Free Trip to the Chow
Line for System Player
2 February 2007
By Mark Pilarski
Dear Mark: I have been working on a system for
roulette for the past six months. I have run it
in practice mode for 5,000 individual spins on
my computer, and 500 times on a live game. At
present, I am showing a two percent edge against
the house. What is your recommended amount of
spins necessary to see if my system will work?
Nate R.
For starters, Nate, there is no system that can
beat the game of roulette over the long haul.
The more practice spins you employ, and believe
me 5,500 is far from enough, the closer the
ratio of your current net win to the total
amount bet will get to the house edge of 5.26%.
Some would suggest that by putting a betting
system to the test, you would need to be romping
in the neighborhood of at least one million to
five million spins. I highly recommend not
wasting over 1,000 days playing 24/7 watching a
ball go round and round.
Here's the bottom line. Casino operators don't
spend big bucks building mega-resorts so that
some "system player" named Nate can come in to
give them a whooping. As a matter of fact, show
them a certified bankroll, tell them you've got
a roulette system you'd like to try, and besides
the limo ride in, you'll at least get your fair
share of room, food and beverage, up to the
point where your bankroll has shifted banks.
Dear Mark: With 6 for 5 for blackjacks becoming
so prevalent, what is the correct strategy for
playing the game? Sal M.
How about not playing at all, Sal. And -- why
so? -- you ask. Because the house edge, where
you are paid 6 to 5 for a blackjack is 1.44%
under the normal playing conditions. This is
simply giving far too much back to the house.
As you stated, Sal, the game has become "so
prevalent," and that's because wide-eyed players
continue to play it. And yet, I believe the
blame doesn't fall mostly on the shoulders of
the house, but on the blithely uninformed masses
whose tail ends are shining up the Naugahyde
stools while feeding this god-awful game.
Dear Mark: I was down to my last hand money-wise
in blackjack and I was dealt an 11 and the
dealer was showing a six. Obviously the smart
move was to double down, but I didn't have any
more money. You mentioned before in a past
column to ask anyone you knew on the game if
they wanted to front you, or wanted a piece of
the action, but I didn't know any players on the
table and was a bit bashful about asking. I took
a hit, got a three, stood on it, and the dealer
had a 10 as a hole card, got an eight and
busted. What did I give up to the casino by not
doubling down? Mary K.
What, no secret stash, Mary? Anyhow, you still
only took one card and that had no effect on the
outcome of your hand, nor would it have, had you
had cash on hand and doubled down.
But to answer your question, the normal house
edge in blackjack using basic strategy, which
includes doubling when the opportunity presents
itself, is usually 0.4% to 0.6%, depending on
the rules. By not doubling down, you increase
the house edge by 1.9%, so by not doubling, the
overall casino advantage would be 2.3% to 2.5%.
Gambling Wisdom of the Week:
"The Vegas strip must contain more elegance and
extravagance per square inch than anywhere in
the known universe." --Rob Wiser
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