Read the beginning of this material in the previous post on this blog.
Video poker
The odds on a video poker game are greatly dependent on your skill as a player.
First, choose only those machines that pay full scale winnings. Each category of payoff is important, but a rule of thumb is 250 coins for a royal flush or 4000 coins for a royal flush under a 5 coin play when you are playing Video Jacks or Better – keep any full house or better. Hold a flush or straight except when drawing to a four card royal flush. With a four card flush, three card royal flush, four card straight, three card straight flush, three of a kind, two pair, single pair empty your hand to these holds and draw to fill. Draw three to two high cards and draw four to one high card.
Black Jack
Black Jack is another very popular casino game. It takes a serious and determined player to master the strategies to accomplish this. NEVER think that because you can tip the odds in your favor that you will win all of the time. EVERYONE looses some of the time so NEVER play with money you can’t afford to loose.
First since the ace is countable as either one or 11, any hand you hold that contains an ace is a special hand – it can be counted low, with the ace as one, or it can be counted high, with the ace as 11. This two-way hand follows needs some special strategy rules. First, start out counting it as a high hand. Then if the dealer’s showing card is an eight, nine, ten, or ace, you should stand on a count of 19 or more and draw to a count of 18 or less. But if the dealer’s showing card is a two, three, four, five, or six, stand on a count of 18 or more and draw to a count of 17 or less.
The strategy for a regular hand is a bit more involved. Whether you stand or draw is always determined by the dealer’s showing card. If the dealer is showing a two, three, or four, you stand on 13 or more. If the dealer is showing a five or six, you stand on 12 or more. If the dealer is showing a seven, eight, or nine, you stand on 17 or more. If the dealer is showing a ten or ace, you stand on 16 or more.
Notice that in using this strategy, you will always draw to a count of two to 11 and always stand on a count of 17 or more as long as you are not holding a two-way hand.
When you are offered the option of doubling down use it in this manner: when you are holding nine, double down when the dealer is showing a two, three, four, five, or six. When you are holding ten, double down unless the dealer is showing a 10-count or an ace. When you are holding an eleven, always double down. When you are holding a two-way hand with a count of 12, 13, 14, 15,16, or 17, double down when the dealer is showing a six.
When you are offered the option of splitting pairs: split twos and threes when the dealer is showing an eight, nine, ten, or ace. Never split fours, fives, sixes, or tens. Split sevens when the dealer is showing two, three, four, five, six, seven, or eight. Don’t split eights unless the dealer is showing a nine or ten. Don’t split nines unless the dealer is showing a seven, ten, or ace. Never split tens. Always split aces when it is an option.
When you are offered the option of doubling down: when you are holding a count of ten double down unless the dealer is showing a 10-count or an ace. When you are holding a count of eleven always double down. If you are holding a two-way hand with a count of 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, or 17, double down when the dealer is showing a six. Don’t double down on other counts.
If you are offered the option of early surrender: when the dealer is showing an ace, surrender 5, 7, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17 unless you have a two-way hand. When the dealer is showing a 10-count, surrender 14, 15, 16 unless you have a two way hand. When the dealer is showing 9, surrender 6, 7, 9, 10.
There have been some new options offered recently in some casinos. Be very wary of these, especially the ones with attractive pay-offs. Most of them have very poor odds for you.
It is a good idea to find a table where the casino is not doing too well. When you find a winning table, play it. There is, of course, no guarantee that the house loosing streak will continue.
Under no circumstances increase your bets in hope of recovering losses. When you are having a good day and your cards are running strong, go ahead, increase your bets. When things begin to sour, leave the table and go home. No strategy will work well if you don’t know every rule. You must study and practice your strategy. And remember, your bankroll must never exceed what you can afford to loose.