Gaming Gurus: Strategy Expert Article Archive - Page 559

Top-10 Las Vegas collectibles

10.) Tournament entry slips Whether it be the World Series of Poker or the nightly 2 a.m. Binion's tournament, poker is becoming the king of Las Vegas with tournaments dominating the scene. If you're a poker player and you like to play the freeze outs, consider keeping your tournament tags and maybe even framing them if you win the big money...read more

You Can Lead a Blackjack Horse to Water, But ....

A few weeks ago, we discussed the disadvantages of taking Insurance in blackjack, and why it's basically a bad bet -- no matter what hand you have. I did my level best to lay out all the theoretical properties in an earnest attempt to cure you of the Insurance trap. Later that day, I received an e-mail from a reader of that article on a related facet of the Insurance bet...read more

Blackjack Is Still Beatable

If a store sold goods below the cost of what it paid for them, that store would not last very long. All businesses need to make a profit to stay in business, and the bigger that business is, the more pressure there is to increase profits year in and year out...read more

Harrah's Total Rewards Delivers Huge Horseshoe Promotion

The tremendous nationwide scope of the Harrah's gaming empire reaches into every major market and population center, something the company took skilled advantage of to not only perfect the art of cross-marketing among its various properties but also make the brand Total Rewards virtually synonymous with Harrah's itself. New precedent continues to be established, including launching Total Rewards promotions specific to casinos among the vast stable of Harrah's branded properties...read more

Sports betting 101

For someone spent, oh, a couple of decades or so working in newspaper sports departments before turning my attention from batting averages and quarterback ratings to house edges and basic strategies, I'll admit to being really bad at sports betting. It's not so much the losing bets that bother me, as the ones I thought I had sussed out, but failed to put my money where my mind was...read more

Are the results of bonus spins pre-determined?

When a machine has a bonus round, e.g., IGT's Mystical Mermaid, how is the ultimate outcome determined? If I understand correctly how slots work, a random number generator is cycling at all times until you hit the spin button. The numbers are selected and the stopping of the reels is solely for the player's entertainment...read more

Put Bets

Hey Frank, Great columns. I just came back from Vegas a winner at the craps tables due in part to your advice. My question is this: Is it standard for casinos in Vegas, and anywhere else for that matter, to allow players to place the point number? I was a bit perplexed when I was able to do so in one casino but wasn't in another one...read more

Jest for Fun

The first visit to a casino is like the first night of a honeymoon. The expectation is high, but the results are usually disappointing. * * * * * The brain is a wonderful organ. It starts working the moment you wake up and stops when you go to sleep or to a casino. * * * * * What makes for a happy ending of some trips to a casino is that fact that it has ended...read more

Anything can and will happen

Dear Mark: During a recent trip to Tunica, I played extensively on a $1 video blackjack machine (max bet $5). As long as I bet $1 and used basic blackjack strategy, I did fairly well. The moment I bet $3, $4 or $5 (but stayed with the same playing strategy), my percentage of wins plummeted and the dealer's natural blackjacks increased exponentially...read more

Top-10 poker game variations

10.) Deuce-to-Seven Triple Draw If you're the only player in your home game who knows how to play this poker variation, then why not introduce it to your friends and take their hard earned money? Deuce-to-seven, one of the most popular poker variations amongst the poker professionals, is gold to those who understand its nuances and poison to those who are allured by the draw...read more