Casino Games That Can Be Beat

There is a group of gamblers known as “advantage gamblers” or “advantage players” (AP’s) that only gamble when the odds are in their favor. Most casino games are designed to have a “house advantage.” That means the mathematical odds are in the favor of the casino. This is why casinos are so profitable. Advantage gamblers find opportunities where they can turn the odds in their favor and beat certain casino games. This is not viable on all casino games and it certainly isn’t easy, but it is possible. Here are some of the more common ways that AP’s gain an advantage over the casinos.

Blackjack

Blackjack is probably the most notorious of the positive expectation games in the casino. There have been many books written, and movies made, about advantage card counters. These players use a system of counting cards, betting, and game selection, that enables them to gain an advantage. This system removes the house advantage and puts the odds in favor of the player. Card counting takes some time to master and can be difficult to implement in the casino environment. See: Learn more about blackjack card counting.

Sports Betting

The casinos do have a built-in advantage in sports gambling. The edge comes from the vigorish or “vig.” This is a 10 percent bonus that is paid to the casino. It’s almost like a tax for being able to place a wager. A 10 percent disadvantage is difficult to beat, but there are sports gamblers that can find certain wagers that put the odds in their favor. The odds, or “line,” given by casinos in sporting events are not fixed mathematical odds. Although the “lines” are often statistically based, there is a certain element of subjectivity that advantage gamblers look to exploit. They find weaknesses in the “lines” and use those weaknesses to negate the “vig.”

Video Poker

Many people think of video poker as a game similar to slot machines. While it is played on a similar machine, video poker can be played with skill. In fact, if the correct game is played with mathematical certainty, the player can have the advantage over the casino. Advantage video poker players only play what are known as positive expectation games. These games can be played with a payback percentage over 100 percent. They will also use casino “comps” and rewards to further their advantage. See: Learn how to play perfect video poker.

Poker

The biggest difference between poker, and the rest of the games mentioned, is that poker is played against other players. The casinos are guaranteed a percentage of the pot known as “the rake.” Players are competing against one another, not against the casino. In order to have the advantage at the poker table, you only have to be better than those around you. Of all the games, poker probably has the most opportunities for those who aspire to be advantage gamblers.

Horse Racing

Betting on horses can be done with an advantage. Similar to betting on sports, AP’s “handicap” horse races to quantify and predict the outcome. There is a fairly significant advantage built-in to the odds of each race. Horse racing is difficult to beat, but there have been a select few who have been successful over a long period of time.

Other Games

There are other games and techniques that can be played with an advantage in specific situations. For instance, edge sorting in baccarat and other card games, hole-carding in various casino card games, card counting side bets, and shuffle tracking, can be played with an advantage. Most of these techniques are not common knowledge among the general public and are only used by a very small percentage of gamblers.

There are certain casino games that can be played with a statistical advantage. Advantage gambling often requires a great deal of skill and knowledge, but it is possible in certain situations. Most casino games are heavily weighted in favor of the house, but there are a few situations where advantage players can put the odds in their favor.

5 Tips to Managing Your Money in a Casino

Money management is a term that applies to everyday life, and you probably know what it is. What you may not know is that it’s extremely important when you walk into a casino. Casinos are designed to take as much money as possible, and even the strictest of players can lose more than they planned if they don’t look out. Learning how to manage your money before you walk in the door is one of the most important tools to minimizing your losses.

Take Only What You Can Afford to Lose

This is the most important rule of money management while gambling. Gambling should be within the realm of culture and entertainment, and you should have an idea how much a night of entertainment is worth. Before you leave, decide how much you can spend without cutting into funds allocated for something else. Walking into a casino with no limit as to how much money you can spend is downright dangerous. Doing so will almost always mean you’ll spend more than you should.

Leave ATM and Credit Cards at Home

Once you’ve decided how much you want to spend, take out that amount of cash before you leave. Then take your identification and leave everything else at home. This is especially true if you know you will be tempted to take out more money. Not only will you not have access to more money, but you’ll likely be more conservative with what you do have. You’ll also be missing out on the high ATM and credit card fees the casino charges to get more money.

Set a Win Limit

When you’re winning, it can seem like you can never get enough. The problem with this thinking is that you will eventually start losing. When you do, you’ll want to get back the money you’ve won, which probably won’t happen again. You can avoid this by deciding beforehand how much is enough. When you’ve hit that limit, force yourself to walk away; you’ll be glad you did tomorrow.

Don’t Chase Your Losses

When you’re losing, it’s easy to think that your luck will turn around eventually, but this isn’t always the case. Remember, the casinos always win, and the longer you play, the more you’ll lose. Learn to see when you’re on a losing streak, and get up. Trying to get your money back will almost always cost your more money. You don’t necessarily have to leave the casino; sometimes just changing tables or even playing a different game can help.

Set Strict Time Limits

Before you leave the house, decide how much time you want to spend at the casino. Money is like time; the more you have the more you’ll lose. If you’re going on a gambling vacation, such as to Las Vegas, set time limits for how much time you’ll be gambling. Plan on doing other activities during your trip to limit your time at the casino and combat boredom that you might face if you’re not gambling. It can be difficult to make yourself leave, but do your best to try.

If you walk into a casino with no idea how much time or money you’ll spend, you will always spend more than you like. Learning how to manage your money is not always easy, but if you like to gamble, it’s crucial to avoiding devastating losses. Setting limits on both your wins and losses will help you walk away. If you walk into the casino knowing what you’ll spend, you will have fun. Treat gambling like entertainment, and you’ll have a much better time.

GAMBLING The Lucky Ladies in Gambling

The culture of gambling is one in its own. There are many different games to play, rules to follow, and bets to be placed. Some games even offer side bets or special bets that unknowledgeable players would be otherwise unaware of. One of these bets is the lucky ladies.

What Are Lucky Ladies?

The lucky ladies are a bonus bet in the game of blackjack. This bet is based off of only the first two cards that a player gets. The goal is to have a total of 20 between the two cards. If a player gets 20, he or she will win a 4 to 1 ratio at minimum. This game is rarely found in casinos today, however there are still some that offer it. Lucky ladies bets are common in online gambling settings.

When Did Lucky Ladies Start Appearing?

The game of blackjack may date back as early as 900AD. History puts players engaging in games with wood blocks in Ancient China and Egypt. The game appeared in Europe in the 13th and 14th centuries. The game was given the name of 21 in the 1800s. Later in 1931, blackjack went main stream in the United States. The ideas of side bets in blackjack including lucky ladies were not introduced until 1963.

When Can This Bet Be Placed?

In order to place a lucky ladies bonus bet, first there must be a standard blackjack bet. After this is done, a bet in a small circle of at least one dollar can be placed. If the first two cards of the hand equal 20, the player wins. Different combinations of 20 result in different amounts of winnings. If the first two cards dealt add up to anything but twenty, the money is lost.

What is the Payoff?

There are several different payoffs for a lucky ladies bet. The payoff is based off of what the first two cards actually are. Different combinations of 20 equal different winnings. If a player bets one dollar and the first two cards equal 20, the player wins four dollars. If the first two cards equal 20 and are the same suit, the player wins nine dollars. If the first two cards equal 20 and are exact matches, the gambler takes $19 in winnings. If the two cards are both the Queen of hearts, the player wins $125. Finally if the two cards are Queen of hearts and the dealer gets a blackjack, the final winnings total $1000. An increase in the original lucky ladies bet will of course increase the payout.

What Are the Odds for Winning?

The house usually has a pretty considerable edge when it comes to lucky ladies bets. For a house dealing with a six deck shoe, the average house edge is around 24 percent. This means that the average player will pay about 10 times as much then a standard blackjack bet. If playing with the same six card deck, the chances of winning the basic total twenty side bet is a 0.89. The probability that a gambler will win the biggest payout of the Queen of Hearts with dealer holding a black Jack is 0.000015.

When sitting down at the blackjack table, consider all the possible options for betting. There are many side bets that are available to gamblers in this culture. Many people miss out on lucky ladies because they are unsure or unaware of the ability to play. Betting usually starts at just a dollar, and the reward can be much greater, if you win.

Capitalizing on Reverse Line Moves

There is only one culture in gambling, and that is to take every advantage available when it comes to winning. Reverse line moves can be a very lucrative when betting on a number of sports as long as you know how to take advantage of it. It takes savvy bettors to fully understand how to take advantage of this type of betting. The bets are always placed on the unpopular side or on the team expected by the majority of bettors to lose.

What Are Reverse Line Moves?

Reverse line moves or RLM occur when a large number of bettors place their bet on one team and despite this, the betting line moves in the opposite direction. A good example of this might be explained in this manner. The Seattle Seahawks opens against the Green Bay Packers at -7. At this point more than 70 percent of the bets are placed on Seattle. At this point you would rightly expect the line to rise, but it doesn’t, instead it drops the Seahawks to a -6. According to RLM this would in fact make the Packers a + 6 bet.

What Causes this Phenomenon?
Since the aim of most bookmakers is to attempt to keep the bets relatively balanced, what causes the RLM? The simplest answer to this is savvy betters. It involves the small percentage of gamblers who make the unpopular bet and in doing so actually bet more money than is bet on the popular team by the larger number of better. This tips the scales in favor of the team who is expected to lose. In the end this becomes a much smarter bet.

When is the Best Time to Place the Bet?

It is important for the better to wait until the appropriate moment to place the bet. Caution is the keyword when it comes to making this type of bet. Many RLM gamblers spend a great deal of time watch the way the movement of the line on every game they plan to place bets on. They will watch the line and wait until the game is almost ready to start before placing their bets. However, by this time it is possible the line may have moved too far rendering their bet practically worthless.

What is the Best Way to Place Your Bet?

According to punters, the best way to place this type of bet is to do so when the line has moved one full point in the reverse direction from the opening line. This is equal to ten points in NHL or ML. This type of betting has its risks as the line can just as easily turn around and move back in the opposite direction. These are the risks you take when gambling, but in the long run this method of betting has a very high record of paying off. If you suffer a line turning around from time to time, the positive aspects of this type of betting will overcome the losses.

Is This a Guaranteed Winner?

As with any type of gambling system, betters want to know if better reverse line moves is a guaranteed winner. The reality is that when it comes to gambling, there are no guarantees. You should restrict the vast majority of your bets to placing them on the teams favored to win. However, if you follow the lines, you have a better than average chance of taking advantage of the RLMs as they occur. There are a number of websites such as Sports Insights offer the latest line movements on all major sports such as NFL, MLB, NHL, NASCAR, and the NBA. Some even tell the movements at individual books to make it easy for you to place the bets that are more likely to pay off.

Betting reverse line moves can be and often is an excellent way to “beat the odds” with regard to a number of professional sports. These are not the type of bets you should make at random. It takes a lot of time and effort to ensure each bet you place has the best chance of being a winner. The reason why so many betters place this type of bet is the payoff. Those who place these types of bets stand to gain far more than they can make when placing standard bets.

The Importance of a Gambling Journal

If you only gamble once or twice a year, then you may not need to maintain a gambling journal. However, if you gamble with any regularity, it is extremely important to keep an accurate record of your gambling results. You will see that the benefits outweigh the inconvenience of keeping track of your play. Most gamblers do not keep a journal when they gamble, and it is usually to their detriment.

Taxes

The gambling tax laws differ from state to state, but there are a few commonalities of which all gamblers need to be aware. A lot of gamblers enter the casino without any consideration of the tax implications. Winnings in casinos are heavily taxed. If you are issued a W-2G, those winnings are reported to the IRS and taxes must be paid. The problem occurs for individuals that receive several W-2G’s but have lost more money than they have won for the year. The government only knows about your winnings and not the losses. In their eyes, these gamblers still owe them money. This is where a gambling journal is essential. If you have an accurate account of all of your wins and losses for the year, it will help you offset the taxes that you owe.

What to Keep in Your Gambling Journal

Every time you gamble, it should be recorded. The journal should include a detailed account of every gambling session. It should include the name of the casino, the times you gambled, what games you played, how much you wagered, and the results. The more information you can include the better. Some gamblers will even write down the serial number of the slot or video poker machine they are playing. It needs to be enough information to satisfy the IRS in case you are audited. A win/loss statement from a casino is not considered a legal tax document. You must have a personally recorded detailed account of every time you made a wager and the results.

Other Benefits of Keeping a Journal

Keeping a gambling log can be tedious and time consuming, but you must realize there are other benefits besides accurate tax records. By recording your results, it gives a clear picture of your wins and losses. This forces you to acknowledge how much you have really won or lost. The mind of a gambler tends to remember the wins and forget about the losses. Immediately recording your results after a gambling session will provide you with the factual data you need to monitor your gambling behavior. It’s another method to help you keep from losing more money in a casino than you intended.

When you first begin keeping a gambling log it may feel like a chore that is taking away from the entertainment value of the casino. As it becomes habitual, you will soon see the value of having a journal. Not only will it put your mind at ease in relation to your taxes, but it will help you maintain a gambling lifestyle that is enjoyable and not problematic.