Play Casino Games

Casino gaming is becoming increasingly more popular – despite the downturn in the economy. You have a multitude of choices and the best way to maximize the gaming dollars you have to spend is to compare the payouts on the machines you choose to play.

One mindset in playing slot machines is to peruse the machines available, sit down and one, put your money in to play and see what happens.

My philosophy on playing slot machines is to choose machines that have a decent payoff when you hit something. If it’s a multiple credit machine where I have a choice of playing 27, 36, 45 or 90 credits I’m going to make sure there are ample opportunities to get significant credits back on the 27, 36 and 45 before I ever play the 90. Remember you’re playing for longevity. Slot machine payouts are pre-programmed on a chip in the machine.

The wins happen when you happen to be the one sitting at the machine when it stops and the chip says it’s payout time. Point of Interest – The same logic should tell you that you could also be advancing past that payout point while you’re waiting for the machine to stop spinning.

When you walk up to a three or four coin machine with bells, bar, cherries, or winning symbols on the front, the payouts are shown on the face of the machine. The more lines that pay on the machine the lesser your payout. The more symbols that pay something lower the payout on more symbols when they come up. Study those pay tables.

When you look at the choices on all of the new video “penny” machines there should be a button on the panel that says “Pay Table.” Punch that button and take a look at what pays on the machine if it’s not displayed on the front or on top of the machine. Some machines will pay for two symbols in a row. Some sets of symbols pay, some don’t. Again, for my money a machine has to have the potential of paying back 20 to 45 credits on two symbols if I’m playing 90 credits or the machine will take my money in a shorter period of time.

Once you get to understand the payouts on the machines you enjoy playing this will all make more sense. Then take a look at the trademark machines – the Lucy and Desi, Elvis, Wheel-of-Fortune with Pat and Vanna – all of the machines that have a link to a celebrity or a tv show or a movie. Those payouts are a minimum of 10% less than other like machines without the celebrity association.

Progressive payouts build with each play of the machine. On celebrity themed machines you have two negatives – the jackpot builds more slowly and more of the money being played in that machine is going to to organization holding the trademark on the celebrity.

The thrill of casino gaming is to win and people win all the time. The thing you want to pay attention to is how much you have the potential to win on the machines you choose to play.

Good Luck!

Blackjack is the game that gives you the best odds against the house. All of the gambling games are based on percentages. Certain combinations of cards are more likely to come up most often. Others are not. The ones who come up the least are the ones that pay more. Same on Craps – certain combinations of the dice are frequent and pay Even Money. Other combinations are rare and will pay as much as 30 to 1.

If you’re a gambler you already know what would make a perfect world. For you that don’t know, it would be that when you decide you have the time and money to play games everything goes well. Got the picture.

Well, unfortunately, that doesn’t happen. Most of the time when you choose to play you have to keep searching for something that will work – and sometimes it does and most of the time it doesn’t. What we hope to do is this series of gaming tips is give you a few pointers on choosing a better game for yourselves.

That’s the main reason we suggest that every casino player learn to play a strong game of Blackjack. The principles we teach in The Blackjack Workshop will help you to stay even with the game. When you decide you want to hang out in a casino and everything is going out with little coming back, you can at least sometimes hold your own at a Blackjack table.

You can create one benefit for your playing sessions that no one else can help you with – the old mind over matter thing. Put good thoughts in your head when you go to play. Go because you’re enjoying yourself. Don’t go to get even, don’t go because it’s your turn to win, don’t go for a myriad of other dumb reasons. Go because you’ve got the time and the money and that’s where you want to be.

Your opportunities for that in the United States are much more than anywhere else since the advent of Tribal Gaming. If you haven’t been there yet, take a look at http://FantasyCasino.us/CGTBlog and read the previous posts on Tribal Gaming – July and August 2009.

Once the tribal casinos opened up to video slot machines the whole complexion of slot play changed. The days when you got to walk around with buckets of quarters and dollars from the slot machines are pretty well gone. Some places still operate coin casinos but most places use tickets that allow you to play with credits and then cash in with the cashier when you’re through. I, for one, miss the dirty hands from handling the coins. It made the experience more real somehow.

When you’re playing table games you have some control over the end result. Usually there is some skill involved in table games. The extra chance that by making a knowledgeable decision you could improve your win ratio.

The only decision you have to make with a slot machine is how many times you’re going to push that button and how much you’re going to win (or lose) on a machine before you move to the next one.

Give yourself a break and learn more about the table games – Blackjack specifically. Click on the Blackjack Workshop Options on this page and start your journey to developing a winning game of Casino Style Blackjack – your best odds against the house.

The popularity and availability of casino gaming has radically changed in the United States over the last 20 years. On one of our first trips to Reno (40 years ago if you lived in Seattle, Reno was the destination of choice), I was eavesdropping on a conversation between a woman and her daughter who were also returning from Nevada after a Mother’s Day trip.

After a bit I asked if they went together every Mother’s Day. The answer was a resounding “Yes . . . and Father’s Day, and the Fourth of July, and Labor Day and Christmas until New Year’s and then Valentine’s Day . . .” as their voices trailed off in laughter.

My family background did not include gambling. We had chosen a Nevada vacation because of the proximity of family in Colorado, California, Texas and Oregon. Reno offered great package vacations so that was our choice of destinations.

At that point I knew very little about what was going on in this country and how much the gaming industry in the United States was about to change.

It was interesting to watch the industry during those 20 to 30 years of changes in commercial gambling in the United States. During that same period casino parties have been the #1 choice for corporate and private entertainment in the Northwest. Our part of that – The Fantasy Casino – enjoys the lion’s share of that business because we are the best.

The reason we’re the best is that our Dealing Teams are comprised of expert players who really understand the games and are willing to share that information with the droves of emerging players we meet each year.

For five years before becoming associated with The Fantasy Casino I worked with a newspaper niche group. Our niche was casino gaming. Through that association we were invited to Nevada to cover gaming tournaments. We sold advertising to the major casinos – both local and in Nevada. That connection fed our curiosity about the business.

As with any activity, casino gaming has it’s own venacular and it’s kind of fun. If you’re old enough to remember Damon Runyan’s Guys and Dolls you know what I’m talking about. If you watcn Hold’em Tournaments on the sports networks you know what I’m talking about.

If you haven’t downloaded your copy of our Gaming Glossary yet, go to the sidebar and do so. It’s useless, but fun information.

The House Edge should be critically important to your gaming experiences.  No matter how much you prepare yourself and no matter how good you think you are, the house always has the edge.  We’ve talked a little about “The Zone.”  We go into “The Zone” in The Blackjack Workshop because that’s one of the best places to use it to your advantage.  Basically, “The Zone” is that rare occurrence when everything works. You can’t make it happen, but it does happen.

Whatever game you play there is the opportunity for “The Zone” to present itself.  You benefit from that if you’re prepared yourself and know all the rules and understand your options.

The ultimate trick to surviving casino gaming is to play for fun with reasonable amounts and then when you have won money to play on progress your bets and see if the winning keeps happening.

Eventually, however, if you keep playing, the house will get it back.

Playing a decent game of blackjack can prolong your casino time.  If the slots are cold and the Craps table colder, play a little Blackjack.  Played correctly, the house has less than a 5% edge – the best in the casino.  If you’re a beginning Blackjack player or you missed the basics and don’t get the results you want and deserve most of the time consider The Blackjack Workshop and our 60+minute cassette covering the basics of the game. 

Go to http://www.LowdownReports.com and click onto our Products Page for a full explanation of The Blackjack Workshop.  You can also log onto our multiple reports blog at http:// bizreports.us/Reports/?page_id=58 and get the same information on how important putting yourself (without or without the support of your friends) through a Blackjack Workshop experience multiple times is critical to building your game to the point where you can react and make the right decisions without even having to think about them.

Undeerstand The House Edge and how it will affect your gaming bankroll.  Prolong your gaming experiences for a better chance to get ahead of the game.

In the last message we talked about the House Edge.  All of the games are structured for the house to have an edge.  No one can predict the outcome of a gaming wager, but the house will win more than they lose.  That may be different tables, different games, different machines – but overall they will win more than you do.  That’s why it’s a billion dollar industry.

A strong part of your Money Management Strategy should be when to stop.  Both when to stop playing when you’ve lost a predetermined amount of money and when to stop when you’ve won a pre-determined amount of money.

For instance, if you do a $40, $50 or $100 buy-in on a table game, the Personal Playing Strategy (PPS) we cover in The Blackjack Workshop would tell you to play with half of that buy-in and it goes, move to a different table.  To take it a step further, every time you accumulate as much in front of your reserve as you bought in with and you still have enough for 5 to 8 hands in front, add the extra to your reserve. 

When things start to change – and they will – bring out one more half buy-in worth of chips to the front of your reserve to play with and if that goes, leave.  Some people do better to set a dollar win amount and stop at that point.  Whichever you choose to do factor some pattern of how you stack your chips into.  Separate them into won money and money you’ll play with and don’t lose sight of the fact that it is money.  One game is not going to continue to pay forever.  Have an exit strategy.

Visit http://LowdownReports.com/BJWBlog/ for more information on playing a consistently winning game of casino Blackjack.  Blackjack is universally accepted as the most even odds casino game available to play – play it well.

Slot play is a little different in that most slot play now is done with paper tickets that show your credits.  I have certain machines I like to play for various reasons and I’m sure you do also.  I’ve won more jackpots on Double Diamond machines and that’s because I play Double Diamonds more than any others.

On the video picture machines my favorites are 911 – Wheel-of-Fortune – Jackpot Party, Larry Lobster and a new semi-favorite Leopard Spots.  911 has a progressive jackpot that does come up and pays some very nice secondary jackpots fairly regularly.  Wheel-of-Fortune has possible multiple payouts, plus several nice built-in bonuses.  Jackpot Party and Super Jackpot Party pay very nicely if you’re lucky enough to find a machine that will pull up the Jackpot Party.  Just like the Meltdown and Haywire machines – not all of them give you the extra spins.  There are also pitfalls with Larry Lobster and Leopard Spots – there are some nice pays on the screen but you want the bonuses coming up on a regular basis to make money on the game.

If you’re lucky enough to get on a machine that is paying, stay with it but set yourself a stop point.  My usual routine is to punch the button 10 times or so and if there is no payback, I cash out and then put the ticket back in and try another 10.  If I’ve had a little run with the machine and the credits are up I will tuck that ticket away and start with new money.  Then if the machine doesn’t do anything else I’m not tempted to keep playing with that won money until it’s gone.  That way you have something to cash in when you leave.

Good Luck!

Chances are you now have more opportunity to play that ever before.  Pick your times to play carefully.  I always seem to do better from midnight to 6 a.m.  Others tell me if they play other than mornings, they might just as well throw the money away.  Whenever you play you want to stay in control.  The only time I’m going to caution you against is Friday and Saturday evenings.  That’s when the folks who work are off and flood to the local casino and to the destination resorts.  Especially in Las Vegas during a convention.

Hopefully you have a good Money Management system in place.  That means that you know how much you’re going to play with each time you play.  If you carry your ATM cards or other cash access methods pre-determine your limit.  Most of the time things will not work the way you want them to and when the play is like that there isn’t much point in throwing good money after gone money.  Many of us do it just because we want to play, but try to build your reserve against doing that kind of thing.  Come back another time.

Every jackpot I have ever hit has been on a machine that started paying right from the beginning – never on one I sat and played for hours just because I wanted to play.  You need to be able to move around and try different machines and if you’re playing on a busy night when most of the machines are full you diminish your chances of finding that winning machine.

You should always have an air of confidence about you when you play.  Expect to win.  Expect to do well, but if you don’t remember it’s just a machine – go find another one or call it a night and live to try another day.   There will be times that you play and everything just falls into place nicely.  Doesn’t happen often, but when it does, enjoy it because no amount of wishing will make it happen when you want it to.

Casino Gaming is a very expensive proposition unless the gaming gods smile upon you.  They will, once in awhile, but the sad truth is that you will – jackpots aside – always lose more than you win.

One of the most common reasons that people lose more than they win is that they like to play, and it costs money to play.

When you decide to visit the casino of your choice you should do two important things:

1.  Decide how much money you can afford to play with and take that much cash with you.
2.  Do not take any debit or ATM cards through the casino door with you.

Your worst enemy in a casino is that little voice that jumps up to convince you – “Sure, go ahead and give it one more try.  Your Luck is bound to change.”  Luck has very little do with it.  Mathematical percentages are much more of a sure thing than Lady Luck will ever be.

All gambling games are based on percentages.  You need to really understand those percentages if you hope to show some profit from time to time.

Each game will be different.  Table games, for the most part, have a much lower payback rate.  Slots pay the most when you play the max credits. However, if you play slots with the max credits all of the time you won’t last very long.

Make mental notes about the games and the machines you choose to play. 

If you’re playing a penny slot machine you can probably wager anywhere from 45 to 495 credits.  That 495 credits is only a nickel away from $5 and if your playing budget is $100, it won’t take long to go through that.  All of the machines have a pay table built in and you can access it from the game screen.  That pay table will tell you what the different combinations will pay.

However, the trick to what you will be paid is how many credits you choose to play.  That’s where the studying comes in.  You should never play a machine for less than half of the max credits and playing one or two below the max credits will keep you playing a little longer to see if you’ll hit something significant.

What you want to study when you play is how many credits each of the levels pay back when two, three or more of the symbols are hit.

Most don’t pay anything on two symbols but some do.  Lobstermania for example.  If you get two Lobsters or two of the Lobstermania, or a Lobstermania and a lobster which is considered a wild symbol you receive a payout.  Two of any of the other symbols doesn’t pay a thing.  However for three matching symbols you’ll receive a payoff.

Many machines diminish the payout depending on how many of the symbols show up in the proper configuration.  And generally that is the case because when you drop your bet you are playing less lines.  So if the correct combination comes up on a line you’re not playing, you will not be paid for it.

Study those differences and know the odds in the games you play.

Understand The Percentages Of The Games – HE vs. BJ vs. Roulette vs. Craps

Throughout these sessions I’ve been writing about the probabilities of the games, the percentages.  That really is something you should know and understand – certainly for table games and then for the slots that you choose to play.  We’ll cover slots another day, for now let’s talk about percentages for table games.

If you want to know the true odds of each of the games against the house find one of those books I’ve been telling you about.  My remarks are based on what I’ve heard over the years and from the over 100 people who work with me on our Fantasy Casino Parties and what I have observed in actual play.

Blackjack is the most even game against the house.  There is an author, James Swain, who writes some great books with a casino background to the stories.  He works some fascinating things about casino gaming  into his stories.  If you get a chance, check the local bookstore or library and read them.  One of his theories reminds us that, just like in Basic Strategy, those odds change with each card you’re dealt. 

That means that when you hear that Blackjack is almost even odds with the house (technically it’s about a 1.5% edge to the house) it means that it’s only even on the first two cards.  Each card you take changes the odds because you get closer to going over 21 points and being out of the game before the dealer even plays their hand.  Important point to remember.

Roulette has the worst odds along with Baccarat – both games enjoy and international mystique that is beyond me because there are both no-brainer games with absolutely no skill involved.  They’re just pure luck and that is what some players prefer to play with – real or perceived.  Think about this:  Many casinos now show a lighted board on the Roulette table that show you what numbers have come up. 

There is also a valid theory that asks if you really think the casinos are going to give you information that will help you beat their game.

Craps is another game altogether.  What you hope to have happen in Craps is that the shooter gets a hold of the dice and keeps rolling numbers that pay so that the wagers you have on the table will continue to pay as long as good numbers are rolling.  Certain numbers pay differently at different times in the game.  Go to our www.FantasyCasinoDealers.com website and click into the Play the Games button and take a look at the rules for Craps, the Easy Way.  It’s really all you need to know to play the game. You’ll learn the other wagers as you go along, but that primer is great basic information. 

A good example of what you need to know on the Craps table is the Big 6/Big 8 wager in the corner of the table.  It’s a one time wager and pays even money.  If you place the same wager on the 6 and 8 across the top (the point numbers) those wagers will continue to ride with each time the shooter rolls and most likely will pay multiple times – 6, 7, and 8 are the most frequently rolled numbers in a Craps game.  A 7 takes it all for the house, but the 6 and 8 will pay continually on many rolls.

Those are the percentages of the games that you need to understand before you play casino games.  That knowledge is what will keep you ahead of the House.

Each game has beginning wagers that offer better odds or that a player will feel “work” for them.  The trick to surviving at casino gaming is to wager low and easy to start with and then press your wagers when you have won house money to advance on.  Money management is the term applied to wagering strategies and they will be different for each game.  The part that stays the same is that you have a pre-determined begining, mid, and high-end wager and that you stay with it.

On Craps you determine what your Pass Line wager will be, whether you’re going to wager on the Hard Ways or press wagers on the Point numbers across the top of the board or play the Come line.

On Roulette you determine what to play for the even money payouts, the 2 to 1 payouts and how much to wager on other patterns. 

On both Craps and Roulette have a predetermined number of wagers that you will have in both games and don’t go past it.  Once your wagers begin to pay back that is the time to spread your wagers a little – but again, do it on house winnings, not on your basic bank.

If Blackjack us you game, mentally divide you playing bank into units and wager 1, 2, 3, or 4 units consistently and then up you wager with money you’ve won.

What this pattern betting or money management will ensure – hopefully – is that you’re in the game with minimum wagers.  If odds are with the house you’re not going to lose too much.  If odds are with the players you’ll get paid house winnings and be able to advance your wagering and enjoy a larger win overall.

There is no way to know when you first walk up to a table how the game is going to go.  Sometimes the addition of one player – you – will turn the odds around.  Sometimes that new player will improve the odds – you just never know.

Some people have a better sense for the mathematical probabilities of the games and if you do, use it.  Understand the percentages and work them.  If you don’t have that skill figure out what works for you and stay with it.  Always keep your mind open to the possibilities of changing something in your PPS but only change if the indications are favorable and then stay with it.  It’s when you switch back and forth that you shoot yourself in the foot.

Hold’em, Pai Gow and other casino games all have their own odds and buy-ins.  If those are the games you prefer, take the above information and apply it to the principle of the game you enjoy and determine a money management strategy before you begin to play.

Each game has beginning wagers that offer better odds or that a player will feel “work” for them.  The trick to surviving at casino gaming is to wager low and easy to start with and then press your wagers when you have won house money to advance on.  Money management is the term applied to wagering strategies and they will be different for each game.  The part that stays the same is that you have a pre-determined begining, mid, and high-end wager and that you stay with it.

On Craps you determine what your Pass Line wager will be, whether you’re going to wager on the Hard Ways or press wagers on the Point numbers across the top of the board or play the Come line.

On Roulette you determine what to play for the even money payouts, the 2 to 1 payouts and how much to wager on other patterns. 

On both Craps and Roulette have a predetermined number of wagers that you will have in both games and don’t go past it.  Once your wagers begin to pay back that is the time to spread your wagers a little – but again, do it on house winnings, not on your basic bank.

If Blackjack us you game, mentally divide you playing bank into units and wager 1, 2, 3, or 4 units consistently and then up you wager with money you’ve won.

What this pattern betting or money management will ensure – hopefully – is that you’re in the game with minimum wagers.  If odds are with the house you’re not going to lose too much.  If odds are with the players you’ll get paid house winnings and be able to advance your wagering and enjoy a larger win overall.

There is no way to know when you first walk up to a table how the game is going to go.  Sometimes the addition of one player – you – will turn the odds around.  Sometimes that new player will improve the odds – you just never know.

Some people have a better sense for the mathematical probabilities of the games and if you do, use it.  Understand the percentages and work them.  If you don’t have that skill figure out what works for you and stay with it.  Always keep your mind open to the possibilities of changing something in your PPS but only change if the indications are favorable and then stay with it.  It’s when you switch back and forth that you shoot yourself in the foot.

Hold’em, Pai Gow and other casino games all have their own odds and buy-ins.  If those are the games you prefer, take the above information and apply it to the principle of the game you enjoy and determine a money management strategy before you begin to play.