Gaming Gurus: LatestFrom Our Strategy Experts

Top 10 mistakes poker players make during downswings

You never know how close you are... never give up on your dreams. (photo by Pixels)Downswings are never fun, but it's what makes hitting a good run rewarding. Unfortunately, some downswings are worse than others and can make you feel like you suck at poker...read more

Jacks or Better versus Bonus Poker Quiz III

[An article promoting full-pay (8/5) Bonus Poker as a good alternative when full-pay (9/6)Jacks or Better cannot be found was recently posted here. The article stated that inaddition to a good return (99.17 versus 99.54 percent) and low variance, playingstrategy is also nearly identical.]I thought it might be interesting to explore playing strategy differences and similarities.This is the third of several strategy quizzes on the differences (or lack thereof) betweenthe strategy for various hands played on full-pay Jacks or Better and full-pay BonusPoker.All hands assume the maximum five credit bet.Let’s begin quiz number three.You are dealt this hand: As, Kh, Qd, Jd, 5c.This hand has only two reasonable holds: a four-card, ace-high straight (As, Kh, Qd,Jd) and two cards of a royal flush (Qd, Jd).What would you hold playing full-pay Jacks or Better?The holds in order of decreasing return are:? Qd, Jd – returns 3.0019 credits, on average, for the five credits bet.? As, Kh, Qd, Jd – returns 2.9787 credits, on average, for the five credits bet.Holding the two cards of a royal flush is the proper hold for Jacks or Better.Now let’s look at Bonus Poker.The holds in order of decreasing return are:? As, Kh, Qd, Jd – returns 2.9787 credits, on average, for the five credits bet.? Qd, Jd – returns 2.9463 credits, on average, for the five credits bet.Holding the four-card, ace-high straight is the proper hold for Bonus Poker.For this particular hand, the strategy is different between Jacks or Better and BonusPoker.While the difference in return appears to be fairly small, it does add up.Make sure you are comfortable with all the strategy differences before switching to a different game.As always, may all your wins be swift and large, and your losses be slow and small.Jerry “Stickman”Jerry “Stickman” is an expert in craps, blackjack and video poker and advantage slot machineplay...read more

Casino City's Week 4 NFL Circa Million IV Pro Football Contest Picks

The Circa Million contest isn’t the only one being run by Circa Sports. There is also the wildly popular Circa Survivor where participants must choose a different team each week to win and if their team loses, they are out. The last man standing will take home a cool $6 million.Roughly 75% of contestants in the Survivor challenge have already been eliminated through three weeks...read more

Ask the Slot Expert: Casinos cash in on couch cushion change

One outcome of the pandemic is that many consumers eschewed cash and switched to contactless payment methods. That and an increase in online sales led to a shortage of coins circulating in the economy. Instead of going into vending machines and cash register drawers, the dimes and quarters you've been collecting in a jar on your dresser stayed in that jar. Casinos dealt with the coin shortage by reprogramming their ticket redemption machines to dispense bills for the dollars on your ticket and print a ticket for the cents instead of dispensing coins...read more

It's in the Dice

QUESTION: Craps uses six-sided dice. So do most board familiar board games like Monopoly and Yahtzee, and some other casino games like sic bo and chuck-a-luck. My grandmother used to play bunco with six-sided dice.But there are dice with different numbers of faces...read more

Fighting Craps

Craps used to be the favorite casino table game until it was surpassed by blackjack in the mid-1960s. When it was the favorite game, it was dominated by men. World War II taught soldiers, sailors and marines how to play the game and they loved it.Craps was considered a “city game” when in fact it originated along the Mississippi River in the South...read more

Top 10 2022 NBA season future bets

The NBA preseason begins on Friday following an offseason that was nothing short of insane.One of the best players in the NBA, Kevin Durant, requested a trade from the Brooklyn Nets, but after seeing the asking price, it is no surprise that Durant will most likely be wearing the black and white jersey on opening night...read more

Mimic the Dealer?

On an early September evening, I'd just settled in to watch a baseball game when I received a text.It was Blackjack Bob: "You won't believe what I saw today."I muted the TV and dialed up Bob. His stories needed voice, not just text."When's the last time you saw a mimic the dealer player?" Bob asked.It had been some time...read more

Jacks or Better versus Bonus Poker II

[Review: An article promoting full-pay (8/5) Bonus Poker as a good alternative when full-pay (9/6) Jacks or Better cannot be found was recently posted on this website. The article stated that in addition to a good return (99.17 versus 99.54 percent) and low variance, playing strategy is also nearly identical.]I thought it might be interesting to explore playing strategy differences and similarities.This is the second of several strategy quizzes on the differences (or lack thereof) between the strategy for various hands played on full-pay Jacks or Better and full-pay Bonus Poker...read more

Casino City's Week 3 NFL Circa Million IV Pro Football Contest Picks

After a shaky start to the season for our picks, we had a slight bounce back Week 2, going 3-2, bringing our season record to 5-5.There are only 15 perfect 10-0 records remaining in the Circa Sports contest. We currently sit in the middle of the pack and hope to pick up some ground on the “competition” with our “mythical” entry as we have not actually entered the contest.Last night, we saw the Cleveland Browns take down the Pittsburgh Steelers 29-17 onThursday Night Football as we head into the Sunday and Monday matchups.Let’s dive into our five picks for Week 3:#CircaSportsMillion IV ????Week 3 Contest Point Spreads?? PDF: https://t.co/tOeTIIscow pic.twitter.com/SjtZkdKEFf— Circa Sports (@CircaSports) September 22, 2022 1...read more