Where did Bugsy hide the FULL-PAYS?
January 2, 2009
Dear Mark: I have
experienced what you state about two machines
sitting next to each other with different
payouts, such as 9/6 and 8/5, and so on. My
question is when a nickel machine lists 9/6, and
a quarter machine also lists 9/6, does the
player on the nickel machine playing five
nickels get the same payout odds as he is
getting for a quarter machine? Red D.
I haven’t seen a true, “full pay,” 9/6 Jacks or
Better nickel machine since Bugsy Siegel opened
the Flamingo. Okay, I’m a bit off on the
timeline in that I wasn’t born yet, and Video
Draw Poker didn’t appear until 1979, but truth
be told, it’s been many, many moons since I’ve
sat in front of one.
Shrewd video poker players understand the
difference between full-pay and partial-pay
machines. The full-payers shell out the maximum
for each winning hand; the partials don't. For
instance, if you can find a full-pay Jacks or
Better nickel machine that pays 9 coins for a
full house, 6 for a flush, and 2 for two pair,
you can expect a return rate, if each hand is
correctly played, of approximately 99.5%, making
it an attractive machine to be playing on.
Possibly, Red, that 9/6 nickel machine you speak
of may return 9-for-1 on a Full House, and
6-for-1 for a Flush, but it probably is
considered a partial-pay machine because the
machine only pays 1-for-1 for two pairs.
As to your question, Red, all things being
equal, the nickel paytable looks like this,
Royal flush 250-for-1; Straight Flush 50-for-1;
Four of a kind 25-for-1; Full House 9-for-1;
Flush 6-for-1; Straight 4-for-1; Three-of-a-Kind
3-for-1; Two Pair 2-for-1; pair of Jacks or
Better 1-for-1, yes, the payout odds would be
exactly the same on a similar quarter machine.
Otherwise, just by getting paid even money on
two pairs, you’re giving the house an extra
five-plus percent on your play.
Dear Mark: Won't the dramatic drop in
slots play at casinos due to the economy also
dramatically drop the payouts, since the number
of spins is greatly reduced? If so,
doesn't this increase the house edge well above
the already sinful double digits they now enjoy?
N.D.
Since each yank of the handle is a random
independent event, no matter if it’s the first
or the kazillionth, the percentages of "house
edge,” and of payout to you, would remain the
same. The casino “hold,” what the casino
anticipates to be its win, would also be
unaffected. The "hold" percentage is nothing
more than the ratio of coins the casino keeps to
the total coins inserted, which is measured over
an eight hour period, then by the day, month,
quarter, etc. For example, if a slot machine in
a particular casino has a payback of 92%, the
expected casino hold on this game is 8%, and
that wouldn’t change due to lack of play.
What changes, if there is a downturn in action,
would be the casino “drop”. Also known as the
Gross Casino Win, the casino drop refers to the
total amount of money collected by the casino
from any one -- or from all -- gaming machines,
whether in cash, coins, or both.
Since the actual total value of all money
received by the casino from all players, all
games combined, has been reduced significantly
during this current economic decline, the casino
drop is reduced, but not your chances of
winning.
Gambling Wisdom of the Week:
“The lamb that thinks he’s a lion is the
mother’s milk of gamblers.” --Pat Bush, How to
Win the World Series of Poker
