Author: Bob Dancer

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Using 9/6 Jacks or Better Strategy to Play 8/5 Bonus Poker

A friend of mine, Terry, usually plays 9/6 Jacks or Better (JoB). There is one casino, however, where 8/5 Bonus Poker (BP) is the best game. He wants to know what changes he should make to his JoB strategy in order to play BP.

First of all, Terry doesn’t HAVE to make any changes. JoB strategy works pretty well on BP. Rounding off to three decimal places, perfect BP returns 99.167% and BP using JoB strategy returns 99.158%. Is that difference big enough to make strategic adjustments? You’ll have to answer that for yourself. Continue reading Using 9/6 Jacks or Better Strategy to Play 8/5 Bonus Poker

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A Royal Flush Penalty

I am probably far more aware of (some might say obsessed with) penalty cards than most players. I’ve written about straight penalties, flush penalties, low straight penalties, low straight kicker penalties, straight flush penalties, and high card penalties, as well as specific card penalties such as a ‘9 penalty.’ There are also some situations where two or three penalties must occur at the same time before the strategy is affected. Continue reading A Royal Flush Penalty

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My Life with Ameristar

I recently read an article about the late Craig Neilsen who, although losing the use of his arms and legs due to an automobile accident in 1985, ran Ameristar casinos from its inception until his death in 2005.

cdcgamingreports.com

Ameristar was good to me as a consultant. I earned more from my consulting with that company than I earned from all the other companies combined. Continue reading My Life with Ameristar

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There’s a Lot of Bad Information Out There

The American Casino Guide is a handy reference book for gamblers. It includes articles, maps of casinos in every state, and lots of coupons. Over the years, some of my articles have been included. On-line, there are also podcast interviews of various gambling experts — again including me as well as many others. The reference material contained in the book changes little from year to year, but the coupons expire annually. If you actually use the coupons, purchasing the book every year is a smart buy and an excellent value. If you don’t use the coupons but you travel to a lot of casinos around the country, buying the book every five years or so makes sense.
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Every Day It’s a Grind

I don’t watch baseball on television very often, but I happened to have a Dodgers-Rays game on in the background not so long ago. I spent the first 46 years of my life in greater Los Angeles and the Dodgers have always been “my team.” There were some great teams when the Dodgers were owned by the O’Malleys, but there have recently been some lean years.
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Theory or Fact?

Most everyone who has read my writings is, in general, aware of my “system” for playing video poker with an edge. Briefly: Total Return is the sum of the return on the game (discounted by your error rate), plus the slot club, plus the mailers, plus other promotions. If that return is less than 100%, don’t play. If that return is greater than 100%, then you’re playing with the advantage and, over time, good things will happen.
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It’s the Sum that Matters

A friend of mine, “Henry,” is a reasonably strong video poker player. His game selection is decent, his “play-of-the-hands” skills are better than average, and he only plays when he has an advantage. He likes multi-hand games with a total bet in the $10-15 range — so quarter Ten Play, 50¢ Triple Play or Five Play, or $1 Triple Play are all comfortable for him. He will occasionally break out of that comfort zone for the right promotion. Continue reading It’s the Sum that Matters