Dear Mark,
Does tipping in any way
affect your chances of winning in a casino? Also, do you know where
tipping originated? Emilee D.
Technically tipping does not influence a
player's winning destiny, but gratuity is always in good form and helps
keep up the morale at the table. Look at tipping, Emilee, as a donation
to "Lady Luck." (Biased thoughts from someone-that would be
me-who was a longtime compensation for service employee.)
The
custom of tipping has its roots in England more than 200 years ago.
Samuel Johnson is given credit for establishing the tradition that has
evolved into the present-day tip. In the 18th century London coffee
houses, Johnson and his friends would hand their server a slip of paper
with coins attached. On the paper was written, "To I
nsure Promptness." The acronym of this phrase is apparently the
derivative of the word "tip."
Dear Mark,
What was the largest bet
ever made on the Superbowl? Donna D.
The largest "legal" wager ever made was
an 8 to 1 money line bet (the outcome of a game without points) that San
Francisco would beat San Diego in Superbowl XXIX. An unidentified
gambler wagered $2.4 million at the Mirage in Las Vegas. The 49ers won
big and the gamester collected $300,000.
Dear Mark,
After many years of
playing video poker, I have noticed that I end up with an excessive
amount of hands that make up a single pair. I realize that some pay
(jacks or better), but most don't. Am I getting too many or my fair
share of pairs? Ken Y.
A disproportionate amount? Not at all,
Ken. The probability of a single pair materializing is 42.26 percent.
Combinatorial mathematics tells us that a 52-card deck generates
2,598,960 unique five-card hands, of which 1,098,240 hands can make up
any one pair.
Dear Mark,
What is a "buy" bet in
craps, how does it differ from a "place" bet and what are the payoffs of
each wager? Hank M.
In lieu of waiting for a number to show
up as your point for a pass line bet, you may "place" or "buy" that
number. Both work but are not paid the same way. By placing or buying a
number, you are wagering that your number will roll before a 7.
Place bets on the 4 or 10 are paid 9-5
for a house edge of 6.67 percent, the 5 and 9 are paid at 7-5 (4 percent
edge) and the 6 and 8 at 7-6 for a 1.52 percent house advantage. Buy
bets work the same as place bets, except that you must pay a 5 percent
commission to the house on all buy wagers. In return, the casino will
pay you at true odds.
Because the house edge is less than 5
percent when placing the 5, 6, 8 and 9, it's not worth buying those
numbers. True, buying the 4 or 10 can reduce the house edge to 4.76
percent, less than if you were to place them; still, the price is too
egregious.
Buy, place, commissions, true odds, yes,
Hank, it can be complicated, but here is my one bet recommendation:
"Place" only the 6 or 8. Lose the rest from your betting arsenal.
Dear Mark,
What are the odds of
hitting a hole-in-one in golf? Sam S.
According to the Professional Golfers
Association (PGA), custodian of statistics on such matters, a male
professional's or a top amateur player's chances are 3,708 to 1; a
female pro's odds are 4,648 to 1. The average duffer's odds are 42,952
to 1.
My lone ace, when I teed off from the
eighth hole and it landed in the cup on the 12th green, probably
wouldn't count.
