Free money when using
match play coupons
16 February 2007
By Mark Pilarski
Dear Mark: By showing my driver's license at our
local casino, I get a casino "fun" book. One of
the coupons in it is a Match Play coupon for
$10. What would you recommend as a bet when
using it. Danny H.
Match Play coupons are often found in casino fun
books and can often be had by going up to the
casino cage and just asking for one. When a
player uses a match play coupon with a real
"even money" bet, then the match play will be
converted to a like amount in cash if the player
wins. For example, if the player has a $10 match
play coupon and pairs it with a $10 wager in
blackjack, and if the player wins, his $10 will
win $10 and his match play will be converted to
ten real bucks. Win or lose, the match play
coupon is then taken out of play. In the event
of a push, as often happens in blackjack, the
match play coupon stays in play until the bet is
resolved. If the player happens to get a
blackjack, the coupon is converted to its face
value, in your case $10, and not $15.
The competition to accompany the match play
coupon with your hard-earned cash should be
limited to wagers that have less that a two
percent house edge. My favorite would be one
hand of blackjack, but you wouldn't go wrong
with a bank or player hand in baccarat, or a
pass line bet or placing the six or eight in
craps.
Each of these bets has less than a 1.5 percent
casino advantage, which makes the true value of
a match play coupon slightly less than half of
its face value, since the probability of winning
any of them is also less than half.
Dear Mark: If I am using perfect basic strategy,
does it matter how far in the deck the dealer
goes before shuffling? Sandy A.
How far through the deck the dealer goes before
shuffling is called deck penetration, which is
usually expressed as the percentage of the deck
already dealt. So, Sandy, for example, on a
double deck game, "75 percent" would be 78 cards
already played.
Penetration is extremely important to card
counters because it appraises the quality of
cards remaining in the deck before the dealer
shuffles, but that information is not essential
for basic strategy players like you. There is no
advantage to the basic strategy player whether
the dealer were to allow 50 percent penetration,
then shuffle, or plunge on to the 90 percent
penetration level.
Dear Mark: In a poker game that uses wild cards,
which is higher, five of a kind or a royal
flush? Danny F.
Unless otherwise stated, Danny, the
five-of-a-kind typically beats a royal flush.
Dear Mark: What is the house edge for both Three
Card and Four Card poker? Les L.
With Three Card Poker, (and using this one
simple strategy rule: bet with Queen-6-4 or
better, fold with anything less), the house edge
is 2.0 percent of the ante, or 3.4 percent of
total action.
As for Four Card Poker, take notes, Les. When
you use this simple strategy when putting up
your ante -- pair of 2's or less, fold; pair of
3's through 9's, bet 1x ante; pair of 10's or
better, bet 3x ante. The ante and the play bet
combined give a house edge of about 3.36% of the
initial bet.
Gambling Wisdom of the Week: "To gamble is to
risk, that is, to approach the "ruin factor."
When I was poor the ruin factor was not
important. Hell, I was ruined anyway." --Mario Puzo
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