Never Surrender

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Never Surrender

            This week's column is again in response to an e-mail I received this past week.  It's good to see that after nearly 15 years of writing for Gaming Today that my readers finally seem comfortable to shoot me an e-mail!  This one asked how come I never talk about Surrender in blackjack.  I gave it some thought and realized that I don't think I have written a single word about the Surrender option in blackjack through those 15 years!  As I thought about it some more, I'm not sure I've talked about Insurance either.  So, this week, I'm going to talk about both.

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Running Hot and Cold

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Running Hot and Cold

            Through the years, a number of betting schemes have been created that are supposed to increase the chances of winning by the Player.  To the best of my knowledge not a single one of them has ever been shown to actually work.  I'm sure I could spend my time giving a detailed math proof as to why not, but there is actually simpler methods to use to prove it doesn't work.  The first is the most obvious one - no casino will stop you from trying to use one. 

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Video Poker Beginnings

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Video Poker Beginnings

            This past week, with my son in town, I found myself sitting at a blackjack table.  When I was in my 20's that is what I played when I went in to the casino.  It had a good payback (99%+) and it required a fair amount of skill in the form of strategy to earn this payback.  When video poker came along, I slowly found myself playing more of that and less blackjack.  Nowadays, I almost never sit at the blackjack table except when my son is in town and drags me over.  My experience this past week only reinforced why this is so. 

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The Big Fish

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The Big Fish

          If you wanted to learn how to hit a baseball who would you go to?  Personally, I'd want a lesson from Keith Hernandez.  As a die hard Mets' fan, I hear him on the broadcasts about hitting and the guy knows what he is talking about.  Combine that with his lifetime .300 batting average and his overall stats and I think my decision makes sense.  The bottom line is that I'm going to an accomplished major league HITTER for advice.  While there are many others you could go to, if you told me you wanted to talk to Ruben Tejada (a lifetime .250 hitter?), I'd really have to question your judgment.

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I've Seen It All

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I've Seen It All

          Anecdotal stories can help you remember what you're supposed to do in the casino, but they are not a good basis for what you actually should do.  This past week, I had the opportunity to sit down and play some blackjack at the Suncoast Casino here in Las Vegas.  My son was in town and he likes the tables more than video poker.  I'm not really sure why I don't play blackjack much anymore.  I know the game as well as anybody, and I play it as well as I play video poker (maybe better!).  I think it is probably more about me finding video poker to be more exciting (i.e. more volatile) and that gives a greater thrill while playing.

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Players Can Be Choosers

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Players Can Be Choosers

            I received a rather strange question this past week from an inventor.  He wanted to know if doubling down in blackjack is an advantage for the Player or the Casino.  I find it strange because my expectation is that someone trying to invent games would probably understand what creates house advantages and what creates Player advantages.    I don't necessarily expect the average Player to fully understand this, but if you're trying to invent a game, you need to understand what levers to pull in order to make the game's math work out correctly.

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The Crusade

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The Crusade

            This is probably going to blow my mind more than it will yours.  I began writing video poker columns more than 11 years ago.  I'm not sure of the exact number of columns I've written but it has been roughly around 600 of them.  It's a staggering number to me.  I didn't know that I could come up with that many topics!  Of course, I do repeat some, realizing that the nature of a gaming magazine is that many of the readers will pick up a copy while they are in the casino and may not see another until their next trip.  Today is one of those weeks where I'm going back to the beginning.

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Tips for Inventors

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Tips for Inventors

 When I decided to go into gaming analysis more than a decade ago, I did my best to tell prospective clients that I wasn't just "the math guy", but rather a true consultant.   I'm now in my late 40's, and I started doing this professionally in my mid 30's.  But, I've been doing this for 'fun' for over 30 years.  It started by programming the high school computer to analyze blackjack.  I started going to Atlantic City casino (with my parents) when I was in my mid teens.  They bought me a fake ID so that I could get in without issue.  My first trip to Las Vegas was when I was 18.  Hopefully the statue of limitations has run out on these offenses.

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Blackjack Sidebet Primer

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           What is the allure of sidebets?  I'm not sure if there any blackjack tables that exist without at least one sidebet.  It is almost hard to remember the days when you say down to play blackjack and there is was only one circle on the table.  There's the ago old question about which came first the chicken or the egg.  I wonder the same thing about sidebets.  Was it casinos that wanted them to increase their profits or was it Players who wanted them to increase their chances to win big even on relatively low volatility games like blackjack. 

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Apples to Apples

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           What I'm about to write might sound like blasphemy to those of you who have been reading my column for years.  But, here goes - it is NOT all about expected value.  There I said it.  But an explanation has to go with it.  No, I'm not talking about the importance of liking a game you are playing, which can also override the payback to a certain extent.  In this case, I am not talking about any emotional issues, but a purely mathematical one.  Let me explain.

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Much Ado About Something

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        I doubt there is another table game out there that has as many variations as blackjack has.  It is played with anywhere from 1 to 8 decks.  Blackjack might pay 3 to 2 or 6 to 5.  You might be able to split to 2 hands, 4 hands or maybe more.  You can double on any two cards you want or you might be limited to only 9, 10 or 11.  The Dealer may hit on soft 17 or he may stick on all 17's.  Why so many variations?

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