Last week I gave you three advantage-play slots. These are slots where the player can get an actual edge over the casino when played correctly. You must play these slots exactly as written. I must thank Jerry “Stickman” for the tremendous research he did finding these machines. Captain Jack: On Green Chip recently, someone asked about slot machine advantage players and why he can't find anyone who is willing to talk about it. I gave a short reply, but I think it warrants further discussion. It goes back to the classic debate of AP Art v.Science.Any robot can count cards, but the ability to get away with it is where the art of the process comes into play.
Advanced Advantage Play Videos on YouTube. Brandon James on Beating Slots and Video Poker. Hole-Carding Novelty Casino Games.
I am going to share with you some of the machines that my fellow columnist Jerry “Stickman” and I discovered to be player-favorable at certain times. What do I mean by “player-favorable”? Simply that the slots player can get a real mathematical edge over the casino if he plays these machines correctly.
Yes, these are called Advantage-Play machines and are excerpted from my book, Slots Conquest: How to Beat the Slot Machines!
With each machine I will explain when the machine becomes favorable to the player and how much money to have in your bankroll to play the machine.
Full disclosure: Atlantic City had no advantage-play machines. However, casinos in Nevada, the Midwest and Mississippi did when we scouted these territories. Some of these machines are somewhat rare. In short, you must go to a casino and check out the floor to see if any are there. Okay, so you have to do some work!
Before I get into individual machines, first some important thoughts:
This type of advantage-slot machine is similar to progressive slot machines in the sense that something builds. It is not a jackpot dollar amount, though. Instead, something else builds. It could be coins, hats, gems, fruit or even firecrackers. It can be almost anything.
The pool of items builds when a special symbol or some combination of symbols appears on the reels. This can be one particular symbol, a combination of symbols, or even the absence of symbols sometimes called blanks or ghosts. For example, if a cherry appears in one of the nine positions that are visible on the reels, a cherry is added to the corresponding section of a pie. Each different machine has its own criteria for saving.
Once a certain combination of symbols appears or a section of the collection area is filled, a bonus is paid that is proportionate to the number of hats, gems, fruit, or whatever symbol that’s been banked. For example, a diamond is added to one of three columns corresponding to the reel that contains a diamond. When a column is filled with diamonds, a bonus of 10 credits is collected and the column is emptied.
The more things that are in the collection, the better chance the game might be positive. And I will show you which games can become positive as well as when they become positive. It will give you the best method to play them and let you know how much money you should have available once you decide to play a given advantage machine. A proper bankroll is absolutely necessary to give yourself the best chance to win.
Once you have found a game that has a positive expectation, there are certain rules you must follow to maximize your wins. Some may seem obvious, but it is amazing how quickly one can forget about discipline when one is playing and winning. The following rules for play are not suggestions—they are requirements. They must be followed if you are going to maintain an advantage.
1) Only play when you have an advantage.
This rule applies while playing any casino game. You must recognize that playing without an advantage negates any wins you might have in the short run. If the house has the edge, then you will ultimately lose your money. It is hard work to win money from a casino.
2) Have the required bankroll in your pocket.
Once you have determined that you have an advantage at a machine, you must play until you collect the bonus or jackpot. Lady Luck can be fleeting. It may take a long time before you hit the right combination to collect—but collect you must or you will have wasted your money.
3) Once a machine becomes positive, it remains positive until someone collects the bonus and then the collection is reset and the positive machine is no longer positive.
Generally, the more you play the more positive the machine becomes. Can you imagine your frustration if the following happened? You deposit the last $20 you have in your pocket (or purse) into a positive game. You play and play and you don’t collect. You play the entire $20 and still don’t collect. Grumbling, you get up from the machine; go to your room to get some more money. When you return to the machine, you find that the jackpot has been collected. It is no longer positive. By not having sufficient money in your pocket, you not only lost your chance at the bonus; you blew $20. If you left to get more money before playing, someone else may have still gotten the bonus, but it would have cost you nothing!
4) You must play until you collect the prize and if you don’t do this then you are purposely giving up your advantage.
Make sure you have enough money with you—in your pocket! This is not like playing a regular slot machine where you flee once you have started to lose a good portion of whatever your session stake is. Not on these machines. You should have the proper amount of money to assure that you win the game.
5) Quit playing when you no longer have an advantage.
If you try to build up the symbols, instead of letting the average slot player build them up, you are just a regular slot player yourself and you then will have no advantage.
6) Once you collect the bonus, verify if you still have an advantage.
There are times when you will continue to have an edge even after collecting a bonus. You should know these times on which machines. If you do not have the edge, then quit playing and move on. Most games lose the advantage once you collect the bonus; most—but not all. When you collect, look at the game. Do you still have an advantage? You will have a strong urge to continue playing—but don’t—unless the machine is still positive.
Six simple rules that you must follow to assure you are playing with an edge and playing properly with that edge.
Next issue: The Machines to Play!
Frank Scoblete’s newest books are Confessions of a Wayward Catholic! and Slots Conquest. Available from Amazon.com, or at your favorite bookstore, or by mail-order by calling 1-800-944-0406. Join Frank on his web site at www.frankscoblete.com.
Advantage play gives skilled gamblers an opportunity to win serious profits. Card counting and hole carding, for example, are two of the best ways to make profits in casinos.
However, not all proposed advantage gambling methods are worthwhile. Some are either completely worthless or outdated. I’m going to discuss several advantage play techniques that either don’t work or are past their prime. You’ll do well to avoid getting involved with any of the following strategies.
Wheel Bias
Wheel bias is a legitimate way to make money with gambling or at least it was. This technique involves watching a roulette wheel and recording results.
The goal here is to find a wheel that favors certain pockets or sections. Upon finding such a biased wheel, you’ll be able to wager on the relevant sections and win profits.
Several gamblers throughout history have won millions of dollars playing real moneyroulette. Joseph Jagger, Billy Walters, and Gonzalo Garcia Pelayo are among those who’ve become rich with wheel bias.
Therefore, you should theoretically be able to join these players in winning big. Unfortunately, wheel bias no longer works in today’s gambling world.
The biggest problem is that casinos use more modern wheels that are less likely to experience wear and tear. Invented in the 1980s, the Starburst wheel has dramatically reduced the number of advantage play opportunities.
A Starburst wheel features metal frets and pockets that are less likely to wear down. Therefore, you have very little chance of pulling off wheel bias today.
Advantage Slots Play
Slot machines are typically viewed as pure luck. In fact, they feature some of the lowest RTP in land-based and online casinos.
Nevertheless, you can gain an advantage with certain slots at brick and mortar casinos. The two main ways that you can develop an edge include:
Mystery progressive slot machines
Bonus accumulator slots
A mystery progressive slot features a jackpot that grows by small increments with every bet. Unlike with regular progressive jackpots, though, these prizes pay and an exact amount.
For example, you might win the jackpot when it reaches exactly $500. You can hold a long-term advantage by consistently playing these machines when they’re near the payoff point.
A bonus accumulator slot features a meter that determines when a bonus hits. Once you completely fill the meter, then you’ll unlock the feature.
Like mystery progressive machines, bonus accumulator slots are more rewarding when you play at a certain point. You can swing the odds in your favor by playing when the bonus meter is close to being full.
Advantage slotsplay sounds great in theory. You simply look for opportunities and take advantage of them. The reality, though, is that there are other gamblers with the same idea.
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Some people hang out in casinos all day looking for chances to make money off bonus accumulators and mystery progressive jackpots. You’ll face heavy competition to the point where you may not find it worth your time.
Controlled Shooting
A craps roll is supposed to be totally random. You toss the dice down the table and attempt to hit the backstop.
Controlled shooting (a.k.a. dice control) is a method that allegedly lets you control your dice tosses. It sees you hold the dice in a certain way while using a smooth rolling motion to produce desired results.
The method for gripping the dice (a.k.a. setting) varies depending upon which results you want. You expose the desired numbers while hiding the unwanted combinations.
The “V” set is popular among many controlled shooters. It involves doing the following:
You begin by making a six or eight place bet.
You grip the dice so that the threes are facing upward (i.e. V shape).
This grip exposes numbers that are more likely to produce a six or eight.
It hides numbers that are likely to produce a seven.
After developing a set, you need to practice to roll the right numbers. For this, many dice control advocates rig craps tables in their garages or basements to practice.
The end goal involves developing a smooth tossing motion that hits the backstop with the least amount of force possible. With enough practice, you’ll supposedly roll desired combinations with more consistency.
The reality, though, is that craps is still a totally random affair. You can’t toss dice 10 to 14 feet through the air, hit a pyramid-patterned backstop, and produce consistent results.
Unsavory gambling experts, who write books on and teach controlled shooting, are the only real proponents of this strategy. They claim to enjoy unparalleled success with dice control.
If this is the case, though, why don’t casinos throw out controlled shooters like they do card counters? The answer: Casinos know that dice control doesn’t work.
Video Poker on +EV Machines
Video poker is like the slot machine for skilled gamblers. It gives you an opportunity to use your skills to influence the outcome.
You can even win long-term profits with certain machines. Deuces Wild (100.72% RTP), Double Bonus (100.17%), and Double Double Bonus (100.08%) can all offer over 100% payback under the right circumstances.
To achieve over 100% RTP, you must use near-perfect strategy and find the right variations. After all, pay tables for any of these games can differ.
You need to find the “full-pay” versions to get the highest RTP. Unfortunately, few of these games exist around the world.
Casinos don’t like willingly surrendering their edge. With that said, they no longer supply many video poker machines with positive expected value (+EV).
The majority of +EV machines are based in Las Vegas. You’ll find some of these games sprinkled throughout the rest of Nevada too. Even when you do find these machines, though, you’ll only be able to bet up to $1.25 (five $0.25 coins) per hand. In the past, some casinos allowed up to $5 bets per hand.
With such a thin edge and low bet sizes, you can’t make much through real money video poker. At best, you’ll earn between $7 and $10 per hour.
The latter rate is only if you play at a fast rate and don’t make many strategy mistakes. You’re better off getting a second job that pays minimum wage at this point.
Comp Hustling
Land-based casinos used to be more generous with loyalty rewards. They’d offer 0.3% comp rates, or higher, on slots and video poker. Assuming you were comped 0.3% on full-pay Deuces Wild, then you’d essentially be looking at 101.06% RTP.
Some gamblers used these generous comp rates to earn solid profits from video poker. Even if they didn’t get on a full-pay Deuces Wild machine, they could still make more profits with Double and Double Double Bonus.
Jean Scott wrote a series of books about hustling for comps. As explained in Frugal Video Poker (2006), Scott and her husband combined great rewards with expert video poker strategy.
Sadly, these days are long gone. Casinos no longer offer as generous of comp rates for slots, video poker, or any other games. Most gambling establishments feature a 0.1% comp rate. The latter is three times lower than the previous standard.
You should still take advantage of loyalty rewards when possible. However, you can’t expect to make profits through a combination of comps and high RTP any longer.
Edge Sorting
Normally, you have no idea what a card’s value is when it’s face down. All card backs pretty much look the same in this position. Edge sorting seeks to identify small imperfections on card backs. With this knowledge, an edge sorter can conceivably determine a card’s value before it’s flipped over.
Surprisingly, many casino decks do have slight imperfections on the card backs. Most commonly, some cards in these decks feature half-diamond patterns—instead of full—on the long edges.
Assuming you can figure out which card values have half-diamond patterns, then you’ll have more information before betting.
For Example:
You may figure out that all high-value cards have half-diamonds. In this case, you can determine the first card’s value before wagering.
The problem, though, is that seeing card backs from a few feet away is difficult. Therefore, some gamblers ask the dealer to rotate certain cards 180 degrees.
They make this request for superstitious reasons. Of course, they’re really just trying to make it easier to spot the cards’ long edges.
Edge sorting can result in a large advantage over the casino. Unfortunately, the gaming industry is well aware of edge sorting.
As a result, most dealers know better than to rotate cards 180 degrees for you. Even if they’re not fully aware of this measure, they can ask their supervisor for approval beforehand.
The supervisor is likely to deny the request. You’ll find it nearly impossible to locate a casino that’ll blindly offer the perfect conditions for sorting edges.
Conclusion
The gambling world still offers some opportunities to gain an advantage. As mentioned before, you can count cards or using hole carding to win.
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But you also need to be wary of the fake and/or outdated advantage gambling methods. After all, these techniques will prevent you from winning any serious money.
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You might even end up losing lots of cash. Controlled shooting, for example, gives you a false sense of confidence that results in larger losses.
In summary, you should do your homework before embarking on advantage play. The last thing you want to do is waste time and money chasing something that doesn’t work.
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