Dear Mark,
On numerous occasions
you recommend only pass line bets with odds and placing the six or eight
on the crap table. How about listing the worst bets in craps so us
rookies can stop playing them? Larry J.
Below are the list of sucker bets found
on a crap game along with their house edge.
Big 6 & 8 (9.1%)
Hardway 6 or 8
(9.1%)
Hardway 4 or 10 (11.1%)
Any craps (11.1%)
3 or 11
proposition (11.1%)
2 or 12 proposition (13.9%)
Any 7 (16.1%)
Oh yes, those deceptive offerings like
hopping-hardways, world bets, horn bets and insurance type wagers will
get you free membership, courtesy of casino management, to the
tootsie-pop club.
Dear Mark,
Why is it that when you
win once, you keep betting because you believe you'll be lucky enough to
win again? Sally O.
Sally, I will sum it up in two words:
euphoric recall. Far too many gamblers believe in the adage that you
should never go a day without making a bet because you might be walking
around lucky and not even know it.
Unfortunately, Sally, it is an inane
approach to gambling that generally results in nightmarish consequences.
Dear Mark,
How important is money
management to winning in the casino? Steven S.
Without
hesitation, Steven, I would call money management the life or death of
your casino visit. What good money management principles
will do is minimize your losses and in most cases protect your winnings.
Furthermore, by combining sound bets with practical money management
techniques you will always maximize your chances of leaving the casino a
winner.
Dear Mark,
Could you please clear
up some confusion about how the draw cards are actually dealt in video
poker? Are not the five draw cards dealt at the same time as the first
five cards I see on a screen? Frank L.
Many players, even video poker experts,
believe that the machine initially deals 10 cards: five up cards that
you visually see, plus one additional card concealed underneath each
card on the screen. Not true. It strictly depends, Frank, on who
manufactured the video poker machine.
IGT, the largest producer of video poker
machines that you will encounter in a casino, operates their equipment
as follows:The first five cards are displayed, and any additional cards
needed are taken from the top of the deck. But IGT is not the only
manufacturer of video poker machines. There are quite a few others that
engineer their machines to work in the manner you described in your
question. So, Frank, because IGT produces the most video poker machines
in use, a generalized answer would be: The draw card you receive will
resemble kitchen table poker where the next card being dealt is off the
top of the deck.
Dear Mark,
In blackjack, must your
hand include a "black" jack to have what is considered natural? D Jason
G.
Any two-card hand that totals 21 (an ace
coupled with a 10, jack, queen, king) is considered a natural.
Dear Mark,
Could you please explain
what betting limits are in a casino? Steve K.
Betting limits establish both the minimum
and maximum amount of money you can wager on one bet. You cannot wager
less than the minimum nor more than the maximum posted on the table
game. Betting limits vary from casino to casino, pit to pit and even
table to table, Steve, so always look for a game within your financial
resources.
