Shufflin' off to Pyramids
and Deep Caves
8 September 2006
By Mark Pilarski
Dear Mark,
I consider myself your typical blackjack player,
out there to have some fun, and like you always
say in your column, only spend the money that I
can afford to lose. But lately it seems I'm
losing more money at blackjack, and I think it
is due to continuous shuffling machines. Do
these machines affect the odds in blackjack? Joe
D.
Although perpetual shufflers make it next to
impossible for card counters, continuous
shuffling machines do NOT affect the odds of the
game for basic strategy players, or Average Joes
like you. However, continuous shuffling machines
and non-continuous shufflers alike will take
more of a bite out of your bankroll than will a
hand-shuffled game.
With continuous shuffling machines, the dealer
never has to break to shuffle cards, and this,
Joe, increases the number of hands dealt per
hour, giving more of an opportunity for the
casino advantage to peck away at your bankroll.
But my biggest dislike about ceaseless shuffling
is the loss of personal contact between the
table player and the dealer. In the short span
of time it took me to shuffle cards, I've traded
avocado dip recipes, five-star sport picks for
the weekend; I've even become life-long friends
with many a player. That camaraderie is
completely lost when continuous shufflers are
used.
It seems today that far too many casinos stress
hands-per-hour over customer service, and in the
long run I feel it's a bad deal for all.
Dear Mark,
A quick follow up question to a past column
regarding Pyramid Poker. You mentioned in a
future column providing the optimal strategy for
it. Any chance you can post it? Pete P.
As a refresher, Pete, Pyramid Poker is a
simplified version of Pai Gow poker, where,
instead of seven cards, three cards are dealt to
each player. Once both the dealer and players
are dealt their three cards, the players arrange
their hands so each has a two-card hand and a
one-card hand. As in Pai Gow Poker, the one-card
hand must have a lower value than the two-card
hand. The hand rankings are just the same as in
poker except there are no straights or flushes
with the two-card hand, and aces are always
high.
The following, Pete, is the optimal player
strategy for Pyramid Poker.
If you're dealt three singletons, play the
middle-valued card as the one-card hand, except
play the lowest card as the 1-card hand with any
of the following hands: 2, 3, and any card 5 or
higher, or 2, 4, and any card queen or higher.
With a pair and a loner, normally play the pair
in the 2-card hand, except with any of the
following:
With a 2 to 4 loner and a pair of jacks or
higher, or................
with a 5 to 7 loner and a pair of queens or
higher, or ...............
with an 8 or 9 loner and a pair of kings or
higher, or ..............
with a 10 or jack loner and a pair of aces,
split the pair, one in the 2-card hand and the
other as the 1-card hand.
Dear Mark,
Do you ever foresee a casino adjoining the
nuclear waste site in Nevada when it comes
online? Gurth T.
I believe Yucca Mountain, Nevada, the nation's
first long-term geologic repository for spent
nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste,
will forever be off limits to casino gambling
since NASA has secured 20 square miles of
surrounding federal land in case they ever want
to fake another moon landing.
Gambling Wisdom of the Week: "In the long run
there's no luck in poker, but the short run is
longer than most people know." -- Rick Bennet
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