By John Grochowski on Tuesday January 31, 2017

Helpful, cheerful dealers can make anybody’s day at the casino more pleasant. It’s especially important with novice players who are just trying to feel their way through the game. Jackie is one of those novices, and she wrote me to say, “I used to play only slots. I still play mostly slots, but mix in some blackjack. My husband told me you win more at blackjack, and he taught me at home so I’d have some idea at the table. “The first time I played in a casino, my husband was with me, and he was trying to coach me…

Helpful, cheerful dealers can make anybody’s day at the casino more pleasant. It’s especially important with novice players who are just trying to feel their way through the game. Jackie is one of those novices, and she wrote me to say, “I used to play only slots. I still play…

By John Grochowski on Monday January 23, 2017

Video poker deals are as random as humans can program a computer to be, but one player thought he saw a pattern developing that could have worked in his favor if only there was a way to let it play out. “Playing Double Double Bonus Poker, I held 2-2, discarded a king, and the draw brought A-A-A. Boom! Boom! Boom!,” he wrote. “I was happy with the full house, of course, but it got me wondering what would have happened if I had held just the king instead. The way those aces popped up so fast, was the game ready…

Video poker deals are as random as humans can program a computer to be, but one player thought he saw a pattern developing that could have worked in his favor if only there was a way to let it play out. “Playing Double Double Bonus Poker, I held 2-2, discarded…

By John Grochowski on Wednesday January 18, 2017

One of the big changes I’ve seen in more than 30 years of playing in casinos and more than 20 years of writing about gaming is an increase of couples playing together. When I started playing, the large majority of casinogoers were men, and even couples at the casino together often split up into him at the tables and her at the slots. Today, nearly half of casino players are women, and it’s not unusual to see couples side by side on penny slots. That’s one of the things I thought about when this email arrived from a reader named…

One of the big changes I’ve seen in more than 30 years of playing in casinos and more than 20 years of writing about gaming is an increase of couples playing together. When I started playing, the large majority of casinogoers were men, and even couples at the casino together…

By John Grochowski on Wednesday January 11, 2017

One of the first things blackjack players learn when they start to get serious about the game is that fewer decks are better for players. The biggest reason is that the frequency of two-card 21 is higher with fewer decks, and you get paid extra on blackjacks. The dealer doesn’t. But the next thing smart players learn is that other rules sometimes can yield a better game despite their being more decks. If all else is equal, a two-deck game has a lower house edge than a six-deck game, but unequal rules can make six decks the better game. An…

One of the first things blackjack players learn when they start to get serious about the game is that fewer decks are better for players. The biggest reason is that the frequency of two-card 21 is higher with fewer decks, and you get paid extra on blackjacks. The dealer doesn’t.…

By Travel Tunica on Tuesday January 3, 2017

We’ve all watched poker on TV or walked past a poker table.  Maybe you’re even like me and have played poker with family or friends at home, but until today, I’d never been given a real poker lesson in a casino.  Travel Tunica decided Hollywood Casino’s poker room was the place to learn how to know when to hold ‘em and know when to fold ‘em. (more…)

We’ve all watched poker on TV or walked past a poker table.  Maybe you’re even like me and have played poker with family or friends at home, but until today, I’d never been given a real poker lesson in a casino.  Travel Tunica decided Hollywood Casino’s poker room was the…