Gaming Gurus: Strategy Expert Article Archive - Page 105

Philosophy of Play

QUESTION: I don’t know if you ever got a question such as this before but here goes. I counted the number of books you have published, about 33 on gambling alone. I want to know in a nutshell what is your philosophy of play? I am guessing that it is in all your books but can you put your finger on it in answer to my question: What is your philosophy of playing casino games? Make it simple so I understand it.ANSWER: Actually, first and foremost you must know the game that you are playing...read more

Triple Double Bonus Video Poker

A question from Jody on Triple Double Bonus video poker.Hi again Stickman,Hope you're having a nice day.Here I have some Triple Double Bonus Video Poker Questions.I'm holding the 2h, 2s, 2c, 4d, 4s.Instead of giving you the whole pay schedule, I'll just give you the part of it that's relevant.Four 2's with an Ace, 3, or 4 kicker pays 2000-for-5.Four 2's without a kicker pays 400-for-5.A full house pays out 45-for-5.Based on the pay outs, how would you play this hand?If the full house was to pay 40-for-5, should I play it any differently?Thanks again for your advice.All the best,JodyHi Jody,Alright, when a full house pays 45 for 5 (and four 2’s with a kicker pays 2000-for-5 and four 2’s pays 400-for-5), the total return is a very nice 99.578 percent.In this situation, the top holds are:1) Either the 2h, 2s, 2c, 4d -or the- 2h, 2s, 2c, 4s on average pays 53.8298 credits for the five credits played.2) The 2h, 2s, 2c, 4d, 4s (the initially dealt full house) on average pays 45 credits for the five credits played.3) The 2h, 2s, 2c on average returns 43.566615 credits for the five credits played.From there the returns drop off dramatically and other holds should not be considered.Now let’s see what happens when the pay for a full house is reduced to 40-for-5 but the pays for four 2’s with a kicker and four 2’s without a kicker remain the same...read more

Play it Right: Comps

ABBY: Comps are great.CINDY: Comps are awful.ABBY: Which are they then, really, awful or great?CINDY: I think they are both. Without a doubt they are both.ABBY: We know that comps are “rewards” for playing the various casino games. The more money you bet, the longer you play, the house edge on the bets you choose to make, and maybe how often you actually come to the casino in a period of time can go into telling the casino what you are worth to them...read more

Ask the Slot Expert: Determining results on a slot machine: RNG. Bingo drawing. Horse race?

Question: Historic Horse Racing slots are coming to NH. I think I have a good understanding of how class III slots work. I have no idea how class II machines work. How the hell do you go from racing results to the display of the wheels...read more

The Best Bets at Craps

Last week I delved into two ideas to protect your money when you play the game of craps. This week I will tackle probably the biggest controversy in craps, which bets to make and which to avoid. This is a controversy because so many players have to many different ideas of how to properly play the game.Obviously, I won’t be able to cover every bet in the game but it won’t be hard to get the picture I will be painting...read more

Good Craps, Bad Craps

QUESTION: This is about the game of craps. I have heard the saying good craps versus bad craps. One guy referred to another player as a bad-craps player. He said players hate bad-craps players. What does that mean? I wasn’t aware that players scrutinize other players’ bets so closely as to determine who is a good player and who is a bad player.ANSWER: I think there is a confusion in the language here...read more

Winning Games for Players

There are only five gambling games where the player can obtain the advantage over the house using skill. Those five games are: Blackjack, Video Poker, Poker, Sports Betting and Horse Racing. Each one requires a great deal of knowledge, practice and perseverance by the player.These games are readerly available throughout the US and the world...read more

Doing It Right: Craps

ABBY: The game of craps is a man’s world and has always been ever since it was introduced into the casino in the 20th century. Other than maybe a girlfriend or companion, men played the game alone. In fact many women were told by their significant others to go “play the slots” or, what they meant was, “get lost, we men must play the game!”CINDY: Today, you might find a woman or two playing the game at a table in some casino but the female players are few and far between...read more

Ask the Slot Expert: Buffets, slot tickets and the Olympics

Question: Always enjoyable reading your column. I read and take note of your thoughts (meaning I neither agree nor disagree, but open-minded enough to think about this commentary), other times I feel it apropos to share some of my thoughts...read more

The "I broke even" lie

They lie. They are total and complete liars. Who are “they?” Maybe “they” are you but, for sure, they are our fellow casino gamblers. Maybe “they” are the majority of casino gamblers.What are they lying about? Come on, that’s really simple:• They lie about how they are doing at the games this trip.• The lie about how they are doing in the long run.• They lie about what skills they actually have at games where skill matters such as blackjack.• They lie about how much study have they put into the games they play.• Or they lie about how little study is necessary to understand the games.Who are they lying to? Other casino gamblers, perhaps people from home who scornfully ask, “Yeah, well, how did you do this time?” To these they can just throw out, “I killed them again.”The easiest one to unravel is the first one...read more