Gaming Gurus: Strategy Expert Article Archive - Page 316

How to bet at blackjack

In this article, I’m going to look at the different ways that recreational players bet when they play blackjack and offer you my opinion on which way is best. (I’m going to assume that you know the basic playing strategy and are facing a half-percent house edge when you play.)Always Bet Same AmountA player who always bets the same amount is known as a “flat bettor.” Regardless of how much he wins and loses, he always bets the same amount of money (chips) on each hand.This is a conservative way to bet at blackjack, but most players don’t find it very exciting...read more

Expert strategy at video poker

I often receive requests asking just what is meant by “expert strategy” in video poker. Does what you hold really make a difference? Is the strategy different in different games?The answers are yes, and yes. In licensed casinos in nearly all U.S...read more

Ask the Slot Expert: Slot machine volatility

Note: I'm having problems with my e-mail address, slotexpert@comcast.net. You'll get an error saying that the e-mail address is not available if you send a message to it. Comcast should have the problem fixed by Thursday, 01/02/14. If you got the error, please try sending your message again on Thursday. Happy New Year! John Some slot machines let you choose volatility...read more

Making bad bets into good bets

Most gambling writers, me included, love to discuss house edges as if these are the be-all and end-all of what you need to know to play the games. If the house edge is higher than 2 percent I generally tell players not to make the bet.Superficially, not making bets that have house edges over 2 percent is a good thing but what if you have a bet that has a 1.5 percent edge for the house and a bet that has 9.1 percent for the house – is there any way for those bets to reverse themselves? That is, can the higher house edge bet become a better bet than the lower house-edge bet?Yes, such a thing is not only possible but it happens all the time, usually without the players realizing it.There is a way of looking at house edges not in traditional terms but in money-lost-per-hour terms...read more

Do blackjacks prevent future blackjacks?

QUESTION: Betting $25 a hand, when I get a blackjack I’m paid $32.50. (I only play where I get 3-2 payoffs on blackjacks. I won’t put up with any of that 6-5 nonsense.) I then make a $2.50 bet for the dealer, and up my bet to $30 for the next hand, so I put the regular $25 in winnings in my stack and reinvest the rest.My friend said I’m doing it just the wrong way, that when I get a blackjack one hand, I’m less likely to get one the next, so I should bet less...read more

Just Ask for Help

Every now and then, while doing something completely mundane, an idea hits me like a bolt out of the blue. That happened recently while I was watching an episode of “Restaurant Impossible” on the Food Channel.As I watched a team of experts try to revive a struggling restaurant, the thought came through loud and clear – casinos serious about improving their customer service to survive this nasty global economic slowdown should bring in a small group of experts to give it a once-over and make recommendations...read more

Payouts

In the decades when three-reel games ruled slot floors, it was easy to know how to get the most of out the games. It took maximum-coin bets to get the highest payback percentages, and average returns were best at highest coin denominations...read more

Ask the Slot Expert: Stopping the spin on a slot machine

I love to read your columns online. Your experience and knowledge are often helpful in the casino. Last weekend I was in a casino playing a "Double-Triple Bonus" one-line slot game. The player next to me was playing very quickly and often stopping the reels while they were still rolling. After a while I casually asked him why he did that and doesn't it possibly make you miss a winner? He told me that he had read somewhere that when he pushes the stop button, the result was already determined. He also went on to show me that wins only come when the symbols on the reels roll a certain way...read more

Safest bet in the history of the world

The Mayans predicted that the world would end on or around December 21, 2012. Whew! Escaped that one!Hold on. The Mayans aren’t the only ones who predicted the world would end today, tomorrow or the next day, or next month, or next year, or the next decade, or the next century or the next millennium...read more

The joy of pai gow poker

QUESTION: I’ve been playing pai gow poker a lot lately, and find that I can play for pretty long. It’s not the most exciting game in the world, since there are a lot of pushes where I win one hand and the dealer wins the other. But I can make my money last while my wife is at the slots, and I’ve had some nice streaks.My question is about royal flushes...read more