Gaming Gurus: Strategy Expert Article Archive - Page 373

Ask the Slot Expert: Can slot machines only be changed at the factory?

Hello John, Today your column was about free spins/payouts. You mentioned the club might have changed the payout program. I have always been told the machines can only be changed at the factory. The payout is set at the factory. I don't believe all this. We went to a small casino in Southern Colorado to a Motorcycle Club Bike Rally...read more

A four-card royal is one of the best starting hands

Jim is a Colorado reader who e-mails me several times a year, usually with video poker conundrums. His latest came after a session at 9/6 Double Double Bonus Poker, the full-pay version where full houses pay 9-for-1, flushes 6-for-1 and where the return with expert play is 98.98%...read more

Baccarat and idiosyncrasy

I have to make a confession and I don't want anyone to say, "See, Scoblete likes table games where there is no way a player can get the edge." One such game is baccarat (pronounced bah-cah-rah, not back-a-rat), which has a small but highly intense percentage of players. There are two types of baccarat: One is the high roller room version, which has a long table seating 12 to 14 players with table minimums of $100 and maximums that can be through the roof...read more

Casinos Face a Global Communications Challenge That Relates Directly to Guests' Gaming Experience

I've written before about the fact that casino guests are communicating via social networking about the casinos they love and hate. But an article in Newsweek has shed a whole new light on this situation and it has to do with a world on fire with electronic communications...read more

Money Management

If you have followed just about any writer of Casino City Times you would have read that money management can play a big part of winning when it comes to casino gambling. I strongly feel that money management techniques can be just as important to your game as learning the game itself...read more

Deal Me In: Beware of those odds on single-deck blackjack

Dear Mark: I was in Las Vegas last week for the first time in about six years and was disappointed to see all the casinos on the Strip changed to single deck with a payout of 6 to 5 for blackjacks. I was curious to know if it were more advantageous to double down on a blackjack if the dealer was holding a bust card, or just take the 6 to 5 deal...read more

Feels Like the First Time

They say that you never forget your first time, your first love, your first car, etc. You remember these first times simply because it is a completely new experience that you have never encountered before so it has more of an emotional impact on your brain...read more

A shuffle through the gaming mailbag

Q. My dad is a lifelong craps player. He likes to wait till the shooter rolls a 6 or 8 on the comeout, THEN bet on pass plus odds. He says that's better than placing 6 or 8. Is it? A. That depends on how much your dad is betting. A pass bet made after the point is established is called a put bet...read more

Ask the Slot Expert: More wild symbols means more excitement

John: Your info about reel strips was interesting, but you forgot one important point. Slot machine players want to get excited playing slots, even if they do not win. It's hard to get excited playing a machine with just one wild symbol in each reel, regardless what the virtual reel comes up with. This is the reason why nearly everyone plays the triple double machines with a triple and double symbol on each reel...read more

Winning can make slot game a favorite

Every slot player has a favorite game, one to seek out on each casino trip. Sometimes it's because the theme is particularly engaging, or because a bonus event is especially fun. But often, players like a game because they've won on it...read more