Casino Strategy Articles
Casino Strategy Articles
Betting Strategies in Roulette
Mar 3rd
Are betting strategies in roulette effective? Firstly, lets look at the history of the game which has some considerable bearing on the answer to that question.
Roulette is a game that dates back to 1655. It was created by Blaise Pascal and means ’small wheel’ in French. To begin with it was only played in monasteries for entertainment but was soon adopted by French casinos where it soon caught on as a popular game of chance. There are many legends about roulette, the most widely quoted one being that if you add up all the numbers on a roulette wheel you get the number 666 – the sign of the beast. It wasn’t until the late 1800s that the game was played in America and they introduced a slightly different version. So does it make a difference to the players which one they play? You bet it does!
Now back to the betting strategies and what to do. Firstly, the two variations of roulette. European is the most popular one, mainly due to it’s lower house edge at 2.63%. The other, more modern variation, is American roulette which has an extra slot numbered 00. It was introduced by the US casino owners who liked the profit generated by the original version, but wanted to increase their return, and by adding the 00 they lifted the house edge to 5.26%. So the first way to improve your chances of winning at roulette is to simply avoid American Roulette tables like the plague!
Now lets looks at the actual bets and odds (all figures are for European Roulette). A Straight Up bet (betting on just 1 number) offers a 35-to-1 payout but the actual odds of the ball landing on the number you pick are 1 in 37. The gap is where the casino makes it’s profit. Whilst a return of 35/1 looks good on paper it is a risky bet to place so use it sparingly. Other bets are available and they range from betting on two numbers (called a Split Bet) to betting on red/black, even/odd or low/high and these last three options offer the shortest odds of Evens (1-to-1). So if you concentrate on these three, along with Column Bets (covering 12 numbers) or Dozen Bets (also 12 numbers but in different blocks) you will be increasing your chances of getting a return. This doesn’t mean you should completely ignore the longer-odds bets though, just adopt a strategy that will see you get a small return often, rather than a big return but infrequently. The latter route is sure to send you broke!
One thing to remember with roulette is that it is a random game. Therefore the results of one spin have no bearing on future spins. Just because the last 5 spins have landed Red, doesn’t change the odds of the next one being Red too. The roulette wheel has no memory!
If you place most of your bets on the short-odds ones, with just a small percentage of your cash on the long odds bets, you will see a steady return, but not much of a profit. You do need to mix in a few of the Straight Up, Split and Street (3 numbers) bets to try and get a profit boost, but not too many. And remember, only play on tables with one 0 – avoid the 00 at all costs! So there are betting strategies in roulette that work, just remember to use them next time you play at a casino.
I learned a lot about how to improve playing against the casinos house-edge by researching the articles at http://www.casinoguidesonline.com where it is explained in an uncomplicated fashion what you should be looking out for, and avoiding, when you play online or at your local casino. Follow the recommendations and improve your odds of winning!
Craps Strategies
Feb 25th
For entertainment value it can be hard to beat Craps. In a live casino it’s usually the noisiest table so should be easy to locate! Players place their bets against the casino and the game is based on the results of dice rolls. Players bet on the outcome of the roll and, as such, it is dependent entirely on chance. Whilst the game itself is simple, in order to gain a real insight it is necessary to gain an understanding of the various bets involved. If you are new to the game it would be advisable to concentrate on pass line bets, and master that before progressing to other ones.
Considered the most common type of bet in Craps, the Pass Line bet simply involves a wager on the outcome of the dice roll. The first roll (Come Out roll) determines whether a Pass Line bet wins or loses. If a 7 or 11 is rolled, then the Pass Line bet wins. Should the total be 2, 3 or 12 then the Pass Line bet loses. If any other number is rolled it is called the ‘point’ and starts the series. Now this ‘point’ number needs to be rolled again before a 7 is rolled for the Pass Line bet to win. If a 7 is rolled first, the Pass Line bet loses.
The Don’t Come Bet is the opposite of the Come Bet. This means that a player wins when a 2 or 3 is rolled and loses when a 7 or 11 is rolled. If a 7 is rolled before the point number is rolled again, the Don’t Come Bet wins. For a Place Bet, the player wins if the number is rolled before a 7, but loses if the 7 is rolled first. A Field Bet is a single roll bet that can be made on any roll. If a 3, 4, 9, 10 or 11 is rolled, the player wins even money. If a 2 or 12 is rolled, the player wins 2:1. If a 5, 6, 7 or 8 is rolled, the player loses.
Whilst the Craps table layout may appear confusing to the novice, once you have gained a basic understanding of the various bets, things should appear alot clearer. And what better way to learn the game than to play craps online in the privacy of your own home where you aren’t surrounded by other players!
There are more great articles on casino games to read at http://www.casinoguidesonline.com and they explain things in a clear and uncomplicated manner. They cover all of the main table games and also give the lowdown on which online casinos are the best to play at in terms of new member bonuses and player security. Follow the recommendations and improve your odds of winning!
How to Win at Online Casinos – Tips, Strategies & Secrets Revealed!
Feb 24th
If you want to learn how to win at online casinos I will show you some serious techniques to win more money using the simple strategy of bonuses. These places will give you certain percentages or straight out $50-$500 bonuses to play at their site. I will expose some ways to use the advantage of bonuses to take your winnings to whole new levels gambling intelligently with these tips:
How to win at online casinos #1 – Look for no deposit online gambling bonuses for signing up to new gambling sites. Real free money will be put into your money account and you will be able to play with it. What this means is that you can play with free money straight off the bat, no need to deposit any real money at first. You can actually win using this technique alone!
How to win at online casinos #2 – Use the refer a friend bonus offers. Some casinos will give you an additional bonus of $25 or $50 to play with by signing up a friend, coworker or family member. This means you will get additional real money to play with, which can mean bigger wins if you invest it into the games that you know, and pay out the best.
How to win at online casinos #3 – Always try picking the best gambling sites that reward you for gambling and playing often. This means you want a comps package from the online casino you choose to play. If you can get rewarded 1 point for every dollar you spend, with the point being able to be compensated with more real money. If you can join comps clubs, join special members only newsletters then by all means do it!
How to win at online casinos #4 – Most sites offer a weekly bonus promotion, based off the idea of you depositing money to get an additional 10-50% typically into your real money account. If you can invest this money into the better paying games and sites you can win more money. Always set a limit on how much you will win, your highest and lowest bets, and when you will walk away from losses.
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21 Blackjack Tips – Las Vegas Blackjack Strategy
Feb 23rd
If you want to learn 21 blackjack tips, then read this. You will learn how to use a Las Vegas blackjack strategy.
Since its start in the 18th century in France, blackjack or twenty one became a popular game all around the world. The game is a challenging one as it needs special skills such as decision making, keen observation, fast thinking or computation, and statistical skills.
A better way to decrease your losing chances is to bust the dealer. How will you do this?
There are techniques on how to do this. You may use the basic strategies which are the card counting method or the table or chart use method. Yes, basically, blackjack is a game of math. It deals with numbers. Thus, you need to refresh and polish your mathematical skills especially your statistics. Also, as a player, you need to know the rules of the game. Casinos may vary in some rules so carefully read the rules of the casinos where you enter. Choose the casino that has a more favorable set of rules. Look for the one that favors your strategies. Because, there are casinos which consider card counting as ‘unlikely’. Thus, if they caught you counting cards, they will ask you to leave the casino. That is a better case because there are casinos which drag the card counter and let him be beaten by the security team. Card counting is a very and perfectly legal action but there are casinos which may consider it as cheating. So, be careful. You may think you are having an edge over the others but instead of bringing home money, you will be bringing home body aches and bruises.
Another thing that you should consider is the casino that has the most customers. Likewise, find the table that has the most people. This just means that, that casino or table makes players winners. However, even if that table has got lost of people around it if you see that a player is reckless (like for example, someone is drunk in the table), do not sit and play with them. You will just end up in a messy game.
Remember that you go in the casino to play, enjoy and win. Thus, even if the casino offers free alcoholic beverages, do not get any of these. The spirit of alcohol will blur your chances of winning because it will cloud your mind from thinking fast and clearly. You will end up making bad and even stupid decisions and judgments. Also, with alcohol, you are prone to misunderstandings and fights. So, again, do not taste the alluring temptation presented by the casino. This is their way to confuse their customers and get more money.
Further, when you play blackjack, do not get insurance. This is no help. It is just a façade for you to give more money and lose.
Blackjack is a GAME. Though it is also a form of gamble, use your time and money wisely. Do not spend all your money over the game. Set aside just an amount for the game. Also, use your leisure time for playing blackjack. There are other more important things to do other than this.
If you want to learn 21 blackjack tips, then subscribe to a FREE blackjack newsletter at http://www.HowToWinBlackjack21.com.
BlackJack Strategy For a Successful Run at the Table
Feb 21st
I’m an east coaster in New Jersey and I love my Atlantic City a few times a year. I am not a gamble-holic, if you will, but I do enjoy the table games when I go down, especially blackjack. There are hundreds of thousands of books out there that go over strategies and card counting techniques that can be cumbersome especially to the more novice player that just wants to enjoy his or her time in the casino. I have put together, in this article, some of the simpler strategies so that you can give yourself the best chance at being successful at the table. Like I said, I am not a millionaire nor claim to be one, just an average guy who knows when to walk away from the table and is happy with a couple hundred dollar win here and there. Here are some of my basic strategies that will give you better odds of success.
Step 1: Picking the Right Table to Sit At
I can’t emphasize how important this is. I always look at the minimum bet first. I will not go to any table that has more than a $15 minimum bet. I prefer a $10 minimum bet. My favorite casino is Bally’s Wild Wild West. You can find some $10 dollar tables there throughout the day.
Also, make sure it is either blackjack or blackjack with Lucky Ladies and there is more than one deck in play. The Lucky Ladies table has an extra bet that you can make that you get odds on certain hands that you get and the dealer gets. I rarely play that, I suggest you don’t make that extra bet; but even without that it is still like playing at a regular blackjack table.
Now there is one more thing that you will want to do before you sit down. Look at the dealer and the other players on the table and look at the dealer. Watch a hand or two. I want to make sure that the people at the table seem to have a grasp at what they are doing. I can’t tell you how many times you will find the drunk person on the table taking a hit when he or she shouldn’t or the clueless person splitting 10s and so on. Those people could really kill you and the rest of the table. I also want to make sure the dealer seems to be in good spirits. I am all into the karma part of the equation and a dealer with an attitude just gives off a bad vibe for me.
Step 2: Get a Feel for the Dealer
O.K. Now you have found your table and you are ready to sit down. Here’s what I want you to do. Play 10 straight hands with the minimum bet. Get a feel for how lucky the dealer is. If you win 5 or more hands, stay on and we can move to the next step of my advice. If you lose more than you win during that 10 hand sequence, bail out and follow step 1 again.
Step 3: Giving Yourself the Best Chance to Win Some Money
As I said earlier, I am not going to make you a million dollars. Nobody is, unless you are a high roller and can find a table with a $100,000 maximum, which you won’t, you are not going to even come close. I will assume everyone who is reading this at least knows the basic fundamentals of blackjack and the basics of when you should hit and stay (example: dealer is showing a 10 and you a 15, you hit; dealer showing a 10 and you an 18 you stay…stuff like that). Assuming that is true, let me make a quick point: YOU WILL NOT WIN EVERY HAND! Nobody does. The key to winning money is putting yourself in the best position to give yourself the best odds of winning on a particular hand. If you can know when to bet more and win, and bet the minimum when you lose, you can come out very much ahead.
Now I don’t count cards, per se, I like to relax and have fun, not feel like I am in Calculus class again. What I do is simple. I just observe the cards. Its pretty obvious to see since the high cars are pictured (except the 10 and the Ace) and the low cards aren’t how the deck is playing out. Never bet any more than the minimum when the shoe starts. Get a few deal feel of how the shoe is behaving before you start to go wild. If you have seen a lot of picture cards the first few deals, then stay with the minimum; a win is a win no matter what. If the first few deals (lets say 4 or 5) sees minimal picture card turns, then start to up your bet until the picture cards seem to come out more. The reason for this is that there is a better chance of you getting a desirable hand when the odds are in your favor (18, 19, 20, and even blackjack).
Its as simple as that for me. Don’t ride hot streaks..If you have won 3 in a row while betting higher than the minimum, tone it down for a hand or two..You will be happy you did. Here are a couple of notes I will throw in for good measure….just some notes that others will appreciate your wisdom at the table:
- Never split 8’s unless the dealer is showing a 7 or lower. If the dealer has an 8 or higher, then I am basically risking double my bet to get 2 18s. A hefty price to pay. I would rather take my chances on the 16 hit; if I bust, then so be it…but I didn’t bet twice
- If the dealer is showing less than a 7, always double on soft 15, 16, 17…..the reason for this is pretty straight forward: an Ace (16 and 17), 2,3,4,5 (15 and 16), and 6 (15) will give you a desirable result.
- Never double when showing an 11 and the dealer shows 10…I just can’t take that chance..I rarely do it when the dealer is showing a 9 or 8 either, but to each his or her own on that one.
- 16: OK I always hit on 16 when the dealer is showing a 7 or better. Some people don’t. What I will say is stay consistent. Either you hit all the time…or you stay all the time. Don’t start changing up your strategy.. The table will thank you for that.
This is about all I can say about this. If you want you can try some of this strategy with online blackjack first (for free or for real money).
Check my How to Win at Betting blog for some great links for Blackjack strategy
Scott Boehler
[http://www.philliesdiary.com]