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John Grochowski Gaming Guru - Page 3  Some Blackjack Strategies8 October 2023
QUESTION: I've just about gotten used to hitting soft 18 when the dealer has 9, 10 or Ace. I haven't really studied strategy, but I think I've picked most of it up, and I read to hit those hands often enough that I do it even though it makes me a little uncomfortable. What about doubling down, though? I ... (read more)
Bonus Deluxe Video Poker and Splitting 5/5 at Blackjack1 October 2023
QUESTION: I've been playing a lot of Bonus Poker Deluxe. We don't have top of the line pay tables, but there is 8-6 Bonus Deluxe. I play twice a month and have hit two royals this year, so I've done OK. Last week, I was dealt a full house with three Aces and two Jacks. I held the full house, but in the back of my mind I remember a tip about breaking up full houses to go for four Aces. ... (read more)
Speed of Play24 September 2023
Speed of play matters in casino games. More wagers per hour means more exposure to the house edge. In setting budgets, players need to keep in mind they make more bets per hour at sparsely populated tables than at crowded venues, that blackjack moves faster than roulette, craps moves faster than blackjack, baccarat moves faster than craps and slot machines move fastest of all. ... (read more)
Basic Blackjack Strategies10 September 2023
Several times a year, I receive inquiries from readers about what to do about basic strategy when you have more than two cards. Mostly, it's easy. There are exceptions for card counters or those using composition-dependent strategies, but mostly, if basic strategy calls for you to hit, then hit no matter how many cards you have. ... (read more)
Those Roulette Edges3 September 2023
QUESTION: When you calculate the house edge in roulette, you always use single-number bets or the even-money payoff bets where you get 18 numbers (red or black, odd or even, 1-18 or 19-36). What about something in between like the corners or columns? How do they wind up in the same place as singles or ... (read more)
Buying Numbers at Craps27 August 2023
QUESTION: I'm fairly new to craps. My brother-in-law taught me all about pass, come and the odds, and that's all I play. I do OK, win some, lose some. Some of the wins have been pretty wonderful with the 3x, 4x, 5x odds I play. A hot roll will make up for a lot of little losses when the shooters are going point-7 around the table. ... (read more)
Roulette House Edges13 August 2023
QUESTION: Some of the things you've written about roulette seem curious to me. You wrote that on a double-zero wheel, a bet on a single number has a 5.26 percent house edge, but if you bet on red or black, the house edge is also 5.26 percent. I'm not seeing how they can be the same. You have a lot more ... (read more)
Weird Conversations6 August 2023
Perfect strangers play in casinos together all the time. Table games are more social than slots, but slot players have the odd interaction with their neighbors. Sometimes "odd" is the key word. Most exchanges between players are unremarkable, but once in a blue moon they can get a little strange. Readers have shared their close encounters of the weird kind. ... (read more)
The Truth About Roulette Numbers30 July 2023
QUESTION: My casino buddy is a math teacher, and on the drive home we were talking roulette. I play, he doesn't. He mostly plays blackjack. I was talking about the bets with even-money payouts and how you lose on the zeroes because they're not odd or even, not in 1-18 or 19-36 and they're green, not red, or black. ... (read more)
Better Blackjack Players Today?23 July 2023
Over breakfast on a rainy July morning, Blackjack Bob came straight to the point. "Does it seem to you like blackjack players are getting better? Mistakes still happen, and we can talk about that. But overall, it seems better." I've had the same feeling. It's strictly anecdotal with no hard data, but there seems to be more play closer to basic strategy than when Bob and I were young. ... (read more)
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