"Stingy" slots, "tight"
videos, and that ever-trusty Pass line
29 December 2006
By Mark Pilarski
Dear Mark: Are not slot machines programmed to
pay off a particular percentage of money bet,
and then after a jackpot has been hit the
machine will tighten up and not pay out a
jackpot until one has not been hit for a long
time? Rachael S.
Part of your question gets a yes, Rachael, in
that a slot machine is programmed to pay off a
particular percentage. However, a jackpot is
equally as likely to be hit on any given spin,
regardless of the length of time played or past
results. We can't amend the laws of probability,
which dictate that the longer the machine is
played, the closer it will come to its target
payoff. But every spin is completely random.
Dear Mark: Someone recently sent you a question,
which referred to 'tight' video poker machines.
Do the casinos program a video poker machine in
a way that limits good hands? I was under the
impression that video poker was the same as
playing five-card draw with a deck of cards,
with the deck being continually shuffled. I
understood that the casinos made their money
mainly by improper play and tighter pay
schedules. Am I correct in my assumptions?
Daniel N.
You are dead on, Daniel. It is poor play by
patrons and ignored paytables that return far
less than true odds that allow the casino
operators to sleep easy. Insomnia can occur when
players play correctly and seek out the best pay
schedules available.
Dear Mark: If as you claim the Don't Pass is a
slightly better bet than the Pass line, how come
so few people bet on it? Calvin S.
There are a couple of reasons, Calvin, probably
the biggest being that most players don't even
know that the Don't Pass wager is a slightly
better bet. Also, those who place their wagers
on the Pass line do so because they enjoy the
camaraderie of rooting for the shooter to make
his or her point, and not for the house winning
when the seven appears.
It is certainly more fun to go with the crowd
than against it, and for what? -- the minuscule
difference of a 1.40% casino advantage on the
Don't pass versus 1.41% on the Pass line bet.
Dear Mark: After the point was established, I
made (by mistake) a second Pass line bet. The
seven rolled before the point and I lost both
wagers. Is this fair, even if the dealer
realized what I was doing? A.A.
The dealer isn't employed by the casino to
mentor player competence.
What you did is legal, that is, making a Pass
line bet at any time. Obviously, you now realize
that you should never make a Pass line bet or
add to it after a point is established, since
once a point is thrown the odds of winning drop
significantly depending on that point.
The dealer would have slapped your wrist had you
reached in and tried to snag your second Pass
line bet because once a point has been
established, that wager is considered a contract
wager, and must stay in place, win or lose.
Contrarily, on the Don't side, you can, but you
should never remove a Don't pass bet after a
point is made since there are more ways for a
seven to appear than for any point number. This
is why you cannot add to a Don't pass bet after
an established point, because it would favor the
player.
Gambling Wisdom of the Week: "I think, I think,
that the whole magic power of gambling lies in
its essential purity from endeavor, in its
absence of guilt." -- Mario Puzo
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