My semi-annual 10-week semester at the South Point will begin on Tuesday, September 10, 2013 at noon in the Showroom and will continue through November 12. I have a number of choices regarding the subject of each class that I teach. This column is a request for feedback should you have any requests or opinions on this matter.
The first requirement is that any game taught must actually be found at the South Point. This precludes any game in excess of 100% — including, among others, Full Pay Deuces Wild, 10/7 Double Bonus, and 10/6 Double Double Bonus. The casinos that offer these games usually restrict you in one or more ways if you play them. Michael Gaughan, owner of the South Point, prefers to advertise “no limits and no restrictions” on any game found there. Whether you agree with him or not, he gets to set the ground rules and this is one of them. (I have tried to convince him otherwise on two separate occasions. I am not going to try a third time. People who believe that the lack of 100% games at the South Point is my idea are greatly mistaken.)
There are two classes that WILL be taught each semester — no matter how you vote. 9/6 Jacks or Better (99.54%) is the easiest quality game to be played and learning that game provides a good foundation for several others. NSU Deuces Wild (99.73%) is the best Deuces Wild game at the South Point. When the 0.30% slot club is included, NSU provides a 100% game 24/7.
There are also two classes that in the past HAVE BEEN taught every semester — but starting this time will be taught every other semester. These are “What Video Poker Players Should Know about Slot Clubs” and “Secrets of a Video Poker Winner.” Although these are important classes, a high percentage of students have had at least one of them before and teaching both each semester is a bit of overkill. I don’t particularly care which one of these I teach this semester, so if you have a preference, let me know.
One class that WILL NOT be taught is 8/5 Bonus Poker (99.17%). Although this is a popular game, the strategy is more than 99% equivalent to 9/6 Jacks or Better — and since the latter game returns 0.37% more, that’s the superior choice if both games are offered. Players who prefer 8/5 Bonus for whatever reason can take the 9/6 Jacks or Better class and still gain value from it.
Other games under consideration:
a. Beginning 9/7 Double Bonus (99.11%) and beginning 9/6 Double Double Bonus (98.98%). If either of these games is taught, they both will be taught the same week. While these games are a bit tighter than the other games being considered, these second-best pay schedules have a very similar strategy to the full-pay pay schedules available (with restrictions of course) at certain other casinos. Another reason to teach them is that the best version of Quick Quads is based on Double Double Bonus poker and the best version of Ultimate X uses a strategy very similar to that of Double Bonus. So if either or both of these “unusual” games are taught, the beginning strategies provide an introduction to them.
b. 9/6 Bonus Poker Deluxe (99.64%) — This game is identical to 9/6 Jacks or Better except that two pair pays more in JoB (2-1 rather than 1-1) and 4-of-a-kinds pay more in BPD (80-1 rather than 25-1). Since the pay schedules have so much in common, the strategy is VERY similar except for the way you play certain 4-card straight draws.
c. 9/7 Triple Double Bonus (99.58%) — Compared to Double Double Bonus, this game pays more for aces with a kicker (800-1 rather than 400-1) and 2s, 3s, 4s with a kicker (400-1 rather than 160-for-1), but it pays less for 3-of-a-kinds (2-1 rather than 3-1). This game has a sky-high variance and is only for the “action junkies.” One downside is that this particular pay schedule is available in few other places and the strategy for the 9/7 version of this game is very different than the strategy for the 9/6 or 9/5 versions.
d. 9/6 Double Double Bonus Quick Quads (99.65%) or 8/5 Bonus Poker Quick Quads (99.55%) — Quick Quads is a 6-coins-per-line game that pays you for 4-of-a-kinds on hands consisting of a 3-of-a-kind along with two other cards adding up to the rank of the trips. That is, 99954 counts the same as four 9s and 222AA counts as four deuces. While the DDB version is the smarter choice for players with significant bankrolls (and is indeed my game of choice on 2x point days there), the BP version has considerably lower variance and many fewer W2Gs will be generated by it. I’ve taught the DDB version for the past six semesters so perhaps it’s time to teach the BP version this time.
e. 9/6 Double Double Ten Play Bonus Ultimate X (99.87%) — Ultimate X is a 10-coins-per-line game where you earn multipliers for each score. If you receive a positive score on the same line next hand, your score is multiplied. This is an exciting, new game and I am inclined to teach this game regardless of the voting outcome.
f. 9/6 Jacks or Better Multi Strike (99.79%) — This is a four-line game where you pay for all four lines up front. If you at least get your money back on the first line, you get to play the second line with a 2x multiplier in effect. If you at least get your money back on the second line, you get to play the third line with a 4x multiplier. Succeed once more and you get to play the top line with an 8x multiplier. If you “strike out” on any line, the game is over. In order to make the math work out, you will occasionally receive a Free Ride which allows you to move up to the next-higher line whether you score on the current line or not. The strategy for each line is different.
g. 9/5 Super Double Bonus — This is a variety of Double Bonus where four Jacks, Queens, and Kings return 120-1 rather than the more typical 50-1. Also, straight flushes return 60-1 rather than 50-1.
h. 9/4/4 Bonus Deuces (99.45%) — Bonus Deuces pays more for 5-of-a-kinds compared to regular Deuces Wild but only 1-1 for straights compared to the typical 2-1 in other Deuces Wild games. The strategy for this game has similarities to NSU Deuces Wild because the games pay the same amount for full houses and flushes.
i. 12-4 Double Bonus Deuces Wild (99.81%) — This game is similar to Bonus Deuces except it pays even more for certain 5-of-a-kinds. If we are only going to teach one of the games in the Bonus Deuces family, this should be the one. It has a higher return than other Bonus Deuces games and since it pays less for full houses and flushes than NSU Deuces Wild does, it provides a good opportunity for instruction on how those pay schedule changes can affect the strategy.
Those are the choices. If you have an opinion on which classes are taught, please let me know at [email protected]. The final decision will be made before the end of July and the class schedule will be posted on www.bobdancer.com by August 1.