Dear Mark,
I find horse racing one
of the most enjoyable forms of casino gambling. For just $2 I can sit in
an air conditioned race book and watch simulcast races from all across
America. Wow! Any advice for a newbie horse player? Robert A.
I'm with you, Robert. A splash of
stimulation and a $2 wager on a long-shot equine overdue for the glue
factory can be an inexpensive diversion from a $25 minimum blackjack
game. At $2 that is. But with Nevada's race books offering only
pari-mutuel wagering, Robert, the house does hold an 18-22% edge on any
straight bet you make at the sports book window.
That said, pony players in the know-not
me, I go by the horse's biorhythms-believe the following factors are
essential to your chances of picking winners.
1. knowledge of breeding
2. physical
specifications of the race track (length, turns, surface, drainage, etc.)
3. track bias in the horse's previous starts
4. jockey skills
5. trainer
skills
6. current form of the horse
7. how the horse likes track
conditions
8. horse's ability at today's distance
9. predicted
pace of the race
10. how to read a program or a Daily Racing Form
11. etc., etc., etc.
It was our beloved first president,
George Washington, himself a racehorse owner who once said, "Horse
racing is the child of avarice, the brother of iniquity, and the father
of mischief."
Gitty up!
Dear Mark,
I like to plunk down
bets on the "Big 6," that carnival type wheel you will find in most
casinos. What are the house odds on that game? Gary R.
You do realize, Gary, that you plunk and
the dealer snatches. All six wagers on the Big 6 carry a steep house
edge. That casino advantage is as follows: 11.1 percent on the $1 spot,
16.6% on the $2, 22.2% on the $5, 18.5% on the $10, 22.2% on the $20,
and 24% on either joker.
By betting a steady diet of Big 6 wagers,
Gary, you will run out of air speed and altitude quickly.
Dear Mark,
If, like you say, the
house has only a 1.4% advantage on a pass line bet, how can the casino
make any money by offering that wager? Jordan P.
It doesn't matter who wins this one bet
but who ends up with all the money. The casino realizes few players are
sophisticated enough to restrict their craps betting to just smart
wagers.
But let's look at the bet in question,
Jordan: a pass line wager. If you were to play 100 bets on the pass
line, you can expect to win about 49 times and lose the other 51. The
casino will gladly take this itty-bitty 49/51 ratio and multiply it by
thousands of decisions daily, weekly and yearly, and guarantee
themselves a generous long-term profit.
Dear Mark,
Does the Megabucks
machine pay back the same as regular $1 slot machines? Mary K.
Notta chance, Mary. By offering the
player a shot at slot immortality, Megabucks shakes you down on the
smaller payoffs. It is Megabuck's progressive bonus that allows you to
fantasize champagne wishes and caviar dreams. On average, Megabucks
returns slightly less than a 90% payback while the typical $1 machine in
Nevada averages more than 95%.
Dear Mark,
When I hear cheering
coming from a crap game, does that mean it's a hot game ready for me to
dive right in? Bruce T.
Not necessarily, Bruce. The dice might
have been sizzling before you come aboard, but that doesn't mean they
will stay heated because you're now there. The reason is that your dice
timeline-the period you're on the game-is different from the earlier
players. Understand, Bruce, when you join a game in progress, you
initiate your own personal sequence of rolls, with the dice possibly
going cold from that moment on.
