Gaming Gurus: Strategy Expert Article Archive - Page 118

Holding Advice for Joker’s Wild – Kings or Better Video Poker

A reader has some questions about holding for a royal flush while playing Joker’s Wild – Kings or Better video poker. Here is the inquiry.Hi Stickman,Hoping all is well with you. I have two questions that have to do with Jokers Wild Kings or Better video poker...read more

Machine Blackjack versus Table-Game Blackjack

QUESTION: I have a question about video blackjack vs. table blackjack. I found one of those consoles where you could bet $3 minimums. You could split pairs, double down and everything you can do at a table.Blackjacks paid 3-2. The low-limit tables in the same casino paid 6-5 on blackjacks...read more

Ask the Slot Expert: Do you switch video poker machines when your machine goes cold?

In a past column, I asked whether you tend to play one machine or bounce around from machine to machine when playing video poker. I intentionally excluded behavior when playing slots. Slot players more frequently switch games when a machine goes cold...read more

Conscious Slots

I receive quite a few emails from readers asking questions and/or commenting on my articles but this one from Mike and Morris was quite interesting. Here it is:M&M: This may seem far out but we think it deserves some consideration. Can slot machines have consciousness or a kind of consciousness? Could they in some way “know” what they are doing? Could they signal intelligent “with it” players what is about to come up in the next decisions or the next time frame?If you remember the movie Maximum Overdrive or the entire Terminator series, machines have the ability to think in such movies...read more

The Nephew Learns Blackjack

My longtime casino pal Blackjack Bob has a nephew, Eric, who has taken up his uncle's hobby."Blackjack Eric doesn't roll off the tongue, does it?" Bob said on a Zoom coffee morning. "But he likes the game and he's learning."Eric was surprised when he sat down to play and they wouldn't let him double down on soft hands...read more

So Many Games, So Little Time

There are at least 18 gambling games available in most large Las Vegas type casinos. Many of them are simple to play like slots, and wheel of fortune, some are harder like craps and Par-Gow Poker. Here is a list of some of them:Slot machines, big-six-wheel, blackjack, craps, 3-card poker, 4-card poker, roulette, Let-it-ride, California stud, Spanish 21, keno, bingo, poker, video poker, Pai-Gow poker, baccarat, sports betting, horse racing...read more

Table Games on Machines

QUESTION: I was playing video blackjack and the machine offered three side bets: 21 + 3, Lucky Ladies and Lucky Lucky. I'd seen 21 + 3 and Lucky Ladies before, but didn't know Lucky Lucky.Later, I was playing at a live blackjack table, and there were no side bets offered...read more

Ask the Slot Expert: Do casinos determine who will win a slot tournament?

Question: I have participated in a few slot tournaments in Las Vegas recently and have noticed some extreme irregularities when it comes to how the points are won. Several times I have hit three double multipliers in a row, which should have given me humongous points but instead I got no score at all...read more

The Yabberors

I am not much of a talker at table games. I prefer to play silently unless I am at a table with a friend and then I will talk a little. I am however intrigued by people who can yabber at the tables. By “yabber” I mean talking about things that are not too important in life such as transient relationships, how the hands or decisions are playing out, and the like.So I decided to jot down some of the reactions of the actual yabberors I have heard at the tables, mostly at blackjack and Pai Gow Poker tables, two games that lend themselves to yabberors.Patricia is a wonderful talker...read more

Good Paybacks

Smart video poker players shop for the best payback percentage available on their game of choice. A Double Double Bonus Poker player will choose a 9-6 pay table if available over 9-5 or 8-5 games.Top pay tables have become less widely available than they once were...read more