Gaming Gurus: Strategy Expert Article Archive - Page 121

Do Players Have Fun? Part II

CINDY: Frank Scoblete shared his newest column with us. He tried to answer the question of whether or not casino players have fun when they go. At first that sounds weird – obviously they have fun or why would they go? – but when you think of it the question is not so weird...read more

Are There Fewer Jackpots?

QUESTION: I think you've said the ante-play bet in Three Card Poker is better than Pair Plus. I was looking for articles online and found one that said the house edge is 3.37 percent on ante-play and only 2.14 percent on Pair Plus. How does that square?ANSWER: There are a couple of things at work here...read more

Ask the Slot Expert: Making up with my favorite video poker machine

It was probably one of the shortest break-ups in history. I've played the video poker machine that I broke up with three times since I told it "it's not me, it's you." After years of reliable service, the slot club subsystem on the machine had become increasingly flaky...read more

Are They Having Fun?

I had a reader ask me a very interesting question, although at first, I thought it was a silly question with an obvious answer. It wasn’t.“Mr. Scoblete, do you think that casino gamblers have fun just about every time they go to the casinos? Or is the fun just whether they win or lose?”My first answer was that they have fun each and every time that they go, maybe with some exceptions such as illness or some horrible loss at the tables or machines...read more

James Bond and More

When I was new to casino gambling, one thing everyone knew about roulette is that the number that drew the most wagers was 17. That's because James Bon d bet on 17 in the 1971 film "Diamonds Are Forever."I doubt players today are influenced by a 50-year-old movie...read more

Handling Blackjack Streaks

The dictionary gives us a brief informal definition of streak when comes to gambling.a. “A brief run or stretch, as of luck.”b. ”An unbroken series, as of wins or losses.”During any blackjack gaming session, you will sometimes experience a “streak.” In the beginning of a session, you might see periods of give and take or back and forth between you and the dealer in the types of cards received.Then something seems to happen and the dealer will start to get great hands and win maybe four or five hands in a row...read more

Video Poker and Poker

QUESTION: I'm a Double Double Bonus Poker player who dabbles in Triple Double Bonus and Triple Triple Bonus.It's Triple Triple that has me wondering about something. If you get four 2s, 3s or 4s and the fifth card is an Ace, you get 4,000 coins just like a royal flush.That has me wondering...read more

Ask the Slot Expert: Breaking up (with a video poker machine) is hard to do

A few weeks ago I wrote about how I was going to have to break up with my favorite video poker machine. It was my favorite for these reasons. There's no glare on its screen. It deals quickly when set to the fastest deal speed and it is in a quiet area of the casino...read more

Mrs. Maisel and Slot Machines

If you have not seen or become a fan of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (Amazon Prime), you are missing out on a glorious series to this point. It’s been three absolutely wonderful (or let me change that to “marvelous”) seasons.The story is about Miriam “Midge” Maisel, a 1950’s housewife, who wants to become and indeed does become a marvelous standup comedian...read more

A Great Tale of Dirty Coins

QUESTION: Just trying to keep my sense of humor through a difficult year. Do you know what it reminds me of when there are hand sanitizer dispensers all over the casinos? The old days when slots used coins and I used to carry wipes or damp cloths with me when I played.The younger ones won't remember this, but money was FILTHY...read more