GAMES TO AVOID “N
ever play the slot machines unless it’s purely for entertainment, and you can aff ord to lose money,”
declares professional gambler Greg Elder. “They’re the most popular games in the casino because they’re easy to play, and you don’t have to think too much.” But he says there’s a reason so many casinos make
them readily available: “When you realize that 70 percent of all casino gambling revenue comes from the slots . . . enough said.” Rule out roulette, too. Roulette is a game shunned by professional gamblers, “for the good reason that there’s no way of getting the odds in your favor,” says Elder. To make it more confusing,
some casinos have two diff erent types of roulette wheel: the European version, which has a single green zero among the red and black numbers, and the American version, which has a double zero. Elder says, “It really breaks my
VIDEO POKER If you fancy pitting wits against a machine in video
poker, the one to choose, recommends Elder, is a game called “9/6 Jacks or Better” because it has a higher payout. And here again, he says, there are perfectly legal cheat sheets — like one available on
WizardofOdds.com — to help you make wise poker decisions. “Say you have a pair of aces. It will tell you which cards
to keep and which to get rid of in that situation,” he says of the helpful player advantage sheet, adding, “and if you play ‘9/6’ mathematically correctly you can lower the house edge to one-half of 1 percent.”
CRAPS Craps can be an excellent game for the unsophisticated
bettor, Elder says. The best strategy here is to make either of two simple bets. “The foundation of craps is the ‘pass line,’ where you’re
betting on the person rolling the dice, and the ‘don’t pass line,’ where you’re betting against him or her,” he says. On the fi rst roll, put your chips on the “pass” line to win
on a 7 or 11, and the casino’s advantage is 1.36 percent. You win on the “don’t pass” bet with a 2, 3, or 12 and the edge is down to 1.31 percent. “The key is to stick to those two basic bets,” he advises,
because other more complicated bets in craps can send the casino advantage soaring as high as 14 percent.
heart to see people choosing to play the American version, having no idea that the two zeroes double the house’s advantage to about 5 percent.” Keno big board, “is probably
the worst deal in the house,” he says. “Even if you bet on just three numbers, you have a 10 percent disadvantage, and if you try to get 12 out of 12 numbers, it shoots up to 40 percent. The overall return on keno at Las Vegas casinos is between 20 and 30 percent. You’d be better off playing the lottery.”
ROULETTE
SLOT MACHINES
KENO
BACCARAT The baccarat table — often mysteriously shut off behind
velvet ropes and with a high minimum bet — can be the most intimidating place in the casino for casual gamblers. But Elder asserts: “The game is actually very simple. The object is to see whose cards get closest to the number 9, and there are only three bets you need to know. You can bet on the dealer’s hand, on your hand, or on a tie.” His advice? “Never bet on a tie — the house edge is
over 14 percent. But the casino’s advantage on the player’s hand is only 1.24 percent, and the dealer hand brings it down to 1.06 percent, making them two of the best bets you’ll fi nd.”
MAY 2013 | NEWSMAX MAXLIFE 79
ROULETTE/JUPITERIMAGES/COMSTOCK IMAGES/GETTY IMAGES / SLOT MACHINE/JOE RAEDLE/PHOTONICA WORLD/GETTY IMAGES
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