Getting the edge with comps

1 May 2018

By Frank Scoblete

If you think the tricks last week were, well, tricky, now we get into some serious comp-duggery, which will allow you to actually get what I call the “monetary edge” over the casino, which means that between the comps you don’t deserve and the ratings on the game that you don’t deserve, you’ll actually be getting more back from the casino then you’re shelling out at the table-game of your choice. (Sadly, none of these methods work on the slot machines.)

I’ll give you two examples of how this works in the two most popular games, first in blackjack and then craps, but it can be applied to whatever your favorite game is.

In blackjack, you are once again a $25 player. Your theoretical loss is $105 and your comp points come to $42. However, if you play basic strategy, you will not be facing a house edge of 1.5 but about a half percent edge – as long as you avoid those games that pay blackjacks at 6-to-5, that is. Your real expectation at “normal” blackjack is to lose $35 per four hours of play, not $105. Wow! That means just by learning basic strategy, or bringing a basic strategy card to the table with you, you have a $7 edge over the casino as a $25 player in my example.

Now, want to add to that edge? Simply sit out 10% of the hands. Play 63 hands, instead of 70 hands, and your expectation is to lose a mere $31.50. Your monetary edge is now over $10, just for playing basic strategy and sitting out a hand every now and then (“I want to change the flow of the cards,” is a good ploy when you’ve lost a couple of hands).

But here are some more little tricks to use. When the dealer is shuffling – and do make sure you play with real dealers shuffling and not those continuous shuffle machines which should all be destroyed – put out a bigger than normal bet. Let it sit there for all the world, and raters, to see. Then, when the dealer finishes, take the bet down and go to the bathroom. Do this a couple of times every four hours and you could increase your average bet with no risk to you. You’ll also reduce the number of hands you play by heading for the john. You might also get some sympathy as the raters will think you are having trouble with your bladder.

If you find that you must play the continuous shuffle machines because aliens from space have put a phaser to your head and said, “Beep! Play shuffle machine or die, beep!” then you must sit out at least 30% of all the hands. Here’s a nifty trick to do even more than that. If the dealer puts the cards back into the infernal machine after every round then you will sit out the next round of cards if you saw 7 or more tens come out on the last round. This is a “kind-of” card counting that can reduce the number of hands you play to make up for the fact that a continuous shuffle machine will increase your play by approximately 20%.

In craps, follow my recommendations for place betting above, but as soon as your place bets are active and at risk, start to replace them with come bets. Assume everyone is just a random roller and reduce the house edge by utilizing the come with odds. Now, to reduce your total action, all you have to do is follow the superstitions of the craps world.

When the dice go off the table, call your bets off. Leave them off for a couple of rolls. You’ll still be getting your comp credit but you aren’t at risk (except on the Pass Line and Come but not the odds. If the shooter should seven-out, then keep the bets up but off! Utilize the 5-Count which will eliminate 57% of all the random rolls, the ones who seven out in the blink of an eye. If the dice hit someone’s hand, call your next bet off because “the dice have been disturbed.”

Play craps this way and you’ll find that with the casino rating you at a three percent disadvantage for 60 decisions per hour, you will actually be playing about 25-30 decisions per hour with a house edge of between one-half to one-and-a half percent. In this scenario you will probably also have the monetary edge over the casino.

In short, follow my advice in this chapter and you’ll be the most undeserving player you can be. It’s always fun to get what you don’t deserve.

Visit Frank’s website at www.frankscoblete.com. Frank Scoblete’s latest books are I Am a Dice Controller: Inside the World of Advantage-Play Craps, Confessions of a Wayward Catholic and I Am a Card Counter: Inside the World of Advantage-Play Blackjack. Available from Amazon.com, Kindle, Barnes and Noble, and at bookstores.