Gaming Gurus: Strategy Expert Article Archive - Page 336

Read the fine print

On a recent trip across the country I had a stop in Las Vegas for a plane change. I don’t know why, but when you have to make a plane change you always seem to land at one concourse and are required to go to another one on the other side of the airport...read more

A different view of craps edges

With its array of one-roll bets and wagers that take multiple rolls to decide, craps gives us an opportunity to look at the house edge in a couple of different ways. We can look at the edge per decision. That’s the common way of doing it, the way that tells us the house has a 1.41% edge on the pass line, 1.52% on place bets on 6 and 8 and a whopping 16.67% on any 7.The other way of looking at it is the house edge per roll...read more

Ask the Slot Expert: Stopping the spin gives me better results

Either I am extremely lucky or others are extremely unlucky. I have watched several people sit down at particular machines I play and they play the max bet of $2.50 per spin. They spin and spin and rarely hit anything over $3.00 –- most hits are for $0.40 or $0.80. They get up and I sit down and place the same max bet; however, I stop the spin...read more

Slot watchers

I have been fat for 20 years now. Oh, yes, I work out every day and my heart rate is 55 beats a minute; but I am fat. I am 100 pounds over my fighting weight of 40 years ago!So I decided to go to Weight Watchers to lose several generations of body lard...read more

Reward of rewards cards and card counting, too!

QUESTION: You guys who always tell people to use their rewards cards when they play miss something. If I use a card, the casino has a record of everything I do in the casino. Wouldn’t they pass that record on to the IRS? It seems to me that if I use my card, I couldwind up with a tax bill.ANSWER: I receive this kind of question often, at least four or five times a year...read more

Playing in Video Poker Tournaments

Thousands of fans enjoy playing video poker. They appreciate the low house edge of most video poker games allowing them to play longer on their bankroll. They enjoy testing their skill in learning and playing proper game strategy. Most of all they enjoy hitting the big jackpots for a royal flush or specific four-of-a-kinds on certain games.Like most casino games video poker pits the player against the casino...read more

Some great gambling books

Over the years, I’ve read and reviewed many a blackjack book. Rarely have I recommended one simply because it’s so much fun to read.I’d doing it now with Glen Wiggy’s “1536 Free Waters and Other Blackjack Endeavors" ($18.95, iUniverse). Subtitled “Finding Profit and Humor in Card-Counting,” Wiggy’s work includes how to play, blackjack terminology, basic strategy and an explanation of how to count cards...read more

Ask the Slot Expert: Deducting losses from slot winnings

John: I really enjoy reading your advice and you're on the money most of the time. However, on December 26, 2012 you were asked about taxes being withheld from a slot jackpot and I think you failed to mention that you can deduct your losses from your winnings and most of the time not pay any taxes at all on smaller jackpots lower than $2,000...read more

Madame La Pilate's top 10 predictions for 2013

Many of you don’t know who Madame La Pilate is. She is a very special psychic/astrologist who makes amazingly accurate predictions and has done so all these many years. At least that is what she told me when I tripped over her sleeping on the sidewalk on 33 and Broadway in Manhattan.She is totally disdainful of science (“It has nothing but idiots working in it...read more

Great Players Need Great Coaches

Michael Jordan vs. Kobe Bryant. Who is the better basketball player? This is a question that has been debated by many experts, players, fans, and sports lovers alike. The opinioned answer can be argued based on statistics such as previous basketball experience prior to the NBA, impact as a rookie, MVP titles, defensive stopper, average points per game, and NBA Championships.Michael Jordan facts: played college at North Carolina, won the rookie of the year honors in 1985, five MVP titles, named nine times to the All-Defensive First Team, averaged 30 points per game during his career, and accomplished six NBA Championship.Kobe Bryant facts: drafted out of Lower Merion High School, All-Rookie Second Team in 1996, one MVP title, named nine times to the All-Defensive First Team, averages 25 points per game thus far, and accomplished five NBA Championships.The answer to the question, who is the better basketball player, can go in circles and be argued until the cows come home...read more