National Casino Australia: 2026 Review, Payments, and the Grey Market Reality
National Casino is one of those offshore gambling brands that Australian players keep stumbling onto. You search for a new pokies site, some forum mentions the name, and suddenly you’re looking at a flashy homepage promising a 100% match bonus and 200 free spins. The site doesn’t care about your IP address. That’s not an oversight. That’s the business model.
This guide pulls the marketing layers off National Casino. We’ll look at the licence, the bonuses, the banking methods, and the elephant in the room: why your bank might block the deposit, why your ISP might block the site, and what that means for your money. No fluffy “top 10 reasons to play here” nonsense. Just the details that matter when a casino operates outside Australian law.
What Is National Casino?
National Casino launched in 2021 and quickly built a following among players looking for a casino that accepts cryptocurrency and offers fast withdrawals. The operator behind it, TechSolutions Group N.V., runs several other well-known brands, including Rocket Casino, Playamo, and BitStarz. Same server room, different logo. That doesn’t make it a scam, but it does mean you can find near-identical platforms with slightly different bonus structures.
The platform runs on SoftSwiss software, which is a white-label casino engine. That’s why the game library feels familiar if you’ve played at any of the other TechSolutions properties. You get slots from Pragmatic Play, NetEnt, Play’n GO, Yggdrasil, and Evolution for live dealer tables. The site also pushes provably fair games from BGaming, which is a SoftSwiss in-house studio. That’s not a red flag, just a note that the casino and the game supplier share a parent company.
The Curacao Connection
National Casino holds a licence from the Curaçao Gaming Control Board, under licence number 8048/JAZ2021-123. Curacao has been the go-to jurisdiction for offshore casinos targeting Australia for over a decade. The licence covers basic operational checks, anti-money laundering procedures, and a complaints process run by the regulator. What it does not cover is any consumer protection under Australian law.
If National Casino refuses to pay a withdrawal, you can’t take them to an Australian court. You’d have to pursue the dispute through Curacao’s dispute resolution, which historically has a backlog and limited enforcement power. That’s not speculation; that’s the standard operating procedure for every Curacao-licensed casino. The regulator rarely revokes licences over individual player complaints.
Game Library at a Glance
The casino offers roughly 2,500 games, with pokies making up about 80% of the catalogue. You’ll find all the biggest titles: Big Bass Bonanza, Gates of Olympus, Sweet Bonanza, and a rotating selection of branded slots. Table games include blackjack, roulette, baccarat, and a few video poker variants. The live casino section runs on Evolution and Pragmatic Play Live, which are the industry standard for studios.
Australian players will notice one absence: no traditional Australian-style pokies like Aristocrat’s Lightning Link or Dragon Link. Those are licensed for land-based play and some Australian-facing online sites, but offshore casinos generally don’t carry them. If you’re chasing the exact feel of a pub pokie, National Casino will disappoint. If you don’t care about the theme and just want high RTP slots, the choice is adequate.
Ownership, Sister Sites, and Corporate Structure
TechSolutions Group N.V. is the corporate name behind National Casino. The company is registered in Curaçao, but its operational offices are rumoured to be in Ukraine and other Eastern European locations. That’s common for offshore casino groups. The corporate structure is deliberately opaque. You won’t find a physical address in a jurisdiction where you can serve legal papers. If something goes wrong, you’re dealing with a support email and a complaints form on a website hosted in a country you’ll never visit.
The sister sites matter because they share infrastructure, game libraries, and often payment processors. Rocket Casino, Rocketplay Casino, Playamo, BitStarz, Katsubet, 7Bit Casino, and Croco Casino are all under the same ownership umbrella or use the same SoftSwiss platform. That means if National Casino has a payment dispute with a processor, the entire network might be affected. It also means player complaints about one brand often reflect patterns across all brands. The grey market is interconnected.
For Australian players, this network is a double-edged sword. On one hand, the shared platform means consistent game quality and reliable software. On the other hand, if the ACMA blocks one domain, the group can spin up a mirror for any of its brands, and the blocklist becomes a whack-a-mole game. You might end up playing on a clone of National Casino under a different name, with the same bankroll and the same lack of protections.
Is National Casino Legal in Australia?
The short answer is no. The long answer involves the Interactive Gambling Act 2001, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), and a lot of “but everyone does it” hand-waving. Let’s be clear: offering real-money casino games to Australian residents without a licence issued by an Australian state or territory is illegal. That includes National Casino. The site itself is not breaking Australian law; the operator is, by accepting Australian customers.
Players are not prosecuted for using offshore casinos. That’s a fact, not a comfort. The legal risk sits with the operator, but the financial and practical risks sit with you. If National Casino freezes your account and withholds your balance, you cannot rely on Australian consumer protection agencies to help. You might get sympathy from the ACMA, but no enforcement action on your behalf.
The Letter of the Law
Under the Interactive Gambling Act 2001, it is an offence for an overseas operator to provide “prohibited interactive gambling services” to Australian residents. The ACMA has the power to request that internet service providers block access to offending websites. Since 2017, the ACMA has blocked hundreds of domains, including many Curacao-licensed casinos. National Casino has not yet appeared on the ACMA blocklist, but that could change without notice. The regulator routinely adds new domains after complaints.
Banks and payment processors are also under pressure. Australian financial institutions are not legally required to block gambling transactions, but many do it voluntarily. The four major banks — Commonwealth Bank, Westpac, NAB, and ANZ — have all implemented measures that can decline payments to offshore gambling sites. This isn’t a rumour; it’s a known practice driven by anti-money laundering obligations and reputational risk.
Why Australians Still Access It
People use offshore casinos because the bonuses are bigger, the game selection is broader, and the deposit limits are higher than anything a licensed Australian casino can offer. Australian-licensed online casinos are heavily restricted: no live dealer games, no online poker, and a maximum bet of $5 per spin (in most states). Offshore sites ignore all of that. The trade-off is that you’re playing without a safety net.
It’s a calculated risk. Some players are fine with that. Others discover too late that when a casino knows you have no legal recourse, the “fair gaming” promise becomes optional. National Casino has a mixed reputation on player forums. Some users report quick payouts and responsive support. Others describe frozen withdrawals and endless KYC requests after a big win. That’s not unique to this brand; it’s the pattern across the entire grey market.
Bonuses and Promotions: The Devil in the Terms
National Casino’s welcome package is built around a matched deposit bonus: typically 100% up to $500 on the first deposit, plus 200 free spins on selected slots. Right below the flashy number, you’ll find a 40x wagering requirement on the bonus amount, a 30-day expiry, and a maximum bet of $5 while playing with bonus funds. Break the max bet rule and the casino can void your winnings. That’s not hidden in fine print; it’s in the terms, but most players don’t read them until something goes wrong.
The house edge on slots is usually 3-4%. Over a 40x wagering requirement, the expected loss on a $500 bonus is around $600-800. That means the “free” money actually costs you more in theoretical losses than the bonus itself. Casinos know this. That’s why they offer bonuses. They’re not gifts; they’re customer acquisition costs with a built-in clawback.
No Deposit Bonus Codes: Real or Bait?
National Casino occasionally releases no deposit bonus codes through affiliate sites and streamer partnerships. You might see “national casino no deposit bonus” or “national casino free chips” pop up. These offers typically give you $20-50 in free play or a handful of free spins. The catch is always the wagering requirement — often 50x or higher — and a maximum withdrawal cap, commonly $100. If you win more than that, the casino keeps the difference. Read that again: the casino caps how much you can withdraw from a no deposit bonus, and it’s usually a microscopic amount relative to the stated bonus.
These promos are designed to get you to deposit. The casino is not giving away free money. It’s loaning you a tiny bankroll to test the platform, knowing that a small percentage of players will then deposit their own cash. If you go into a no deposit bonus expecting to actually profit, you’ll be disappointed. If you treat it as a demo, fine, but even then, you’re handing over your personal details to an unregulated operator.
Wagering Requirements Explained
Wagering requirements — also called playthrough or turnover — tell you how many times the bonus amount must be bet before you can withdraw any winnings. A 40x requirement on a $500 bonus means you must wager $20,000. That’s not $20,000 of your own money necessarily, but you need to cycle that much through real bets. On slots with 96% RTP, that’s an expected loss of $800 before you can cash out. The maths is simple and unforgiving.
National Casino also applies game weighting. Slots count 100% toward wagering, but table games might count only 5-10%. Live dealer games often count 0%. If you’re a blackjack player, your bonus is essentially worthless. You’d have to play through 40x on slots, which dramatically increases your variance and expected loss. This is standard across the industry, but it’s worth stating explicitly: the bonus terms are written to favour the house, not the player.
Reload Bonuses and Cashback
Beyond the welcome package, National Casino offers weekly reload bonuses, usually 50% up to $200, and a cashback program that returns a small percentage of losses each week — typically 10% up to $500. The cashback usually comes with no wagering requirement, which sounds generous until you realise it’s calculated on net losses, not total deposits. If you lost $1,000, you get $100 back, and that $100 can be withdrawn immediately. That’s better than most competitors, but it doesn’t change the fundamental house edge. Cashback is just a rebate on losses, not a profit centre.
The VIP Program: A Motel with Fresh Paint
National Casino’s VIP scheme follows the standard offshore playbook: tiered levels (Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond), each promising faster withdrawals, higher limits, a personal account manager, and occasional “no wagering” free spins. The reality is less impressive. Many players report that the personal manager is just a generic support email with a name attached. The faster withdrawals are still subject to the same KYC delays. The “exclusive” promotions are often the same reload bonuses repackaged. It’s a loyalty program that gives you slightly better service in exchange for depositing more. The house still wins.
Banking: Deposits, Withdrawals, and Why Your Bank Might Block It
National Casino accepts a wide range of payment methods: Visa, Mastercard, Neosurf, Skrill, Neteller, ecoPayz, bank transfer, and several cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, and Tether. Cryptocurrency is the casino’s preferred method because it’s fast, irreversible, and largely outside the Australian banking system’s monitoring. That’s convenient until you need to reverse a fraudulent transaction. You can’t. Crypto chargebacks don’t exist.
Visa and Mastercard deposits have a high failure rate for Australian customers. The casino may list “credit card accepted,” but your bank could decline the transaction because the merchant category code is flagged as gambling. If the deposit goes through, it might appear on your statement as a generic e-commerce purchase. That’s the casino using a payment processor that obfuscates the merchant name. It’s legal in the sense that it’s not money laundering, but it’s a deliberate attempt to bypass bank filters. Your bank may still reverse the transaction later, which can leave your casino account in the negative.
The DNS and Bank Block Reality
Since 2023, the ACMA has stepped up enforcement against offshore gambling sites. They don’t just block the casino’s main domain; they also seize mirror sites and alternative domains used to circumvent the block. National Casino has not been blocked yet, but the practice of registering multiple domains suggests the operator is preparing for that eventuality. If the ACMA adds National Casino to the blocklist, Australian ISPs will be required to block access within days. You might still access the site via VPN, but that introduces additional risk: your bank may flag VPN usage as suspicious, and the casino may treat a VPN connection as a breach of terms, voiding your balance.
Banks are the second layer. Even if the ACMA doesn’t block the site, your bank might block the deposit. The four major banks have systems that detect payments to known gambling merchants. They don’t always block them, but they can. If a deposit is declined, the casino will often suggest using cryptocurrency as a workaround. That’s not helpful if you want consumer protection. Once crypto leaves your wallet, it’s gone. There is no dispute mechanism. No ombudsman. No chargeback. The casino holds all the cards.
Payment Methods Detailed: Fees, Limits, and Processing Times
| Method | Deposit Limit | Withdrawal Limit | Processing Time | Australian Bank Block Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Visa/Mastercard | $20 – $4,000 | Not available for withdrawal | Instant deposit, N/A withdrawal | High |
| Neosurf | $10 – $1,000 | Not available for withdrawal | Instant deposit, N/A withdrawal | Low |
| Skrill/Neteller | $20 – $10,000 | $20 – $4,000 | Instant deposit, 0-24 hours withdrawal | Medium |
| ecoPayz | $20 – $10,000 | $20 – $2,000 | Instant deposit, 0-24 hours withdrawal | Medium |
| Bank Transfer | $50 – $5,000 | $200 – $2,000 | 1-3 days deposit, 3-5 days withdrawal | High |
| Bitcoin/Ethereum | $20 – $50,000 | $50 – $10,000 | Instant deposit, 0-2 hours withdrawal | Low (bank independent) |
The table shows why crypto is the path of least resistance. But “least resistance” does not mean “least risk.” Crypto removes the bank middleman but also removes any possibility of recovering funds if the casino refuses to pay. With a card, you might at least attempt a chargeback, though Australian banks generally won’t process chargebacks for gambling transactions. Skrill and Neteller also offer limited dispute mechanisms, but they tend to side with the merchant in gambling disputes. The reality is that once you deposit at National Casino, your money is at the casino’s mercy. The only sure way to get it back is to win and hope the casino pays.
Verification and KYC Delays
National Casino’s terms state that all withdrawals require account verification. For most players, this means submitting a government ID, proof of address, and sometimes proof of payment method. The casino says it processes verification within 24 hours. In practice, many players report delays of several days, especially if they’re withdrawing more than $1,000 or if their account is new. The pattern is predictable: small withdrawals get approved quickly; large withdrawals trigger additional scrutiny. That’s the KYC industry standard, but in an unregulated casino, it’s also a convenient way to slow-roll a payout. If you’ve hit a big win, expect to wait. And wait. And maybe never hear back.
Game Providers and RTP: What You’re Actually Playing
National Casino’s game library is built on a SoftSwiss aggregator, meaning it pulls slots from dozens of providers. The most prominent are Pragmatic Play, NetEnt, Play’n GO, Yggdrasil, Quickspin, Hacksaw Gaming, Push Gaming, and Evolution for live dealer. Each provider sets its own RTP, and the casino doesn’t adjust those numbers. However, the same slot can have multiple RTP versions. A provider might offer a 96% version to some casinos and a 94% version to others. National Casino generally uses the standard RTP versions, but without independent verification, you’re trusting the operator’s word.
Here’s a representative sample of popular pokies and their default RTPs:
| Game | Provider | Default RTP | Volatility |
|---|---|---|---|
| Book of Dead | Play’n GO | 96.21% | High |
| Big Bass Bonanza | Pragmatic Play | 96.71% | Medium |
| Sweet Bonanza | Pragmatic Play | 96.48% | High |
| Gates of Olympus | Pragmatic Play | 96.50% | High |
| Starburst | NetEnt | 96.09% | Low |
| Bonanza | Big Time Gaming | 96.00% | Very High |
| Wanted Dead or a Wild | Hacksaw Gaming | 96.38% | Very High |
These RTPs matter because they tell you the theoretical return over millions of spins. Over a short session, variance dominates. You can win big on a 94% slot or lose everything on a 98% slot. The RTP is a long-run average, not a prediction. But for players using bonuses, the RTP is critical because it determines the expected cost of clearing wagering. A 96% slot costs you $4 for every $100 wagered; a 94% slot costs you $6. Over a $20,000 wagering requirement, that’s an $800 difference. Choosing the wrong slot can turn a break-even bonus into a guaranteed loss.
Mobile Experience and Customer Support
National Casino doesn’t have a dedicated mobile app. The site runs in your browser, and it’s responsive. On a modern phone, the interface is usable: games load quickly, the lobby is navigable, and deposits work the same as desktop. That’s fine for casual play, but there’s no push notifications, no offline access, and no biometric login. It’s a mobile website, not a mobile product. If you expect an app like Crown Sydney’s or an Australian sportsbook app, lower your expectations.
Customer support is available via live chat and email. Live chat is supposedly 24/7, but response times vary from minutes to hours depending on the time of day. Email support can take 24-48 hours. The quality is inconsistent: some agents resolve issues quickly, others copy-paste generic responses and close tickets prematurely. There’s no phone support. For Australian players, the time zone difference means live chat might be responsive only during European business hours, which is the middle of the night in Sydney or Melbourne. If you have an urgent issue, you’re stuck with a chat window and a prayer.
The Support Escalation Dead End
When a withdrawal is stuck in “pending” for days, support will tell you “it’s under review” and to wait. You can escalate to the VIP manager if you’re on a high tier, but that’s often the same support agent with a different title. If you mention the ACMA or Australian law, expect the conversation to end. The casino might close your account entirely citing “breach of terms,” which is their favourite catch-all for players who complain too loudly. In an unregulated environment, the support team holds all the leverage. You can shout into the void, but the void doesn’t pay out.
Player Complaints and the Pattern of Grey Market Behaviour
Online forums are full of complaints about National Casino. Some are trivial: a delayed withdrawal, a bonus not credited, a locked account after a winning streak. Others are more serious: accounts closed with no explanation, winnings confiscated due to “bonus abuse,” and support staff going silent after a dispute escalates. The casino has a live chat and email support, but the quality is inconsistent. Some players report helpful, fast responses; others describe copy-paste replies and circular arguments.
Patterns matter more than individual anecdotes. The most common complaint involves bonus terms. A player deposits, claims a bonus, wins, and then tries to withdraw. The casino then claims the player violated the max bet rule during bonus play — a rule that is almost impossible to prove unless the casino logs every spin. The player loses their winnings, the casino keeps the deposit, and the player posts a scathing review. This pattern repeats across all SoftSwiss casinos. It’s not a bug; it’s a feature of the terms and conditions.
Another recurring issue is payment processor failures. Deposits via Visa or Mastercard sometimes get reversed by the bank after the casino has already credited the account. The casino then demands the player redeposit via cryptocurrency to “settle the negative balance,” and if the player refuses, the account is locked. This isn’t always the casino’s fault — banks cause reversals — but the casino’s response is brutal. In a regulated market, the casino would have to work with the player to resolve the issue. In the grey market, the casino just freezes the account until the player pays up.
The Grey Market Treadmill: ACMA, Bank Blocks, and VPNs
The Australian grey market for online casinos is a treadmill. You deposit, you play, you maybe win, then you try to withdraw. The casino delays. The bank blocks. The site gets blocked by ACMA. You find a mirror. The mirror gets blocked. You switch to crypto. The crypto wallet gets flagged. You use a VPN. The casino voids your balance for using a VPN. It never ends.
The ACMA blocklist is a political signal more than a technical barrier. A determined player can always find a workaround. But each workaround adds risk. VPNs violate casino terms and can void your winnings. Crypto removes chargeback protection. Mirror sites might be phishing clones that steal your login details. The grey market doesn’t reward persistence; it punishes it. Every step away from the regulated path costs you leverage and security.
In 2026, expect the ACMA to continue blocking domains. Expect banks to tighten their filters. Expect National Casino to keep registering new domains and keep accepting Australian players. The cycle is profitable for the casino because most players never withdraw. They deposit, lose, and move on. The few who win face an uphill battle to get paid. The treadmill is designed to exhaust you until you give up and leave your winnings behind. That’s the business model.
Responsible Gambling: BetStop and the Offshore Gap
Australia’s national self-exclusion register, BetStop, came into force in August 2023. It allows any person to register and block themselves from all licensed online and phone betting services in Australia. The register is mandatory for Australian-licensed operators. They must refuse service to anyone on the list. Offshore casinos like National Casino are not connected to BetStop. They don’t check the register, and they have no legal obligation to exclude self-excluded players. That’s a catastrophic gap for anyone with a gambling problem.
If you’re trying to control your gambling, the grey market is the worst place to be. These casinos actively market to people who have been excluded from licensed venues. They don’t care about your history. They only care about your deposit. And because they’re outside Australian law, there’s no mechanism to force them to close your account if you ask. They might close it if you request, but they’re not required to, and they can re-open it the moment you send a new deposit.
What BetStop Does
BetStop is a free, national self-exclusion register. You sign up with your personal details, and within minutes, all licensed Australian gambling operators must block you from gambling. The minimum exclusion period is three months, and you can extend it to lifetime. The system works well for licensed operators. It does absolutely nothing for offshore casinos. If you exclude via BetStop and then visit National Casino, the casino will happily take your money. The two systems exist in parallel universes.
How Offshore Casinos Sidestep It
Offshore casinos don’t just ignore BetStop; they exploit the fact that many Australian players don’t know it exists. Their marketing often targets users who search for “no verification casino” or “casino not on BetStop” — a direct appeal to problem gamblers who want to bypass restrictions. National Casino doesn’t explicitly market that way, but its lack of integration with BetStop is a feature for some players, not a bug. The casino won’t tell you that. You have to figure it out yourself.
The practical advice is blunt: if you have registered with BetStop, or even think you might need to, do not sign up at National Casino or any other offshore casino. The absence of BetStop integration is not a loophole; it’s a trap. You’re handing a gambling problem to an operator with zero accountability. That ends one way: worse.FAQ: Straight Answers About National Casino
Is National Casino licensed in Australia?
No. National Casino holds a Curaçao licence and has no Australian state or territory licence. Accepting Australian players without that licence breaches the Interactive Gambling Act 2001. The operator, not the player, carries the legal exposure, but the player carries the financial risk.
Can I deposit with a credit card at National Casino?
You can attempt it. Visa and Mastercard deposits frequently fail because Australian banks flag the gambling merchant code. Some transactions go through under obfuscated descriptors. If the bank later reverses the deposit, National Casino may lock your account until you settle the negative balance, usually via cryptocurrency.
What happens if National Casino refuses to pay my withdrawal?
You have almost no leverage. The Curaçao regulator moves slowly and rarely compels payouts. Australian authorities cannot force an offshore operator to return funds. Public complaints on forums occasionally pressure a casino to settle, but that is not a reliable or fast mechanism.
Does BetStop cover National Casino?
No. BetStop applies only to Australian-licensed operators. National Casino does not check the register, cannot be compelled to exclude you, and will continue accepting deposits from self-excluded players. For anyone using BetStop, signing up at National Casino is a direct route back into uncontrolled gambling.
Can the ACMA block National Casino?
Yes, and the risk is real. The ACMA has blocked hundreds of offshore gambling domains. National Casino is not yet on the list, but the operator already runs multiple mirror domains — a standard preparation for blocking. Once blocked, you would need a VPN, which breaches the casino’s terms and can void your balance.
Are the games at National Casino fair?
The RNG is certified by iTech Labs, and the slots run on standard SoftSwiss software with published RTPs. That covers the mechanical fairness of the games. It does nothing to protect you from withdrawal delays, account freezes, or confiscation after a bonus dispute. Fair games and unfair operators can coexist.
How long do withdrawals actually take?
Small crypto payouts can arrive within a few hours after approval. Approval itself may take 24 hours to several days, especially for first withdrawals. Sums above $2,000 are often split into weekly instalments. In practice, a $5,000 win can take three to five weeks to fully reach you, if it ever does.
Is National Casino a scam?
Not in the sense that it never pays. Many players withdraw without issue. But the operator uses the grey market playbook: aggressive bonuses with predatory terms, slow KYC, and no Australian accountability. That is not a scam in criminal law terms, but it is a structural disadvantage that no player should ignore.
The Hard Truth: Regulation Exists to Protect You, and National Casino Ignores It
Australian gambling regulation is not perfect. The online casino ban is puritanical, the $5 bet limit feels paternalistic, and the absence of a licensed real-money online casino industry drives players offshore. None of that changes the core fact: an unregulated casino has no reason to treat you fairly beyond its own reputation. Reputation is a weak safeguard when you cannot enforce it.
National Casino is not the worst grey market operator. It has a functioning platform, real games, and a support team that sometimes helps. But the absence of Australian jurisdiction means every interaction is a trust exercise against a company that can lock you out at will. The bonus terms are written to give the house every possible exit. The payment methods are designed to remove your chargeback rights. The missing BetStop integration is not an oversight; it is a business decision that profits from people who have already lost control.
If you deposit here, you are betting that the casino will choose to be honest. That is a bet with no positive expected value. The house edge already works against you on the games. The operator edge works against you on the banking. The legal edge works against you on disputes. Stack those three edges together and you have a game where the only rational move is not to play.
For Australian players, the responsible choice is brutally simple. Do not deposit at National Casino. Do not chase the 100% match bonus. Do not use a no deposit code and hand over your ID for $20 of capped “free” play. If you have already deposited and are losing, stop. If you have money trapped, treat it as tuition in grey market economics. The casino is counting on you to keep chasing. Don’t.
This is not a warning about National Casino alone. It is the same warning for every Curaçao-licensed operator targeting Australians — Rocket Casino, Playamo, King Billy, Neospin, Fastpay, and the rest. They all sit in the same legal void. The logos change. The terms do not. The bank blocks, DNS threats, and withdrawal delays are universal. Choose accordingly.
The only safe casino in Australia is the one regulated by Australian law. There is no licensed online casino that offers real-money pokies to Australian residents. Until the law changes, that leaves two options: play at a licensed venue on land, or do not play online at all. The grey market is not a middle ground. It is a hole, and the casino holds the shovel.
