If you win a lot of money on your first visit at a casino, they will offer you a free room for the night. That is a fact. You should accept the welcoming gesture but here’s a tip: don’t wager any more money. You were lucky to make so much money at the first place, since they say casino newcomers are always lucky. That is a myth. At least half of newcomers will lose money. And even for lucky ones such as yourself, you are going to give it all back, the more you keep playing.
Gaming in a casino isn’t easy money. That is also a myth. And Lady Luck isn’t blind, either. She favors the casino, because it has an edge against you. Surely, it seems a tiny one when you compare 2% with any other percentile. But try multiplying it with the total amount of money you are going to bet on your next visit. You see, the casino takes off 2% of every wager you place. That’s how they stay in business.
At first glance, that edge isn’t obvious. Say, you bet $10 on roulette’s black and you win. Where’s the edge? Nowhere, because truly you were lucky to win the first spin. You bet again on black and win another tenner. After 10 spins, you’ve won half of them so you have broke even. Still, no edge for the casino, right?
Now, after 3 hours of playing at the roulette tables, you’ve won 49 out of the 100 ball spins. You are now down $20, while totally wagering $1,000. Here’s the casino’s edge. But how did that happen?
During the 100 spins, the ball landed twice on zero. Thus, whatever the color you picked, you lost. You didn’t mind at the time, because you only lose a bet. However, in the long run casino has made money due to that ball’s landing! And that’s where its profit is coming from. You certainly didn’t play all alone at the roulette. All the gamblers around you, were paying 2% to the casino for having fun. They didn’t notice, until they returned their chips for money.
Yes, some left as winners and a few may have tripled their money! Those gamblers were the lucky ones. The rest left with less money. Some even left with empty pockets! In total, the casino won 2% of the money wagered by all gamblers. If you lost exactly 2%, you were neither lucky nor unlucky. Your loss is exactly the amount of money you were supposed to lose. But if you won 5%, Lady Luck will make sure you won’t stay that lucky for long!
There are a lot of myths such as this one regarding casino games and games of chance. Gamblers are prone to superstitions, prejudice and misjudgment. In blackjack, no one ever hits 16 if sitting at the last seat, contrary to blackjack’s Basic Strategy. They believe they have an ‘edge’ by letting the dealer bust with the next card. What they do not understand is that by standing on 16, they increase casino’s edge. Maybe not much, but still they are throwing money away. More money that they were expected to lose.
As soon as you stop believing these myths and follow helpful tips, you’ll stand a better chance against the casinos. Casino guides usually publish news about the newest slots that casinos introduce, but in-between those articles, you’ll find tips that will not only save you money but even help you beat the casino games.
One step at a time though. Before beating the casinos, questioning and busting myths while studying casino tips will improve your gaming skills, eventually decreasing casino’s edge against you. Upon minimizing that edge, it’s your turn to come up with a strategy that will guarantee a positive edge for yourself. Card counting in blackjack is one of those strategies.
Image by Jamie McCaffrey
