Gaming Gurus: Strategy Expert Article Archive - Page 371

The grim relationship between the Wild Deuces and the royal flush

Dear Mark: My wife and I play a lot of video poker, playing all the different games. Are Deuces Wild games preprogrammed to give you more wild 2s, or is it the same deck and a random number generator? Also, is a natural royal flush harder to get on that format than on Jacks or Better? John S.All video poker machines, John, are nothing more than a computerized version of your five-card, kitchen table, draw poker game...read more

Scouting the blackjack tables

I'm amazed at how many players I see enter a casino and plop themselves down at the first empty seat at any blackjack table. What they should be doing instead is scouting the blackjack tables. The reason is the blackjack playing rules, the number of decks of cards, the payoffs for a blackjack, the table limits, and even how the dealer shuffles the cards, are not always the same from one table to the next...read more

A shuffle through the gaming mailbag

Q. When I play video poker, why do I only get half the slot club points as when I play the slots? I'm betting just as much money -- more, since I bet five quarters at a time on a video poker game, but only three at a time on a (three-reel) slot machine...read more

Ask the Slot Expert: Do casinos replace machines to change paybacks?

I heard that casinos have to post the percentage changes on a machine if they change the payback, but they can get around this rule if they put in a new machine. Is that why they choose to replace the machine? I am not aware of a jurisdiction that requires a casino to post a notice on a machine if it changes the machine's long-term payback, but with casino gambling in almost every state, I certainly don't know every state's quirky rules. Nevertheless, casinos usually don't change a machine's long-term payback once it's on the slot floor...read more

Gaming and social media

In today's social media environment, casinos and casino-related companies are trying as hard to connect with their customers as any other business. Take the major slot machine manufacturers. WMS Gaming brings news and video presentations of its latest games to its Facebook page, as well as offering free games and interactions with game designers on its playerslife.com website and staying active on Twitter and YouTube...read more

Darkside don't betting isn't easy

If you are a darkside "don't" player, which means you are betting against the shooter making his "point," you are the most disliked man or woman in the game of craps. And don't kid yourself into thinking the other players realize that you are also playing against the house edge and not playing against them...read more

A rebate on losses gives players the edge... up to a point

An Atlantic City blackjack buff won $4 million from Caesars, $5 million from Borgata, and $6 million from Tropicana – all in about six months. His net was less, about $12 million, owing to $3 million in losing ventures along the way. The player told the Press of Atlantic City that all three of the casinos courted his action by agreeing to return up to 20 percent of anything he lost on a visit...read more

Be Secure

Back in December of 1978 I played in the first Blackjack tournament, which was called The World Championship of Blackjack. It was the creation of the Fishman brothers and was held at the old Sarah Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. (See my article entitled "What Goes Around" in the archives on this site.) I played in several more of these tournaments in succeeding years and one of them was memorable, though not for what you might think. In one of these tournaments I made it out of the first round a winner and a ribbon was attached to my ID badge declaring such...read more

Jest for Fun

A curious patron asked a casino personnel manager why he preferred married men for blackjack dealers. "It's simple," said the manager. "Married men don't get upset when they're yelled at." * * * * * A botany teacher asks a gambler's son, "What plant is peculiar to the Nevada desert?" Gambler's son: "The shamrock." Teacher: "The shamrock? Shamrocks are found only in Ireland." Gambler's son: "That's right...read more

Deal Me In: Skilled play offers no guarantees of winning

Dear Mark: Having taken into account the random behavior of a chip, my recent video poker play, using perfect basic strategy, has me concerned. Lately, I seem to have far more losing sessions than winning ones. I am not screaming conspiracy here, yet, but… Jason A.Your "but…" has a straightforward explanation...read more