Gaming Gurus: Strategy Expert Article Archive - Page 571

Marc Lawrence, Phil Steele mags hot to trot for 2007

Let's get down to it. Football IS king, and we can't wait for the games to begin. With that in mind, what should you be reading to prepare for the '07 pro and college season? Well, the two "hotties" have arrived: Marc Lawrence's Playbook's Football Handicapper's Yearbook (247 pages, magazine format, $9.95) and Phil Steele's College Football Preview (328 pages, magazine format, $8.95)...read more

Hubris

The ancient Greeks had a term for overweening pride; they called it hubris. The great Greek playwright Aeschylus in his masterful play Agamemnon wrote about how the gods look to destroy men who put themselves above other men. Those great kings who "count their kills by company" and whose heads rise too high must fear the "lightning" of the gods who will bring them down...read more

Bridging the Gap Between Gaming and Gambling

Playing computer games on the internet is a passtime that almost everyone seems to enjoy. It's an enticing diversion few among us can resist, even if only for a few minutes. There are an abundance of imaginative offerings, and new ones with improved game features and striking graphics are popping up all the time. It's a competitive business to be sure, one that up to now has maintained a fine line between gaming (playing for fun) and gambling (playing for money). Sean Gleeson, a game designer based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, appears to have taken a giant step toward bridging the gap by inventing a product that combines the attraction of online gaming with the allure of an element of chance. His creation, the mystifying and enchanting Dashabooja, is a breakthrough game that captures the entertainment value of online gaming, the appeal of a video slot game, and the popularity of poker. Gleeson, 40, hails from Chicago's South Side and is a graduate of Fenwick High School in Oak Park and Loyola University...read more

A Shuffle Through the Gaming Mailbag

Q. When you write about a video poker game paying a certain percent with expert play, how much does it pay if you don't play like an expert? Also, how do you go about learning expert play? How did you learn? A. A casino slot director once told me his video poker games were holding about 3 percent more than the math says they would if all customers played at expert level...read more

Playing it smart - Buying the four or ten at craps

Solid citizens betting $20 or more on fours or 10s at craps "Buy" rather than "Place" the numbers. The benefit is that edge is less Buying than Placing, so earnings per dollar up for grabs are more. The reason is not that odds against winning change...read more

Las Vegas free room promotion

John, Living in northeast Georgia, Harrahs Cherokee Casino in Cherokee, NC receives about 99% of my gaming money. As you are aware, there are Lock & Roll slots at this casino. These machines also can be stopped at any time in the first or second spin by touching the spin button or by touching the screen...read more

Underhand versus overhand dice shooting

Hi, Frank: I'm curious about the overhand shot versus the underhand shot and hope that you could elaborate on this subject for me. In Sharpshooter's book you indicated that you preferred to shoot with the overhand shot after initially switching back and forth from underhanded to overhanded...read more

Will radio waves affect a video poker machine?

Can a casino set a machine where it won't pay out? If so, is this legal? Thanks, Marilyn Dear Marilyn, No, a casino cannot set a machine to not pay out. The result of a spin must be the result determined by the RNG, which can't be manipulated. Best of luck in and out of the casinos, John Hi John, I look forward to getting your emails. My questions are to the Irish person who won $175,000 at an Indian casino 5 years ago and think they are paying according to their particular state gaming pact...read more

Windfall or downfall?

Dear Mark: I finally hit my first royal flush in over 20 years of playing video poker, but first, my confession. I didn't play — as you always recommend — the full amount required. I lost out on a 4,000-coin payout and received just 500 coins because I only played two dollars...read more

The Secrets of Achieving Personal Success

Pssst... Wanna know a secret? How about the secret of achieving personal success? If you want to be happy and productive in your gambling, you must feel that you are learning and progressing in what you are doing. If you learn something from every game you play, you'll be able to use that knowledge in future games to play differently, increase your confidence and, most importantly, make more money! Wanna know how craps pros achieve personal success? Let's find out! CRAPS can very well mean that you get: Consistent Results Applying Personal Success Your own personal success can be achieved by winning more or losing less...read more