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Alan Krigman Gaming Guru - Page 75  How Does Spreading Bets Affect Your Gaming Results?26 October 1998
The casinos rate Boris, Doris, and Frank as $15 bettors. They're considered equivalent as far as their action is concerned. Each of the intrepid trio does average $15 per round. But they differ from one another in how they "spread" their bets. * Boris bets $15 flat, rarely raising or lowering the amount. ... (read more)
Which Are the Weakest Dealer Upcards in Blackjack?19 October 1998
The other day, I overheard two venerable blackjack veterans debating which was the weakest dealer upcard. They figured it for five or six. The first said six, having "read somewhere" that dealers break with it most often. The other disagreed because the dealer could have an ace in the hole and make a pat hand with a six, but always had to draw to a five. ... (read more)
Are You Ready for a Robotic Card Dealer?12 October 1998
An acquaintance sent me e-mail the other day. He's head honcho in the Robotics Department at the Richard M Nixon Institute of Technocracy (formerly the Yorba Linda CA High School Extension). One of his graduate students, Chuck Rossum, was tired of building robots for workaday chores like welding ... (read more)
Betting Both Sides: Who's Outfoxing Whom?5 October 1998
More often than you might think, gambling guys and girls get caught in brainstorms which precipitate schemes to bet both sides of the same proposition. Plenty of permutations are possible, depending on the game and the goal. Here are illustrations: o Drop equal amounts on Pass and Don't Pass at craps, then bet the Odds on just one side after the come-out roll. ... (read more)
Why Hitting 12 vs Two Beats Standing in Blackjack28 September 1998
No blackjack decision more effectively winnows the wheat among players from the chaff as 12 versus two-up. If this is the way your cards fall in a particular round, you've got a bum rap no matter how you handle it. But some evils are lesser than others. Basic strategy says to hit. Many solid citizens stand. ... (read more)
Are Streaks the Secret of Gambling Success?21 September 1998
Streaks are among the great mysteries of gambling life. As baffling to betting buffs as are black holes to astronomers, common colds to doctors, and ice boxes to Eskimos. Here's the enigma. The gurus say games are random so streaks don't occur; of course, some experts get no closer to the action than mathematical formulas or computer simulations... ... (read more)
Planning Is the Next Best Thing to Time Travel14 September 1998
In casino gambling as in everyday life (not that they differ very much), it would be of inestimable value to temporarily move ahead in time, then act now on what you discover will happen later. You'd know which games to play, whether to quit with what you've got or wait for more, when to reach for the stars or pull back. ... (read more)
When Are You Closest to Winning Half the Time?7 September 1998
Old Morris was a fixture at the craps tables in one of my favorite casinos. Whether I went morning, noon, or night - weekdays or weekends - he was there. Dropping a nickel on Don't Pass, not laying odds. Standing until the shooter made the point and the bet lost, or rolled a seven and the bet won. ... (read more)
An Exception to the 16 vs 10 Rule in Blackjack31 August 1998
The worst starting hand in blackjack is hard 16 versus dealer 10. If the 16 is a pair of eights and you split them, expected loss per dollar of your original bet is roughly $0.48. But, say the 16 isn't a pair, or - if it is - you won't split because you'd rather believe the blather about assuming covert cards to be 10s than trust the laws of probability governing the entire known universe. ... (read more)
When Is It Best to Dump a Starting Hand in Video Poker?24 August 1998
Video poker buffs are often beset by a bugaboo against abandoning entire hands. If you're among the afflicted, you can save some grief - money, too - by learning to recognize when your cards are so bad you're better off trashing than playing them. Here's an example. You're at a joker's wild machine. ... (read more)
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