

There are times in our lives when we feel luckier than others. On anniversaries, when our team wins the playoffs, and on our birthdays. It’s simply easier to feel lucky when things are going our way.

But do casino players feel so much luckier on their birthdays that they’re more likely to gamble? The answer is a resounding yes.

Let’s look at a few reasons why players feel luckier on their birthdays, debunk the bogus reasons, and talk about one valid one.

Why Players Feel Luckier on Their Birthdays

There are several reasons why players feel luckier on their birthdays, including superstition, cognitive bias, and mood-boosting brain chemicals.

Let’s talk about why you may not be luckier on your birthday in the ways you might assume, and one way you can take agency and control your own luck on your special day.

Superstition

Superstition is the biggest reason that players feel luckier on their birthdays. Most players have lucky numbers (including birthdays) or lucky objects that they play with to enhance their chances of winning. Of course, these players will always feel luckier on their birthdays.

Some players even take things to the next level by checking the best times to play at casinos, based on astrology. While they might not find that their birthday is the optimal time to play and win, they still believe that some days or months may be luckier than others, based on the stars.

Cognitive Bias

Most of us believe that we have some control over uncontrollable events. If we win a hand of poker, we believe that we somehow cosmically deserved that win; similarly, we might often lambast ourselves for unlucky events, too.

This phenomenon is called illusory control. We all want to believe that we have more control over the events of our lives than we do; however, there are some outcomes that we cannot predict or change – like winning games determined by random number generators, such as slots.

But if playing strategy-based casino games on your birthday gives you a boost, go ahead and play them. Just make sure you don’t bet more than you can afford to lose.

Brain Chemistry

We get a lot of positive attention on our birthdays. We’re showered with gifts, friends we haven’t spoken to in months might reach out to wish us a happy birthday, and even large corporations send us free stuff or bonuses on our birthdays (but more on that later!).

When we’re in a good mood, our feel-good brain chemicals surge. And when that happens, we’re more likely to feel like we’re already on a winning streak, so why not pump a twenty-dollar bill into a slot machine?

Birthday Bonuses

There is one valid reason why players might feel luckier on their birthdays: casino birthday bonuses!

Many online casinos and land-based casinos offer special bonuses on players’ birthdays. You generally need to be enrolled in the casino’s VIP program to take advantage of these bonuses (and top-tier players always get better rewards), yet birthday bonuses can be found at a lot of real-money and sweepstakes casinos.

Here is a list of real-money casinos that offer birthday bonuses to VIP members:

• BetMGM

• Caesars Palace

• BetRivers Casino

• Golden Nugget

• Borgata

• PlayStar

Here is a list of sweepstakes casinos that offer birthday bonuses to some rewards members:

• American Luck

• Stake.us

• SweepSlots

• Modo.us

• WOW Vegas

• McLuck Casino

• Crown Coins Casino