GamingTips

Alright.  On to the next set of proposition bets on the layout.  The horn.  These are the bets on the four outside numbers (2,3,11,12) which lie in the center of the layout.  These are one roll bets, and are controlled by the stick man.  You can bet any number individually, or may bet the “horn” for all four, or a “horn high” to bet in units of 5, with the extra going on the number you call high.  For instance, a $5 horn high 11 is a $1 bet each on the 2, 3 and 12, and a $2 bet on the 11.

Horn bets on each number pay off as follows-

2/12-30 for 1

3/11-15 for 1

When you bet the horn, these bets pay 30 for 4 and 15 for 4, respectively.

Remember that the word for is not the same as the word to.  3o for 1 is actually 29 to 1, because they give you 30 and take your one.  Similarly, 30 for for is actually 26 for 1.

Now, let’s look at the math here.  There are 1 in 35 ways to roll a 2 or 12.  It pays 29:1.  That’s a house advantage of about 19 % on those bets.  Similarly, there are 2 ways of 35 to roll a 3 or an 11.  They pay 14:1.  That’s a 25% house advantage.  I would not recommend these bets.

Finally, let’s look at some terminology for these bets.

2- Although many people call this snake eyes, you will never hear casino staff call it that.  It does, however, go by the name “aces.”

3-”ace deuce”

11- “yo”

12- “midnight” or “boxcars”

Alright.  The other half of Three Card Poker.  We’ve already gone over Pair Plus.  The other two bets, which are related, is the Ante and Play.  The ante must be placed before the cards are dealt.  The cards will be dealt, and the player given an opportunity to look at their cards.  They may then either place money in the “play” spot, or fold their hand, sacrificing the ante and the pair plus bet (if one is made).  The bet in the play must be equal to the bet in the ante.

This is essentially a bet that the player will have a better three card hand than the dealer.  If the dealer has a queen or above, the hand qualifies, and any hand which beats the dealer’s will be paid even money on the ante and the play.  Keep in mind that, as listed on the layout, the hand order is different than in traditional poker.  If the dealer has a jack high or lower hand, the hand does not qualify.  In this case, if a player beats the dealer, they will be paid on the ante and push on the play.

Some casinos offer bonuses for certain winning hands as well, and this information will be listed on the table layout.  Remember, other than when folding a hand, the pair plus and ante/play bets are really separate games.  It is possible to win one and lose the other.  For instance, a player could have an A high, and lose the pair plus, but beat the dealer’s Q high, thus winning the ante and play.

Okay.  So, this is probably the most popular Poker game out there (at least right now), so we’ll start with it.  This is going to be the very, very basics of how the game is played, not getting into any strategy.  Also, since there are three different betting limit structures, I’m not going to mention the amounts you are able to bet each time, but understand that there are always certain limitations.

 The blinds:  The first thing to know about Hold ‘Em is that it usually there is no ante per se.  That is, not everyone is required to put down a bet before the game begins.  Instead, the player to the left of the “dealer” puts in a small bet, called the small blind and the player to the left of that puts in a bet twice the size (usually), called the big blind.

A note on the “dealer.”  At home, you should actually rotate who deals after each and every hand.  In casinos, where the dealer is not expected to physically move each time, a white button labeled “dealer” moves around the table.  The cards are dealt, and betting conducted, as if the dealer were sitting with the player who currently holds the buttons.

Alright.  Back to our game.  So, the blinds are down, and it’s time to deal the cards.  The dealer starts with the small blind and deals clockwise, dealing each player one card at a time.  Each player receives a total of two cards.  There is now a first round of betting, beginning with the player to the left of the big blind.  They may call the big blind, raise the bet, or fold their hand (meaning they will give the dealer their cards, face down, and will not be eligible to play this hand).  Each player then has the same options, except that to call they must call the largest bet made.  The small blind will need less money to call, since they already have some money out.  The big blind has an “option” if the blinds are not raised at all.  They can check for free, or raise the bet.  Betting continues to rotate around until each player has either called the highest bet or folded.

Next, the dealer will burn a card.  That’s a fancy casino word for discarding without using.  Then, she will deal three face up cards, called the flop.  Players may look again at their cards.  The first player to the dealer’s left who still  has cards gets the first action now, as in all subsequent betting rounds.  They may check, bet, or, if they really want, fold (although that’s foolish since they can check for free).  Again, beting continues clockwise until all players have either called the highest bet or folded (or the table limit has been reached).

The dealer will now burn another card, and deal one more card, the Turn (or Fourth Street).  Another betting round follows.

The dealer then burns another card and deals a fifth community card, The Turn (or Fifth Street), followed by yet another round of betting.  Once this round of betting is complete, the player who bet or raised the last bet shows their cards first, and each player following has the choice to show their cards or to muck them (discard them face down) if they cannot beat the previously eposed hands.

 In Texas Hold ‘Em, players try to create the best 5 card hand out of their two “hole” cards and the 5 community cards in the center of the table.  The two unused cards do not count for anything.  A player may use all 5 community cards and none of their own cards (although this would result in splitting the pot with any remaining players), 4 community cards and one of their own cards, or 3 community cards and both of their hole cards.  Hands are ranked as described in my post on Poker Hands.

Alright everyone.  I know a few (or the few, perhaps) people who read this are poker players, so I’m getting ready for the barage of critiques/corrections to anything I post about poker.  But maybe I can draw in more readers once I have some poker info on the blog.  Let’s start with the real basics of poker here.

Generally speaking, poker is a game where players try, in some way or another, to form the best 5 card poker hand (I can’t think of an exception that’s not a carnival game rather than a true poker game).  Exactly how you go about building that hand, how many and which cards you get to use varies from game to game, but, you’re always looking for the same things.  Here they are.  I’ve put any alternate names in italics, and poker players, feel free to comment with more.

 Royal flush-10-A of the same suit.  This is the “nuts.”  Period.  The boat.

Straight flush-five cards in a row of the same suit.  The higher the straight is, the better, regardless of suit.

Four of a kind-four cards of the same rank.  The higher the rank of the four cards, the better the hand. Quads

Full house-three of a kind and a pair.  The higher the rank of the three of a kind, the better the hand.

Flush-five cards of the same suit.  When there is more than one flush, they are ranked by the highest card, then the second highest, so on.  For example, A K 10 5 4 of diamonds beats K 7 4 3 2 of spades, and A K 10 5 4 of diamonds also beats A 7 4 3 2 of spades.

Straight-five cards in a row, regardless of suit.  Higher straights win.

Three of a kind-three cards of the same rank.  The higher the rank of these cards, the better.  Trips

Two pair-Self explanatory.  The highest pair wins, and if both players have the same high pair, the player with the highest second pair wins.  If both players have the same two pairs, the player with the highest fifth card wins.

One pair-Two cards of the same rank.

High card-If there are no hands on the table, the highest card wins.  If two players have the same high card, the player with the highest second card wins, and so on.

Side notes.  Suit doesn’t matter (other than obviously for flushes) in poker.  That is, the A of hearts is equal in value to the A of spades.  If a player has a straight flush in spades, it ties, but does not beat, a straight flush in clubs (I would love to see that actually happen some day).

A kicker is an extra card.  That is, if two players have the same pair, the “kicker” is the third card, which determines the winner.  If the players also have the same third card, the “kicker” is the fourth card, and so on.

Alright.  Let’s delve further into the realm of bad bets in Craps.  We’re now getting into the center of the table, called the proposition bets.  We’ll start with the Hard Ways.  The Hard Ways are a bet controlled by the stickman (the casino staffmember located in the center of the table, on the same side as the players).  That means that in order to place this bet, money is tossed toward the center of the table, and the bet called out.  Generally, there is a $1 minimum bet for proposition bets, including the Hard Ways.

 Hard Ways come in four numbers: 4, 6, 8 and 10.  They are all of the even numbers possible, except 2 and 12.  The bet is a bet that the 4, 6, 8, or 10 comes up as shown on the table (a matching pair) before either a) the number comes up any other way, or b) a 7 comes up.

 The bets pay 8 for 1 on the 4 and 10 and 10 for 1 on the hard 6 and hard 8.  Keep in mind that when they say “for” it basically means that the actual payout is one less.  That is, they give you 8 chips for your 1 chip, or they pay you 7:1

Now let’s look at the actual odds.  For all hardways, there is only one way to roll the number hard.  Now, for each of the numbers, seven loses.  That means there are 6 ways to lose to start with.  On a 4, there are an additional 2 ways to lose (1/3, 3/4) as there are on a 10 (4/6,6/4).  That means that there are 8 ways to lose.  Which means the actual odds are 8:1 on a four.  The bet pays 7:1.  That’s a bit over a 14% hold.  On a 6 and 8, there are the same 6 ways to roll a 7.  There are also 4 more “easy” ways to roll a 6 (1/5,2/4,4/2,5/1) or an 8 (2/6,3/5,5/3,6/2).  That’s a total of 10 ways to lose, versus one to win, or 10:1.  That’s a little over 11% on the hold.

 Again, considering that there are bets where you will (long term, on the average), lose only 6 cents for every $100 you bet, why give the house $11 or $14 on the same $100.

Just a review of verbiage for placing hardway bets.  To place a bet on an individual hardway, ask for a “Hard 6″ for example.  To place an equal bet on all four hardways, say “Hardways.”  What if you want to bet $5, putting the extra dollar on the 6?  “Hardways, high on the 6.”

 Also, hardways can be either “on” or “off” on the come out roll (before a point is established).  Most casinos will inform you of the default, but you may always choose to either work or not work your hardways on the come out.  For example, in most Las Vegas casinos, the “hardways work unless you call them off.”  And the stickman and pit boss will say exactly those words each time a new shooter shoots or a point is made.

Alright.  This post is going to be dedicated to two things.  First, explaining how the Place Bet works, and second, explaining why you shouldn’t do it.

Place bets are bets “placed” on specific numbers.  To place this bet, you drop your money on the table and let the dealer know what you would like to place.  For instance, put $5 down and say “Five dollar nine please.”  The dealer will then position your chip in the appropriate position along the edge of the “9″ box.  First lesson of place bets, if you absolutely must do them, is that you should always use increments of $5, except on the 6 and 8, where you should use increments of $6.  This is because of the way the bet is paid.  A place bet is a bet that the number you placed comes up before a 7.

 Now, as we all know, a 7 is the most commonly rolled number.  So, the house pays this bet at what I like to call “house odds.”  Which is to say they pay more than even money, but less than “true odds.”  The bets pay: 9 to 5 on a 4/10, 7 to 5 on a 5/9, and 7 to 6 on a 6/8.  If anything other than a 7 or the number you have placed is rolled, this bet is unaffected.

The bet is considered off when the game is off, and working when a point has been established, although you may call it off or working at any roll.  This bet is entirely within your control.  Even though the dealer keeps track of the bet for you, you can have them pull it back, increase it, or move it to another number entirely at your discretion.

 Now, for why you shouldn’t play place bets.  First, let me say that this mostly applies with larger bets.  The odds, however, are “house” odds, and not true odds.  Even though the differences in odds seem small, they are huge.  For instance, the hold on a pass line or come bet with double odds is .06%.  The hold on a place bet on the 4 is calculated below.  There 6 ways to roll a 7 and 3 ways to roll a 4.  That’s 2/1, or 10/5.  The bet pays 9/5.  That’s only a difference of 1/5, right?  That’s 20%.  That is more than 20 times the hold on a come bet which brings your money to the four.  The hold is a little bit different for each pair of numbers, but, it is always significantly higher than the hold on a pass or come bet.

There are three arguments I hear for why to place come bets:

If I put my money on the come, I have to wait for a number to come up twice, not just once.  This is true.  But, remember that luck is blind and the dice have no memory.  Just because the number came up once does not actually decrease its chances of coming up again on the very next roll.

I want to make sure my money goes to a 6 or 8, because they’re more likely to come up.  Yes, you are more likely to win money on a 6 or 8 place, pass line, or come bet.  But, you’re not winning as much money.  On a 4 or 10, you get paid 2 to 1.  So yes, you will lose that bet more often, but when you win, instead of winning $30 on a $25 odds bet, you win $50.  Mathematically, all of the numbers are equivalent for pass and come bets.

It pays the same, I might as well pick my number.  This is true on low limit tables.  For example, a $15 place bet on the 4 will pay $27.  A $5 come bet with $10 odds will actually only pay $25.  An $18 place bet on the 6 will pay $21.  A $5 come bet with $10 odds will pay $17 (although it is only a $15 bet).  But, what you need to take into account is the first roll on the come or the pass line bet.  There are 8 ways to roll a 7 or 11 (winner) and 4 ways to roll a 2, 3, or 12 (loser) on the first roll.  It’s not as simple as saying that the odds are 2:1 in your favor, because there’s also 24 ways to get a point.  But, this roll significantly affects the odds.  On a place bet, you don’t have this boost.  Also, with higher odds and/or higher limits, the advantage to odds bets becomes much more clear.  For instance, say that you are now allowed to take 5 times odds.  A $30 place bet on the 4 pays $54.  A $5 come bet with $25 odds will pay $55.  At ten times odds, a $55 place bet will pay $99.  A $5 come bet with $50 odds will pay $105.

 The bottom line is, even though at first glance the place bet may look better than the come bet, mathematically, it is a terrible bet.

Alright.  I figured I’d break down here how getting free stuff at casinos works.  Some of the misconceptions and some basic tips.

 First of all, there are a few different types of rewards systems.  The main two I’ll divide by the high rollers and the rest of us.  And by the way, playing a hundred dollars a hand, you’re in the “rest of us” category.  Chances are no high rollers are going to be reading this blog.  High rollers generally receive comps without dollar values.  That is, they will be offered a complementary room, complementary food and beverage, and occasionally even complementary air fare.  Money values are never really discussed.  If there are limits, they are set in private by the host, and a restaurant, bar, etc. will call the host and ask if it’s alright.  The host will then tell the guest if it’s not within their limits.  The disadvantage to this type of comp is that they are tentative.  The understanding is, if we agree to comp your room, you agree to play at your normal levels.  And if you fail to do so, you will be presented with a bill at the end of your stay.

 For the rest of us, there’s the Players Club and slip comps.  First, don’t be afraid of Players’ Club.  They won’t call your boss and tell them your play levels.  They won’t sell your address.  They mail you stuff, but again, it won’t have any personal financial information on you.

 Second, don’t be afraid to use your card when you’re winning.  The people tracking your play and the people tracking the performance of the tables and slots are different people.  You get rewarded based on how long you play and how much you play, not on how much you win or lose.

Third, don’t be afraid to ask for things.  From cigarette comps to more expensive liquors, to dinners to rooms, nobody is going to make the offer.  Occasionally casinos will send coupons out to their players.  These are based on general “tiers” of play, and not personalized to you.  It took me a while to get this, but the people in the Players Club booths, the Poker Room Supervisors, and the Slot and Table Floor Supervisers have job duties which include asking questions about comps.  They won’t get annoyed.  At the same time, it’s their job to make sure comps don’t get out of hand.  So don’t be shocked or offended when they say no.  The bottom line is, you could accumulate thousands of dollars in rewards, and until you ask, you’re just wasting your time and the plastic that went into your card.

Finally, a word on how the actual rewards work.  They are usually based on either “points” or actual dollar values.  Using the figures they have on holds (the percentage of money brought to a table or put in a machine that the casino keeps at the end of play), they calculate a “theoretical” or “theo” value for each player, based on the amount of time and money spent on a machine or table.  This value is independent of whether you are winning or losing.  Then, they calculate things such as the cost of labor, maintenance, bills, etc. and take that away.  What they’re left with is the theoretical profit that the casino makes off of your play.  They then take a percentage of this and give it back to you in the form of rewards.  One tricky thing is that at some casinos, slots, poker, and table games points accumulate separately; at some casinos they accumulate together; and at some casinos, the rewards are company wide.

 So, here’s a brief recap of everything you need to know about comps to start making the most of them:

1) Don’t be afraid to ask.

2) Don’t be afraid to be told no.

3) Rewards are based on play, not winnings or losses.

4) Don’t be afraid to ask!

Alright.  Three Card Poker is another poker-based carnival game.

It is exactly what it sounds like.  It is a poker game with three cards.  Because it is a carnival game, there is no bluffing, no raising, etc.  And there is no drawing in three card poker.  There are two ways to play the game.  A player may play either one, or both, for the same, or different, amounts.  Because the two ways to play are not dependent on each other, and are totally different, I’ll address them separately.

This post will focus on the first bet, that farthest from the player and closest to the dealer.  That game is called Pair Plus.  And it’s exactly what it sounds like.  It is a bet that the three cards, regardless of the dealer’s hand, will contain a poker hand consisting of a pair or higher.  If the player does not have a pair or higher, the dealer takes the entire bet.  If the player has a pair or better, the dealer pays the bet according to a pay table printed on the table.  A typical pay table (although I’m not sure, I think it may vary from casino to casino) will pay 1:1 for a pair, all the way up to 40:1 for a straight flush.  Note that a flush comes immediately after a pair, easier to get and paying less than either a straight or three of a kind.  For traditional poker players, this may be tough to get used to.  And the Pair Plus bet is just that easy.