Gaming Gurus: Strategy Expert Article Archive - Page 403

Sometimes there is a free lunch

There's only a handful of casino games in which the player can get an edge. Start with blackjack for card counters, video poker at certain pay, craps for a select few dice controllers. Add in live poker for those more skilled and disciplined than their opponents, and sports and racing betting for serious handicappers...read more

Simple, satisfying, safe slot strategies

There are three major categories of slot articles written for slot players. The first is to discuss particular machines: how they are designed, why they are fun and, perhaps, where they can be found. The second category focuses on the various intricacies of slot machines, such understanding what the RNG (random number generator) is and how it works, how machines arrive at the payback percentages, and comparing hit frequencies with winning hits. The first two categories are certainly interesting and important for slot players to know...read more

Ruin Again: Part 1 - Feedback

In my June 2011 article I addressed a ruin question about Blackjack from one of my readers.  In it I proposed a simple scheme that used a one-dimensional random walk model that had the same expected value as Blackjack.  Well, did I get feedback!    Several readers, including my good friend ...read more

Jest for Fun

A Las Vegas school teacher was taking her class through a local art museum. "With a single stroke of a brush," she said, "Leonardo da Vinci could change a smiling face into a frowning one." "That's nothing," said a little boy. "My father's a blackjack dealer at the Flamingo, and he does it all the time." * * * * * If Charles Dickens lived today, he would never have written his immortal Christmas Carol...read more

Texas Hold'em A to Z: K Is for Kicker

A kicker is a card in an unpaired card in your hand that will determine the winner in the event of a tie. Example: If the winning hand was a pair of Aces and you held A-K and your opponent held A-J, your King would beat his Jack. In this example the King and Jack are the kickers...read more

A shuffle through the gaming mailbag

Q. My wife and I are having a discussion about quarter Double Double or Triple Double Bonus Poker. I think Triple Double takes your money a lot faster than Double Double. She likes the big payouts on aces w/kicker and 2, 3, 4 w/kicker. Which one do you suggest playing? A...read more

A strange video poker machine

How do you tell the difference between Class II and Class III video poker machines? The machines I play are all TITO-type machines. Thanks in advance. I find your sharing of gambling info very informative. Jan I have been going to Vegas twice a year for 28 years...read more

All about 100x odds

Of all the most popular casino table games, craps seems the most mystifying to casual players. I often hear from players who tell me they just can't understand what's going on at the craps tables. And of all the things casual players don't understand about craps, it seems they don't understand the free odds most of all...read more

Trend betting, pure and simple

Dear Frank: I am a follower of [name of person] who thinks your ideas are nonsense. This guy writes many posts for many gambling sites discussing his advanced trend-betting ideas. He describes himself as a "trend bettor" without shame and he says that is the only way to play...read more

What are the odds of being dealt a four-card royal?

My wife and I have played video poker since 1985. When they changed from coin in/coin out it seems like they don't hit like they used to. Every visit now seems like I get dealt four to the royal over and over and it never hits. What are the odds of being dealt four to the royal? I have been discussing this with the General Manager of Pinnacle Entertainment and I am telling him that video poker seems just like slots now...read more