Gaming Gurus: Strategy Expert Article Archive - Page 588

In Poker, You Usually Raise or Fold - But Don't Call Much

Every time there's a bet made to you in a hand of poker, you have three choices - call, raise or fold. Sociable players who are in it for the fun of gambling tend to call way too much. If you're in it to win, you should usually be folding and sometimes raising – but calling only now and then...read more

When does Wheel of Fortune choose the outcome of a wheel spin?

John: Recently I was playing Wheel of Fortune in AC. The player next to me was being a pest — telling me how to play, complaining that I was taking too long between making my bets. Whenever I got a Wheel of Fortune, she would reach over and hit the spin button for me...read more

An Ounce of Truth in a Pound of Myth

Long ago I heard this story about a primitive tribe along the banks of the Amazon River. Whenever a disease -- thought to be brought by the "evil one" -- would sweep through their villages, the witch doctor would bake a loaf of bread, sprinkle it with water and hang it in a special tree looked over by a very special god of goodness...read more

Harrah's Buyout Could Bring Changes

When all was said and done, Harrah's Entertainment, the "Goliath" of gaming companies, which had a seemingly insatiable appetite for acquisitions, itself became the target of a buyout offer. A pair of multibillion-dollar private equity funds swooped down last December to ink a $27.8 billion cash deal, including the assumption of $10.7 billion in debt, to acquire the gambling industry giant and seek to consummate the seventh biggest leveraged buyout in history. Texas Pacific Group and Apollo Management, the firms that want to acquire Harrah's, are unlike high profile companies that have name brand identities among consumers...read more

Hall of famer

I love the look on people's faces when I respond to the question of what I do for a living. "You're a what?" and "huh?" have to be the top two answers. After all, to the average person, what exactly is a 'casino gaming analyst'? I try to explain in further detail what I do...read more

Video poker mythbusters

When we think about myths and legends surrounding electronic gaming devices, we mostly think about the odd things people believe about slots. Is there a jackpot button an operator can push to reward a deserving player? Is a machine due to pay off after a long losing streak? Do games pay higher percentages on weekdays than weekends? The answers: No, no, and no. There's less mystery about video poker games...read more

Heard it on the river

FITZ will be making a bold move next month when it moves its regular monthly fight nights promoted by PRIZE FIGHT BOXING from the Great Hall to the outside…on the banks of the Mississippi River to be specific. It will be a special venue and apparently ESPN2 thought so as well and will televise the featured match between one of the best welterweights in the country, ZAB JUDAH, who must win this match against RUEBEN GALVAN for guaranteed shot at the world title against the champ, MIGUEL GOTTO in New York...read more

Are machines in a progressive bank independent?

Hi, John! I would like to thank you for the many polite answers to the often repeated same questions. Apparently, no one wants to believe that predicting when a slot machine will hit is next to impossible, that machines do not have their chips changed out overnight, that the payout on a machine is not determined over the period of a few hours (or even a few days) ...read more

Should you play crapless Craps?

It seems to be a law of the gambling universe. If a casino promotes a game as better than the standard game, it is always worse - for the player that is, not the casino. For those who are not familiar with the game of craps, there are two distinct phases in the game - the "come-out cycle" and the "point cycle." In the normal game of craps, a new shooter places a bet on the pass-line...read more

Playing Advantage Blackjack takes discipline and money

Keeping track of the cards that have been played has proven to be a way to beat the house at blackjack. Those who can play at that level are called "advantage" blackjack players. Most standard card counting methods however are much too technical for the average player to use...read more