Gaming Gurus: Strategy Expert Article Archive - Page 173

Ask the Slot Expert: Dragon Link denominations and bonus rounds

Question: How does Dragon Link work with the different denominations ($0.01 to $2) and the lines played (50 lines for one and two cents, down to 5 lines for the one and two dollars)? I was playing $0.02 denom for $5 a spin and won more on bonuses than I did playing higher denoms for $5, $10 and $20 a spin...read more

Pursuit of the dream

Mankind is the pursuing of dreams animal; even when we are wide awake, our dreams can drive us forward. Indeed much of man’s accomplishments on this planet come from such pursuits of dreams. Our books and movies reflect our pursuits – often ending in loss of some kind.Indiana Jones feverishly pursued the Ark of the Covenant in Raiders of the Lost Ark...read more

Expert video poker play

When you see payback percentages listed for video poker games “with expert strategy,” players need to understand that betting maximum coins is part of expert play.If you don’t bet the max, not only is the overall payback percentage reduced, but strategy for holding cards changes, too.What brings this to mind is an e-mail from a reader who asked if the entire reason to bet the max was the jackpot jump on the 1 in 40,000 shot at a royal flush, or if lesser bets also decreased the frequency of lesser winning hands.The full reason is the royal jackpot leap from 250-for-1 with bets of four coins or fewer to a whopping 4,000 when you bet five...read more

The Royal Flushes, Abby and Cindy Royal

I’ve been asking these two sisters, Abby and Cindy, frequent casino players who have their own philosophies of casino gambling, to start writing occasional articles for this website.They have said “yes” on the condition that I don’t use their photographs...read more

One five-dollar bet

QUESTION: If I had $5 to spend on a spin, would I be better to play one line on a $5 machine or five lines on a dollar machine?ANSWER There is no one certain answer to that question. It depends on several factors. Are you talking video slots or reel slots? Does the casino put higher payback percentages on $5 slots than on dollar games? Is the higher payback on $5 games dependent on the bet size, or does not betting the max drop the return below that on the dollar games? And by “would I be better,” do you mean strictly in terms of payback percentage, or is hit frequency important to you?Usually, $5 games have higher payback percentage than $1 games...read more

Ask the Slot Expert: Are bubble craps machines fair?

Question: I was curious if you have considered mailing your VHS copy of Jimmy "The Scot" Jordan’s Video Poker Tape to Redlettermedia.com. They have already reviewed his tape on slot machine and it was great! I think another one of his tapes would be comedic gold! Answer: I had never heard of this site...read more

Radical approaches to the games

I think many players get stuck in a playing mode and they can’t think any other way about their favorite games. For example, there are slot players who must play the machines that offer up to 50 million to one odds in order to win millions of dollars...read more

Ryan's story

When readers relay tales of their gambling exploits, they’re almost always taking a victory lap. Everybody loves to relive their big wins.Of course, we all know the losing times are part of the deal when you play. And every once in a while a reader comes through with a cautionary tale.In the case of Ryan, a New Yorker who finds himself in Las Vegas a couple of times a year on business, the cautionary tale has a happy ending...read more

Best bets at craps

If you expect to beat the house at casino craps, you need to know which are the best bets you can make and which ones to avoid. With over 100 different bets available, you need to have a good knowledge of which are which. Don’t forget craps is a losing game for the player in the long run.However, you can turn the tables by making the right kind of bets and then take your winnings and leave...read more

We make mistakes

QUESTION: This is more a story than a question. I know you shouldn’t stand on soft 17. I know that when the dealer has a six up and I have A-6 I should double down. I always do that, except this one time I didn’t.My only excuse is that my attention was elsewhere...read more