William Day passed away in late 2011. Most video poker players have never heard of him. He was, however, one of the strongest video poker theoreticians from about 1997 through 2004 and much of today’s knowledge about the game originated with him. He deserves to have a place in any legitimate Video Poker Hall of Fame. But he was a quiet, self-effacing man who shunned the spotlight. Continue reading Rest in Peace Bill Day
Author: Bob Dancer
Fezzik Has a Losing Year
Steve Fezzik is one of the top sports handicappers anywhere. And his specialty is betting NFL football. He’s won several NFL handicapping contests. He’s the brains behind the LVASports.com site. I was a guest on his (now history) radio show a few times and once he was a guest on Gambling with an Edge. Continue reading Fezzik Has a Losing Year
Change to Gambling with an Edge
I am sorry to have to tell you that Richard Munchkin will be leaving the Gambling with an Edge radio show. His last show will be January 26. Continue reading Change to Gambling with an Edge
Video Poker Classes — What they Will and Won’t Do
My next semester of free video poker classes will be in the Showroom at South Point on Wednesdays beginning January 4 at 12 noon. The schedule of classes may be found at http://www.bobdancer.com/seminars.cfm. In previous semesters the classes have begun at 1 p.m. but this time the Showroom will be used for another event on Wednesday evenings so we need to get out of there earlier than before. Continue reading Video Poker Classes — What they Will and Won’t Do
The Right Attitude
I’ve mentioned before that I sometimes read Card Player magazine even though I’m not a poker player. On occasion I find information in there that I can apply to my own gambling career — which is almost entirely video poker. Continue reading The Right Attitude
How Resilient are you?
Several times I’ve listed attributes required to be a successful video poker player — intelligence, willingness to study, ability to obtain and hold on to a bankroll, etc. I’ve recently come to the conclusion that resiliency should be on that list. Continue reading How Resilient are you?
Changing of the House Rules
This particular incident and conversation with a floor person happened at local casino in Las Vegas. I’m not going to identify the casino because I don’t know if what was told to me represents casino policy. Continue reading Changing of the House Rules
Five Hundred Dollars isn’t the same as Five Hundred Dollars
When Shirley and I finished a cruise recently, we scheduled separate flights back home from Orlando because she was planning on visiting a girlfriend there for a few days. Those plans got cancelled for some reason and Shirley was able to get on a flight a couple of hours after mine. Continue reading Five Hundred Dollars isn’t the same as Five Hundred Dollars
Paying for Drawing Entries
Listeners to Gambling with an Edge may remember a guest named Sammy Katz, who is an advantage video poker from the Midwest. I got an interesting email from him, reading in part: “A local casino I play at in the Midwest is doing their drawing promotions in a new way. You earn 1 entry for every 250 points earned ($4=1 point). However, at certain times, you can BUY entries for all of the drawings that month at a rate of 100 points per entry (including points you have saved up). 200 points are worth $1 in free slot play otherwise. Is this somewhat common now for drawings? I am tempted to figure out whether it would be worth it for me to buy additional entries, but philosophically I am opposed to it, as if everyone did it, it would just be an arms race that only benefited the casino. It seems unfair that the casino is letting one person sell their points for something that costs the casino nothing, but essentially gets its value from devaluating my entries. Any thoughts on what you would do?” Continue reading Paying for Drawing Entries
Two Advantage Plays on Norwegian Cruise Lines — And an end of a play
Shirley and I just returned from a week-long Caribbean cruise on the Norwegian Sun. The cruise was “free” from the Palms, meaning that we “only” had to pay $521 in port fees and taxes — per person. We’ve taken a large number of cruises to many destinations, and this particular one was the only one that came up on NCL when we Googled “2011 Square Dance Cruise.” It’s a minority priority, to be sure, but it’s ours. Continue reading Two Advantage Plays on Norwegian Cruise Lines — And an end of a play