How To Win Big In Gambling
If you’re lucky you can hit it big — real big. There is a gambling aspect to all writing, of course. When I graduated from college in 2007 I freelanced for a newspaper. Gambling is, by its very nature, a risk-ridden way to fill your time or even to try and make money. The favourite doesn't always win. There is a big emphasis on brand loyalty in the.
Gambling is taking a risk of losing something of value on an unpredictable outcome. When you gamble at either an online or land based casino both you and the casino take a risk in losing something of value. The risk is greater for you because the casino only offers games that provide a statistical advantage to the casino.
However, much statutory and some case law has been devoted to ensuring that casinos and players don’t cheat each other by subtly altering the conditions of gambling games without each other’s knowledge and permission. You can, though, change the terms of the game. The casino often provides a way for you to do this.
But should you take the offer?
There are two things you need to understand before you can start improving your chances of winning when you gamble. First, you can change the outcome of a gambling game. Second, you will almost always confuse yourself if you try to do the math. These two most common of gambling mistakes help the casinos earn tens of billions of dollars every year.
How You Change the Outcome in a Gambling Game
Many casino gambling games allow and even encourage players to change the stakes, the odds, and even the percentage chances of winning. Here are a few examples of how you can change the outcome of a gambling game (almost always for the worst).
Say you are playing a slot machine game and you win a prize on a spin. A special “Gamble” button lights up. You are now prompted to play a secondary game, maybe betting on the outcome of a virtual coin toss, using the prize you just won as the stake in your new bet. This is an exciting feature. It also means you are risking the loss of what you just won on a game with a better “edge” for the casino.
Most slot games have a theoretical return to player above 75%. Games developed after 2010 usually have better than a 90% theoretical return. The RTP is an estimate of how much money would be retained by a hypothetical player who spun the reels continually for a period of several years. It’s not a realistic estimate of how much money you will win, lose, or hold on to. It’s a statistical measurement used to gauge how friendly the game is to the gambler.
In a coin toss the theoretical return to player is 50% or 1 in 2. So let’s assume you just gambled $5 on a spin in the basic slot game and that you won $10. You have doubled your money. Now the “Gamble” light activates and you are invited to take your $10 and bet it on the outcome of a coin toss. And suppose the “Gamble” feature allows you to wager on the outcome of two concurrent coin tosses. Now you have a choice: bet on 1 coin toss for a chance to double your $10 to $20 or bet on 2 concurrent coin tosses for a chance to quadruple your money.
Your chances of winning the double concurrent coin toss are 25% or 1 in 4.
You would have a better chance to keep your $10 prize and just spin again on the basic game. By taking the “Gamble” challenge you improve the casino’s chances of winning your next bet. It’s like paying $5 for a quarter of pie at one restaurant and then paying another $10 for an eighth of a pie at a different restaurant. Are you really getting a better piece of pie at the second restaurant?
In the game of blackjack if the dealer offers you insurance most experts tell you not to take it. Why? Because you are betting that you will lose your basic wager. The chances of being correct (that the dealer has a blackjack) on your insurance bet are worse than the chances that you can beat the dealer’s hand (your original wager).
The bottom line here is that casinos will sometimes offer you ways to change your stakes and your chances of winning to their own benefit. If you want to win at gambling, don’t take the deal behind door number 2. Stick to your original game and be consistent. Let someone else win the goat.
How to Confuse Yourself at Any Gambling Game
There is a certain idea among gambling experts that comparing the “house edge” in various gambling games helps you to make informed choices. The edge is a theoretical return to the casino, the complementary percentage for the theoretical return to player. In other words, in every form of gambling, there is only a 100% allocation of money. Gambling does not generate new wealth; all gambling does is pool wealth between the bettors and redistribute that wealth between the bettors (and sometimes also a middle man).
In the 1-on-1 game of blackjack there are only 2 bettors in your game: you and the casino. The casino is willing to pay up to the full amount of your bet if you win. It’s an even money match up, and that is really what makes blackjack so profitable for a casino. They risk less per round than they do with, say, roulette or a slot game. But if you have been reading blackjack tutorials you should know by now that the house edge is lower in blackjack than in other games, and therefore you have the best chance of winning in blackjack.
In fact, the dealer has a better chance of coming out ahead because at a busy table the dealer is playing multiple hands at once by the most conservative of rules. In other words, the casino is taking less risk per round in blackjack than the players while at the same time multiplying its chances of winning.
Players make mistakes when playing blackjack. Blackjack dealers don’t have to make hard decisions. In fact, by always going last the dealer often doesn’t have to make any choices at all. The players make most of the decisions in blackjack. And yet blackjack remains profitable for the casinos. The casinos are profiting from player mistakes.
Players make several types of gambling mistakes. One of the most common mistakes is to confuse the probability of winning with the theoretical return to player. The probability of winning is limited to the next round of play. The theoretical return to player is an estimate of what all the players of a game will collectively receive over the life of a specific game (or an arbitrarily large number of rounds in the game).
The rule of thumb is that the more rounds played for a given game the more the actual results of that game will average out close to the theoretical return to player (or the house edge).
But what are the chances of your drawing a natural blackjack on the next deal? What are the chances that the dealer will not win against you on the next deal? These are probabilities that can be computed on the basis of how many cards are left in the shoe, less the cards that have already been played. Those probabilities change as more cards are played but they rarely if ever line up with the theoretical return to player.
The mistake players make is assuming that the house only has a 2.5% chance of winning the next round. The dealer’s chance of winning that next hand can be as high as 100% and as low as 0%. The house edge is always irrelevant with respect to any individual round played on any gambling game from keno to slots to blackjack to baccarat.
When you gamble, it’s nice to know how much money the house is expected to retain over the next 30 days but that won’t help you predict how much you win or lose in any of the next 10 rounds of play.
Expert gamblers like to calculate probabilities but probabilities do not predict the next round’s outcome. The roulette wheel always has a 1 in 37 or 1 in 38 chance of landing on any given number. The chance that the ball will land on number “7” 100 times in a row remains 1 in 37 or 1 in 38. That never changes (allowing for truly random spins, although the laws of physics mandate that the spins won’t be completely random).
On the other hand, what is the expected probability of a random spin of the roulette wheel producing “7” 100 times in a row? This is where you multiply your individual spin probability (1/3x) by itself the number of times in a row (100 in this case). The expected probability of the wheel hitting “7” 100 times in a row is 1.51296e-157 (a very, very small number). But that low probability has no bearing on the probability of the next spin.
This is the dichotomy of probability theory, where you are dealing with large sequences of independent events. The expected probability does not mean you cannot or will not see the unlikely outcome. In this hypothetical example, we are simply computing how many possible outcomes there are and assuming the chances of producing the same result 100 times in a row are equivalent to a certain percentage of those possible outcomes.
Unfortunately (even semi-) random events have a way of defying the probabilities. But if someone offers you 100-to-1 odds that a roulette wheel will land on “7” 100 times in a row, verify their ability to pay and take the wager. They lose as soon as a different result turns up before the 100TH spin.
The bottom line here is simple: don’t try to do the math like an expert. Random chance will always eventually prove the experts wrong.
What You Must Do to Improve Your Chances of Winning
Here are a few basic rules for improving your chances of winning when you gamble.
- Stop second-guessing yourself.
Every casino game offers you a fair chance of winning. The games, when played fairly and legally, pay prizes that correspond to the expected probabilities of given outcomes, although casinos will hold back a little bit extra in most games to ensure they make some money. Hence, in roulette, the most you can win is 36-to-1 instead of 37-to-1 or 38-to-1.
The odds are always stacked against you. But random chance favors the fool, as the old saying goes. You just cannot guarantee you are the fool upon whom random chance showers its favors.
- Take the least possible risk.
In a hypothetical game where you win 100 rounds out of 100 rounds, you will kick yourself if you only wager $5 on each round for the chance to win $5 instead of wagering $100 on each round for the chance to win $10,000 on each round.
In reality, positive thinking doesn’t work when you gamble. The more you assume you could win the more you are likely to lose when you do lose.
Risking less does mean you win less per round but that’s okay.
- Manage your money so that you play as many rounds as possible.
You are more likely to win back $100 in wagers if you divide them into twenty $5 wagers than if you divide them into five $20 wagers.
Instead of playing numbers games (which is second guessing yourself) or assuming you will win a certain number of times (which is taking more than the least possible risk) you should assume you are going to lose more rounds than you win. When you play slots or even a modest keno game (like a 5-pick) you can still come out ahead when you play more rounds with small wagers than fewer rounds with large wagers.
But how does playing conservatively work in blackjack, when the average prize is an even money bet? If you lose only 49% of the rounds in blackjack you lose. Okay, smart guy, you know you need to double down a few times. Instead of playing numbers games and assuming you can lose X number of hands and double down on Y hands, just accept that once in a while you’ll have to double down to improve your chances in blackjack.
When should you double down? The experts agree that if the dealer is showing a 5 or 6 and you have an ace and anything less than a 7.
You don’t need to double a lot as long as you can double enough to come out ahead.
How To Win Big Odds In Betting
- Don’t try to win big.
That’s the real fun in gambling, though, isn’t it? You want to win the jackpot, hit the long odds, and outwit the dealer at every hand.
Going for the big win is the worst possible way to gamble. You may not be playing all-or-nothing but you are playing too much.
Still, you can adjust the amount of your wagers upward if you are doing well. Just keep them proportionate to your bankroll.
- Use a consistent percentage ceiling in your wager to bankroll ratio.
Although it is prudent to limit your initial wagers to 5% of your original bankroll, at some point you may double or triple your money. Does it make sense to continue playing by the original 5% measure?
Most gamblers will feel confident enough to increase their wagers. But while it’s usually good advice to ignore all betting systems when you gamble (because each has its flaws), you can set a limit of “5% of your current bankroll down to half”, meaning you gamble with $5 bets until you lose half the money you came in with.
If you double your money then you can double your wagers as long as you don’t go above 5%.
Five percent is not a magic number. You can set the percentage at 1%, 5%, 15%, or even 20%. You should be consistent about not going above your percentage. You still have the flexibility of making larger wagers if you roll up your money.
- Divide Your Bankroll At Certain Split Points.
This technique works best in land-based casinos, especially when you can put your money into tickets that are easy to carry around. A split point is a multiple of your bankroll. Say you begin gambling with $200 and you roll that up to $400 at the craps table. Now take half your money and put $200 of it into a ticket.
You can continue playing craps with the remaining $200 or you can try another game. When you roll up your second $200 to $400 again you split the money into another ticket plus money to play with.
After you have 3 or 4 tickets you can rotate them. Never play a ticket all the way down. Leave at least a few dollars on it so you can leave the casino with some money (and a little dignity).
When you gamble online it makes some sense to shift money from the game balance back to your main account. As long as you have money in your game account you should be good. It helps you to stay focused on conservative betting if you take money out of the game when you get ahead of your original bankroll.
- Play with Casino Bonus Money Whenever Possible
Land-based casinos may not offer you signup bonuses but many online casinos do. Play conservatively with the casino bonus money to increase your chances of fulfilling your wagering requirement with just the bonus money. While that won’t always happen the longer you can delay putting your own money into the game the better the chances you’ll start winning.
You can try this strategy with the “no deposit” welcome bonuses some casinos offer but they do limit how much credit they extend to you. You have more bonus money to work with when you accept a deposit match bonus.
- Stick to the Basic Game.
Whether you play slots, craps, roulette, or blackjack the less complicated you make your game the less likely you’ll place dumb bets.
The casino is counting you to make dumb bets. You should count on the casino to be less than generous with its odds on the best most likely to pay off.
There are few progressive wagers that are worth the money. The more you throw into a round the harder it will be to recover from a loss.
In craps bet on Pass or Don’t Pass and play the odds but keep it simple.
In blackjack bide your time and don’t split every time you get a pair of cards of the same value. Should you really split two 5 cards when you’re showing 10 on the table? Should you split two tens? Two nines? You have three options: play the basic game, double down, or split. On some tables you may be able to surrender if you don’t like the dealer’s cards but look at the strength of your cards first and your options for splitting second.
- Assume the free games are more generous than the paid games.
When you have a chance to “try before you buy” at an online casino the free game just may be slightly more generous than the paid version. There are several reasons why this might happen. If you can check the theoretical return to player for a free game and the paid version, look for differences.
Does the free game run on a different server? The different server may be using a different random number generator, a different random seed number, or a different estimated percentage for the theoretical return to player. Variations in all these things can affect the randomness of the outcome of the game.
- Play low variance games.
Sad to say, but the less volatility there is in the prize to wager ratio of a game the more likely it will pay you prizes. Volatility is an important measure for a casino because it needs to know how much cash to keep on hand. But you need to know how long you may have to play a game before you win a nice prize. That is where the variance comes into play.
Think of variance as “how much any random outcome of a game varies from the average expected outcome”. There is a relationship between variance and volatility (in fact, some gambling writers use these terms interchangeably). The casino cares more about the volatility and the player cares more about the variance.
How do you judge variance? It comes down to how long you can play the game with your initial bankroll. A low variance game has a tendency to take less of your money.
Hence, as noted above, you can affect the variance of the game in a limited way by playing conservatively and ignoring the extra bets the house offers.
Conclusion
Think of gambling as an endurance race between the bettors. Whoever can go more rounds wins the most money, unless random chance steps in and hands a big win to the individual gambler. Then gambling is more about who has the most self-discipline. The casino is playing a numbers game and just has to be there with enough cash on hand to keep the games going. The player has to have the wisdom and the self-discipline to walk away with the cash.
Harvard Medical School published a trove of data about online gamblers that was collected from 2005 to 2007 by an online casino (Bwin). Researchers who studied the data concluded that about 11% of gamblers were likely to win and that winners were more likely to play less frequently. Subsequently, researchers from the University of Michigan and the University of Connecticut compared that analysis to their own analysis of data from a Native American casino’s database. The second study found that about 13.5% of the land-based gamblers were winners.
The good news for most gamblers is that fewer than 5% of them contribute about 50% of the casino’s net revenue, and about 10% contribute 80% of the casino’s revenue, so most gamblers are not big losers. That means approximately 80% of gamblers share the burden of about 20% of the casino’s net revenue between themselves. Given that most people cannot lose enough money (for lack of wealth) to drop into the lower 10% (the Big Losers) changing how one gambles increases an individual’s chances of moving into the upper 10%.
Gamblers with little wealth to lose should still learn to make better choices. You cannot guarantee you will win but you can always cut your losses short or take fewer risks. Gambling is more fun when it is just entertainment. If your losses amount to no more than what you would spend on other types of entertainment such as concerts and travel, then have fun.
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What's more American than Mom, apple pie, and baseball? Would you believe
Mom, apple pie, and casinos? It's true. Americans are visiting casinos
more than they visit Major League baseball parks!
With all this participation, are Americans becoming expert at gambling? Do
they know their odds and the ways to improve their odds the way they used
to know baseball stats? If we are to judge by the billions of dollars
dropped in casinos each year, the answer is a resounding 'NO.'
If winning at the casino is the new American dream, it seems to be a dream
that comes true for very few - except the owners of the establishments.
We'll assume you are not an owner. Then what can you do to improve your
chances of winning a piece of the American casino pie? How can you change
your luck?
Would you believe that your 'luck' is really only one factor in the game,
that there is a lot more going on here than just plain old-fashioned apple
pie luck?
First, let me ask you a couple more questions. Do you spend more than you
intended to on most of your visits to the casino, stay longer than you had
planned, win far less money than you would like to win? Are you frustrated
by your inability to really get ahead but find yourself going back again
and again?
If you answered 'yes' to these questions, you are solidly in with the vast
majority of people who visit casinos. But, let's look at what 'yes'
answers imply. Notice that what you are really saying is that you don't
seem to have as much control over your 'luck' AND YOUR BEHAVIOR at casinos
as you would like to have. Why?
Would you believe good old-fashioned American psychology? It's true -
psychology is planned into the casino business!
First of all, there is the general psychology of society's changing
attitude. Gambling has increased in popularity in good part because it is
no longer perceived as terribly immoral - even the government has given its
approval. Since you're, in effect, looking through society's view of
gambling as an acceptable form of entertainment, it's easy to let your
guard down. It's just an acceptable, harmless way to have some fun. This
is fine, as long as you either have inexhaustible funds to throw away or
you can keep enough control to spend no more than you can afford. But if
you want to make your casino visits PAY, then you must change the way you
look at gambling. To make it pay you must look at the casino as your
adversary. Now, that's not to say it can't be fun - after all, wouldn't it
be more fun to walk away from your casino-adversary with bucks in your
pocket and a smile on your face than it is to walk away from your
casino-friend with empty pockets?
But the psychology part is more involved and complicated than just
analyzing your attitude and society's attitude. Casinos consciously and
deliberately exploit known psychological responses to control your gambling
behavior. Knowing some of their methods will help put you back in control.
We all know that casinos are set up to give the casino a mathematical edge.
They are in the business to make money, after all. What you may not know
is that your mathematical odds of winning are affected by the length of
your visit. The longer you stay, the poorer your odds of winning are.
That's mathematical. The casinos, then, use psychological methods to
persuade you to stay longer - the longer you stay, the greater the odds
that they win.
The design of the casinos - the colors, the lighting, the space, the
chairs, the smells in the air, everything - is analyzed for maximum comfort
and appeal. The operators figure that anything that can keep you playing
just another five minutes each visit can add millions to their take.
Let's take a critical look at some common casino practices.
Special promotions, for instance. Some are designed to get you into the
place, others to keep you there just a little longer.
The free or cheap meals - an all around winner for the casino - will bring
some people in for a bargain meal. How many will leave without dropping at
least some money in the games? Most will end up paying dearly for that
'cheap' meal, but will forget that the next time they want to go out for a
nice, 'cheap' meal. But there's another aspect to it. If you are already
at the games, a cheap meal conveniently available in the casino will keep
you in the building at mealtime. You'll be away from the games for a
minimum length of time.
The fairly new bill acceptors on slot machines keep you at your play. When
you are out of change, you don't have to wait around or walk to the change
booth for more coin. This adds to your playing time - your playing time is
money - for the casinos.
Casinos operators carefully plan their lighting. You may have noticed that
when you are in a casino it is difficult to determine whether it is day or
night. This is deliberate. Remember, they like you (or your money) so
much they want you to extend your visit. If they can get you to drop you
usual time consciousness, you'll stay longer.
Colors are chosen to trigger automatic responses. Slot machines are
outfitted in colors that will attract and hold gamblers. Sophisticated
color combinations are used to minimize the time you will spend slot
hopping.
Many casino operators add a scent to the air. Think that's silly? In an
experimental test the scent was shown to increase substantially the number
of coins customers dropped into the slots - very substantially, about 45
percent.
Most of these techniques add greatly to your comfort as well as sometimes
triggering an automatic psychological response. If your visit is pleasant,
you will stay longer, play looser with your bankroll, and come back again.
Other techniques have little or nothing to do with your comfort and are
simply exploitive. You are simply the 'white rat' - the unsuspecting
victim of psychological games.
For instance, the payout system of the slots. In the last thirty years,
psychology has even been applied to that. The system of paying tiny
winnings often is that new. How was it done before? Well if you won, you
won a reasonable amount, but the payoffs were infrequent. What is the
advantage of frequent small payoffs? It is the psychological 'promise' of
a big win. You will be enticed into staying longer and risking more money.
Putting in a few 'hot' machines is also an application of psychology. Your
search for the 'hot' machine is motivated by the psychological'promise' of
a lucky streak. Again, you'll stay longer and risk more.
Some casinos will give you small denominations as change for large bills
or, at the tables, small denominations of chips. The reason? Because, as
we all know, it is easier to spend a dollar than it is to spend a twenty.
Psychological? Of course.
Ever notice how wins are played up? The real coin that's dropped into
metal slot pan when someone wins is deliberate. The noise excites you.
The bells and whistles that attend a really big win are also deliberate
attention-getters and exciting. The casinos make a big deal over wins -
but losing is pretty quiet. The excitement of the noise stirs you to try
to win. But there is more. All the attention given to winning makes it
seem like there is more winning going on than there really is.
OK. Now you know that in the eyes of the casino you're merely a 'white
rat' from whom they are trying to extract the most they can. What can you
do about it? Although occasionally casinos go too far and a practice is
outlawed, you really can't do much about changing their use of tricks. But
when you are aware of them, you can guard yourself against reacting
automatically. You can put yourself back in control.
So, is being in control going to change your 'luck'? Well, it will help.
But you have to know how to use that control to your advantage.
First, you know that your odds of winning decrease in ratio to the length
of your visit at the casino. So with your new control you will make your
visits shorter. You will be aware of your surroundings and try to note the
tricks the casino is using to influence you. Conscious awareness will make
them less effective. Pick you games according to your own system - not
according to the casino's planned influence.
But you must also be aware of the things you can do to increase your odds
in a given game. We will discuss a couple of the most popular games.
Slot machines - Most slot machines have three reels. The number of
combinations for lining them up depends on the number of symbols on each
reel. Most machines have between 20 and 28 symbols per reel. To figure
out how many combinations there are, you multiply the number of symbols on
each reel times itself as many times as there are reels. For instance, the
fewest combinations that there probably are on a three reel slot are: 20
symbols per reel with 3 reels - so we take 20 times 20 times 20 - or 8000
combinations. So theoretically a certain winning combination would, on the
average, appear once in every 8000 spins of the reels.
Each machine can be set for a rate of payback. Let's say a quarter machine
has a payback of 90 percent (the usual rate on quarter machines is 86 to 90
percent). That would mean that for every 100 quarters dropped into the
machine it would pay back 90 quarters. The dollar machines often pay back
between 97 and 99 percent.
The progressive slots are linked together so that a coin played in any of
the link-up will increase the size of the jackpot. You don't have a chance
at the jackpot unless you play the maximum number of coins. Since the
large jackpot games must reduce the amount paid in smaller winnings, you
would be better off playing other machines unless you are willing to put in
the maximum and go for the jackpot.
The best odds are on the dollar slots. They usually have the greatest
payback - as we said, payback is between 97 and 99 coins for each coin
played.
Some slot methods to increase your odds-
Start out with only an amount of money you can afford to loose. Keep these
coins separate from any other money, including your winnings. Play all
your start-up coins. Now tally up your winnings. If you have less coins
than you started with, go to a different machine, and using these coins
start over. If you have more than you started with, put your start-up
amount in your pocket. Then put an additional percentage in your pocket -
10 percent would be good, but whatever percentage you decide on, make the
decision before you begin playing and stick with it. Now whatever you have
left after pocketing those amount you use for your start-up coins and begin
again. Then in each additional round you will pocket half the winnings.
As you can see, if you come out ahead in the first round and stick to the
method, you will go home a winner. After the first round you will be
playing strictly on winnings. If you don't come out a winner on the first
round, you still have a chance to win and you will loose no more than the
amount you originally decided you could afford to loose. But you need to
be in control - this method will be of no help if you decide to change your
rules in the middle of the game.
Another way to play the slots for better winning odds is to form a slot
club with other players. Each person puts up a predetermined amount - make
sure it is an amount each of you can afford to contribute regularly. The
amounts put up should be the same for each player. Then you track the
progressive games - you should track them for a while BEFORE you make
attempts to win them. Keep records so you learn the characteristics of
each progressive game. From these records, your team decides at what point
each game is pregnant for a payoff. When the jackpot of a given
progressive reaches that predetermined point, a team made up of some or all
of the members takes the club bankroll and plays until they win or go
broke. The key to winning here is to gauge the payoff point.
Slots are not easy to beat and the odds are NEVER in your favor but by
putting yourself in control and using these techniques you will have a
better chance of beating the odds than you had before.
Video poker -
Video poker is a popular variation of the slot machine. But it is not a
slot machine. The odds on a video poker game are greatly dependent on you
skill as a player.
First, choose only those machines that pay full scale winnings. Each
category of payoff is important, but a rule of thumb is 250 coins for a
royal flush or 4000 coins for a royal flush under a 5 coin play. If the
other payoffs are in line with the royal flush payoff, and you are a very
skilled player, theoretically you could have odds VERY slightly in your
favor. But you must know what you are doing.
For instance, when you are playing Video Jacks or Better - Keep any full
house or better. Hold a flush or straight except when drawing to a four
card royal flush. With a four card flush, three card royal flush, four
card straight, three card straight flush, three of a kind, two pair,
single pair empty your hand to these holds and draw to fill. Draw three to
two high cards and draw four to one high card. Always play the maximum
coins to take advantage of the bonus for a royal flush.
Black Jack -
Black Jack is another very popular casino game in which it is possible to
tip the odds VERY slightly in your favor, if you know what you are doing.
It takes a serious and determined player to master the strategies to
accomplish this, however. NEVER think that because you can tip the odds in
your favor that you will win all of the time. EVERYONE looses some of the
time so NEVER play with money you can't afford to loose.
Blackjack, as played in the world's casinos, has a number of variations -
certain rules that apply in one casino may not apply in another. You will
have to learn to adjust your game, if you travel from one casino to
another. Some of the variations highly favor the casino, so to keep the
odds favorable, you must avoid those variations and options that cut your
odds.
OK. Most of the Black Jack games you will find are multiple-deck games. A
single deck does give you slightly better odds. We will assume you are
playing in a single deck game. With your new control, we will also assume
you are playing with a bankroll that you have determined you can afford to
loose. Now, you will need some real strategy to lower the odds against
you.
First since the ace is countable as either one or 11, any hand you hold
that contains an ace is a special hand - it can be counted low, with the
ace as one, or it can be counted high, with the ace as 11. This two-way
hand follows needs some special strategy rules.
First, start out counting it as a high hand. Then if the dealer's showing
card is an eight, nine, ten, or ace, you should stand on a count of 19 or
more and draw to a count of 18 or less. But if the dealer's showing card
is a two, three, four, five, or six, stand on a count of 18 or more and
draw to a count of 17 or less.
Using this strategy for a two-way hand, you will never stand until your
count is 18 or more. When you draw to a two-way hand, if your high count
goes over 21, you then begin a low count. At this point you will, in
effect, no longer have an optional two-way hand so you will begin using the
strategy for a regular hand.
The strategy for a regular hand is a bit more involved. Whether you stand
or draw is always determined by the dealer's showing card.
If the dealer is showing a two, three, or four, you stand on 13 or more.
If the dealer is showing a five or six, you stand on 12 or more.
If the dealer is showing a seven, eight, or nine, you stand on 17 or more.
If the dealer is showing a ten or ace, you stand on 16 or more.
Notice that in using this strategy, you will always draw to a count of two
to 11 and always stand on a count of 17 or more as long as you are not
holding a two-way hand.
When you are offered the option of doubling down use it in this manner:
When you are holding nine, double down when the dealer is showing a two,
three, four, five, or six. When you are holding ten, double down unless
the dealer is showing a 10-count or an ace. When you are holding an
eleven, always double down. When you are holding a two-way hand with a
count of 12, 13, 14, 15,16, or 17, double down when the dealer is showing a
six.
When you are offered the option of splitting pairs:
Split twos and threes when the dealer is showing an eight, nine, ten, or
ace. Never split fours, fives, sixes, or tens. Split sevens when the
dealer is showing two, three, four, five, six, seven, or eight. Split
eights unless the dealer is showing a nine or ten. Split nines unless the
dealer is showing a seven, ten, or ace. Never split tens. Always split
aces when it is an option.
How To Win Big Money Gambling
When you are offered the option of doubling down:
When you are holding a count of ten double down unless the dealer is
showing a 10-count or an ace. When you are holding a count of eleven
always double down. If you are holding a two-way hand with a count of 12,
13, 14, 15, 16, or 17, double down when the dealer is showing a six. Don't
double down on other counts.
If you are offered the option of early surrender:
When the dealer is showing an ace, surrender 5, 7, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17
unless you have a two-way hand. When the dealer is showing a 10-count,
surrender 14, 15, 16 unless you have a two way hand. When the dealer is
showing 9, surrender 6, 7, 9, 10.
If you are offered the option of insurance bets:
Don't use it unless you are a skilled card counter.
There have been some new options offered recently in some casinos. Be very
wary of these, especially the ones with attractive pay-offs. Most of them
have very poor odds for you.
It is a good idea to find a table where the casino is not doing too well.
When you find a winning table, play it. There is, of course, no guarantee
that the house loosing streak will continue.
You must exercise control. When you are having a day when the cards just
aren't working, leave the table and go home. Under no circumstances
increase your bets in hope of recovering losses. When you are having a
good day and your cards are running strong, go ahead, increase your bets.
When things begin to sour, leave the table and go home. Using this method,
you will always cut your losses and always retain a portion of your
winnings.
No strategy will work well if you don't know every rule. You must study
and practice your strategy so that you can make the right decisions at the
table. And remember, your bankroll should never exceed what you can afford
to loose.
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