GAMING GURUS: LATEST FROM OUR STRATEGY EXPERTS

Does a Slot Machine's Pause Affect the RNG?

Hey John, This is your avid reader from SLC who visits Wendover and Las Vegas. Always looking for an edge. I had asked a similar question some time ago about the pause that occurs during regular play with many machines and your response was the same at that time...read more

PLAYING IT SMART

You can learn something from prime-time television after all Deal or No Deal is mindless but fascinating television. The genius is that it's an archetype of Occam's razor: the idea could hardly be simpler. Yet, opportunity is afforded to see the laws of probability, the principle of utility, and the concepts of risk-aversion and tolerance played out together...read more

Adjusting Play in Blackjack with the Count

Dear Frank: Blackjack high count could mean you should stand on 16 or better -- low could mean you should hit some on 18? High count means the dealer is more likely to bust -- and you too. Could this mean you should alter your card play as well as your betting? Got this idea when learn...read more

Why Is The Hardway Set Better Than the 2V Set for Avoiding the 7?

Stickman, Let me first acknowledge that I am aware that you guys probably have conducted thousands of test rolls before coming to your conclusions about what is the best set. I just want to know to get a better understanding of the art of dice control...read more

Pollack resigns as WSOP Commissioner

Saying he has accomplished "everything he had set out to do" and that he liked the idea of "going out on top," Jeffrey Pollack resigned as commissioner of the World Series of Poker on Friday. "The arc of my entire career has always been to move on to something different every four or five years,...read more

Deal Me In: Where she drops, nobody should know

Dear Mark: Do casinos have policies regarding the minimum number of revolutions a roulette ball should make before dropping off the track? What would be considered too few? If the roulette wheel stops moving before the ball lands in the pocket or stops in less than a quarter of a revolution after the ball lands in the pocket would that be cause for concern? Consider the following scenario...read more

Crazy Gambling Letters from Nutty People #9

Dear Frank: I bought a system to beet the casino games and the slots machines but I have lost even with this ssytem which costs me over one hundred dollars. I sent the papers back to the cellar and guessed what happened he never returned my money and his post office box sent all my mail back because he closed it...read more

Love of Boyd Properties Takes Couple Cross Country

The majority of recreational gaming enthusiasts exhibit some degree of brand loyalty when it comes to choosing a location for a casino outing, but Alex Bratu and his wife Mary Anne Sulik are in a class by themselves. Happily married for 17 years (Mary Anne kept her maiden...read more

Why Do Slot Players Get Better Comps Than Video Poker Players?

Carrie has been playing slots machines for longer than she cares to remember. "There was no video then, just the three-reel games," she told me one day when she phoned to talk about slots and comps. "Blazing 7s, that was the one I liked to play...read more

WSOP notebook: Cada's father knew his son was special

LAS VEGAS – Jerry Cada has always been good with math. It's the main reason he worked as an engineer for the last 25-plus years and it's also something he thinks he was able to pass onto Joe, the youngest of his four children. "I can remember Joe being as young as 5 or 6 years old and I could already tell he was great with numbers," the elder Cada told Casino City on Monday afternoon...read more