Many times I’ve written about video poker games that I consider fair. And what I mean by “fair” is that every unseen card has an equal chance of appearing next.
Most people seem to accept my definition — or at least understand what I am talking about.
However, I recently received an email at [email protected] from someone who calls himself “Reno Master.” The email read as follows:
I‘ve noticed that you routinely misuse the word “fair” when what you really mean is “honest.”
Fairness has an exact mathematical definition. A fair game is one whose EV = 0.
In other words, a fair game is fair in that no player has an advantage over any other player.
If you wish to gamble with an edge, you need unfair games with EV > 0 from your perspective.
Some people have their own usage of certain words. If this was simply a distinction that Reno Master and no one else made, then I would continue with my own personal definition. But if there was considerable agreement among academics about what the term means, then I would try to use the word as it used by other educated people.
So I wrote back and asked:
Where is ‘fair’ so uniquely defined? I understand the distinction you’re making, but I’m not aware that ‘fair’ can only be used to mean EV=0
I received a quick reply:
Being a math major from way back, I really don’t know where I came upon that definition. The following site will have to do: mathworld.wolfram.com
When I looked up the citation, it read: Fair Game — A game which is not biased toward any player. A game in which a given player can always win by playing correctly is therefore called an unfair game.
I am not a math major and I had never heard of this particular website. But after a little exploring, I came away believing the site was respected among mathematicians and that the mathematical terms on the site were used correctly.
But I also noticed that this didn’t really define “fair” but rather “fair game.” I suspected that “game” was a precise term which may or may not include what I mean when I say “game.” When I’m thinking of “game” I’m thinking about a video poker machine produced by IGT or another manufacturer. On the website listed above, “A game is defined as a conflict involving gains and losses between two or more opponents who follow formal rules. The study of games belongs to a branch of mathematics known as game theory.”
Is this what I mean by a game? It’s probably close enough. I haven’t studied Game Theory. While this certainly would be a good thing for a professional gambler to study, I’m 67 years old and the opportunities to benefit from such a study are likely limited. Were I still in my 20s and intended to spend my life as a professional gambler, I would hope that I would be smart enough to study this.
So I thank Reno Master. In the future, I will refer to “honest games.” And as a gambler I will continue to seek out “unfair games” where the advantage lies on my side.
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