 Newsletter Signup
Stay informed with the
NEW Casino City Times newsletter! Donald Catlin Archives
More Strategy Experts
|
Donald Catlin Gaming Guru - Page 6  Weak Three-Card Straight Flushes in 9/6 Jacks1 November 2009
Let me begin by saying what I mean by a weak three-card straight flush. By this I mean any three-card straight flush that has one high card and is double inside or has no high cards and is single inside. A very weak three-card straight flush is one that is double inside and has no high cards. This latter ... (read more)
A Royal Dilemma4 October 2009
A choice that (unfortunately) one seldom has
when playing 9/6 Jacks or better Video Poker is that of choosing between a
three-card Royal Flush and a four-card Flush. All Basic strategy tables for
9/6 Jacks list the three-card Royal as being better than the four-card Flush.
For the most part ... (read more)
At Risk or In Play?6 September 2009
I recently received the following e-mail from one of my readers:
Hi Don,
I've been reading about the "doey-don't" system of placing both a come and don't come (or pass and don't pass) wager. The books claim that this reduces the house edge on the standard line bet. I think 0.92% is cited. The pitfall is 12, which loses on the come but only pushes on the don't come. ... (read more)
Take Down the Eight on the Comeout?14 August 2009
I recently received the following letter from one of my readers.
I'm very interested in the effect on the house edge calculation for a placed 6 or 8 when one is left up on the comeout with a pass line bet. If, say, a $6 place bet on the 8 is left up with a $5 pass line bet, the total amount at risk is $1 and the payoff for a win is $7. ... (read more)
How Many Decks?3 July 2009
The title of this article is the question every blackjack player needs to ask. Why? Well, if you study blackjack strategy literature you will find that, everything else being equal, the more decks that are in play the higher the house edge. Of course, it generally isn't that simple. Expected return in ... (read more)
Parrondo's Paradox5 June 2009
Until a couple of years ago, if someone had asked me if it was possible to somehow combine two games with negative expectations into a game with a positive expectation, I would have told them it wasn't possible. If asked why I would probably have said something inane like it seems clear that it is counter intuitive. ... (read more)
Interpreting House Edge, Part II2 May 2009
Last month we observed that one must be careful when interpreting the house edge. This month the lesson is that one must take care when calculating it.
A common wager at Craps is to place both the six and eight. When placing the six, for example, one is wagering that the shooter will roll a six before rolling a seven. ... (read more)
Interpreting House Edge, Part I3 April 2009
In general terms the house edge is a statistic that tells you how much of the money that you wager is going to be retained by the casino. There are some technical issues that mathematicians love to squabble about, that is, how should one handle ties and should the figure be based on the ante or the actual amount wagered. ... (read more)
Wild Six Card Draw Poker6 March 2009
This past November I attended the Global Gaming Exposition (G2E) in Las Vegas. There was the usual array of new slot machines, video poker machines, and table games. One of the table games caught my eye because one of the co-owners is my good friend Stanley Ko. Stanley, like me, is a gaming analyst and in my opinion one of the best in the country. ... (read more)
Three Card Poker Strategy6 February 2009
The popular game of Three Card Poker, invented by my good friend Derek Webb and now marketed by Shuffle Master, has a wager called Ante-Play that involves a player decision. Let me first explain the wager and then I'll discuss the proper way to play this bet.
There are three betting spots in front of the player. ... (read more)
< Previous 10 Articles | Next 10 Articles > Donald Catlin |
Donald Catlin |