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America’s Favorite Gambling Magazine
October/November
2002
Publisher — Rick Stoff
Editorial Director — Stanley R. Sludikoff
Editor — John Hill
Senior Editors
Poker — Mike Caro
Casino Games — Stanley Roberts
Sports — Mort Olshan, Ernie Kaufman
Psychology — James A. McKenna, Ph.D.
Horse Racing — Paul Volponi
Greyhound Racing — Bill McBride
Jai-Alai — Todd Sorensen
Entertainment — Bobbie Katz
Games of Chance — Jerry Patterson
Consumer Advice — Steve Bourie
Featured Writers
Bobby Singer, Frank Scoblete, W. Lawrence Hill,
Mickey Charles, Mark Jacobson, Larry Edell,
Ted Loh, Buzz Daly, Stuart Kernaghan,
Scotch Henderson, Rob Gillespie
Marketing & Public Relations
Green Room Media
Public Relations Manager — Deanna Lang
[email protected]
Design & Production
Green Room Media
Art Director — Mike Byblow
Graphic Designer — Edmond Choi
Graphic Designer — Brad Shaw
Contributing Illustrator — Michael Halbert
Contributing Cartoonist — Jerry King
Columnists
AGA — Frank Fahrenkopf
Indian Gaming — Mark Van Norman
Blackjack — Lance Humble
Poker Strategy — Lou Krieger
Poker Tournaments — Mike Sexton
European Poker — Nic Szeremeta
Championship Poker — Phil Hellmuth Jr.
Across the Pond — Will Roseff
Slots/Video Poker — Dan Paymar
Lottery — Robert Lyon (Mr. Z)
Stocks & Stats — Saul Leonard
Gambling & the Law — I. Nelson Rose
Mathematics — William Ziemba (Dr. Z)
Book Reviews — Nick Christenson
Online Reviews — J. Philip Vogel
Net Gaming — Carey Chambers
Web Site
Editor — John Hill
Design — Green Room Media
Management — Green Room Media
Director of Technology — Mark Messcu
Webmaster — Damin Loi
Sales Representatives
Jason Weinman
Peter Ruggiero
World Casino Games
Tournament Director — Stanley R. Sludikoff
Tournament Coordinator — Steve Geffner
Subscriptions
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GAMBLING TIMES MAGAZINE, (ISSN 1533-6603) headquartered at: 3734 Las Vegas Blvd. South, Suite 104, Las Vegas, NV 89109, is published by Gambling Times
Incorporated, Stanley R. Sludikoff, President; and Green Room Media Inc., David Dent, President. Editorial and circulation offices are located at: 3883 West Century
Bl., #608, Inglewood, CA 90303, USA; phone: 1(310)674-3365; fax: 1(310)674-3205. Advertising and Art Department offices are located at: 404-1030 Hamilton
St., Vancouver, BC V6B 2R9, Canada; phone: 1(604)408-8888. Volume 16, No.3 Copyright © 2002 by Gambling Times Magazine, a joint venture of Gambling Times
Incorporated and Green Room Media, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited.
Unsolicited manuscripts must be submitted by e-mail to: [email protected].
contents
From the Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Sage Wisdom
Caro on Gambling— Mike Caro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Roberts’ Rules—Stanley Roberts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
If Somebody Asked Me, I’d Say— Mort Olshan . . . . . . . 9
Gambling Psychology— James A. McKenna, Ph.D.. . . . 13
Indian Gaming— Mark Van Norman. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Playing Strategy
Blackjack Adventures: I’m Confused!
— By Bobby Singer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
The Basics of Omaha Poker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Blackjack Professor— Lance Humble . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Poker Strategy— Lou Krieger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Tournament Poker— Mike Sexton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
European Poker— Nic Szeremeta . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Sports Betting
Halftime Wagering— By Rob Gillespie . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
The Fat Man Rocks— Ernie Kaufman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
A View from Across the Pond—Will Roseff . . . . . . . . . 44
Sportsbook Review— J. Phillip Vogel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
gamblingtimes.com
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Changing Leads— Paul Volponi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Winning at the Dog Track— Bill McBride . . . . . . . . . . . 52
The Fastest Column in the World—Todd Sorensen . . 55
Are Handicappers Just That, A Handicap?
— By Mickey Charles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Events and Places
The Winning Hand— Phil Hellmuth, Jr. . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
The Reel Thing, Ba-by— By Bobbie Katz . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Mohegan Sun—The Most Beautiful Casino
in the World— By Stanley Sludikoff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Games of Chance
The Basics of Slots— Frank Scoblete . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
The Seven Do’s and Don’ts of Slots
— By Frank Scoblete . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Advantage Player— Jerry Patterson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
New Slots— By Scotch Henderson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Video Poker for Fun and Profit— Dan Paymar . . . . . . 90
Consumer Advice
Gambling and the Law®— I. Nelson Rose . . . . . . . . . . 93
Casino Gourmet. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Casino Consumer—Steve Bourie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Dr. Z’s Mathematics of Gambling
—William Ziemba. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
gamblingtimes.com
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Online Gaming
Congratulations—You’ve Hit the Major Millions
$1.6 Million Jackpot!— By Ted Loh . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Virtual Evolution: Software Provider Launches
the Next Generation of Online Slots
— By J. Phillip Vogel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
In the Spotlight—Stuart Kernaghan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Online Player Resources
(The links below access the World Wide Web.)
Gambling Times Online
News
Major Tournaments Listings
World Casino Games Update
Casino Entertainment Listings
Hot Happenings by Bobby Katz
Daily Cartoon
Gambling Dictionary
Beginners Guide to Online Gambling
Net Gaming Notes by Carrie Chambers
Free Software
Free Games
Online Progressive Jackpots
Online Tournaments
Lines Feeds
gamblingtimes.com
iii
From the Editor
Tuesday, June 25th was a black day for Assemblyman Dario
Frommer, author of a bill to ban Internet gambling in the
state of California and criminalize those of its citizens who
had the temerity to avail themselves of online gaming. His
bill, shelved by the Senate last year, was reintroduced in the
Senate Governmental Organization Committee, the state panel
that deals with alcohol, tobacco, and gambling bills. Much
to his disappointment (and the relief of California online
gamers) the Assemblyman could not even muster up another
legislator to second his motion to consider the bill, effectively
killing any chance of a hearing on the matter under the rules
of parliamentary procedure.
While we might like to take some small credit for the defeat
of the bill in committee (our correspondence with members
of the legislature hopefully having had some effect), the bottom line is that the Indian Casinos, ever aware of the potential
for future revenues, have exerted tremendous pressure with
their powerful lobby on the lawmakers to leave this avenue
open to them.
Frommer, who was visibly affected by the rebuff, complained that the committee had passed similar bills in the past
and stated: “My reaction is one of disbelief . . . the only difference
now is that we now have a powerful Indian group in opposition.
Every indication is that these sites are very addictive. We have
no control over it. We’ve seen people lose hundreds of thousands
of dollars.”
gamblingtimes.com
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Perhaps Assemblyman Frommer would have been better
advised to avail himself of the offer made by Gambling Times to
assist him in proposing legislation that would protect Internet
gamers rather than criminalize them! The offer is still open
should the good Assemblyman choose to discuss this alternative so cogently expressed by Stanley Roberts in the Summer
2001 issue of Gambling Times.
As we have said many times prohibition is self-defeating,
the public will not stand for it! Witness the failure of the
Volsted Act prohibiting Americans from consuming liquor,
and the futile attempts of the DEA to enforce the prohibition on consumption of marijuana whose use has grown a
hundred-fold in the past decade. The answer is regulation,
concerned regulation, which serves to protect the consumer,
not criminalize him! We would urge every citizen to express
their feelings to their elected representatives. It is only in this
way that the freedoms guaranteed us by the Constitution will
be preserved!
John Hill
Editor
gamblingtimes.com
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Caro on Gambling
Mike Caro
How to Read Tells in
Poker
Today, let’s talk about poker tells — mannerisms that give clues
to your opponents’ cards. Are tells real or are they mostly
imaginary? While many players who take tells seriously become
skillful in reading opponents, others suggest that profitable
tells don’t exist. The main premise behind Caro’s Book of
Tells — The Body Language of Poker is to stop seeking tells
that are particular to an individual. Sure, it’s possible that
Martin looks at his watch and grits his teeth every time he
has three sixes. But I think you could waste a poker lifetime
looking for tells like those. They’re probably unreliable, and
even if it does happen, it’s most likely a coincidence that won’t
indicate the same thing next time.
sage wisdom | gamblingtimes.com
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But there really are tells that are reliable. As I explain in
my book, poker opponents are either acting or they aren’t.
Your job is to determine if they’re acting, then figure out
what they’re trying to get you to do, and disappoint them!
Fortunately, it’s not too difficult to read tells when opponents
are acting. They’ll act weak when they hold strong hands and
strong with weak ones. If an amateur player shrugs, sighs,
and says, “I bet,” in a sad voice, he almost always has a strong
hand. He’s secretly gloating while trying to convince you he’s
miserable — so figure the opposite is true.
Players usually go out of their way to act disinterested when
they hold strong hands. So, instead of watching the action
approach clockwise, study players who act after you. Players
having strong hands, who are waiting to raise, don’t want you
to know this until you’re in the pot. They make it seem safe for
you to bet, often looking away from the action; a dead giveaway
that you’re in trouble.
Players who are going to fold try to look interested, often
staring at their cards or watching the action approach with a
false look of concentration. Why do they bother when they’re
going to fold anyway? Poker instinct! They’re in an arena unlike
the real world. In the real world, it’s okay to tell the truth but
if you do that in poker, opponents usually will know what you
have. So, players often act opposite of their true hands. Not
every poker player does this, but many do, and those players
you can read time after time.
What happens when a player is bluffing? That player
usually becomes less animated. He’s afraid that anything he
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does will seem suspicious and cause you to call, so he does
nothing. Seeing a previously animated opponent bet and then
become unmoving, scarcely breathing, is usually a sure sign
of a bluff.
Okay, so tells exist. But why do players have trouble spotting them? It’s because they’re trying to look at all opponents
at once. You need to focus on one opponent at a time. Most
tells are subtle and you’ll miss them if you try to watch too
many things. Another problem is that players expect to see
many tells. I only see two or three sure-fire tells an hour on
average. If you’re trying to see a tell every hand, you’ll imagine
many that don’t exist, keeping you from mastering the broader
science of tells. The worst thing players do when trying to use
tells is to form a bias toward calling, wanting action so much
that they mentally manufacture tells that allow them to call
while ignoring tells that suggest they should fold. Yes, tells are
all around us. But you won’t see them every hand; you won’t
see them at all if you’re looking at too many players at once;
and they won’t do you any good if you’re not willing to obey
tells that say “fold” as readily as tells that say “call.”
Beyond his acclaim as a gambling expert, Mike Caro (rhymes with arrow) is today’s leading
authority on poker strategy, psychology and statistics. In his books, seminars and videos
he teaches with a flair that has earned him the title “The Mad Genius of Poker.” He is
founder of Mike Caro University of Poker, Gaming, and Life Strategy. You can visit Mike
online at www.UniversityOfPoker.com.
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Roberts’ Rules
Stanley Roberts
Lots and Lots of Slots
Photo: Jeno Orban/Gambling Times 2000 ©
It has not escaped the notice of any long-term observer of the
casino industry, that the dominating trend in new or re-modeled casinos has been the addition of more slot machines and
the removal of table games. So, is this a good or bad thing? Is
it the result of answering the request of public demand, or a
decision of a casino accountant, trying to maximize profit?
Once again we need to look at the long-term future of
casino gaming, and, whether the business can survive this
trend. Clearly, playing the slots is not an activity that exercises
the brain, at least not in the same way that games requiring
decisions test our mental powers. To their credit, many slot
machine manufacturers have been adding elements to their
machines that, at this time, minimally force a small decision
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upon the player. This type of modest mental activity was at the
heart of the rapid growth, development, and enormous success
of video poker. We need to see more of this creative activity,
but perceptual decisions that are essentially meaningless need
to be replaced by those where the outcome is dependent upon,
and worthy of, mental prowess. This type of creativity is rare,
and, it requires thinking “outside the box.” The basic premise
of a slot machine is randomness to the extreme. God forbid
the player might have something to do with the outcome,
which would then violate state gaming regulations. This is a
tall order I lay down here, a challenge to manufacturers and
regulators, alike!
Of course, there is an issue as to whether the casino going
public wants a thoughtful, or thoughtless, recreational experience. The answer to that is obvious, some do and some
don’t. At times the same player may desire one or the other.
Some people need a mental challenge to create a recreational
experience, while others prefer a totally stress-free activity,
like inserting coins and pushing buttons. On the other hand,
if we follow the trend to its natural conclusion, there will be
no more table games in the future. They will go the way of
Faro, a game totally unknown to the baby boomers and later
generations. The casino of the future will be nothing more
than electronic machinery.
What will then be obvious to casino management is that
gaming over networks, such as the Internet, will become far
more efficient than operating a physical plant with its attendant personnel and utility expenses, not to mention amortiz-
7
ing the construction costs. In such a case, the business will
surely die, both as a recreational activity and as a place of
employment.
Once again we will hear the wisdom of my mentor, the late
Abram Krushkhov, a great city planner and a man well ahead
of his time, whose favorite expression was, “a business goes
to hell, when the accountants take over.” Casino accountants
take heed. Don’t let the maximization of today’s profits lead
you down the path of industry destruction. Constantly give
thought to where we are heading, as you make your inputs in
the corporate boardrooms. Demand a higher level of creativity from both your staffs and vendors, lest we remove the true
character of our recreational experience and find people can
have it just as well sitting at home, as going to the trouble and
expense of visiting a destination resort.
Stanley Roberts, Grand-master of the game of Blackjack, is the world’s leading casino
games authority. He has written on this subject for more than thirty years in books,
magazines and newspapers. He has been an expert guest on more than 300 radio
and television programs. For additional information he may be contacted through
www.gamblingtimes.com.
100% Signup Bonus at www.fabulousvegascasino.com
8
If Somebody Asked Me, I’d Say
Mort Olshan
“The Best Game Ever
Played”
Although it took place forty-five seasons ago, possibly the most
suspicious football game, in terms of gambling implications,
remains open to question by old-timers (a.k.a. cynics) to this
day. We’re referring to the 1958 NFL championship game
between the Baltimore Colts and New York Giants; the sudden-death encounter that has been called “the best game ever
played.” Baltimore won it 23-17 in the first overtime game in
NFL history.
What made it so suspect was the 31⁄2-point spread favoring Baltimore. The regulation game ended 17-17 after Steve
Myhra kicked a 20-yard field goal with only seven seconds
remaining on the clock. Cynics contend that the Colts ignored
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a similarly “cinch” field goal opportunity in overtime in order
to overcome the 31⁄2-point spread and thus reward their gambling supporters — most significantly, team owner Carroll
Rosenbloom, well known as a “risk-taker.” Let’s review the
circumstances, and set the record straight.
The Giants won the toss in the sudden-death period. They
elected to receive. On the first series of downs they found
themselves in a fourth-and-one situation and were forced to
punt. The Colts took over on their own 20. Thirteen plays later
Alan Ameche plunged into the end zone from one yard out to
give Baltimore its first championship, rewarding Colts backers
with a 6-point victory. There is much confusion over what
actually happened on their game-winning drive. Many believe
to this day that Ameche scored from farther out. Others are
convinced it was 4th down when Baltimore scored its winning
touchdown. To clear up this much-discussed controversy, we
recount the winning sequence of plays, followed by evidence
supporting the play selection:
1: Began on the Colt 20-yard line. Dupre picked up a
1st down at the 30.
2: Long pass from Unitas to Moore is incomplete.
3: Draw play to Dupre picked up couple of yards.
4: A flare pass to Ameche made it 1st down on the
Colt 40.
5: Dupre cut inside to pick up 3 yards.
6: Giants’ DT Modzelewski dumped Unitas for an
8-yard loss.
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7: Key play, 3rd and 15, pass from Unitas to Berry, 1st
down in Giant territory.
8: Quick trap by Ameche gained 23 big yards to the
Giant 20.
9: Dupre stopped for no gain.
10: Slant pass to Berry clicked for another 1st down
just inside the Giant 10.
11: Ameche gained a yard.
12: Unitas gambles successfully with a pass to TE
Mutscheller who is tackled on the Giant one-yard
line. An unorthodox call, but definitely part of the
Unitas personality.
13: 3rd down and 1 yard to go. Ameche scores for the
winning TD after 8:15 of overtime.
The skeptics would have you believe that rather than chancing a fumble or interception; the Colts should have gone for a
less-risky field goal. However, as the above sequence shows, the
Colts were never faced with a do-or-die 4th-down situation.
The field goal would have had to be kicked on one of the first
three downs. What aroused this skepticism was the fact that a
Colt field goal would have given Baltimore a 20-17 victory, but
also would have cost the Colts’ betting backers money, as they
were committed to win by at least 4 points. Simply because
there is a motive does not necessarily mean a dishonest act
must follow. Here is evidence supporting Unitas’ selection of
plays, and the facts surrounding each play alternative facing
the great Colt quarterback:
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Field Goals: Baltimore had the second-worst Field Goal
average in the NFL, a meager 35.7% success in making 5
of 14 (league’s low) placekicking attempts. Certainly not
a promising offensive weapon, although Myhra (a backup
lineman/kicker) did come through in the clutch at the end
of regulation time.
Passing: Baltimore threw 354 passes and had only 11
intercepted for league-best of 3.1%. Unitas’ personal passing
performance surpassed even that, seeing only 7 of his 263
passes intercepted, for a league record of 2.7%. In view of this,
Unitas’ overhead attack could be mounted with impunity.
Rushing: In 456 rushing plays from scrimmage that season,
the Colts lost the ball on fumbles only 11 times. Ameche, who
scored the winning touchdown, had the remarkable record of
having lost only one fumble in 171 carries. Ameche’s reputation for never fumbling, either in college or pro competition,
was well known. He had finished second in league rushing
that season with 791 yards and a 4.6 average.
Compare Ameche’s dependability and Unitas’ unerring
accuracy — together they gave up the ball only eight times in 434
plays — with Myhra’s 5 out of 14 from placement. Now, we ask
you, Ladies and Gentlemen of the jury. In a crucial situation,
would you rather have had Ameche running, Unitas passing,
or Myhra kicking? The defense rests. Case dismissed!
For over fifty years Mort Olshan has been one of the most respected names in sports handicapping. He is the
author of Winning Theories of Sports Handicapping, The Competitor’s Creed, and The Best Of The Gold Sheet.
The Gold Sheet, founded by Olshan in 1957, has been called “The American Sportsman’s Bible” by handicappers throughout the country. Find more at www.goldsheet.com.
12
Gambling Psychology
James A. McKenna, Ph.D.
Table Lessons
There are a lot of sayings one will hear when playing cards
in a casino. Some of these sayings have elements of truth and
may contain valuable lessons. Here are some of the comments
heard and the lessons they offer:
“All in wins again.” This will often be true and the reason
is that people play differently when they are about to go all in.
They will play only playable hands with good odds of improving. In other words, they are playing seven-card stud vs. six
or five card stud.
“You lose now what you don’t bet when you win.” This is
pure logic. If you are betting too tightly and have the best
hand, when you win there will be less money than if you bet
your hand.
“Deuces never loses.” This is pure myth. However, when a
pair of deuces is showing, there’s a good chance that the player
has more and you may pay the price!
“One more time (is usually one too many).” This is usually
said when a player hasn’t made a hand yet. It’s a procrastinator’s
lament.
“Show me a player who never folds a good hand and I’ll show
you a loser.” This refers to an emotional player who stays when
he or she knows that he/she is beat.
13
“Look long, look wrong.” Usually, a player is searching for a
hand that’s not there. However, beware of players who play the
nuts this way. “Sweating” is a useful bluff to get more calls.
“A fold in time will save a dime.” Most players who are chasing will stay too long and spend more than they should have
on slim chances.
“Play tight with good cards and loose with bad ones — just
don’t get caught.” Most players misrepresent their hands. It’s
part of the game of poker.
“When you’re caught speeding, you’ll keep paying the ticket
the next time you are bluffing.” Unlike speeding tickets that you
pay each time you get caught, when caught bluffing in poker
your reputation will haunt you for a while. Of course, a good
player might wait until having a good hand to “bluff.”
“A bet in time could be a crime.” When a person has good
position and bets after everyone else has checked, chances are
the bet is an attempt to steal the pot.
“Chasing ‘Four to a . . .’ is usually a self made trap (unless
you have other outs).” Without other outs to improve a hand,
chasing four to a flush or straight is usually futile. It’s a trap
when players bet against other pairs, knowing they are beat
unless they make the flush or straight.
“The best way to make a flush is to be working on something
else.” This is an extension of the last lesson. Unless a player
is working on improving a pair and is only chasing a flush,
chances are good he will end up with “four to a . . .”
“If you don’t count your chips before you leave, chances are
you’ll leave with less or none when the dealing’s done.” The song is
14
wrong. It says not to count your chips until the dealin’ is done.
Chip management is an essential part of good gaming.
As with most lessons, practice wisdom will be the way
to apply the above sayings. For example, a new player with a
pair of deuces in the hole may hold them to the end believing that a pair of deuces won’t lose. Yet, when pair of deuces
raises a seasoned player, he is apt to fold. Likewise, if a good
player with deuces showing is calling a bet by a pair of Kings,
chances are good that the deuces won’t lose because Aces over
deuces or rolled up deuces are likely.
James A. McKenna, Ph.D. has been a practicing individual and group therapist for over
thirty-five years. His knowledge of human behavior combined with over thirty years of gaming experience gives him a unique perspective on the psychology of the gamer. His book,
Beyond Tells: Power Poker Psychology, will soon be published by Gambling Times. He can
be contacted at [email protected].
Indian Gaming
Mark Van Norman
News Bites from Indian
Country
Artichoke Joe’s v. Norton
Rejecting a frivolous challenge to Indian gaming in California,
the Federal District Court in Artichoke Joe’s v. Norton held
that Indian gaming is lawful under Federal and State law.
The Artichoke Joe’s lawsuit is simply an effort by California
card rooms to undermine Indian gaming through frivolous
15
allegations that Tribal-State Compacts violate the Fourteenth
Amendment Equal Protection clause and the Indian Gaming
Regulatory Act by setting forth a regulatory framework for
gaming on Indian lands.
Due to this decision, lawyers decided the state now has
the legal backing to proceed with talks and Governor Gray
Davis has lifted a year-old moratorium on new Indian gambling agreements, initiating talks with the La Posta and Santa
Ysabel tribes, both of which have been waiting more than two
years for a compact. At least 10 tribes have been waiting to
negotiate gambling compacts.
Alabama Coushatta Tribe v. The State of Texas
On Monday July 22, 2002, the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe,
like the Ysleta Del Sur Pueblo in Texas, was forced to close
the doors to its casino. The closure is a result of a legal attack
on the Tribe by Texas Attorney General John Cornyn. The
decision will have a devastating economic impact on the
Tribe and its surrounding community. At a press conference
regarding the closure, Alabama Coushatta Chairman Kevin
Battise said, “Even though this is a very difficult hour for us,
we know that ultimately we will win the battle for the hearts
of our fellow Texans. We will not only persevere in our battle,
we will prosper.”
Sovereignty Run
The Sovereignty Run, a cross-country relay spanning twelve
states, began September 11, 2002, the one year anniversary
of the initial tribal leaders meeting that led to the develop-
16
ment of the Sovereignty Protection Initiative, and ended
on October 7, 2002. The route began at the mouth of the
Quinault River in Washington State and ended on the steps
of the United States Supreme Court in Washington, DC. The
purpose of this run was to unite tribes and tribal supporters
throughout Indian Country and to create sovereignty awareness and support on a national level. For more information
visit www.ncai.org.
White Mountain Apache Fire
The National Indian Gaming Association has donated $5000
to provide relief to the White Mountain Apache Tribe and is
urging its members, associates and friends to do the same.
The tribe’s reservation has been largely destroyed by one of
the largest wildfires in the history of the United States. Due
to the fire, the White Mountain Apache Tribe has lost most
of its timber, devastating the tribe’s economy. It has also been
forced to close its casino, depriving the tribe of crucial revenues
used to fund essential government functions and programs.
Donations can be sent to: White Mountain Apache Relief
Fund, c/o National Indian Gaming Association, 224 2nd St.
SE Washington, DC 20003.
Wolf Amendment to the Interior Appropriations
bill
On July 17, 2002, Congress voted 273 to 151 to strike the Native
American Policy Study Commission from the FY 2003 Interior
Appropriations bill. The House Native American Caucus led
the fight to strike Rep. Frank Wolf’s proposal to establish the
17
Policy Study Commission composed of State, Federal, Local,
and Tribal officials whose purpose was to review the health,
education, housing, and crime status of Indian country.
For more articles from Mark Van Norman go to www.gamblingtimes.com, keyword: Van
Norman.
Mark Van Norman is the Executive Director for the National Indian Gaming Association
(NIGA) in Washington, DC. His work involves protecting and enhancing the sovereignty of
Indian Nations and their right to conduct gaming as a means for economic development.
NIGA is a trade association of 168 Tribal Nations and associate members. They can be
contacted through www.indiangaming.org.
18
Blackjack Adventures:
I’m Confused!
By Bobby Singer
I’ve now been playing
winning Blackjack
in casinos worldwide
for more than forty
years. I never get
tired of playing, talking, or writing about
Blackjack. To me, it
just plain feels good.
Professional winning Blackjack players like myself are successful for many
reasons, but mostly because we are card counters. Most people
are aware that card counting works. Common sense dictates
that if card counting didn’t work, casino personnel wouldn’t
ask us to leave. The novice Blackjack player however doesn’t
realize how easy it is to count cards. We don’t memorize the
cards played, but instead apply simple plus or minus values to
the cards for determining when the player has the advantage
before the cards are dealt. This allows us to bet more when we
know we will win more than half of the hands and of course
bet less when we know the dealer will win more than half of
the hands. But first we begin by playing all of the hands correctly. Playing all of the hands according to their mathemati-
Playing Strategy | gamblingtimes.com
19
cal superior play is called basic strategy. Just playing perfect
basic strategy in a casino with good rules gives the player an
almost break even game against the house. A simple plus/
minus card counting method applied correctly then gives the
player a mathematical advantage over the casino. It sounds
simple enough to me. But here comes the big question. If it’s
so simple, why aren’t more people playing winning Blackjack?
I’m confused!!!
Saturday, July 13, 2002, the time is 10PM. My wife and I
just exited the movie theater and decided to hit some of the
casinos near Palms Springs. Our first stop was one not to far
from our home. The casino was very busy. Before playing
I always check out the game. The table limits from low bet
to high bet were quite good. Mostly six deck shoes but with
good penetration. They allow doubling down after a split,
overall not a bad game. However, they hit soft seventeen. I
know that several casinos nearby stand on all seventeen’s, a
much better game.
My wife and I headed for another casino in the area that
was also very busy. On most tables the dealer does stand
on all seventeen’s but overall the game was one of the most
player unfriendly games I had ever seen, almost insulting
to a player’s intelligence. The table limits were ridiculous,
$5.00 –200, $10.00 –300.00, and $25.00 –500.00. They had
single deck Blackjack that only paid 6 to 5 on Blackjacks.
No doubling down after a split, dealer hits soft seventeen,
and penetration barely passed a half a deck. The double deck
game paid 3 to 2 on Blackjack, but the dealer also hit soft
20
seventeen, didn’t allow doubling after a split, and only dealt
1 of 2 decks before shuffling. On the 6 deck shoe games, the
dealer did stand on all seventeen’s, the player could double
after a split but the penetration was only an estimated 60%. I
never would have played in this casino, but that soon became
a mute point. Within ten minutes of being in this casino a
dealer recognized me and immediately pointed me out to a
nearby pit boss. For the next ten minutes I was most amused
watching them as they were watching me walk from table to
table as if I was going to sit down. Before exiting the casino I
walked over to the table where the dealer had recognized me
and in my own defiant arrogant manner asked the dealer if
he got any “brownie points.” I couldn’t resist reminding him
the man in the pit doesn’t tip him. Only the players do and
certainly those that win. He tried to speak but as his face
turned red he was speechless. My wife and I than went to The
Fantasy Springs Casino, also in Indio. This was the least busy
casino of the three. I’m confused!!!
Why am I so confused? I’m confused for many reasons.
Let’s begin with the Blackjack game at Fantasy Springs. It is
terrific! The dealer stands on all seventeen’s. You can double
down after a split and best of all they were dealing 41⁄2 to 5
decks of a six-deck shoe before shuffling. Besides a great game
of Blackjack, the dealers and pit bosses were also friendly.
There didn’t appear to be any “heat” on the game. If this was
the best game in town, why did the other casinos with much
worse games have more players? I’m confused!!!
21
I decided to check the skill level of all the Blackjack players
in this casino. In less than thirty minutes I saw every person
in the casino playing Blackjack make at least one mistake
just on basic strategy — no wonder there wasn’t any heat on
the game. Where are all the people who purchased Blackjack
books or basic strategy cards sold at almost every casino gift
shop? I’m confused!!!
There are many excellent Blackjack books. Great authors
such as Stanley Roberts, Arnold Snyder, Stanford Wong, and
Jerry Patterson just to name a few. Since 1985 I personally
have sold almost a half million home study courses from my
infomercials. Where are those people that have purchased
books on winning Blackjack? I’m confused!!!
Someone who plays Blackjack, who understands the game
and plays correctly even if it’s only basic strategy, can use
this as a foundation. Their skills grow and the authority with
which they play becomes amplified. It feels good. It’s much
more enjoyable to win and it’s easy enough to do. Don’t let
the casinos win this battle. Play only where the rules are good
and play to win. Please also remember that when you win,
you’re playing at the table for much longer periods of time.
This extended playing time leads to more profit and more
comps. Losers pay and winners stay!
This fall I will be playing golf in Myrtle Beach. My wife
and I decided to drive across the country and visit the casinos
along the route we have chosen. It doesn’t seem to matter how
visible I’ve been on TV. I can usually play without disguise
by blending in and not attracting any unnecessary attention
22
to myself. I certainly intend to play at most of the casinos in
Tunica and Biloxi. Mississippi here I come. I’m not confused
about that!!!
Read more of Bobby Singer’s enlightening escapades at www.gamblingtimes.com, keyword: Singer.
Bobby Singer, also known as “Mr. Blackjack,” has been a professional gambler and TV
personality for more than forty years. Bobby has a special knack for educating others with
a unique program of books and tapes, that can be ordered via www.Ushop.tv.
23
The Basics of Omaha Poker
Community Cards (The Board)
Hole Cards (Player’s Hand)
An example
of a straight
(highlighted
in blue).
The game of Omaha is similar in many respects to the game of
“Texas Hold’em,” differing in that four (4) down (hole) cards
are initially dealt to each player rather than two. All of the
rules of “Hold’em” apply to Omaha with the exception that
a player cannot “play the board,” he must use two of his hole
24
cards in combination with any three of the five subsequently
exposed community (used by all players) cards, to construct
a five-card hand. A popular variation of the game is Omaha
High-Low Split.
Bets
With the exception of No Limit Omaha, the game rules rather
than the individual, determine the size of bets and raises. In
the first two rounds of play all bets and raises are equal to
the minimum bet and during the last two rounds bets and
raises are limited to the maximum bet, typically double the
minimum. For example: a $3–$6 table, $10–$20 table, etc.
Betting is limited to no more than three raises per round.
Order of Play
1. The first player to the dealer’s left antes one half of
the minimum bet with the player to his left anteing
an amount equal to the minimum. Antes proceed
clockwise around the table with each ensuing game,
ensuring there is always money in the pot.
2. After players have received their initial four cards
the round of betting begins, clockwise from the
player who made the first ante. Players may then bet
the minimum, fold (give up), check (do nothing),
or raise the minimum bet. Checked players must
then see (meet) the bets placed in order to stay in
the game.
3. After this round of betting is completed the dealer
buries the top card from the remainder of the deck
and deals three cards face up on the table. This
25
is known as the flop. These are community cards
used by all players. A second round of betting then
begins.
4. When the second round of betting is completed the
dealer again buries the top card and deals a fourth
community card face up known as 4th Street. The
remaining players bet, raise, check, or fold; with bets
and raises limited to the maximum for the table.
5. The final round of betting begins when the last
card, 5th Street, is dealt face up. The winner of the
game is the player with the highest five-card hand
constructed with two of his four hole cards in combination with any three of the five community cards.
Omaha High-Low Split
This game is usually played hi-low eight-or-better. Players use
any two of their hole cards in combination with three community cards to create a high hand and another, or the same,
combination to create a low hand of eight-high or less. The
best low hand is A, 2, 3, 4, 5 regardless of suit, a combination
that could well qualify for both high and low pots; a straight
for high and a 5-high for low.
The same rules apply to Omaha High-Low Split as to
Omaha except for the eight-or-better qualification. This
rule generally applies unless otherwise posted. If there are
no qualifying low hands in the game the high hand takes the
entire pot.
26
Poker Rank of Hands (High to Low)
Straight Flush
Four of a Kind
Full House
Flush
Straight
Three of a Kind
Two Pair
One Pair
High Card
(Aces are played high or low.)
Five consecutive cards of the same suit
Three of a kind plus a pair
Five cards of the same suit
Five consecutive cards of different suits
Learn other forms of poker at www.gamblingtimes.com, keyword: poker.
Blackjack Professor
Lance Humble
Surrender — A Great
Player Option
A great player option in Blackjack is surrender. It was first
introduced in the Philippines in the late 1950’s, allowing the
player to throw in his hand and get half of his bet back. The
concept is based on the player having a very bad hand and the
dealer having a very good one. In those situations you would
expect to lose the entire wager, instead the player surrenders
the hand, is out for that round only, and gets half of his or her
wager back. Today, we find two types of surrender offered:
early and late. The early surrender rule allows the player to
throw in the hand before the dealer checks the hole card for a
27
Blackjack. The late surrender option is offered after the dealer
looks at the hole card. In the case of late surrender, the option
is not available if the dealer shows a Blackjack.
Since there is no hand signal for this option you simply say,
“surrender” when it’s your turn to play. When I’ve used this
play I’ve had dealers call out loudly to the pit boss, “surrender,”
thereby alerting management that they have a player at their
table that knows how to take advantage of this rule. Since
most players are unaware of the option, you might be seen
as a skilled player, one who requires additional observation.
I’ve also had dealers criticize me for taking this option. They
would say things like, “You came to play and surrendering
is not playing.” Ignore statements like these. The important
fact to remember is that the real object of the game is to win
more then you lose.
Surrender should only be used with very bad hands. A hand
totaling 16 is considered the worst hand in Blackjack followed
closely by 15. To illustrate: when you have 15 or 16 and the
dealer is showing a 10 or an Ace, you have over a 70% chance
of losing the entire hand. Surrender then becomes an excellent
alternative. What specific hands should you surrender? The
following shows the best ones:
Dealer’s Up Card
Player’s Hand
Ace
(9, 7), (10, 6)
10
(9, 7), (10, 6), (9, 6), (10, 5)
9
(9, 7), (10, 6)
28
Julian Braun in his book, How to Play Winning Blackjack,
found that a hand with 16 against a dealers 10, can expect to
lose 76.6% of the time. This results in a loss of $53.20 for every
$100 wagered. If you surrender, you will lose exactly $50.00,
which is 3.2% less; therefore, surrender should be considered
a strategy for losing less.
Things are starting to look up for this excellent player
option. A recent survey of Las Vegas casinos indicates that
about twenty of them now offer late surrender. It seems to be
getting more and more popular, and I would expect to see more
casinos around the country adapt this favorable rule. On the
other hand, it is rare to find early surrender. The difference
in odds, 0.065 for late surrender and 0.62 for early surrender,
seems to be just too much of an advantage to the player, so
the house doesn’t offer the latter. In the end, it’s important to
remember that when you surrender, you get half your bet back
to use on the next hand, definitely better than losing it all!
Learn more from the Blackjack Professor! Go to www.gamblingtimes.com, keyword:
Humble.
Lance Humble is co-author with Carl Cooper of The World’s Greatest Blackjack Book,
Doubleday 1980, co-author with Julian Braun of the HI-OPT I and HI-OPT II Blackjack
systems, and founder and publisher since 1974 of the International Gamblers Club
Newsletter. Dr. Humble is available for private consultation on a pre-pay basis at (905)
731-5457 (Toronto, Canada).
29
Poker Strategy
Lou Krieger
Nobody Asked Me, But . . .
When I was a kid growing
up in Brooklyn there
were still afternoon
papers, and often the
only part I read was
the sports page. My
favorite sportswriter,
Jimmy Cannon, was
a
practitioner
of
Three-Dot Journalism.
Whenever he did a three
dot column, he titled it,
“Nobody Asked me, But . . . ” Those three little dots must have
been a powerful literary aphrodisiac, because Cannon really
let fly whenever he wrote a three-dotter. He skewered the
pompous. He dethroned the mighty. His acerbic wit brought
the high flyers of the day back to Earth. He also offered his
opinion on anything sports-related that came to mind with
views that were frequently controversial, usually provocative,
and always opinionated. As a kid, I couldn’t wait to grow up
and play third base for the Brooklyn Dodgers so Cannon could
write about me. While that never happened, here’s the best I
30
can do: a poker player’s tribute to Jimmy Cannon. I’ll even
begin it the same way. Nobody Asked Me, But . . .
. . . Isn’t it annoying when you’re a new player in a game
comprised solely of regulars, and those regulars toss antes
back and forth, and slow-play their buddies whenever they
are heads-up in the pot?
. . .Why do certain players continue to give lessons at the
table? All they succeed in doing is making poor opponents
play better, and worse, their comments are taken for the insults
they are, often driving weaker opponents out of the game.
. . .When it’s late at night, the game is short-handed, and
those remaining are either poor players or good players who
are stuck, and playing poorly, why do some players keep hollering for a prop to fill out the game. Don’t they realize that
there is almost nothing more profitable than a short handed
game with a few live ones at the table. The last thing you want
is a prop — usually a tight player, who contributes nothing to
your profits — but who can start carving up your fish.
. . .Why is there always someone who demands a deck change
every time he loses a hand he thinks he should have won?
The cards don’t know you’re losing. Losing is the ultimate
existential experience. You’re alone in the universe. Nobody
understands. No one cares.
. . .Why aren’t all tournaments a “no-rebuy” format? If there
must be rebuys, limit them to just one. Period! I’d rather play
against my opponents’ skill than their wallets. And how did
Q-7 come to be called the Computer Hand? Why do people
still play it? If somebody’s computer analysis showed this to
31
be a profitable starting combination in a Hold’em game, their
computer is broken or their analytical methods leave much
to be desired.
. . . Perhaps card rooms should hire social workers to counsel players and help them work through their compulsion to
tell another bad beat story whenever they lose a hand. They
could also work with players who abuse dealers, as though
the dealer was responsible for their inept play or bad run of
cards. If the average dealer were that good a mechanic he’d be
rich by now. In any event, he wouldn’t be pitching cards in a
$3–$6 hold’em game, would he? And wouldn’t we be better
off with a set of rules that are the same no matter where we
play? We’ve been talking about a standardized set of rules for
years. Where is it? And why hasn’t it been adopted?
. . . If the expression, “Ninety percent of success is just
showing up” is valid, maybe we ought to emulate the working pros that are in the game every day grinding out a living.
While toiling in anonymity, he or she is almost never on the
rail. Many of the big players keep on playing bigger and bigger. I’ve seen more than one player who has won six figures
in a tournament and four months later is sleeping in his car.
I hoist my glass to the working pro. Keep on grinding.
Read more great articles by Lou Krieger at www.gamblingtimes.com, keyword: Krieger.
Lou Krieger is a writer for Card Player Magazine. He is also the author of Poker For
Dummies and co-author of Gambling for Dummies, both available at all major bookstores
and online outlets. Lou may be contacted at www.loukrieger.com.
Lay -107 on NFL Football and More at
www.canbetsportsbook.com
32
Tournament Poker
Mike Sexton
The World Poker Tour
The poker world as we know it is about to change. Top-ofthe-line television coverage of major poker tournaments is on
the way starting in January 2003. The poker world is going
‘prime time.’
The World Poker Tour (WPT) was founded for the purpose
of taking a widespread recreational game, poker, and turning
it into a legitimate televised sport. The mission statement of
the WPT is: “to establish poker as a significant televised mainstream sport broadcasting top poker tournaments around the
world under the premier brand of The World Poker Tour.” The
WPT will set new standards in poker programming. They will
establish a signature look and feel, designed to make poker
exciting (including using mini-cameras to show the players
down cards). In addition to being treated to excitement and
drama, the viewers will become educated about poker. They
will be able to visualize situations, recognize tough decisions
players will face, and wonder what they would do under intense
pressure with the world watching.
The WPT will consist of a season of televised poker
events (13) from locations around the world. (As of this writing, the networks are vying for rights to the WPT.) The first
year of the Tour will culminate with a grand finale to be held
at the Bellagio in Las Vegas (April 2003). The championship
33
final will consist of the 12 event champions and anyone else
who would like to buy-in. Care to play? You might start checking phone booths for dimes now or better yet try winning the
lottery, as the buy-in for the WPT Final is $25,000!
The creator and CEO of the World Poker Tour is Steve
Lipscomb. Lipscomb graduated with honors from Dartmouth
College where he was President of the Senior Class. He then
attended the University of Chicago Law School where he was
a Greenberg Scholar. Lipscomb is an accomplished television
producer and award-winning film producer/director who
is quite familiar with the poker world. (He has filmed the
World Series of Poker, the Tournament of Champions, and
the PartyPoker.com Million.)
The force behind the WPT, however, is businessman
extraordinaire Lyle Berman. Berman’s company, Lakes
Gaming, Inc., is funding the WPT to the tune of over
$3,000,000! Although his hobby is poker and he is a great
player, (he is the 2002 inductee into the Poker Hall of Fame),
Berman’s success in business, especially the casino business,
is legendary. Lyle has an uncanny vision for potential business projects and is convinced that it’s time to take poker to
the next level. The WPT will certainly do that.
The World Poker Tour centers on many of the premiere
poker tournaments around the globe and includes some of the
largest casinos in the world. The Charter Members of the WPT
include the Bellagio, the Bicycle Casino, Binion’s Horseshoe
and the Gold Strike (Tunica, MS), the Commerce Casino,
Foxwoods, Lucky Chances Casino, PartyPoker.com, the Reno
34
Hilton, UltimateBet.com, the Aviation Club de France, and
Casinos Europa in Costa Rica.
Everyone in the poker industry will benefit as a result of
the creation of the World Poker Tour. Poker will be taken out
of the American psyche and plugged into mainstream sports
and entertainment. The growth, acceptance, and appreciation
of poker will certainly rise. And the best part, especially for
tournament players, is the potential corporate sponsorship
that will evolve from a successful WPT. Tournament poker
is about to take center stage. Best of luck to the World Poker
Tour!
To read more about the exciting world of tournament poker, visit www.gamblingtimes.com
and enter keyword: tournaments.
Mike Sexton, known familiarly as the “Poker Ambassador,” has been a professional poker
player for over twenty-five years. Founder of the Tournament Of Champions and columnist
for Card Player magazine (“Inside Professional Poker”), Mike currently hosts the online
Web site PartyPoker.com. He may be contacted at [email protected].
35
European Poker
Nic Szeremeta
The Good, the Bad, and
the Ugly
Photo courtesy of Casino RAY — Helsinki, Finland.
Hell freezes over in December when Casino RAY will be host to the
Annual Helsinki Freezeout.
There are mixed messages coming from the poker fraternity
on the European side of the pond. On the one hand there
are screams of pain from tournament devotees that the ever
increasing buy-ins are getting out of hand, and this is the
reason for falling fields in some card room competitions. On
the other hand when the Grosvenor Victoria Casino, London
aka the “Vic,” put on an £s32,500 no-limit Hold’em event
during its European Championships week in July a bigger
than expected field of 133 turned out, producing a massive
36
pool of £s3,332,500. Not surprisingly many of Europe’s leading tournament players turned out for a shot. Even former
WSOP champion Dan Harrington came across from the USA
to take a seat.
With so much poker talent in evidence the poker fairy
could not resist the opportunity of having a bit of fun. The
first prize of £s3,120,000 (no deals) went to a virtual unknown,
T. Sambrook of England. Who? It was certainly something to
do with post-WSOP bankroll trauma that the tournaments in
May and June saw their numbers decline. The Irish Open in
Dublin, Ireland, the Torneo di Poker in Nova Gorica, Slovenia,
and the Quartermillion at the Grosvenor, Walsall, England all
had lower fields than in previous runnings. But the organizers
can hardly have expected much else; they were all scheduled
at exactly the same time!
The Ladbrokes Casino World Heads Up Poker
Championships at the Concord Card Casino, Vienna in June
likewise saw its numbers take a sharp dip. This may have had
something to do with the fact that most of the Americans
decided to stay at home and there was a rival event in BadenBaden, Germany that didn’t help. An added annoyance was
that the other major card room in the Austrian capital, Poker
World, deliberately scheduled a “spoiler” series of tournaments
at the same time and even had the nerve to send a shuttle bus
across town to the Concord to pick up players. Cooperation?
You must be kidding! Nevertheless the World Heads Up
Organization scored a notable first. The sponsorship from
Ladbrokes enabled the organization to employ a TV production
37
company and an hour-long highlights program received several
airings on the Sky Sports channels. A news clip of Russian
Kirill Gerasimov winning the title made it on to Transworld
Sport and was broadcast in 120 countries.
There is cooperation in some parts though. The boys in the
Baltic region and Russia are busily supporting and promoting
each other’s poker happenings, and there is considerable player
traffic between Sweden, Finland, Russia and the growing poker
scene in Tallinn, Estonia. A good example of the synergy being
created there is the joint venture between the Olympia Casino,
St. Petersburg and Casino RAY, Helsinki. In the first couple of
weeks in December back-to-back tournaments are scheduled,
first in Russia’s second largest city and then across the Baltic
to the Finnish capital for the annual Helsinki Freezeout. The
deal between the two independent poker operators is that
they will run a joint “overall best player” competition with
players being able to score at both events. Not only that, but
the Russian end of the partnership is going to provide coach
or train transport to get the St. Petersburg patrons across to
Helsinki. It makes a pleasant change from poker rooms trying
to carve each other up.
To read more about poker in Europe, go to www.gamblingtimes.com, keyword: europoker.
For additional poker resources search keyword: poker.
Nic Szeremeta is managing editor of Poker Europa magazine. He has also won several events
across Europe and was the first non-American winner of WSOP Media crapshoot (1996).
E-mail: [email protected].
38
Halftime Wagering
By Rob Gillespie
In recent years, Sportsbooks have started offering wagering
on the second half of all football and basketball games. They
do this because they make money on commission, the vigorish charged on winning wagers; the more wagered, the more
they can make. As a player, you need to be aware that this
extra wagering opportunity can be very profitable for you.
Remember — although you have little time to handicap, or to
shop for the best line, neither do the book managers. Books
frequently use a rough formula involving the halftime score
and pointspread for the entire game, to come up with their
Halftime numbers. So, if you’re watching an event where the
score is not indicative of the actual play, you may be able to
take advantage of the lines. There are also a few specific situations that frequently arise that can make Halftime wagering
a great opportunity to “beat the bookies.”
Sports Betting | gamblingtimes.com
39
One is when you have played on an underdog and they are
ahead at the end of the First Half. At this point you can bet the
favorite at Halftime and have a chance to profit twice without
risk of a loss. For example: the 2001 NFC Championship game
had St Louis as a 10-point favorite over Philadelphia. The
Eagles had a 17–13 lead after two quarters, and the Halftime
line was Rams -7. The Rams outscored the Eagles 16–7 in
the second half, for a 29–24 win. If you had the Eagles +10
for the game, and bet the Rams -7 at the half you won both
but couldn’t lose both. Had the Rams covered the game your
Halftime bet would have been a winner, but if the Rams didn’t
cover your Halftime bet then your Eagles bet for the game
would be a winner. Worst-case scenario is a push, where you
lose only the vigorish. I don’t recommend that you try to play
for middles like this all the time, as you worked hard to get a
winner with your Eagles bet, but in the right situations it can
be a profitable tool.
The other great time to bet Halftimes is when you don’t have
a play on the game, but liked the favorite, and the underdog
is leading at the half. In these cases you can play the favorite
laying fewer points. If you liked the Rams, but thought, “10
points is too many,” then betting at Halftime presented a golden
opportunity. With the spread -7 and the Rams down 4, St.
Louis now only had to win the game by more than 3 for the
Halftime bet to be a winner. With the Rams outscoring Philly
16–7 in the second half, they covered the Halftime line, but
not the game, so seizing this opportunity would have paid
off. This obviously isn’t any sort of system (Rams didn’t cover
40
the second half in the Super Bowl but would have if they won
the game) but it is something to consider as the seconds tick
down on the first half.
The opposite cases can work as well when you have a favorite
for the game with a big lead at the break, or no play on the
game and want to bet the dog getting more points. So it would
be well worth your time to spend a few minutes with a pen
and paper working through all the different scenarios to see
how you can profit from this very popular bet type.
Rob Gillespie “the sports betting industry’s foremost insider” is Manager of Gaming
Operations at BoDog Sportsbook & Casino (www.bodog.com). His highly respected
weekly column, “From The Frontlines,” detailing the ins-and-outs of bookmaking, is
published on many online sports betting sites.
The Fat Man Rocks
Ernie Kaufman
Betting Pro Football Totals
Sportsbetting is currently taking quantum leaps in popularity throughout all of North America. A consequence is that
the public requires more varied forms of wagering in their
sports gambling.
Totals (over/unders) have furnished us with a unique form of
action in the sportsbetting realm. It is completely different from
betting on individual teams to win or lose the ball games that they
play. Betting totals is fun and very simple to handicap. Generally
speaking, all intradivision pro football games will demonstrate
41
a strong tendency to go under the totals and conversely all nonintradivision pro football games will have a tendency to go over
the totals. The sports handicapper can expect intradivision games
to go under, and the non-intradivision games to go over, between
53% and 56% of the time during any given lengthy (six years or
more) time period.
We can theorize that this happens because intradivision games
are more important to pro football teams than non-intradivision
games, and thus are played more conservatively.
Tracking the Individual Teams
The totals player should always be aware of just which teams
are going over and under, both at home and on the road. In
2001, the Cleveland Browns had seven overs and one under
out of the eight games they played on the road. It is not difficult to spot obvious team trends early is the season and bet
them accordingly. However, it will be necessary for the totals
player to maintain a running chart on the weekly over/under
information for all pro football teams. Note that many teams
will generate an over/under direction that continues through
many seasons.
The Flip-Flop Theory on Totals (Over/Unders)
Bet on all intra-divisions teams to split their over/under
direction in the two games they play against each other. For
example: If Philadelphia and Dallas go over in their first meeting of this current season, then we would expect these two
teams to go under in their second meeting later in the season.
42
The flip-flop approach should generate between 56% and 61%
winners over an extended period of six or more years.
Average Number of Points Per Game
One of the key elements in getting a handle on totals betting
is to always be aware of the average number of points (ANP)
scored per game in the NFL. This will require computing the
ANP at the finish of every football week. Simply divide the
total number of points scored during the season to date, by the
total number of games played during the season. This should
give you a number somewhere in and around the 40. The ANP
will fluctuate from season to season in direct correlation to the
NFL rule changes and the league’s basic style of play. Either a
more conservative (defensive) or more wide-open (offensive)
style will prevail. The style will greatly influence the number
of points scored per game. Once the sports gambler is aware
of the ANP, he/she can apply the following general guideline
to his/her totals handicapping:
Generally, you are getting the best of it if you are looking
to bet over a relatively low total and under a relatively high
total. A high and or low total would be the current ANP plus
or minus six points (six points just happens to represent one
touchdown without a successful point-after conversion, or two
field goals). Now you have an excellent starting point for your
totals play this season. Any questions? Call or write me.
Read more great sports betting articles by Ernie Kaufman at www.gamblingtimes.com,
keyword: Kaufman. For a broader range of articles on football, enter keyword: football.
43
Ernie Kaufman has been handicapping sporting events for over forty years. His articles
have appeared in Sport Magazine, Barron’s, The Herald Examiner, Gambling Times, and
others. He has made hundreds of television appearances as sports analyst, with ESPN,
NBC, Prime Ticket and the USA Network. You can contact Ernie at PO BOX 534, Redondo
Beach, CA 90277.
Lay -107 on NFL Football and More at
www.canbetsportsbook.com
A View from Across the Pond
Will Roseff
Differences Indeed!
Photos courtesy of bet365.
The interior and exterior of one of bet365’s fifty-eight betting shops.
As a “Brit” I have two objectives when writing pieces for our
American cousins. First is to inform you about the betting
market over here, and second to comment on the peculiarities,
in our eyes, of the American betting market.
44
Of course, there are lots of differences in language. My
chief American trader started talking about “chalk” explaining
that “chalk” means favourite, and a “chalk eater” is a favourite
backer. For us, the “jolly” is the favourite and “chalk” means
rookie or inexperienced, usually as in “chalk jockey.” Before the
days of computerised information boards jockeys names would
be displayed next to the horse numbers, printed on wooden
boards manually aligned with the correct horse number before
each race. There were a couple of blank boards on which the
names of jockeys would be chalked when the course didn’t
have a specially printed board for that jockey. A “chalk” jockey
was one who hadn’t had enough rides to warrant a board of
his own. My trader couldn’t tell me origin of the American
usage of “chalk” as meaning favourite, but perhaps a Gambling
Times reader can?
The saddest difference in the American market is the continuing concern about getting paid; how solid are the books?
American punters have to win twice, once with their wager
and once with their choice of book. Lack of regulation allows
all sorts of scallywags to set up as bookmakers, some with no
intention of paying and others who run out of money due to
incompetence. Ironically, the chief mischief in the American
sports betting market is caused by those trying to ban it. If
it were properly regulated, the scam books wouldn’t have a
chance.
Over here, the punter’s main concern is backing a winner. Sure, there have been some bookmaker failures, but the
punter can see the evidence of the main bookmakers’ financial
45
strength on the High Street. Betting shop licences are difficult
to obtain and relate to the particular premises. To get a new
betting shop licence you have to jump all sorts of regulatory
hurdles. The result is that they have a value, many in excess of
a million dollars each. There are around 8,200 betting shops
in UK so bookmaking is a substantial business, important
to the British economy. Betting shops have been called “a
licence to print money,” but they take some running. With 58
shops and in the midst of launching a new look Internet site,
right now the joint is jumpin’ at the head office of bet365. An
example of the confidence in the UK bookmaking industry
comes from Blue Square, an Internet bookmaker known to
have substantial City backing. In July, they reported a futures
bet ($831,000) on a cricket championship that would not be
settled until the end of September!
Talking of cricket, I was watching a game of your baseball
the other night and noticed a striking similarity. Both games
involve the batter trying to hit the hell out of the ball, and the
bowler/pitcher trying to stop him. I wondered whether the one
evolved from the other and did some research. It seems that
several founding fathers of the US, including John Adams,
were cricket enthusiasts. Like most cricket fans I assume they
liked to wager. I’d bet they wouldn’t have stood for this Wire
Act nonsense!
For more on U.K. sportsbetting, go to our Web site: www.gamblingtimes.com, keyword:
Roseff.
Will Roseff is the Trading Director for Bet365.com. He can be reached at
www.bet365usa.com.
46
Sportsbook Review
J. Phillip Vogel
BoDog Sportsbook and
Casino
Akin to the mythological
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to BoDog.com, setting the stage for an
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for a growing list of online sportsbettors, BoDog.com presents
a simple, user-friendly site that is rooted firmly on the ideals
of providing exceptional selection, high security, and a great
gaming experience.
Getting the ball rolling with BoDog is about as easy as they
come. First, all would-be bettors enter personal, contact and
payment preferences. Next, select and confirm your financial
identity. Finally, collect your 20% deposit bonus and place
your bets. When betting, simply select the sport that interests
you, click on the link, and a new page will open up, complete
47
with all of the applicable betting lines to choose from in a
convenient drop screen. It’s that easy.
While BoDog.com offers both a sportsbook and a casino,
in my opinion their forte is the former. From the start, bettors are given access to every line available, from the big
three — football, baseball and basketball — to boxing, tennis,
horse racing, motor sports and more. They even offer some
truly exotic wagering for the hardcore gambler, such as the
upcoming Democratic nominations. You simply can’t beat
their remarkable selection.
If the thrill of casino gaming is more your speed, then
BoDog’s casino is one of the fastest ways to get your fix.
JAVA-based so you don’t have to waste time with a lengthy,
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gaming favorites, Blackjack, Craps, Video Poker, Roulette, Slots
and Caribbean Stud. Simply select what interests you, and
start playing. For those of you who love both casino gaming
and sportsbetting, fear not, players can watch the lines they
want to bet on while playing their favorite casino games. This
groundbreaking feature really keeps things moving and is one
of the best new developments in online gambling. To make
things flow even smoother, your account is valid in both the
casino and the sportsbook, so you don’t have to log on through
separate accounts.
Funding your bankroll is easy with BoDog. Current options
include major credit cards, wire transfer, PayPal, and even
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48
your financial information through cyberspace, consider this:
BoDog has spent a considerable amount of time and money
to insure that all transactions are secured via the latest in SSL
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information.
All in all, BoDog Sportsbook and Casino offers a premium level of service and selection that discriminating players demand. The site looks good, loads fast, and is simple
to navigate. Add to that super-fast payouts, weekly bonuses
and fantastic customer service seven days a week and you’ve
got one heck of a site. For more information or to open an
account go to www.BoDog.com or call them toll free at 1888-263-0000.
J. Phillip Vogel is a gambling columnist and author of the best-selling Real Deal series of
gaming books. To order excerpts of his books or a free copy of his newsletter, Real News,
go online to www.ravenhauspublishing.com.
49
Changing Leads
Paul Volponi
Head2Head: A Way to Go
Good news again for the
everyday horseplayer!
The Breeders’ Cup
World Thoroughbred
Championships are
trying to attract new
business from the
casual or novice player.
To that end, they have
developed Head2Head
Logo courtesy of National Thoroughbred Racing Association.
wagers for each of the
eight championship races to be held October 26, 2002, at
Arlington Park in Illinois. The takeout will be a streamlined
10%. In fishing for new fans, the good people at the Breeders’
Cup have provided established players with an excellent gaming opportunity. Head2Head wagers simply pit two horses in
the same race against each other. It is a far cry from having to
defeat an entire field of the world’s best Thoroughbreds. If your
horse finishes ahead of the other designee in that particular
race, you collect. So your runner can finish a badly beaten
fourth, and still win for you. The two designees for the eight
races will be named at the post-position draw on October
50
23. Actual Head2Head wagering will begin a day before the
events on Friday, October 25.
Do I have any insights for Head2Head wagering? You bet,
Speed! Speed horses have dominated the Breeders’ Cup Sprint
recently. Get out in front and don’t look back are the watchwords here. Take a speed horse over an established middlemover or closer in this race. Yet be careful of sprinters who
either win or finish far back. You want a horse with some
bottom that has made a habit of fighting all the way to the
wire after being headed for the lead. Fast females have done
well against the boys sprinting. So give them a solid look in a
Head2Head match up.
In route races, you want to stay away from speed horses
that may potentially duel for the lead. Only bet speed horses
in Head2Head wagers if they are the controlling speed. You
want to be certain that your horse will make the lead. Speed
horses who have to fight hard early on going a route of ground
aren’t going to succeed much in the Head2Head format.
Home Track Edge — The world’s top Thoroughbreds don’t
get around much to Arlington Park. Give any horse with a
race over the track a big leg up in the Head2Head format.
Europeans participating in dirt races may be running over that
type of surface for the first time. Under such circumstances,
they would be tough to take in a Head2Head wager against
an American runner.
Covering Your Bets — If one of the two horses designated in
a Head2Head match up is your choice to win the race you will
be presented with an interesting opportunity. You might be
51
getting 5-1 against the entire field with your primary wager.
The Head2Head bet can serve as insurance to cover that bet.
Confidence in beating the entire field should translate to
supreme confidence in beating a single horse.
America vs. Europe — American and European runners
will clash in the three major grass events, Breeders’ Cup
Mile, Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare and Turf and Breeders’
Cup Turf. The new Head2Head format will allow bettors to
back either the American or European contingent in each of
these three events. Back the speed-conscious Americans on
the tight-turned Arlington turf. The Europeans will probably
be favored.
Looking for more? Go to www.gamblingtimes.com, keyword: horseracing.
Paul Volponi writes handicapping features for American Turf Monthly and covers
various aspects of the thoroughbred scene for various other national publications. He
is publisher of the The Sly Fox, an online newsletter featuring up to date information on
jockeys, trainers, morning scouting reports, and racing trends. He may be contacted
by e-mail at [email protected].
Winning at the Dog Track
Bill McBride
Which Pool to Wager Into?
reyhound fans usually have a selection of pools in which they
can wager. As well as win, place, or show bets, the dog player
can also choose from the daily double, the quiniela, the perfecta
(exacta), the trifecta, or the superfecta. Other “exotic” wagers
52
are also often available, such as the twin-trifecta, the tri-super,
the pick-3, pick-6, and the double quiniela.
You won’t learn which pool is “best” from this column.
You will learn how to determine which pool is right for you, at
which tracks and grades. In mutuel wagering you are betting
against your fellow fans, not against the “house,” the track, or
the dog owners! At one track fans might be better than average at picking the trifecta. To make a profit in that pool, you
have to be better than they are. It also means that the trifecta
payoffs at that track are likely to be smaller than average, due
to larger numbers of bettors splitting the pools.
At another track, the fans might not favor a certain pool.
At the Tri-state track in West Virginia the entire exacta (perfecta) pool might total less than $100! Fans there just seem to
have an aversion to this bet and there is no way you can make
a profit. At another track the exacta (perfecta) pool might
average $2000, sometimes shared by only 3 or 4 winners! At
some tracks fans like to shove money into the daily double
pools, fattening them up to be shared by astute handicappers.
If you want to make a profit at the dog track you best give
this matter as much thought as you give to your actual race
handicapping. Likewise, your wagering must fit your handicapping skills. For example, if in a certain grade your methods
regularly fail to eliminate dogs from finishing third, you may
have difficulty in the trifecta pool. To cash tickets, you’ll have
to include all of the dogs in the show position, an expensive
proposition, particularly if the payoff at that track is on the
slim side. Additionally, you’ll need to be able to narrow your
53
win selections to no more than two or three, and your place
selections to five or fewer, otherwise you’ll be hard pressed to
make a profit in the exacta (perfecta) pool.
Is there a grade or course at a certain track where your first
selection wins or places some 60% of the time? If so, and the
payoffs are large enough, and if you eliminate at least 3 or 4
dogs from the place position, you may be able to make a profit
in the quiniela pool. You will discover the best pools only by
“back-testing” your wagers. Only by doing this for yourself
can you learn the route to profitability. The answer for you
is almost certain to work out by a variety of wagers; trifectas
at a particular track, grade, and condition, a win bet only in
another grade at the same track, a superfecta when it fits, and
never a daily double when the two races are of a combination
of different grades. “Back-testing” will uncover a number of
scenarios in which the best pool is no pool at all! By doing
your homework to see how you would have done by making different kinds of wagers on certain kinds of races you’ll
find that you should not bet those races at all. You will have
learned that making a profit at the dog track is in knowing
when to sit out!
For more dog racing articles go to www.gamblingtimes.com, keyword: dog racing.
Known to his fans as “Bad Bill,” handicapper Bill McBride has authored two major
books on Greyhound racing: The Gambling Times Guide to Greyhound Racing, and How
To Beat The Dog Races. In addition he has written hundreds of articles on the sport for
gambling publications throughout the world. A frequent talk show guest, “Bad Bill” focuses
his teaching efforts on handicapping and wagering skills. He may be contacted online at
www.howtobeatthedograces.com.
54
The Fastest Column in the World
Todd Sorensen
The Men in the Frontcourt
Arriaga
Arregui
Aperri
Goicoechea
Rekalde
The most agile athletes in the world are constantly dodging 150 mile-per-hour fastballs in an ancient sport known
as Jai-Alai. Necessity dictates the lightning like quickness that rushes through their blood. There is no time
for thought, no room for error for the brave men that
strap on the cesta and march into the serve box to make their
living. Being in the line of fire is a routine occurrence for the
Jai-Alai frontcourter.
While speed definitely helps at this position, anticipation
and fast reflexes are the tools that make a frontman feel at
home. You can be a world-class sprinter, and you still have
no chance to chase down the pelota. A great frontcourter will
know his opponent and where the ball will be thrown before it
gets there. He’ll have the reflexes of a cat, always on the alert.
And much like a skilled hunter, the frontman must always
be ready to attack, to take an opponents mistake and turn it
into points. To do so he must have a variety of kill shots, and
the nerve to throw them with the utmost precision. There are
55
but a few masters of this position in the world at any given
time. Learning all the tricks of the trade can take a lifetime.
But, this is one position where you don’t have to be a master
of everything to be effective.
Most frontmen have distinct styles and stick to it. Most
have shots they will throw consistently, and they’ll have at
least a shot or two that you’ll probably rarely, if ever, see
them attempt. The handicapper should look for consistency.
A frontman that isn’t always in good position is going to miss
out on too many opportunities. A solid front will always be
steady and sure of his moves. Also, look for a good head on
those shoulders. One mistake in Jai-Alai and you might just
be out of the money, literally.
Here are my top five frontcourters playing in the US today,
in no particular order:
Arriaga — Dania’s top star will attack with forehand throws
persistently. He takes over points by keeping opposing players
in bad position. A purebred athlete, he’s known for making
the spectacular possible.
Arregui — This 5-Time frontcourt champion at Dania is
the most prolific shot-maker in the world today. The master
of the remate (a backhand two-walled throw), he will attack
at every opportunity. He loves the quick point.
Aperri — Orlando’s own was the last national champion. A
right-sided player he loves to throw the forehand rebote with
heat. He loves to use placement and throws a mean cortada
(ball thrown low and hard to the inside).
56
Goicoechea — Young and strong he may be the best singles
player in the world today. He can catch the pelota with the best
of them, and is known for his powerful cortada throw.
Rekalde — A student of the game, he is an all-around master of the sport. The Miami front can beat you in so many
ways. Power, placement, and catching, he has it all.
Learn more about betting on Jai-Alai; go to www.gamblingtimes.com, keyword: Jai-Alai.
Todd Sorensen is director of communications at Dania Jai-Alai in south Florida, home of
the world’s fastest ballgame. For comments, questions, and information, contact him at
[email protected].
57
Are Handicappers Just
That, A Handicap?
By Mickey Charles
That time of the year is finally here. It is the cause of a conundrum for anyone north of the Mason Dixon Line, those of
us who are forced to bid adieu to the summer while getting
sweaters out of the cedar closet. But, it is also time for football. The NFL awaits and our prognostic powers are about
to be tested.
Remember that automobile commercial of many, many
years ago? The one that, I believe, Volkswagen did. It asked
the question, “Did you ever wonder how the fellow who drives
the snow removal equipment got there (in the storm)?” That
was the essence of it. One might ask the same question of the
handicappers that still proliferate sports with their incredible claims of knowledge, success, inside information and
58
seers on staff whose predictive powers are as wise as those
of Solomon, Cassandra or Merlin. How is it that they know
so much more than you, and have opted to sell their wisdom
rather than apply it to an effort of their own that would put
the sportsbooks of Nevada in jeopardy of instant bankruptcy
thanks to their perceptiveness? Could I not make more with
a wager on a single game than was possible by divulging the
insights that forecast the eventual final score to hundreds, or
thousands, of others? It is indeed, a puzzlement.
However, given that enigma over which to ruminate for a
while, what can a handicapper do for you and how will you
ever know whom to trust? What can you expect from them
by way of a winning record that does not necessitate a “For
Sale” sign up at the entrance to the farm or ranch?
Over the years, there have been The Gold Sheet, Sports
Reporter, Jim Feist, Marc Lawrence and a few others of similar
ilk. They have weathered the onslaught of the less than legitimate, the claims without substance, records contrived the night
before publication in an advertising delusion, and those that
preyed upon the public’s need for another opinion no matter
what it was. The survivors, like those mentioned, maintained
a focus and actually became students of the sport, of multiple
ones. They gathered statistics, followed trends, surrounded
themselves with a wealth of information and retained staff
that were students of the game, checking every nuance and
possibility before venturing forth with an opinion. And, being
brave enough to say that they had no opinion when that was
the case — in the face of a nationally televised game that the
59
players and fans out there wanted to watch and wager upon
to heighten their interest.
The NFL is once a week. It is the Sunday event. It makes
Monday nights, thanks to ABC, a looked forward to evening.
An occasional Saturday contest is a treat but must compete
with college. Now and then Thursday has been transformed
into a few hours of celibacy. It is the price one has to pay for
football.
We all have an opinion, some justified, some just random
guessing with little more than a “feeling” for the choice made.
For the average person — and that includes most of us while
eliminating the “wise guy” element of Nevada and elsewhere
(the pros) — it is important, probably essential, that we get
another opinion. Free is good, paying for it is tolerable. If that
opinion agrees with the one we have made independently, good;
if it does not, then we must decide whether one of us knows
more than the other or should we just pass on the particular
game. If we are right and they are wrong, then the predictable
“What the hell do they know?” thought rises to the surface
and they never see a dime from us. If they are right and we
are wrong we are left with a choice — admit that they know
more than we do or just tell ourselves how lucky they were
this time around.
But, in the final analysis, it is still a matter of deciding
whether the handicapper of choice is a necessary, supportive,
introspective, expert analyst who is right more often than he
is wrong, or whether his thinking and prognosis have only
served to cloud the issue of who is going to win.
60
Anyone who has looked at our site on the Internet,
www.sportsnetwork.com, has been able to see journalists,
editors, sports experts, statisticians and analysts who do not
place a wager, make choices of games daily and weekly in our
sportsbook section. In baseball, among eleven people listed,
only four, as of early July, were in the minus column and that
was minimal at best. The rest were substantially ahead and that
was predicated upon the same “wager” per game. No money
management, no increases when deemed to be “hot,” and no
pressures. The same is going to take place in football, with
the NFL. Am I suggesting that this group be your guide? No.
What I am pointing out is that people who study the game
can prefigure and hypothesize, with a fair degree of accuracy,
who will win (and more importantly, cover the point spread,
as in football) on a somewhat regular basis.
Each person, every handicapper — as with The Gold Sheet,
Sports Reporter, Feist and Lawrence — has his own system,
from early power ratings to establishing their own anticipatory line on a game to compare it to the one ultimately put
forth by Las Vegas. You may have yours to compare with the
handicapper of your choice — the “prophet” in whom you
have placed your faith and money.
When you boil it all down to basics, you are either happy
with your own expertise and have enjoyed the success that
is a result of it over the years, or have found a Jim Feist or
Marc Lawrence to be your acceptable, and profitable, source
of information and worth the cost of same. Conversely, you
can easily employ your instincts, convictions, savvy, and
61
proficiencies with theirs to arrive at a final conclusion before
kick-off. But you do not want the handicapper to be the cook
that spoils the broth. You do not want him to add confusion
and disorganization to the mix. Chaos with five minutes to go
before the ball is in the air does not help the situation. There
is, of course, always the option of enjoying the game without
any investment in the outcome. What? Did I say something
wrong?
Stay away from the talk show hosts, forget the guys who
make choices in the newspapers every weekend, be nothing
more than amused by the folks on the pre-game shows on
telecasts and remember that your brother-in-law is more of
a fan who chooses from the heart and not the wallet. Am I
encouraging you to go for the grocery money, college education
fund or the vacation bank account? Absolutely not! Will you
wager for enjoyment, to have an investment in the outcome of
the game and not cause anyone, yourself included, any grief
in so doing? I believe that. So, as your own handicapper or a
paying client of a professed professional, choose him the same
way you do your car dealer, home builder, favorite restaurant,
most enjoyable vacation spot, etcetera. You have the message.
Shop around, check it out, make sure he is a pro with a record
and get ready for the season upcoming.
For a shortlist of our Nation’s top handicappers visit www.gamblingtimes.com, keyword:
handicappers.
An attorney by training, Mickey Charles’ background includes newspaper syndication, talkshow host, feature editor, panelist, moderator and chairperson at conferences worldwide.
He is President and CEO of The Sports Network, an international real-time sports wire
service and dominant force on the Internet as a destination for fans and gamblers. He may
be contacted at [email protected].
62
The Winning Hand
Phil Hellmuth, Jr.
Q-10 Will Live In Infamy
WhenRobertVarkonyi
won the last hand of
the five-day long
World Series of Poker
(WSOP) with Q-10,
he immortalized the
hand! On day three
he had outdrawn me
in a well-publicized
$220,000 pot. This
left a bad taste in my
Photo: © UltimateBet.com
mouth, and a 60th
“If Robert Varkonyi wins this tournament,
place finish out of
I’ll shave my head.”
643 players. When
I did the TV commentary for ESPN, I put my foot in my
mouth by saying, “If Robert Varkonyi wins this tournament,
I’ll shave my head.” It seemed like a pretty safe thing to say
at the time because Robert had only $400,000 in chips (out
of $6,430,000) with nine players left, and, he wasn’t even a
professional player! Robert is an investment banker from New
York, and was a virtual unknown at the final table. When they
announced what I had said I saw Robert bristle.
Events and Places | gamblingtimes.com
63
Perhaps I helped light a fire under Robert. He began to play
inspired poker. Clearly the class of the field, he did survive
one “coin flip” hand, when his J-J beat John Shipley’s A-K
(the J-J is about a twelve-to-ten favorite), but he made all the
right moves for the rest of the tournament.
With four players left, Irishman Scott Gray moved all-in
for $320,000 with A-9. Robert called the $220,000 raise with
Q-10, and when the flop came down Q-Q-8 in this $700,000
pot it was all over for Scott. He did manage to hit a nine on
the next card and an ace on the end, but two pair doesn’t beat
three of a kind. The next hand was one of the most exciting
in WSOP history. Twenty-three- year-old English sensation
Julian Gardener opened for $100,000 with 10-10 ; then Ralph
Perry made it $300,000 to go with J-J, and finally Robert bet
$2 million with pocket A-A! Three big pairs, with three players
left, all dealt in the same hand! Julian was forced to fold, but
Ralph decided to call for all of his chips roughly $900,000.
When Robert’s pocket aces held up, there were now just two
players left.
From my point of view, though, I couldn’t win. If Robert
wins, I get my head shaved. If Julian wins I lose my record as
youngest world champion ever (I won it when I was twentyfour). By now a head shaving was looking pretty good to
me! After about twenty hands of jockeying, the final hand
came up. Robert raised with Q -10 and Julian called with
J -8 . The flop was Q -4 -4 . Robert had top pair and
Julian had a flush draw. Julian checked and Robert bet a
modest $100,000. Julian announced, “I’m all-in,” and moved
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about $1 million into the pot. Robert didn’t think long before
saying, “I call.” Now the cameras and crowd were all leaning in to see the hands and the last two cards to come. The
next card was the 10 giving Julian an additional draw. He
could now hit a nine for a straight. The last card was the 10 .
According to the confused floor man announcing the event,
Julian had made a flush and had won the pot. Most of us
could see, however, that the 10 had made Robert a full house,
tens full of queens. With a final board of Q -4 -4 -10 -10 ,
Robert had won the WSOP, and the $2 million first prize with
his full house over Julian’s flush.
Within a few seconds of the final card being dealt, the
crowd began chanting, “Shave Phil’s head, shave Phil’s head,
shave…” And so it was shaved, in front of the cameras and all.
I got what I deserved! Congratulations to Robert Varkonyi,
the 2002 world champion of poker.
Read more articles written by Phil at www.gamblingtimes.com, keyword: Hellmuth.
Winner of the 1989 World Series of Poker Championship, Phil Hellmuth, Jr. is the youngest
player ever to have achieved that distinction. He has won five other WSOP titles and has
been voted by his peers “The Best Poker Tournament Player in the World.” You can contact
him through www.philhellmuth.com.
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The Reel Thing, Ba-by
By Bobbie Katz
It could be said that comedienne
Rita Rudner is sitting on top of the
“whirled.” Onstage and off, she is
truly on a roll, as of late. Having
recently celebrated her one-year
anniversary at New York-New York,
it’s a safe bet that she will have her
finger on the comedic button there
for some time to come — she has
signed a new three-year contract
with the property, extending her show though 2004. As if
that wasn’t enough of a testimony to her Las Vegas success,
with the hotel’s introduction of its exclusive Rita Rudner slot
machines, Rudner has the chance to put her own unique spin
on things. And it all just has her simply “Tickled Pink.”
In fact, in keeping with her feminine ways, the bank of
three-reel spinning custom female slot machines, “Tickled
Pink” (also the name of her most recent book) and “Tickled
American,” features Rudner’s signature pink color and original images of lipstick containers and nail polish. “It’s really
bizarre,” Rudner says. “I was telling my husband, Martin, that
when you’re a little kid and you go to school and the teacher
asks you what you want to be, you go, ‘I want to be president’
or ‘I want to be a doctor’ or ‘I want to be a lawyer.’ No one says
‘I’d like to be a slot machine.’ I knew I’d be either a slot or a
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slut. I’m glad I chose the slot. I like the fact that I have such
a silly life.”
Rudner is also looking forward to having people put their
money where her mouth is — her idea is to be the first supportive talking slot machine. “When people don’t win, I want
to say things like, ‘it’s not your fault.’ Or if they win, I’d like to
say something like, ‘you deserve that, you work hard.’ I want to
be a very enlightened slot machine. They are working on the
technology now.”
Obviously all of this will lead to Rudner’s becoming
“Tickled Green,” which just happens to be the new book she
is writing about life in Las Vegas. Actually the comedienne
has been more prolific than ever writing new material for her
show on a daily basis. Currently performing seven nights a
week due to ticket demand, Rudner finds that the relaxation
of being in one place every night affords her the opportunity
to be very creative. Every evening, right before going on stage,
she sits down with her notebook for half an hour or 45 minutes
and checks off the material she wants to debut. She usually
tries about three new things a night, ultimately adding about
two or three new jokes to the show every week and subtracting older material.
Rudner, who wrote for the Academy Awards both this
year and last, calls her comedy an integration of punch lines,
absurdist humor, and observational comedy. She says she never
wants to say everything one way because comedy is keeping
people off balance. While people can bring their teenager or
parents to her show because she uses no curse words in her
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act, she also attracts a lot of couples because one of her focuses
is on relationship humor. The other is on commonality of
experience.
“I’m always on the lookout,” she notes. “When someone
pulls on a door that says ‘Push,’ I know there’s something
there — I’ve done it a million times!”
Bobbie Katz, a Las Vegas based writer, covers the city’s entertainment scene for the Los
Angeles Times and other publications. Her first book, co-authored with exercise guru Greer
Childers, was published by Random House in 1998. She is currently working on a new book
on the Las Vegas scene to be published by AA Publishing in the UK.
Mohegan Sun
—The Most Beautiful Casino in the World
By Stanley Sludikoff RA AICP
Photo courtesy of Mohegan Sun.
The 55-foot-high Taughannick Falls flows down to Chahnameed’s Island,
named after a historic Mohegan figure.
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More than 30 years ago, I gave up my chosen professions of
architecture and city planning, after more than a decade of
practice and some seven years of college and grad school education, to enter the gambling publishing business. Although a
bit rusty, I still have an active license to practice these skills.
I tell you this so you will know that the opinion I give you
today is not that of a layperson, but someone who has been
schooled and practiced in the above professions. Over these
last thirty plus years I have visited more casinos in the world
than most people, but neither I nor anyone else has seen all
of the 3,000 casinos in the world. Yet, from what I do know,
I feel most confident in telling you that the newly completed
Mohegan Sun is, far and away, the most beautiful casino in
the world.
Only a few people have spent such humongous sums as
$1 Billion dollars to build a casino, but none of these others have done it so wisely or so well. That includes a host of
magnificent structures built during the last decade in Las
Vegas, and a few other places around the world. My kudos to
the New York architectural firm — Kohn Pederson Fox and
the hotel’s interior design firm — Hirsch Bender associates
of Atlanta, as well as the casino’s interior design firm — the
Rockwell Group. These outstanding practitioners of their arts
have given us an example to follow and a monument to their
cooperative genius.
As I have said many times in the past, “there is no such
thing as a great architect without a great client.” The professionals mentioned above were fortunate to have the Mohegan
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tribe, led by tribal chairman Mark Brown, as their clients.
Without the guidance, instruction and sensitivity of these
Native Americans, and the cultural values of the Mohegan
people, this epitome of grace and beauty would not have been
achieved.
Magnificently sited on the banks of Connecticut’s
Thames River, New England’s scenic woodlands provide
a lush picturesque setting that the deserts of Nevada cannot naturally equal. Yet a less sensitive land planner might
not have taken full advantage of this unique site. By using
a complete crystalline glass curtain-wall skin, the architects have created a negative space that reflects the beautiful surrounding environs, rather than thrusting steel and
concrete against the natural landscape. The supporting
landscaping, using natural materials, both blends and
enhances the structures and exterior activities into a scenic
delight for our visual senses.
Everywhere you turn you can observe the traditions of
the Mohegan people and their great respect for the land and
nature. There are lessons here we can all take with us as we
return to our own home and office environments. A sensitivity, now expressed and shown by their example that we can
use again as we develop our own new spaces and renew and
refurbish the old, both as builders and clients. A trip to the
Mohegan Sun is not just a delight for the senses, but a lesson
in design that the whole world can heed.
Although this structure contains complex and multifaceted
functions, indeed it is a small city unto itself, like all great
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art, it’s easy to grasp and understand. The main form of the
building is a “Y.” In the “foot” of the “Y” is the hotel lobby,
entered from the second level. The front desk is on one side
of a lake that serves as a mirror to the massive sculpture that
frames this leg. On the opposite side is the elevator bank that
feeds the 34-story hotel above.
Moving further into the structure we observe the two
branches of the “Y,” the left leads you to the newer “casino of
the sky,” dominated by the Wombi rock multi-story sculpture
and featuring a 300 seat cabaret, while the right takes you to
the “Casino Of The Earth,” dominated by the 350 seat Wolf
Den with free nightly entertainment. Leering down from
their den are several animatronic wolf figures, appropriately
observing the casino action. Mohegan means, “wolf people”
in the Mohegan language and “sun” means, “rock.” At the
nexus is a roaring 55-foot high Taughannick Falls waterfall,
which dominates the interior space. Each branch of the “Y”
is a two-story, high ceiling promenade that provides access
to some 40 shops and 29 restaurants with a wide choice of
fare. Below the lobby is “Kids Quest,” where parents can park
their offspring while they indulge in the casino arts. Behind
the waterfall is a 10,000-seat arena for major entertainment.
The structure also contains a spa and convention rooms to
accommodate a large variety of meetings.
There’s a lot more to this special and magical place, but
you need to see it for yourself to appreciate the many features
that cannot be fully covered in this space. Just the view alone
is worth the trip, but don’t forget to try the games.
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The Basics of Slots
Frank Scoblete
How Slot Machines Work
“Give me just a little more time dear. I’ve
been playing this machine for days now and
I feel it’s about to hit.”
Games of Chance | gamblingtimes.com
While slot machines
deal in chance, nothing inside the slots,
either physically or
in terms of the programming, has been
left to chance. They
are marvels of design
and the casinos can
take the execution
of that design to the
bank — which
of
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course they do. Many slot players have no idea of how the
machines work. Well, let’s demystify them, shall we?
Today’s slot machines are programmed by computer to
continually select a series of numbers at random, whether the
machine is being played or not. The RNG, or random-number
generator, continually picks number series that correspond to
the various symbols on the reels or to blank spaces. When a
player puts in his or her coins and then either pulls the handle
or presses the button, the computer spins the reels to tell the
player which number series was “it” when that coin went in.
Many players believe that the independent spinning of the
reels is the selection principle. Sorry, no. The reels will stop
where the computer tells them to stop, based on the number
series that had been previously selected by the RNG for each
reel. The reels have no independent action. They are being
perfectly coordinated by the RNG and the computer. In fact,
the spinning of the reels is merely a show, a diversion, an
entertainment.
Since the modern slot machine is programmed to select
number series at random, no amount of finessing of the handle
can change what has been decided. Nor are there built-in win/
loss cycles, as some players believe. In any series of random
events — such as the selection of the number series by the
RNG — all manner of bizarre win/loss patterns will develop.
Yet, when you look at the performance of these machines in
a given year, you’ll note that most come in at — or extremely
close to — their programming.
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And how are they programmed? The casinos cannot make
money if they return to the player more money than the player
originally put in them. Instead, the machines return a percentage of the money put in them. Thus, if a machine is returning
92 percent that means that in the long run of that particular
machine’s programming it will give back 92 cents for every
dollar played. It keeps eight cents on the dollar.
Now, people would not play slot machines if every time they
put a dollar in they got 92 cents back. What fun would that
be? Where’s the adrenaline rush? Instead, the slot machines
are programmed to return their percentages explosively. That
is, sometimes nothing comes out and sometimes a hell of a lot
comes pouring out. It is the lure of a great windfall (or even
a little breeze) that excites the slot player. After all, inside the
belly of that computerized beast are sequences that can make
you rich — and the heart pounds with that knowledge. And
thus the casino can return its 92 cents on the dollar because it
is giving us more than eight cents worth of anticipatory thrills
with every dollar we plunk into the machine’s maw.
All slot machines, be they giant linked progressives such as
Megabucks ® or Quartermania®; game-within-game machines
such as Monopoly or Wheel of Fortune®; stand-alone machines
such as Double Diamond ® or Wild Cherry ®; or video poker
machines such as Jacks or Better ™ or Deuces Wild,™ have the
RNG as their selection principle. While the physical games
might appear different, the brains inside those games are the
same!
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For more exciting news and articles about slot machines, visit our Web site at
www.gamblingtimes.com and enter keyword: slots.
Frank Scoblete is the number one best-selling gaming author in America. For a free catalog
of his books and tapes, call 1-800-944-0406. For more exciting news and articles about
slot machines, visit our Web site at www.gamblingtimes.com and enter keyword: slots.
The Seven Do’s and Don’ts
of Slots
By Frank Scoblete
Photo courtesy of International Gaming Technology.
Don’t believe the pundits who say that all slot machines are
alike and playing any one is like playing every one. The pundits,
as often happens, are dead wrong about this. Do believe that
which machines you play and how you play them can make
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a difference in how much you win, or how little you lose, in
the long run against the casinos.
The following seven do’s and seven don’ts of slot playing, if
followed, should put you on the straight and narrow — which
is the only road you want to travel when you gamble with real
money in a real machine.
The 7 Don’ts of Slot Play
1. Don’t play giant linked progressives such as
Megabucks or Quartermania unless you can
afford to play full coin. Playing less than full coin
is a waste of money, since the return percentages
on giant progressives hover in the 80 – 85 percent
range. The only reason to play a giant progressive is
to win the jackpot and to win the jackpot you must
play full coin.
2. Don’t play full coin on machines that are “equal
distribution” or “straight multipliers.” If you look
across the highest pay line and see something like
this: 100 coins for one coin; 200 coins for two coins;
300 coins for three coins, you must realize that adding extra coins to that first one does not get you
anything of value. You are playing three times as
much to win three times as much when you play
full coin — you get no benefit for those extra coins,
so don’t play them.
3. Don’t play $5 or higher machines if you think
they will win you more money in the long run.
®
®
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In fact, despite the fact that they are programmed
somewhat looser than 25 cent and one dollar
machines, the total amount of money you’ll play
on these machines, if you play your normal speed,
will mean greater losses for you. When it comes to
slots, a smaller percentage of a greater amount of
money usually equals greater losses than a larger
percentage of a smaller amount of money.
4. Don’t think a machine is going to become hot
because it’s been cold for a while, or cold if it’s been
hot. The selection principle of the slot machine, the
RNG (random number generator) does not follow
whether the machine has been hot or cold. It just
picks, at random, number series that dictate what
will come up on the reels or screens. You have just
as much of a chance for a cold streak continuing as
you do for a hot streak starting and vice versa.
5. Don’t believe the myth that slot machines have
“cycles” and that if you can figure out the cycles,
you can break the machine. While in retrospect,
you can plainly see strings of winning and losing
cycles,these are the result of the random nature of
the game, and not preprogrammed events. Just flip
a coin for several thousand decisions and you’ll see
all manner of cycles, but you won’t be able to predict
what’s coming up based on what happened in the
past. The same applies to slot cycles. The past in
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gambling and often in life is often no harbinger of
the future.
6. Don’t believe anyone who is selling a surefire system
to beat the slots in the long run. Many scammers
will often attempt to convince the gullible that they
have found some magic bullet that will allow players to beat the machines over the long haul. Not so.
In the long run a slot machine that is functioning
properly will return to the players what it has been
programmed to return — or just about.
7. Don’t believe that you will win more money by
pulling the handle than by pressing the play button. True, pulling the handle will allow you to
slow down the number of decisions that you play,
thereby decreasing your expected loss per hour, but
the handle or play button has no effect on what
symbols are going to appear on the reels.
The 7 Do’s of Slot Play
1. Do analyze what type of machine you most enjoy
playing and then play that machine for maximum
return. If you like the idea of winning huge sums,
then play full coin in a giant progressive. If, however, you want a chance to win small amounts every
time you go to the casino, your best bet would be
playing one coin in machines such as Wild Cherry
or Double Diamond.
®
®
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2. Do read the directions on the multi-line games
(often known as the Australian games) as these
games can be confusing. With such games every
coin opens up new lines and/or symbols that can
win. Judge what it is you want to win and then make
sure you play the correct number of coins to win
what you desire — if Lady Luck comes calling that
is.
3. Do consider playing video poker. Some video poker
machines, when played with the correct strategy,
can be advantageous to the players. Many are very
close games where the casino edge is in the fractions
of a percent.
4. Do be aware that all machines tend to have hit
frequencies that range from 15 to 40 percent. That
means you will lose most of the decisions when
you play. The decisions you do win will often be
for more than even money. This volatility is what
makes slot playing fun.
5. Do slow down your play. The faster you play, the
better it is for the casino; the slower you play, the
better it is for you.
6. Do consider moving your play up a notch. If you
are a full-coin 25-cent player, consider going to a
single one-dollar coin. It is no secret that the higher
the denomination, the better the payback in most
venues. However, as in #5 above, make sure when
you move up in denomination to get the better
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returns, you slow down the pace of your play so
that you aren’t putting more money through the
machine.
7. Do join the slot clubs of as many casinos as you
play in. With cashback, food and room comps,
discounted shows, presents and prizes, a good slot
player can get back in goods and services a significant percentage of what he expects to lose on the
machines. In fact, some video poker players can
actually be ahead at the end of a year when they
figure in their comps.
If you follow these seven do’s and seven don’ts for slot play,
you will be giving yourself the best possible chance to break
those one armed bandits.
For more slots articles and a selection of no-download slot machines visit
www.gamblingtimes.com, keyword: slots.
Frank Scoblete is the number one best-selling gaming author in America. For a free catalog
of his books and tapes, call 1-800-944-0406.
Advantage Player
Jerry Patterson
Eight Key Decisions
Time management and money management are important
keys to a potential winning casino gambling session. They
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can be expressed in terms of eight key decisions you should
make during the course of your play.
1. To Play or Not to Play
The casinos will always be there so it’s best to go when your
energy level is normal or high and you are mentally ready
to exercise the discipline to win. Tired or emotionally upset
gamblers risk losing the discipline necessary to stick with a
plan of action. If this happens, you are usually beaten before
you start.
2. Which Game to Play
Choose the game in which you feel most proficient or one with
the best odds of winning, ideally a game you have practiced at
home and prepared for. If you decide to play more than one
game, allocate the time you plan to spend on each.
3. Which Casino to Play
If you have a choice of casinos, choose one with the greater
number of tables and the less crowded conditions. If you live
near a casino, or perhaps several and play often, assess the
conditions at these local casinos and ascertain which times
are best to play within your own playing constraints.
4. Which Table to Play
Develop a set of criteria for choosing a table. A card counter
will gravitate to the table with fewer players and thus the possibility of more favorable rounds of play. A rhythm roller at
Craps will look for an uncrowded table where he can get to
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the dice quickly. A roulette player may scout the tote boards
looking for clues of a dealer signature or power sector.
5. Betting Unit Size and Tactics for Increasing the
Bet
Decide on the size of your bankroll and the number of units
into which you break it. I recommend 100 – 200 if you are
averse to risk. The fewer the units you break your bankroll
into, the higher your risk of tapping out. Do this before the
session and then stick to your plan!
6. When to Leave the Table
Establish a stop-loss that applies to each table you play. Decide
beforehand how many betting units you are willing to lose
before leaving this table. Consider also using a stop-win. Leave
when you have reached a win goal for the session or after you
have experienced a good gain, backed off, and triggered a
“trailing” stop-loss.
7. When to Leave the Casino
If you have a choice of casinos in the area, leave when the tables
are crowded and you have difficulty finding a playable table. If
you’re locked in to a one-casino location, be careful. If playing
conditions are bad, keep your bet sizes small and respect your
stop-losses. Keep in mind that every unit you save, every unit
you don’t lose, looks that much better if you do have a losing
session because you’ve cut your losses short.
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8. When to Terminate the Casino Session
Terminate when you have reached the limit of your optimal
session time. Take a break to keep your perspective and your
control. I suggest a session time of around ninety minutes.
Terminate if you are tired and you notice this is affecting your
judgment and play.
These eight decisions are a winning paradigm; taken together,
they constitute a plan of action for your casino trip and/or
session and give you the best chance of achieving an allimportant short-term edge.
Before you develop your plan of action make sure you know the basics of the game. Visit
www.gamblingtimes.com and enter keyword: basics.
Jerry Patterson has a B.A. from Willamette University and M.S. from George Washington
University. His book, Casino Gambling, is currently Amazon.com’s best selling Craps
book. It contains five chapters on dice control. He can be contacted via his Web site:
www.casinogamblingedge.com.
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New Slots
By Scotch Henderson
THE GAME OF LIFE is a trademark of Hasbro and is used with permission. Photo ©2002 Hasbro. All Rights
Reserved.
SURVIVOR™ is a trademark of Survivor Products L.L.C. used with permission from CBS Consumer Products.
Photo © 2001 WMS Gaming Inc. All rights reserved.
Blazing 7s® EVO™ photo ©2002 Konami Gaming Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Dragon Treasure™ photo©2002 Konami Gaming Inc. All Rights Reserved.
The Game of LIFE™— Sigma Game
The Game of LIFE is a nine-line, 45-coin game, with a theoretical hold of 7.88 percent. Based on the famous “The Game
of LIFE” board game, it was introduced with a major national
promotion by Harrah’s Entertainment properties. The game
has, so far, been enormously popular with players. According
to one of the top executives of manufacturer Sigma, early
returns from the Native American markets showed this slot
to be highly profitable in the nickel denomination. The game
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is packed with bonus features that draw on the 40-year-old
board game dealing with life’s milestones, using fairly simple
and familiar artwork and animation. The central feature of
the machine is the colorful dial, a huge replica of the dial used
in place of dice to determine the number of spaces moved in
the board game, imbedded in the top box.
There are two main bonus features, one of which is a random choice between 10 different games. It’s called “Life’s Little
Games,” and is triggered by three or more TV symbols. Ten
tiles appear on the screen, and the player chooses one to reveal
one of six relatively simple games with titles such as “Treasure
Chest,” “Life’s Lottery” and “Skunk Money.”
The main bonus feature is a re-creation of the actual board
game. The board game’s spinner dial is the trigger for the
event; three or more get you into the bonus. The LIFE game
board appears on the screen, folded up as it is in the real game’s
box. It unfolds to reveal a replica of the game board. The dial
appears on the video screen, and the player is prompted to
touch “SPIN” to start it turning. The big dial in the top box
spins at the same time, often attracting plenty of attention
from passersby. When the dial stops on a number of spaces,
the car on the video screen moves from “START” to one of
the board spaces, each of which represents a milestone of
life such as “Earn Degree” or “Wedding Day.” When the car
lands, the spot reveals a bonus credit or multiplier amount.
“Stop and collect” symbols are at key locations such as “Early
Retirement.”
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Survivor™— WMS Gaming
“Survivor,” the slot machine, is a base three-reel stepper
slot with a top-box bonus game played out on an oversized
color LCD video screen. It is available in the standard WMS
theoretical hold percentages (6 percent to 12 percent), adjusted
to compensate for the progressive prize. The game is built
around the phenomenally popular “reality TV” show, which
places groups of people in “tribes” in remote locations such
as the Australian Outback or a deserted island, where they
vote among themselves on successive people to throw out of
the tribe until the last “survivor” remains.
The base stepper game is the strongest feature of this game.
The reels light up and flash in sequence as they land, with
great sound effects — much like the WMS steppers of the mid
1990s. The unique cosmetic features of WMS reel-spinners
help set them apart from the many Bally and IGT steppers
on the floors. The striking appearance of the machine, with
a waterfall between the Survivor logo and the video screen,
topped with a remarkably realistic simulated campfire, attracts
plenty of attention.
Lining up three Survivor logo symbols lands the progressive jackpot, which resets at $100,000 and is paid in a
lump sum. The base game is available in any of four WMS
stepper slots — “Diamonds 4 Ever,” “Island Fortune,” “Wild
and Loose,” and “Jungle Cats.” An extra “Bonus” symbol on
the third reel triggers the main “Challenge Bonus” game on
the LCD video screen, in which the player is treated to one
of several “Challenge” bonus games, simulating the physical
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challenges used to eliminate contestants on the TV show. There
is a “Fire Walk Challenge” which depicts a contestant walking
across hot coals—the farther he gets, the higher the bonus
(top award, 1,000 coins). There is a “Cooking Challenge” that
depicts characters throwing various “food” such as insects and
roots into a pot, and another challenge that depicts a character
climbing across a vine over a “River Crossing Challenge” full
of alligators.
Unfortunately, the graphics and animation on all of these
“Challenge” rounds are very simplistic and repetitive. After
the initial novelty wears off, the bonus rounds become quite
predictable. However, the strength of the WMS stepper features and the big-money progressive top jackpot could make
this game a “Survivor.”
Blazing 7s® EVO™— Bally Gaming
Players have long loved the graphics, the multiple “7” combinations, and relatively high hit frequency (for a reel-spinner)
that Blazing 7s offers. There has been an abundance of Blazing
7s spinoffs in the reel-spinning genre, and practically all of
them have been successful to some degree. Blazing 7s EVO
takes the Blazing 7s name, graphics and traditional paytable
combinations into a nine-line, multicoin nickel game on the
EVO™ Video platform, with its sharp graphics and fluid animation. It is a 27-coin nickel game, accepting bets of one to
three coins per payline, with a reliably low-volatility program
offering a hit frequency upwards of 59 percent.
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All the popular features of the traditional stepper version
are retained — the three “7” wins in the paytable (mixed 7s,
single 7s and the marquee Blazing 7s with the fire animating
as the symbols land), as well as all of the traditional bar and
cherry combinations. The game is instantly familiar to its
longtime faithful fans, but the high hit frequency promises to
garner new fans among slot players seeking more entertainment. They get that frequency even with the highest hold
program, 12.82 percent (available programs range to a low
theoretical hold of 5 percent), and they get the frequent hits
with a minimum 45-cent buy-in to activate all the paylines.
This game also serves the classic stepper fans that don’t
mind sacrificing hit frequency for a frequent shot at the big
payoff, thanks to a rapid-hit top jackpot of $1,000. That top
prize lands an average of once every 1,902 spins, according
to the manufacturer, providing a cool grand payoff that’s 20
times more frequent than quarter video poker, as long as
max-coin is inserted.
Dragon Treasure™— Konami Gaming
This new video slot takes a program with low volatility and very high hit frequency — 83 percent, according to
the manufacturer’s numbers — within a nine-line format
and creates a game that is much more interesting than the
standard multiline fare. The game mimics a home computer
game better than any before it, and is proving quite popular
on casino floors.
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Dragon Treasure is a 45-coin nickel game that includes one
standard pick-one bonus event — three “Magic Box” symbols
on an active payline trigger a second screen featuring a wizard
character who prompts the player to choose one of five treasure chests to reveal a random multiplier amount. But the real
star of the show is the main bonus event, “Dragon’s Treasure
Bonus,” which simulates a dragon hunt, from the perspective
of a knight hunting the dragon. The player and the dragon
engage in up to five animated battles, ending when one or the
other character is out of “lives” (each has three lives). For each
battle, the player chooses one of three weapons to try to slay
the dragon. The more times the player wins the match, the
higher the bonus. Average bonus awards range from just over
1,000 coins to around 6,800 coins, depending on the number
of symbols in the triggering spin. At least three knight symbols
on a payline trigger the bonus sequence every 109 spins, on
average. The outcome is, of course, determined by the random
number generator. However, the progress of the matches successfully creates the feel of a typical home video game, making
it both familiar and popular with younger casino players.
Dragon Treasure is available in theoretical hold percentages
ranging from 3.84 percent to 11.11 percent.
Scotch Henderson is a part-time recreational gambler and full-time gaming industry
analyst. He tours casinos throughout the United States and Canada and has contributed
to many popular publications including Strictly Slots, Las Vegas Advisor, and Casino Player.
Now a full-time resident of Las Vegas, he can be reached at [email protected].
Play slots now at www.fabulousvegascasino.com
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Video Poker for Fun and Profit
Dan Paymar
One-Coin vs. Five-Coin
Play
It has been repeatedly stated that you
should always play the maximum
number of coins or credits (usually
five) on any video poker machine.
Playing fewer coins reduces the
total long-term payback by about
1.5% because you don’t qualify for
the jackpot payoff on a royal flush.
The problem is that this has been
Photo courtesy of International
Gaming Technology.
repeated as dogma by gaming columnists who are not very knowledgeable about video poker.
The advice is often simplified to say that playing five coins
is always better than playing one coin on a similar higher
denomination machine. For example, if you don’t want to
bet $1.25 per play, then don’t play a quarter machine. Instead,
find a nickel machine of the same type and always play five
coins. But is this always good advice?
Let’s assume that you’re going to play Jacks-or-Better, but
you don’t want to wager $1.25 every play. Sure, there are many
nickel machines around, but instead of the full-pay 9/6 payoff schedule (9-for-1 for a full house and 6-for-1 for a flush)
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most of them have the 8/5 short pay schedule. This is the same
type, but it’s not the same game. True, you would avoid giving
up 1.5% of the payback by playing five coins to qualify for
the royal, but that’s in the long term. More importantly the
reduced payoffs on the flush and full house cost 2.23%, so
you not only lose a net 0.73%, but you also have much larger
bankroll fluctuations due to this loss being in the short term!
The figures are different on other games, but the advice is
almost always the same. To state it as simply as possible:
1. For the maximum payback, you should always play
enough coins to qualify for the full royal flush jackpot.
2. If you’re not comfortable betting that much, you
should look for a lower denomination machine with
the same payoff schedule, or some other lower game
that offers good payback.
3. If you can’t find a lower denomination machine
with a good payoff schedule, you’re usually better
off playing only one quarter instead of five nickels,
but with the understanding that you’re forfeiting up
to 1.5% of the payback.
4. This seldom applies to higher denominations. It’s
rare that a casino has full pay dollar machines but
no full pay quarter machines.
5. There is never any good reason to play two, three or
four coins in a five-machine. This is simply risking
more money at the reduced payback.
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In Las Vegas it’s easy to find full-pay quarter machines of
almost any kind you like, especially if you leave the “strip” in
favor of the outlying “locals” casinos. But don’t get the idea that
this discussion applies only where full-pay games are available.
Suppose you are in a casino where the Jacks-or-Better choice
is between an 8/5 quarter machine and a 6/5 nickel machine.
If you play five nickels instead of one quarter, the reduction by
two on the full house costs 2.30% for a net additional cost of
0.80%. However, if the nickel machine has a 7/5 schedule, the
loss is only 1.15%, so you are better off by playing five nickels
instead of one quarter on the 8/5 game (although you would
have slightly larger bankroll fluctuations). Unfortunately, there
are very few full-pay nickel games anywhere other than in a
few Las Vegas “locals” casinos, so you are frequently better
off playing one quarter than five nickels. If you do play short
coins, there are a few strategy changes that would cut the loss
a bit, primarily foregoing those two-card royal draws.
For more on video poker, including several great practice games, go to
www.gamblingtimes.com, keyword: videopoker.
Dan Paymar, author of Video Poker—Optimum Play, is editor and publisher of Video
Poker Times. Information on strategies and play can be found on his Web site:
www.vegasplayer.com/vpinfo/video-poker.html.
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Gambling and the Law®
I. Nelson Rose
If Betting Is Not a Crime
Is It Legal?
In New York, it is
not a crime to make
a bet. But does that
mean that betting in
New York is legal?
This may sound like
legal hair-splitting.
But the U.S. Supreme
Court recently refused
to overturn a lower
court’s decision that
betting does not have
to be a crime to be illegal, resulting in a felony conviction for
Jay Cohen, with a probable twenty-one months in prison.
This legal technicality is also what is stopping companies like
Caesars from opening up Internet casinos and taking bets
from Americans.
Cohen was the president and co-founder of one of the
most successful online sports betting operations, World Sports
Exchange (WSEX.com), licensed and run out of Antigua. His
problem was the federal Wire Act, which makes it a crime for
Consumer Advice | gamblingtimes.com
93
anyone in the business of gambling to use a wire that crosses
a state line to send information that would be helpful in the
placing of bets. But the Wire Act has a “safe harbor,” an exception to protect legitimate news reporting of sports events and
state-licensed race books.
The Wire Act was first proposed in 1961 as part of U.S.
Attorney General Bobby Kennedy’s War on Crime. It was
designed to help states enforce their nearly unanimous prohibition on betting on sports events and races by telephone.
Because Nevada allows bets on horse races taking place in
other states, there had to be a way for Nevada’s racebooks to
receive race results. So, the Wire Act expressly does not cover
“the transmission of information assisting in the placing of
bets or wagers on a sporting event or contest from a State
or foreign country where betting on that sporting event or
contest is legal into a State or foreign country in which such
betting is legal.”
It has been settled law throughout almost all of the United
States that a person cannot be punished for a specific activity,
say betting on a sports event, unless a legislature has passed a
statute making that activity a crime. Betting with WSEX.com
is legal in Antigua. Cohen’s lawyers pointed out that the New
York Legislature has never made it a crime to make a bet in
New York. This, they said, made it legal on both ends. The trial
court and Court of Appeals disagreed. They sided with the
prosecutors and declared that gambling is illegal in New York,
even though it is not a crime. They pointed to language in the
State Constitution, “no . . . bookmaking, or any other kind of
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gambling (except lotteries and horseracing) shall hereafter be
authorized or allowed;” and the General Obligations Law, “All
wagers, bets or stakes . . . shall be unlawful.”
In fact, many off-track betting parlors in the state have had
account wagering for years, exactly like WSEX.com. Bettors
deposit money in advance with the OTB and then call when
they want to bet on a horse race. New York law expressly allows
bettors in other states to make phone bets to New York OTBs.
Until December 2000 federal law did not make an exception for
state-licensed OTBs. Yet, the feds only went after Cohen.
Which proves that the definition of “legal” sometimes
depends more on whom you are rather than on what you are
doing.
For more articles on gambling law, go to www.gamblingtimes.com, keyword: law. For
articles and coluns written by I. Nelson Rose type keyword: Rose.
Professor I. Nelson Rose is an internationally known public speaker, writer, consultant
and scholar and is recognized as one of the world’s leading authorities on gambling law. A
Harvard Law School graduate (1979), he is a tenured full Professor at Whittier Law School
in Costa Mesa, California, where he teaches one of the first law school classes on gaming
law. Contact him through his Web site: www.GamblingAndTheLaw.com.
Casino Gourmet
Photos courtesy of Mohegan Sun Casino.
Prime Rib Photo: Bill Gucfa, Mohegan Tribe.
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The Longhouse restaurant in the Mohegan Sun casino is just
one of some 32 delicious dining options in this city within
one magnificent building. I ordered two of my favorite dishes,
Prime Rib and creamed spinach. The prime rib was melt-inyour mouth sumptuous, but the creamed spinach was simply
the best I ever tasted, anywhere. Just a warning for light eaters,
the generous portion should be shared by at least two persons
as this particular dish will quickly sate your appetite as it is
incredibly rich.
A graduate of the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde
Park, chef Joe Speringo has a scientific approach to fine cuisine. To fully meet his standards, each dish must go beyond a
simple preparation of the finest ingredients; it must provide
layers of texture and flavor. Take it from me . . . it truly does,
or better still, try it for yourself. Some of the other venues
that have been fortunate to have Speringo’s services include:
Grant Village Steak House in Yellowstone National park, and
Robert Redford’s Sundance Resort in Utah. Best described as
a fusion of Italian and French cuisine, Speringo has created a
legendary dining experience.
Prime Rib
(13 to 15 lb. Prime grade rib)
Rub
1 oz. ground fennel
1 oz onion powder
1 oz. garlic powder
3 oz. black pepper
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1 oz. cayenne
1 lb. kosher salt
Preparation
1. Generously coat all sides of the rib with rub.
2. Place on a sheet pan in a 300-degree oven.
3. Cook for 2 to 3 hours, longer for well done.
4. Use a metal internal thermometer to check temperature, 120 degrees for more rare.
5. Remove from oven and let stand covered for 15 to
20 minutes.
6. Slice and serve.
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Casino Consumer
Steve Bourie
Las Vegas Slot Club
Refund Programs
In Las Vegas both
Harrahs and the Rio
have discontinued
their “Play $100 On
Us”
promotions.
These unique promotions allowed new
slot club members to
be rebated slot losses
of up to $100 incurred
during the first day of
using their card. With
Images courtesy of Stratosphere Casino Hotel & Tower
the discontinuation of
these promotions by the two Harrahs owned properties this
leaves the Stratosphere as the only casino in town to offer a
special rebate program for new slot club members.
Originally started in June 2000 the Stratosphere’s program
was similar to Harrahs except they took it one step further
by guaranteeing players that they would actually win money.
The Stratosphere’s program refunded losses up to $125, plus
they gave you back an extra 10% that guaranteed that you
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could walk away as a winner. However, on January 1, 2002,
the Strat revamped their program and the Guaranteed Refund
Slot Gaming Program, as it is now called, guarantees a refund
of 15% (up to $100) of any machine play, win or lose, for new
members of the Stratosphere Player’s Club. While the benefits
have been slightly reduced, it is still a great value and here’s
how it works.
The program only applies to new slot club members, it’s only
valid for visitors to Las Vegas (residents of Las Vegas, North
Las Vegas, Henderson, and Boulder City are not eligible), and
you can only use it one time. To be eligible you need to sign up
for a new Stratosphere Player’s Club membership and then use
your slot club card every time you play any slot or video poker
machine. The casino will then reimburse 15% of your coin-in
(the total sum of money that is put in to play the machines),
for any denomination from nickels up to $100, during the first
thirty minutes of your play. The maximum amount you can
get refunded is $100 and the required thirty minutes of play
doesn’t have to be consecutive, it can be broken up over several
sessions but it must be completed within twenty-four hours
of signing up for the card. That’s the good news.
The bad news, however, is that the money is not given back
to you on the spot. Instead, it’s mailed to you two weeks later
at your home address in the form of a voucher and you have to
bring it back to the casino within one year in order to get your
cash. Along with your cash voucher you will probably also receive
some sort of discounted room offer, plus a free pass for two to
the Stratosphere’s observation tower. If you know you’re going
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to return to Las Vegas then this is a great program because you
know you will get some money back, however, if you’re not going
to return to Las Vegas then the program may be worthless to you.
For more information on the Guaranteed Refund Slot Gaming
Program call the Stratosphere’s Player’s Club at (800) 946-7771
or visit their website at www.stratospherehotel.com.
For more consumer tips from Steve Bourie, visit our Web site at www.gamblingtimes.com
and enter keyword: Bourie.
Steve Bourie is the author of the American Casino Guide, the most comprehensive publication available for information on any U.S. casino/resort, riverboat or Indian casino. He
has more than thirty years of experience in the gambling industry and has written articles
for most of the major gaming periodicals. He is a contributing writer to The Expert’s Guide
To Casino Games, and a frequent guest on radio talk shows. He may be contacted at
[email protected].
100
Dr. Z’s Mathematics of Gambling
William Ziemba
Recapping the Races
I’m now in Europe on a lecture
tour and family vacation, a far cry
from my usual equine haunts but a
much needed change of pace (pun
intended). In my last column I discussed the Kentucky Derby and the
Triple Crown prior to the running,
with special emphasis on the dual
qualifiers Saarland, Johannesburg,
Photos courtesy of Churchill Downs/Kinetic
and Came Home. I was quite sure
Corp.
2002 Kentucky Derby winner Johannesburg, with only one 2002
War Emblem
start, would do poorly, and indeed
he did. The two others also ran out of the money.
The winner War Emblem made a lot of sense to us before
the race and was a great value at 20-to-1. His equiform number
going in was 78 (off an easy victory in the Illinois Derby). The
other contenders had a 75 or 76 at best, so he did have by far
the fastest time. However, the handicappers and their connections didn’t think he was Derby material, coming from a
sire costing $20,000 and yet to prove himself in any top race.
His owner, in a bit of financial trouble as many are these days,
offered him for sale. That sly old fox Bob Baffert once again
proved his mettle by getting the Thoroughbred Corporation
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and its Arab sheik owner to buy 90% of him for $900,000, a
nice profit indeed!
Bob had won seven of the past sixteen Triple Crown races
and had three horses that won two legs recently, but War
Emblem was overlooked. His running style is “shot-out-ofa-cannon,” and rarely do such horses have the right dose of
stamina to win the Derby, as Winning Colors and Spend a Buck
did, wire to wire. War Emblem won easily by four lengths. The
runner up, Proud Citizen, was a 75 coming in and did not
figure, except that his trainer was D. Wayne Lukas, another
“sly old gray fox.”
In the Belmont the Preakness favorite was Medaglia Doro
who was fourth in the Derby, trained by top trainer Bobby
Frankel who seems to win all the time except in Triple Crown
and Breeders Cup races. I saw the scenario a repeat of the Derby.
War Emblem at 81 and Proud Citizen at 80 were the best, the
field argued for that, except for a local Maryland horse at long
odds, Magic Weisnere running at 80.
The hype argued for Bob Baffert’s chances once again to
win a Triple Crown. Purists like this writer will argue that
Real Quiet, Silver Charm, Point Giver and now War Emblem
were not of the 1940s to 1970s quality of Secretariat, Affirmed,
and Seattle Slew, you only have to look at the times to see that!
However, War Emblem looked tough going in and his style
was okay for the mile-and-a-half Belmont, but a stumble at
the start ruined his chances. He was able to come back and
gain the lead but then faded to eighth. Ken McPeek trained
Sarava, the winner at huge 70-1 odds, was improving, having
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run at both Churchill Downs and Pimlico in non-TC races.
He won at 75 at Pimlico and was able to upset the Belmont
field. Equiform predicted Sarava would be in the Belmont field
but a win over this year’s crop of three-year-olds was a weak
one. As it is Medaglia Doro came in second with Proud Citizen
(now facing a fractured shin and months of rehab) coming in
fifth. We will see what the Breeders Cup brings.
For more articles on horseracing, go to www.gamblingtimes.com, keyword: horseracing.
William T. Ziemba is a chaired professor in financial modeling and stochastic optimization. He focuses on the theory and practical aspects of financial. The name “Dr. Z” was
born through his work for the Canadian Sports pool when his models, devised for the
Canadian government, won a lot of money and his work on racetrack betting systems
pioneered looking at the racetrack as a financial market. Racing products are available from
John Swetye, [email protected].
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Congratulations!
You’ve Hit the Major Millions $1.6 Million
Jackpot!
By Ted Loh
Tony said to himself,
“I’ll just put another
hundred in here, and
if I lose this I’ll quit for
a while.” His on-again,
off-again relationship
with online gambling
proved to be a convenient source of entertainment, but deep in
the back of his mind he had the thought: Wouldn’t it be so
nice to win a jackpot, pay off all my debts, finance the kids’
education and put enough away to live comfortably?
His wife yelled out, “I’m getting into the shower!” “Okay,
hon,” Tony replied as the casino accepted his new deposit and
he went back to playing the new Major Millions progressive slot
machine at Captain Cook’s Casino. Tony clicked away on the
“Bet Max” button, collecting a few small wins, until suddenly
the screen went gray. He looked a bit more closely.
“Congratulations! You’ve hit the Major Millions Jackpot!” was
the writing on the screen. Tony blinked, rubbed his eyes, then
blinked again, body and mind moving in slow motion, as if he
Online Gaming | gamblingtimes.com
104
were dreaming. Shakily, he summoned his breath, ran up the stairs,
and yelled, “Honey! Put on a towel and come look at this!”
His wife got out of the shower, came downstairs and
together they stared in utter amazement at the gray screen.
Tony reached over, clicked the mouse and the gray screen
disappeared to confirm their wildest dreams had come true.
Three Major Millions symbols were lined up on the bottom of
three lines on the screen. Unbelieving, he emailed the casino
then emailed them again. After what seemed like an interminable amount of time, the phone rang as the casino manager
called to congratulate them and confirm that everything was
in order. And so a fairytale began — except in this case it was
no fairytale. Tony P. had just become the Internet’s first million-dollar jackpot winner.
Operated by Jumbo Jackpots of Curacao on behalf of the
Net’s leading progressive jackpot portal, Jackpot Madness,
Major Millions is the only jackpot ever to have paid out a
million-dollar winner online. To top it off, the jackpot is not
payable in installments, but in instant cash! After the usual
checks and balances were performed, Tony received his payment in one lump sum wired to his account within a week
of hitting the jackpot. And less than six weeks later, Jumbo
Jackpots flew him and his wife on an all-expense paid trip
to Monte Carlo to meet a number of well-known industry
analysts, portal operators and advisors.
During the 4-day trip, Tony and wife proved that the win
was no fluke. Every night at the casino, one of them would
be a winner and they ended the trip in positive territory even
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after buying lots of gifts for friends and family back home.
Considering that the Jackpot Madness team had a superb trip
all mapped out, and the only time to play in the casino was
after incredibly delicious 4-hour dinners ending at midnight,
this in itself was an accomplishment.
A sales and marketing manager by trade, Tony and his wife
immediately took financial and legal advice from family and
friends, set aside a lump sum to pay taxes on the winnings,
paid off the mortgage on the house, and put the remainder
into investments and funds designed to cover educational and
living expenses for themselves and their children for many
years to come. They even set aside money for a new car, but
as they looked at various cars driving by on the road, they
realized that the second-hand Ford they were driving in was
already the perfect car for their needs.
Tony and his wife have no plans to retire just yet, they plan
to continue working until they reach retirement age. As his
wife put it, “We love our work. We wouldn’t know what to do
if we weren’t working!”
Congratulations to Tony, Captain Cooks Casino
(www.captaincookscasino.com) and Jackpot Madness on this
amazing milestone.
Editor’s Note: Although Gambling Times has photos of the winner, at his request and out
of respect for his privacy we agreed not to publish them.
For live listings of major progressive jackpots go to www.gamblingtimes.com, keyword:
jackpots. For a list of recent winners search keyword: winners.
Ted Loh is an online gambling consultant, writer and portal operator with experience in the North American and Asian markets. He can be reached by e-mail at
[email protected].
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Virtual Evolution:
Software Provider Launches the Next
Generation of Online Slots
By J. Phillip Vogel
More than reels will be spinning soon as Internet software
provider Playtech unveils its newest line of virtual interactive
slot machines. “Playtech’s new slot project will open the online
market to a variety and quality of innovative slot machines
rarely seen in virtual casinos today,” said Esther Abramowicz,
Marketing Director for Playtech. “We are launching a multitude of feature-rich slots with a degree of graphics and
designs that are unprecedented. Some of these slot machines
are available in land-based casinos but we are the first supplier
to bring such popular games to a virtual casino.”
Playtech, who first entered the online gaming industry in
1999, has pleased players and casino operators alike since the
initial release of their software in late 2000. Their new software
offers players the choice of entering the virtual casino doors
instantly through their web browser or by quickly downloading the free software program to their own computer (PC or
107
Mac). The eagerly anticipated release demonstrates an even
higher level of player participation through decision making,
which translates to the most realistic gaming experience you
can have without heading to a bricks-and-mortar casino.
“Most of Playtech’s newly added slot machines are interactive and offer much more player input during the session
of play, thus they are more exciting to the end user,” said
Abramowicz. “In addition, some of them even offer bonus
rounds enabling players to win relatively high stakes not often
seen in non-progressive games, ranging from tens of dollars
to as high as thousands of dollars.”
Playtech’s original slot selection offered a wide range of
Internet mainstays such as three-reeled progressive slots
like Safecracker and Magic Slots and five-reeled favorites
like Diamond Valley and Fruit Mania. Their new project,
however, features a higher level of variety, interactive capability, and innovation for Slots, Video Poker and Blackjack.
The new games include three and five-reel bonus stage slots
and special multi-spin slots that allow players to decide how
to continue playing by letting them hold certain reels. “The
‘hold’ feature has become very popular in the next generation
land-based slot machines. We believe that they will draw as
much attention online as they have in the land-based casinos,”
said Abramowicz.
Despite these impressive additions to the software repertoire, Playtech has no intention of resting on their laurels. “Our
primary objective is to become the market leader in the online
gaming software industry by offering cutting edge solutions to
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answer today’s needs. Our solutions will include all aspects of
the gaming industry, ranging from casino games and bingo, to
a jackpot network. Incorporated in a high end administration
tool, our software solution aims to offer the casino manager a
complete software package that would allow him to manage
his online business with the same high standards expected
from a land-based casino.”
These newly designed machines are available on all Playtech casinos. To preview them go to:
www.playtech.com/slots.html.
New Games
Playtech’s newest slot software includes:
3-Row Multi-Spin Slots:
• Goblins Cave
• Triple Profits
5-Row Multi-Spin Slots:
• Ocean Princess
• Tropic Reels
5-Reel Multi-Line Slots:
• 9-Line Captain’s Treasure
• 9-Line Highway Kings
• 9-Line Silver Bullet
• 5-Line Golden Tour
10-Line Jacks or Better Video Poker
25-Line Aces & Faces Video Poker
109
In the Spotlight
Stuart Kernaghan
Casino Fortune
Sunny Group’s Casino Fortune
(www.casinofortune.com)
has been online since 1996,
but it underwent some rather
drastic changes in March
2002 after Sunny switched
its casinos to new software
from Playtech. According to
Nicole Green, Public & Media Relations Manger for Sunny
Group, Playtech software was the natural choice because “it
has a lot more player-friendly features such as multi-table,
multi-player, a chat feature, and the ability to view Game
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and Transaction history without leaving the table. It really is
state-of-the-art, 21st-century gaming.”
The revamped casino offers players the choice of download
or no-download Flash versions, and a selection of 48 games
that includes single-zero roulette and everything else you’d
expect. But the quality of the games and casino features are
what really deserve the attention. The graphics are superb,
and everything from the cards to the tables and chips looks
crisp. Card and dice movements are fluid, and card speed can
be adjusted to suit your personal preference.
Features such as large or small cards, zoom on the slot
machines, 10-cent bets, and a ‘double up’ option in Video
Poker make Casino Fortune stand out. Links on the casino
interface to the promotions page and customer service are
unique, as are private group play and a chat forum hosted by
the casino. Four-line Video Poker is another pleasant surprise
that you won’t find at many casinos.
The other major change at Casino Fortune has been the
addition of seven progressive games. There are five slots, one
Video Poker game, and the new $500,000 Sunny Slots progressive, which is the second largest progressive jackpot on the
Net. Not surprisingly, the progressives are quite popular and
Casino Fortune players have won a massive amount to date.
Sunny Group plans to carry the momentum from the new
launch into the future by adding more slots and continuing
its 20% weekend bonus. Casino Fortune is definitely worth a
visit if you want a top-notch gaming experience — or a chance
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to win more than half-a-million dollars playing the Sunny
Slots progressive.
Pharaoh’s Casino
I usually enjoy playing at
casinos with Boss Media software, and Pharaoh’s Casino
(www.pharaohscasino.com)
is no exception. As you
might expect from the name,
Pharaoh’s uses an Egyptian
motif complete with gold
burial mask and hieroglyphics. That theme carries over to the games tables.
Pharaoh’s was smart enough to know that not everyone
has a high-speed Internet connection and created a suite of
play-for-fun Shockwave games to keep people busy while
they’re waiting for the download to finish.
European roulette and single-deck Blackjack are nice
touches at Pharaoh’s and you won’t see Killer Whale slots,
which combine Video Poker and a five-reel slot, at every
casino.
Progressive jackpot games are becoming increasingly popular and Pharaoh’s has three of its own: Gold Pirate Slots, Jack
in the Box Slots, and Caribbean Stud poker. The Caribbean
jackpot was at almost $110,000 when this review was written,
and the other two were over $25,000.
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Pharaoh’s offers a $30 bonus on deposits of $30 or more
and a 10 percent bonus on local bank transfers. FirePay, credit
card, and wire transfer are all deposit options, and Visa users
will like the option of crediting their withdrawals directly to
their cards — especially since there’s no limit on the amount
you can withdraw.
It was nice to hear the dealer calling winning Pai Gow
hands, and the new Jack In The Box three-line slot is much
more entertaining than most slots. High rollers will also appreciate betting limits up to $1000. The bottom line? Pharaoh’s
is a quality casino with several user-friendly features and a
stable gaming platform that’s ideal for people who are more
interested in substance than bells and whistles.
More online casino reviews can be found at www.gamblingtimes.com, keyword: reviews.
Stuart Kernaghan has a M.A. from the University of Victoria in British Columbia and works
as a writer specializing in online gaming news and trends. He can be contacted by e-mail
at [email protected].
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