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Gambling School :: Articles by Mark Pilarski :: Slot Tips, Craps Tips, Blackjack Tips, Video Poker Tips

Articles by Mark Pilarski

Money Management

Slot Tips

Video Poker Tips

Craps Tips

Blackjack Tips

The fundamentals of sound money management
by Mark Pilarski


Anyone can walk into a casino and make the right bets and know how to play them, but without sound money management techniques, you can still end up going home broke.
Money management is your life-line to getting home with some semblance of your starting bankroll. Otherwise, you'll be hanging out in the lounge, tapped out, trying to score free drinks. Therefore, below are money management rules I live by when I'm out trying to procure a little from the big guys. They will work if you rigorously apply them.

. First, never bring your entire bankroll with you to one gambling session. You need to have a daily gambling budget. Start by dividing your bankroll by the number of days you'll be gambling. Then divide your daily bankroll into the number of sessions you will be playing each day. This is now your single-session bankroll. Don't bet tomorrow's money until tomorrow comes.
. Set a goal of winning between 50 to 100% of a single-session bankroll. Then set aside your original bankroll plus half your winnings. Now play with the remainder and continue to set aside additional winnings.
. Use a winning progressive method of betting by setting a predetermined percentage increase for each winning bet and sticking to it. For example, I increase my winning bets by 50% after the second win: $5, $5, $7, $10, $15, $22, etc. I continuously flat bet (table minimum) when losing.
. The casino's goal is to create a fantasyland experience for its patrons. One wily way is to devalue your money by having you bet chips instead of legal tender. Think of the deceptive nicknames chips have. A $5 chip is a "nickel" and a $25 chip a "quarter." Your best self-defense is to continue to bet with your own greenback. This way you'll always realize its genuine value.
. If you do turn your bankroll into chips, take a moment and carefully think about the exchange. You must always treat chips as hard-earned cash-like the money you save for your child's college tuition, mortgage payments or your retirement.
. Never increase your bet when losing. A double-up-to-catch-up strategy simulates a lamb being led to slaughter.
. Discipline is not only a significant part of being a successful gambler but probably the most important element of money management. You must set loss limits and win goals. Example: When losing half your session bankroll (loss limits) you walk, and when doubling your money (win goals), consider doing the same.
. Identify the profitable opportunities in gambling by shopping for the best odds, rules and playing conditions for the casino games you will be playing. Don't waste your time on games in which the casino has more than a 2% house advantage.
. Never gamble with money you can't afford to lose. Need I say more?
. Credit card gambling is nothing more than a desperate measure to stay in action. Leave your credit and bank teller cards at home so you won't be tempted with the easy convenience of getting cash.
. Never quit a hand when you're on a winning streak. Why tempt fate? You could be walking around lucky and not even know it. Magical gambling moments do happen. Fifteen, 18, even 20 hands in a row is possible. When it ends on a loss, make a mad dash to the cashier's cage.
. Finally, money management will not affect the house advantage nor guarantee that you will win more money. If the house has an advantage before money management, it still has that same advantage even after you apply money management techniques. What good money management principals will do is minimize your losses and in most cases protect your winnings.

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Slots Simplified
by Mark Pilarski


Slots are the easiest game to play in the casino. Insert a coin, pull the handle, and then reach into your purse for more money. Unfortunately, that's what normally happens when the house has such an enormous built-in edge. But that does not mean you cannot at least close the gap against you and throw in some fun to boot. So, below are some of my favorite slot tips to help you overcome this huge house advantage. These tips will not guarantee that you'll become an instant winner, because it's tough to beat a house edge that generally runs well over 10 percent, but it also doesn't have to be so tough on your bankroll. Let's get started.

1. The only true skill to playing slots is machine identification. Example: progressive machines offer the opportunity to compare and shop around for the best value. One 25 cent slot machine carousel can have a progressive jackpot of $2600 and another bank of machines-exactly the same and standing side by side-$1900. You should always be looking for the best slot opportunities possible.

2. Casinos will advertise machines that have a 98.5 percent payback. WOW! A casino game holding just a percent and a half, and on a slot machine no less. But there is a downside. If you look closely at the advertisement, it will probably say, "on select machines." Furthermore, it probably will not be posted on the machine itself, and generally will be limited to a single bank of machines in the casino. Now it becomes your responsibility to find them. Easiest way: Ask a slot employee, and if he or she doesn't know, have one of them ask a direct supervisor.

3. Las Vegas gives away over one-half billion dollars in comps each year, and as a slot player, you deserve your share. Repeat, you deserve your share. How? Casinos now offer you the ability to "comp yourself" by using one of their player's club slot cards. It is generally based on the number of coins you cycle through a machine, so you might as well get credit for all those quarters you're inserting. Shop casinos for comp value and find out what you are worth to them.

4. You always want to treat "comps" as a form of profit, but you never want to gamble just to receive them. It's much better to play a 98 percent payback machine and increase your winning opportunities than play machines with a poor return that cycle more of your coins. Remember that you're there to stay in action and possibly win, not lose your bankroll for a free buffet.

5. If you cannot afford to play the maximum amount of coins, you should not be playing that denomination of machine. If dollar slots are too rich for your blood, drop down to a quarter machine. It is always better value to play five quarters versus one dollar, or five nickels instead of one quarter.

6. I recommend not playing back the credits you have accumulated. Cash out and take stock. The problem with playing back credits is that the longer you stay, the machines built-in advantage eats away at them. It doesn't take long to zero out.

7. Avoid restaurant, bar, supermarket and airport slot machines. Notorious for being tight.

8. Can't decide which type of slot machine to play? If you are going to choose between video poker and slots, play video poker. Even poor play on a video poker machine will have a better payback than most "reel" slot machines.

9. Before you walk away from a machine, don't forget to press the cash-out button. Millions are lost each year by gamblers forgetting their winnings (stored credits).

10. It is your responsibility if destiny favors you that you receive full payment when hitting a jackpot. Even with some relatively small jackpots, if the slot is short coins in the hopper, you will receive only a partial cash payment in the tray, with the balance to be paid by a slot attendant. If you were to insert more coins and pull the handle, say good-bye to the remainder of your jackpot.

11. Read all the posted material on a slot machine. It is your responsibility to fully understand all printed information concerning the number of coins to insert, lines needed to be lit, prizes or awards. In most cases, when someone calls a slot attendant over and complains the machine "just ripped me off," that individual generally did not read the pay schedule correctly.

12. When you insert coins, don't assume all the tokens register before you pull the handle. Played five but only four recorded? SORRY. You will get a sympathetic pat on the back from the casino, but no money.

13. I recommend avoiding machines that use video representations of symbols. With these slots, there is absolutely no way to figure out what the payoff percentage of that machine is. For all you know, your true chances of hitting a major jackpot could be 2,097,152 to one.

14. Most casinos will hold a slot for you while you go to the restroom, take a short break, or even go on a buffet run. Just ask a slot supervisor to reserve your machine and give a specific time when you will return.

15. Don't chain yourself to a cold machine, even if it is your favorite. Why? Because the longer you stay on any slot, the more time the machine's built-in mathematical advantage has to work you over. This is how casinos build mega-resorts. Time always works on their side, and they have a mathematical edge on every slot.

16. Just because you're only playing slots, you still need to set a loss limit on your bankroll for both your trip and each individual gaming session. Divvy up your wad per playing session, discipline yourself and stick to it.

17. I'll come clean here. I don't play slots. But as a local in a casino town, I know where the locals who do play find the most cluck-for-the-buck. Simply put, locals don't play dog machines. So when searching for high payback machines, ask a few employees where the locals find the best slot value. Even if they are not slot players themselves, they at least know where their friends like to play.

18. Leave both your credit and bank teller cards at home so you will not be tempted with the easy convenience of getting cash. Also, allow me to take the obvious one step further. Only bet what you can afford to lose.

Finally, going to slot heaven-Las Vegas? Your best return in Las Vegas, and the country for that matter, are in the casinos Downtown or N. Las Vegas. Average return on quarter machines: 95.5 percent. That almost makes it a decent wager.

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Victory at Video Poker
by Mark Pilarski


In video poker, only 21% of the hands dealt are winning hands of Jacks or better and 79% are downright dogs. Herein lies the difference between the winning and losing player: what you do with those 79% of the hands that need to be groomed into winning greyhounds. The best way to give yourself the greatest chance of victory at video is to read, absorb, embrace and pledge allegiance to these playing tips.

  • Seek out Jacks or better machines that pay 9 coins for a full house and six coins for a flush.

  • If you decide to play a progressive video poker machine that pays 8 coins for a full house and 5 for a flush, play on a progressive where the jackpot is over $250 on a nickel machine, $2,500 on a quarter, and $10,000 for the dollar.

  • Always bet the maximum amount of coins on a progressive machine to get the bonus for royal flushes.

  • If you are a novice player, play on the lowest denomination machine until your level of expertise rises.

  • If your casino offers it, use a casino slot card to get credit for your play. You might as well get a return as a comp benefit for your play on their video poker machines.

  • Be sure to ask how many points you will receive per dollar played, and then find out what those points are worth in comps. This will help you shop for better value on your play.

  • Take your time to study every hand. Because you are playing against a machine, no one will intimidate you if your play is too slow.

  • All hail the Jack! Some players don't realize the ace is not the most important card in the deck, but the Jack is. Holding the Jack over the ace gives you more opportunities of making more lucrative hands than an ace would.

  • There are more than a hundred different video poker machines to choose from. Games like Joker Poker, Louisiana Jacks, Gator Poker, etc. offer you a supermarket selection, but all have different paytables needing distinct playing strategies. I recommend learning and limiting your play to two, such as Deuces Wild and Jacks-or-Better.

  • Acquire video poker skills using either a computer or a hand-held video poker game. The major benefit of this type of training is the ability to test you skills with no financial risk or ruin. You can gather data later review, enabling you to nix trends that would be costly on a video poker machine. This information would take you years to accumulate under normal casino conditions. And again, the key here is that any knowledge obtained without a casino outlay lets you net out better down the road.

And now, some playing strategies.

First, Never keep a kicker with any pair. Holding a kicker to any pair reduces your return by 5%.

2nd, Never draw four cards if you can draw three to a royal flush.

3rd, Always keep five-card winning pat hands with on exception: if you can, draw one card to a royal.

4th, Don't break a flush even if you can draw one to a straight flush, but

5th, always break a flush to draw to a royal.

6th, Never break a straight to draw to a straight flush.

7th, Never draw five if you have a jack or better, and

8th, don't keep a ten for a four card draw.

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Craps with confidence
by Mark Pilarski


Bellying up to a crap table and joining the euphoria of this fast-paced game need not be intimidating. Armed with my past columns and these additional pointers, you are going to step up to the table with the self-assurance necessary to play this game. Granted, I am limited in allotted space, but I'm more than happy to touch on some terrific craps tips. In thirty seconds I can teach anyone how to play a simplified game of craps with confidence. How? Check out the first tip.

. Just make these two outstanding craps wagers. Nothing more. Learn how to make a Pass Line bet or how to Place the 6 or 8. Both of these wagers have house advantage of less than 1.5 percent, making them one of the best bets in the casino.

. Stay away from all those proposition bets in the center of the layout. The dealer who is barking their performance is doing nothing more than inducing play on wagers that are all "house bets", carrying a casino advantage as high as 16%.

. Once you learn how the Odds wager works (another column, another day), never make a Line or Come bet that you are not willing to back up with full odds.

. If the table minimum is way over your head, you shouldn't be on that game. Bet with your head, not over it.

. If you need help, ask a dealer. Most will be willing and able to help you.

. You are responsible to pick up your winnings. As they say, "they lay, they play."

. A Pass Line bet with two Come bets is plenty of action on this energetic game. Don't get so caught up in the game and start throwing money at the dealer for his "requested (high house percentage) bets."

. Do not try to hand cash to the dealer to make change. The dealer is not allowed to take any cash or chips directly from the customer. You need to place your money on the layout, before the shooter gets the dice, and ask the dealer for "change only."

. Some wagers like Pass/Don't Pass bets, Odds, Come wagers, the Big 6/8 or Field bets can be made by you. On the other wagers, place you money on the layout and ask the dealer to make those bets for you.

. Keep your hands off the table and out of the way of the dice being thrown. You do not want to disrupt the game by altering the toss with your hands.

. Tables have rails all the way around for storing your gaming chips. Use them. Also, underneath, there is shelving for your drinks.

. If you are the shooter, give the dice a good toss across the table. Never try to slide dice across the layout thinking you can control the outcome. The first time the boxman will call out, "No roll." The second time, possibly some token punishment like a slapped wrist. The third-adios Sally.

. If you are a Don't Pass bettor, don't scream out, "Come on, seven!" Betting against the majority of players is bad enough, but rooting against them and gloating after a win is awful form.

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Blackjack Tips
by Mark Pilarski


Keep your emotions under control. The dealer is only the messenger of fate. Don't take you're losses out on him.

Always remember you can win. You didn't bring $100 to a casino to play with and lose. If you are losing at a particular table, set a three-losses-and-you-move routine.

Focus on the dealer and his up card, not your neighbor's cards. If other players at the table are upsetting you with their playing strategies, you can move.

Drinking and gambling do not mix. Players have been known to lose thousands waiting for their free drink.

You must have discipline, so set loss limits and win goals.

Only bet what you can afford to lose. Rent, car payments and other day-to-day expenses have no place in a casino.

Even the small blackjack player deserves to be rewarded for her play. There is nothing wrong with asking for a free breakfast, lunch or something smaller like a deck of cards or a pair of dice. But since pit personnel are most likely not tracking your play, you will need to ask.

Most players don't even consider the rules before they sit down and play. If you don't know the rules or any of the playing strategies of blackjack, learn the game on a 25-cent video blackjack machine. A five-dollar blackjack game should not be your classroom.

When you feel tired, it's time to call it quits, or at least take a break and rest for an hour or two.

Compared to a single deck, a two-deck game handicaps your play -0.35%, four decks, -0.48%, six decks, -0.54% and eight decks -0.58%. As you can see, it is always to your advantage to play on a game that offers the fewest decks. Also note, the house edge goes up substantially when you go from one deck to two, but the change is less dramatic as you add more decks. How much is this costing you in dollars and cents? If you were to play 100 hands per hour at $5 per hand, each -0.1% would cost you approximately 50¢ per hour. Playing on a game with two decks versus one deck will cost you $1.75 per hour, with each additional deck costing you increasingly more.

Smart blackjack players always play in a casino that offers the best rules. To avoid hostile playing conditions in blackjack, look for the following combination of rules that are favorable to the player:

a single deck game
surrender, both early and late
double down allowed on any two cards
double down allowed after splitting pairs
multiple pair splitting allowed, plus resplitting aces
dealer stands on a soft 17
deep deck penetration

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