It isn’t really a secret – when you participate in any form of casino gaming, the odds are not in your favor. This is why casinos, especially in Vegas, have been able to stay in business for so many years because they always have the edge! While you might see a few people walk away from casinos with masses of cash in their pockets, this is the minority. The reality is that the majority of people will lose money, in the long run, playing casino games, but there are a few things that you can do to improve your chances.
We have put together a list of the 3 most popular casino games and tips you can use to help move the odds in your favor, so read on and enjoy.
1. Blackjack – Counting Cards
You may have seen this strategy somewhat glamorized in the popular movie, 21. Given the nature of how blackjack works, some clever mathematician along the way realized that there was a way to predict what cards the dealer would throw out next. Generally speaking, this would give the player a massive edge rather than the casino, but it’s a bit of a complicated strategy. Luckily there’s help to get. We found some professional blackjack tips so stick with us while we give you an overview of how this works.
For each card that is in the deck, there is a specified value that you must assign to it. Cards between 2-6 are assigned a value of +1, 7-9 is 0, and 10 – Ace is +1. This goes for every single card that is dealt at the table, so you need to keep a running account in your head – needless to say, that is why it can be a difficult strategy to implement.
For each round played, the running count will either be a positive or negative number. If the running count is negative after any round, this means that there are a lot of smaller number cards left in the deck – not ideal since you are trying to get as close to 21 as possible from your initial two cards. So when this happens, it’s advisable to reduce the amount that you bet.
Alternatively, if the running count is positive after any round, it means that there are higher numbers left in the deck, so you have a much greater chance of landing two high-value cards on the next hand. When this happens, the counting strategy suggests that you should increase your bet, as when you win, you will win bigger.
One last thing, only start to count after the deck has been shuffled, as this is when the count can start fresh and you have a better chance of playing this strategy correctly.
2. Roulette – The Martingale Strategy
Roulette is undoubtedly one of the most exciting casino games that you can play, however, it is the one game that has the worst odds of all table games in the casino. That being said, it doesn’t mean that you cannot win money on this game. This is where the Martingale Strategy comes into play.
For example, if you are betting on either black or red, you will double your money if you guess correctly. Based on this, the Martingale Strategy suggests that you always double your bet following a losing prediction. Theoretically, you cannot lose using this strategy as eventually you will win with one of your bets. There is a catch, however, for each time that you have a losing bet, the required wager for the next round doubles every time – this means you need to have a large bank balance to protect against a losing streak.
3. Baccarat – Always Back the Banker
While roulette may have the best house edge from the casino’s perspective (not the players), baccarat has the worst house edge, meaning it’s more favorable if you are a player. You don’t actually need to even know the rules of baccarat to use this strategy, which is even better.
You only have three choices to make when playing baccarat, which is to bet on the banker, the player, or to bet on a tie. The other rules can be a bit more hectic and beyond the scope of this piece, but basically, if you constantly back the banker at the table, the house only has an edge of 1.06%. This is one of the lowest house edges of all casino games, so by following this method, you can dramatically increase your chances of taking home some cash.
The casinos in Vegas would probably view these strategies as outright cheating but we would rather refer to them as intelligent mathematics rather than cheating – Good Luck!