Gaming Gurus: Strategy Expert Article Archive - Page 160

We all make mistakes

As far as I know, we all make mistakes.Maybe there’s a blackjack player out there who always makes the correct strategy play, or, for card counters, adjustments with the count. But fatigue and distraction can lead the best of us into plays we wouldn’t normally make.A few months ago, I mentioned Bob, an experienced, solid player who misread his hand, played 8-6 as if it were 8, and drew unfriendly fire from the rest of the table.It happens...read more

Don't get barred

A highly skilled blackjack player must know how to avoid getting barred by casinos if they want to continue playing the game.There are a lot of skilled players who can’t play because they have been identified as card counters. In addition to knowing all the ins and outs of card counting, how to bet, and having the proper bankroll, a player must know how to keep from being barred.Once you have been marked as a counter at blackjack, you’ll have your picture taken along with a description of your play that will be sent to casinos all around the country...read more

Streaks are real

QUESTION: I don’t know how you can deny that streaks are real. When I win five hands in a row in blackjack, I’ve had a hot streak. When I lose five in a row, I’ve had a cold streak. Both of those things have happened to me lots of times.The same thing happens on the slot...read more

Ask the Slot Expert: What is pay-to-meter for slot jackpots?

Question: I just was reading last week's column about the large voucher at Pimlico. The whole story they tell sounds fishy to me. I think there's something in there that you weren't being told, and it was funny that they so quickly contacted you so that you could have a column out just four days after it allegedly happened. Nevertheless, there was one part of your answer that intrigued me more than the premise they presented you...read more

The bets of roulette

Last week I discussed the two basic roulette games found throughout the world, the American double-zero game (0, 00) and the European single-zero game (0). The overall house edge for almost every bet at the American game is 5.26%, and it is 2.7% at the European wheel.Like craps, roulette has a host of bets that can be made...read more

That blackjack argument

Several weeks ago, a reader shared a blackjack experience in which several players criticized a man over a basic strategy mistake.The reader was amused when the error – standing at the wrong time – helped the table by leaving a bust card available to the table...read more

Betting opposites

QUESTION: I read one of your old articles that explained betting opposites and trying to get your comps for free doesn’t work. You, or you and a partner, can’t bet both pass and don’t pass in craps or player and banker in baccarat, have them offset and get free comps because the bets aren’t really exact opposites.That got me to wondering...read more

Ask the Slot Expert: Slot machine prints ticket worth more than $10,000

Question: My 27-year-old grandson and I were at Pimlico Race Track in Baltimore for the Preakness on May 18, 2019. Between races he wandered around and went over to play a slot machine. He put $5 into the machine and spun the wheels, then he did so again...read more

The two roulettes

There are two types of roulette games in the world, the American and the European.Strangely, the American double-zero wheel was created in Europe but is now considered fully domesticated, since it is used far more than any other wheel in the United States...read more

No doubling down after splits

Nearly all the blackjack tables I’ve played at in the last couple of decades have permitted double downs after splitting pairs. I used to encounter no double after split rules in single- and double-deck games, but these are mostly unplayable now because of 6:5 payoffs on blackjacks.Blackjack rules have been tightening, but it came as a surprise when I was playing in April at a six-deck table and another player tried to double on 8-3 after splitting 8s.The dealer was sympathetic...read more