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Alan Krigman Gaming Guru - Page 47  Don't Base Your Bets on Averages Alone19 April 2004
Many gambling guidelines are predicated on a single parameter -- an average. You
can learn a lot from averages. But gambling is far more complex than can be wrapped
in this tidy a package.
As an example, consider bets involving the nine at craps. Of the 36 combinations
the dice can form, only 10 ... (read more)
If Pavlov Played the Slots, He wouldn't Have Needed a Dog12 April 2004
Conditioning is a central training principle of behavioral psychology. Nearly
everybody knows of the experiments by Ivan Pavlov in the early 1900s. Pavlov started
by ringing a bell and presenting food simultaneously. When he stopped offering
the food, the dogs still salivated at the sound of the bell. ... (read more)
Why Probability Doesn't Tell You What'll Probably Happen Next5 April 2004
Every gambler should have a haruspex. Then we wouldn't need probabilities to
tell us what'll probably happen next. Which is just as well, because that's
not what probabilities do.
Probabilities are good for predicting long-run averages. In the casino, for
instance, the house's edge on a row of ... (read more)
Would You Bet the Props at Craps if the Payoffs Were Higher?29 March 2004
Among the great allures of craps to cognoscenti is the chance to make bets with
low house edges. So low, that casino bigwigs tell themselves the game is dying
to avoid having to admit why they're really scrambling to replace dice tables
with slot machines. A sophisticated player betting, say, $10 on ... (read more)
Why You Should Do What with 11 against 10 or Ace in Blackjack22 March 2004
A two-card 11 is a strong blackjack hand. A dealer's 10 or ace is a formidable
upcard. What happens when both occur concurrently?
Against 10, the definitive version of "The Book" says to double.
With ace, most $0.25 Basic Strategy charts simply say hit. The $100 rule is:
hit in the preponderance ... (read more)
Prize the Power of the Push at Blackjack16 March 2004
Good intuition can serve well in real life. And it can often be helpful in the
surreal world of the casino. Often, not always.
The sand in the gambling gears results partly from punting palaces being places
where people are prodded, subtly in some cases and blatantly in others, to trust
what they want to be true and not what they see or know is. ... (read more)
Try Hedging Craps Bets Sequentially rather than Concurrently9 March 2004
Some solid citizens garner great gratification from opportunities craps affords
to hedge their bets. Qualitatively, hedging appeals to them as what seems like
cheap insurance against costly losses. Quantitatively, well... folks who think
hedging is a cute way to beat the bosses don't usually sweat the arithmetic too
profusely.
... (read more)
Why We Don't Go to the Erewhon Any More, Just So's You Know2 March 2004
Mo and me was goin' to the Erewhon casino pretty regular. Coupla times a month,
maybe more. 'Specially when we had personal invites to shows or affairs from Betsy,
our host we got along real good with. Better'n good. Like, she never forgot our
birthdays or anniversary. And, when I say never forgot, I'm ... (read more)
New Slot Machines: Innovative or More of the Same?24 February 2004
Some people get bored playing the same old slot machines every time they visit
a casino. Especially players who avoid games like video poker that require finesse,
and prefer to just lean back and be diverted from reality while trying to win
those big bucks.
The bosses know this. So they're endlessly seeking new wrinkles to keep solid
citizens coming back and dropping in the dough. ... (read more)
How Much Money Should You Bring to Play the Game?17 February 2004
Everyone who's pitched pennies in the schoolyard knows you gotta pay to win.
So, enough of a wad to outride cold streaks is vital to casino gambling. You
can stay alive foolishly by visiting a credit card or cash terminal for a transfusion.
Or, wisely, by sizing bets to a bankroll that made sense before you left home.
... (read more)
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