The Intelligent Gamblergambler

The Intelligent GamblerGambler

Street (Plaza, Golden Gate, Las Vegas PUBLISHER’S CORNER DOWNTOWN BLACKJACK Club, Pioneer, Golden Nugget, Binion’s Chuck Weinstock Anthony Curtis Horseshoe, Four Queens, Fremont, Fitzgeralds, El Cortez, and Western) and Welcome to the third issue of Con- Late last year I received a call from the those located one block north on Ogden JelCo’s The Intelligent Gambler. In this publisher of Casino Player magazine. (California, Lady Luck, and Gold issue we have articles by Anthony Curtis, The Player had just run a story naming Spike). These are the 14 casinos that are Ken Elliott, Arnold Snyder, Lee Jones, downtown Las Vegas as having the loos- banking on the success of the Fremont Lenny Frome, and Bob Wilson on every- est slots of any gambling area in Amer- Street Experience, due to open in late thing from blackjack to video poker. ica. It was a big feather in the cap of the 1995. Since the last issue has come out we’ve downtowners. So big, in fact, that they While conducting this investigation, I released the book Winning Low-Limit built a major print-media and billboard had in mind players with skill levels Hold’em, by Lee Jones. This book, advertising campaign around it. “It's offi- ranging from rank novice (no blackjack which Card Player has said is “destined cial,” the ads trumpeted. “Downtown is training at all) to high intermediate (per- to become a classic” has sold so well that loosest for slots.” fect basic strategy), because everyone in by the time you receive this issue it will The campaign was a big hit and the this group can improve results simply by be in it’s second printing. downtown casino bosses wanted more. playing in better games. What makes one They suggested to the publisher that his In this issue we’re announcing Sozobon game better than another? A lower house magazine declare downtown most liberal Poker for Windows, software to improve advantage, which is a product of the for blackjack as well. your play at both Texas Hold’em and number of decks dealt and the rules. Seven-Card Stud. See our special pre- “What do you think?” the publisher (Stanford Wong's excellent newsletter, publication offer elsewhere in this issue. asked me. “Is there a case for downtown Current Blackjack News, provided most ConJelCo’s World Wide Web site has Las Vegas being best for blackjack?” been operational since last Summer. We Interesting question. The conventional Contents are receiving over 2,000 requests for wisdom has traditionally held that gam- information per day, and have greatly bling (overall) is better downtown, but Publisher’s Corner 1 expanded the offerings to include the Las this perception hasn't carried over to Downtown Blackjack 1 Vegas Advisor Top Ten Values, and the blackjack. The reason is one bad rule: the Bets on the River 2 Best Bets from Blackjack Review. Dur- dealer hits soft 17. This rule, which The House Advantage 3 ing the 1995 World Series of Poker we requires the dealer to draw a card on Serious Blackjack Questions 4 were able to provide on-line results of totals of 17 that include an ace (i.e., A,6), Random Number Generators 5 the various events shortly after they costs the player a sizable .2% in expected Sozobon Poker for Windows 5 ended, complete with graphics of chip return and dominates the downtown The Winning Session 6 position at the final table, and the final blackjack scene (the only exception is The ConJelCo Catalog 8 hand. We expect to expand the offerings the Golden Nugget's six-deckers). further over the next several months. Blackjack downtown might be more The Intelligent Gambler is published on an This is a free service to our customers. relaxed and have lower limits than else- irregular basis by ConJelCo as a free service You can find us at: where, but most liberal? That claim to our customers. Our address is 132 Radcliff http://www.conjelco.com required investigation. Drive, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 15237. We can be reached by telephone at 800-492-9210 We appreciate the many positive com- Definitions (orders only), or 412-492-9210 or by fax at ments we’ve had on prior issues of The 412-493-9031. We’re also on the Internet Intelligent Gambler. We hope you enjoy I categorize “downtown casinos” as the (URL http://www.conjelco.com.) Send e- this issue as well. ♠ casinos that are located on Fremont mail to [email protected].

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of the data on table conditions presented Why Fewer are Better below.) We've all heard that fewer decks are better. Here's why. As the number of decks is Single-Deck Density reduced: The most important consideration when ¥ You are slightly more likely to get a natural. looking for a good blackjack game is the ¥ You are slightly more likely to get an untied natural. number of decks dealt. Fewer is better ¥ The favorability of proper doubling down is increased. and one is best. Downtown is a bastion of ¥ The favorability of standing on stiffs vs. dealer 2-6 is increased. single-deck blackjack: 10 of its 14 casinos deal at least one single-deck game. The last two are related to the “effects of removal.” The impact of the removal of cer- Ten Las Vegas Strip casinos also deal tain consequential cards is greater when fewer decks are in play. Example: You hold single-deck, but that's out of a total of 33 6,5 and double. One 6 and one 5, either of which would be an undesirable draw to your casinos. In terms of density, downtown is 11, no longer remain in the deck to be drawn. The effect of removing these cards is superior. Directly in the heart of Glitter diminished as more decks are introduced—the 6 and 5 are two cards of 52 in a single Gulch is the heaviest concentration of deck, but only two of 312 in six decks. single decks anywhere in the U.S.: 69 Also important: Fewer decks usually means more shuffling, which means fewer hands tables at Binion's Horseshoe and the played and a lower expected loss. Golden Nugget combined. Nice pickin’s. Reno has more casinos with single decks choose a slot machine with a high pay- an embattled indicator of late, but the and Laughlin has a higher level of den- back percentage. measurement is useful in an analysis sity, but the rules in both of these places To get a handle on the average player's such as this. If my conclusion about are generally more restrictive (usually chances of stumbling onto a good game, downtown was correct, the hold percent- with regard to doubling down). we'll compare the number of tables with age statistics would be expected to sup- liberal rules in a given gambling area port it. And they did: the official figures with the total number of tables that might indicate that downtown casinos do be picked for play. For example, of indeed win a significantly lower percent- approximately 1,100 blackjack tables (at age of the money tendered by gamblers last count) on the Las Vegas Strip, about at their 21 tables. Best blackjack? Down- 120 of them have an edge below our cut- town Las Vegas. off. Thus, about 11% of the games on the © 1995, Huntington Press. Anthony Strip meet our definition of liberal. In Curtis is an accomplished gambler most of the other major gambling areas, and the publisher of the Las Vegas the percentages are similar, in the 10%- Advisor, a monthly newsletter of 20% range. Some are higher—Laughlin Las Vegas values. Huntington Press The Proof of the Pudding runs close to 25% liberal games (remem- also publishes highly recommend Locating single-deck tables is only the ber the single-deck density). Some are books including Comp City, Bar- first step in finding a good blackjack lower—Atlantic City barely registers. gain City, and The Theory of Black- ♠ game. Finding good rules is the second. The winner? Downtown Las Vegas by a jack, all available from ConJelCo. By taking decks and rules into consider- rout, coming in at a whopping 40%! This ation, it's possible to compute the casino means that two out of five blackjack INTERESTING HANDS, TELLS, edge against a perfect basic-strategy players downtown are likely to sit down AND BETS ON THE RIVER player. This advantage typically falls at a game with a casino edge of .25% or Lee Jones within a range of 0% (no advantage) to lower. And that's not all. As it turns out, A couple of nights ago, I was in a $6-$12 about 1%. What I would term a liberal the only bad thing about the downtown Hold’em game, and it went like this: I blackjack game has a casino edge of only single-deck game is the soft-17 rule. limped in late position with JT behind .25% (one quarter of one percent) or less. Conclusion? If you restrict your play to two callers. The button called, big blind This is a low fee to pay for a gambling single-deck only in downtown Las checked, and we were off. Flop comes experience, and a slim margin to over- Vegas, you have a 100% chance of play- Jh-Td-8h. I've flopped top two pair, but come for expert players seeking to gain ing the best game possible. an edge. Most players, unfortunately, this is a terrifying flop for me (both my don't consider rules before sitting down Bragging Rights? cards are black). I could easily be draw- to play blackjack. So, to make a realistic ing here, but I have to assume I have the assessment of liberalness as it applies to So, would my publisher friend be justi- best hand at the moment. There's a bet the majority of blackjack players, we fied in adding “best blackjack” to down- and call in front of me. Doing the only must assume that the player will choose town Las Vegas' “loosest slots” thing I can, I raise, hoping to scare out a table randomly and take what he gets in designation? Just to be sure, I took a look the gutshot draws and single big hearts. terms of the game's edge. It's similar to at the hold percentages for blackjack Much to my consternation, the button what a slot player faces when trying to games in Nevada. The “hold” has been calls two bets cold, but two people in

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front drop, and the bettor and caller both the turn, you should have check-raised casino games (e.g., a bet in American call. him.” OK, so that would have been a bet- Roulette has a 5.26% house p.c.). You The turn is a small heart. They both ter play—what's your point? may not know how this is calculated or check to me. Should I bet? David Sklan- However, that's not the ultimate point I what it exactly is measuring. Even if you sky, standing behind me, leans over and want to make about this hand. It's about do, you might also be surprised at how whispers, “Check, dammit—remember betting and calling on the end. The some of the numbers are arrived at; in it was the button that called two bets cold player whom I had beaten for that pot this issue we’ll attempt to clear that up. behind your raise. If you bet and he later turned to me and said, “I figured if The p.c. is most commonly calculated by raises, you have to call. Furthermore, his you could stay in after that third heart hit, taking the expected net loss on the bet raise will knock out the players in front, you probably had me beat—my only (since we’re talking about craps, all such and you want them in there to give you hope of winning was to bet on the river.” expectations are negative; that is, in favor better odds to draw at the boat.” So I And he was absolutely right. of the house), divide it by the total check. Needless to say, the button bets. At the same lunch with Roy, I was prais- amount you bet (called the bet handle), But how he bets is interesting. It's a full ing myself for calling—and thus avoid which will give you the percentage of the body-across-the-table, extended-arm, the catastrophe of giving up 9-10 big bets bet handle that you’re expected to lose. splash-the-chips-in bet. Mike Caro, for fear of giving up one. And Roy One way to calculate the expected net standing behind me, leans over and whis- pointed out that sometimes betting in that loss is strictly for math weenies, and pers, “Looks strong, means weak.” situation has exactly the same effect: involves something known as the Everybody between the bettor and me you're giving up one bet in the hopes of expected value of a bet. For complex bet- bails. I call, knowing I'm drawing at the saving a 9-10 bet pot. He was pointing ting situations, it’s usually the quickest nuts. The river, alas, is yet another small out that if you check down a weak hand way to do things—if you’re comfortable heart. I check, and the button bets on the river when your opponent would with math. The expected value is merely instantly. have folded his (slightly stronger) hand, what you can expect to win or lose over What to do? I have a couple of friends, you have suffered a very similar catastro- the long run for a particular bet. The idea Paul and Michael, both very strong play- phe. is to calculate the probability of each out- ers, who would fairly quickly lay down My opponent in the hand I described come, and then multiply that probability my hand at this point. As they would cor- above very nearly won the whole pot, by by the amount won or lost for that out- rectly point out, I'm almost assuredly dint of his position and willingness to bet come. When you add up all of the out- beaten. The most likely thing I’m going when that terrifying fourth heart hit. If he comes, you have the expected value. to get shown is a single big heart— he can get me to lay down my hand one time Let’s use the place 6 bet as an example. was semi-bluffing the turn, and got there in ten, he's ahead. There are two possible outcomes; the first is that a six is rolled before a seven, on the river. This is not a suggestion that you bet at in which case you win $7 (on a $6 bet); every board when you have no chance to the second is that a seven is rolled before win on the river, but it is something to a 6, in which case you lose your $6 bet. think about the next time you're in such a The probability that a 6 is rolled before a situation. 7 is 5/11, while the probability that a 7 is © 1995. Lee Jones. Lee Jones makes rolled before a 6 is 6/11. So to calculate his living in the computer industry, the expected value, it’s (5/11 x $7) + (6/ and augments his income at the 11 x -$6) which is -$.09. This means you poker table. He is a frequent con- stand to lose (on average, in the long run) tributor to Card Player magazine. nine cents on every decision for a $6 But I keep thinking that something Lee’s new book, Winning Low-Limit place 6 bet. Remember that the house smells funny. There's not enough delib- Hold’em, was published by Con- p.c. is the expected value divided by the ♠ eration, and if he had a hand like a set or Jelco late last year. bet handle, so this would be -.09/6 = - a straight, he would have to think a little .01515, or 1.515% in favor of the casino. before betting when that fourth heart hit. The second way to do it is to list out all CALCULATING THE HOUSE So I call. And he has T8 - no hearts. He of the possible outcomes of your bet to ADVANTAGE flopped bottom two pair, and I win a get around those fractions in the previous Ken Elliott fairly big pot. David Sklansky, standing example; this way is usually easier to behind me, does a little jig, and says, The “house advantage”, “vig.”, “house understand, too. Let’s use the place 6 bet “See—folding there would have been a p.c.”, “p.c.”, etc. are terms generally used (for $6) again as our example. There are catastrophe.” to describe how unfavorable a bet is to 11 ways this bet could be resolved. On 5 The next day at lunch, I described the the player. You’ll read books that use of them (because there are 5 ways to hand to Roy Hashimoto. As usual, he these figures to measure how “good” a make a 6), you’ll make a 6 before a 7, quickly pointed out a mistake in my play: given craps bet is in relationship to other and you’ll win $7 (on a $6 bet). On the “If you had that read on him when he bet craps bets, and even among different other 6 (because there are 6 ways to

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make a 7), you’ll lose your $6 bet. The of the time on the 6 and 8. This is net loss is (6 x $6) (your losses) - (5 x $7) expressed above in the # of “wins” col- (your wins); a net loss of $1. The total umn. Notice that the 12, since it’s a push, amount you’ve bet (your *bet handle*), neither wins nor loses. is $66 (11 x $6), so the p.c. is $1 / $66 Now, calculating it like the books do, =.01515..., or about 1.515% of your han- suppose we’re betting $1 on the don’t dle. Same answer, different ways of cal- pass line. We’re going to win 949 times, culating it. for a win of $949. However, we’re going That seems clear enough. But now, what to lose 976 times, for a loss of $976. about the don’t pass bet? Since the don’t Since the 12s “don’t count”, we pretend pass bet ‘bars’ the 12 (that is, counts it as like we never bet on them (actually, we a push), it’s gets a little muddy as to what pretend that we let the bet we made on ways are correct, but the numbers are we should say the p.c. is, because it the don’t pass ride until we got a win or describing different things. You’ll note depends on what we define as an “out- a loss on it, so it winds up in one of the that the important thing, the net loss come”. other categories), and our total amount bet is $1925 (1980 - 55 for the 12s), and (which is ultimately what we care about First, let’s calculate it in the “conven- the p.c. is the familiar 1.402% in the when we belly up to the craps table) is tional” way; that is, the way it’s calcu- house’s favor. the same in both cases: $27. Just the way lated in most books. To do this, we’ll the bet handle is figured has change. But, another way of looking at it is as fol- look at a cycle of 1980 come-outs (we Taking this a step further, we can now use 1980 because then we can have an lows. Suppose the you viewed a “decision” as a bet either winning, losing, or see that this produces difficulties if bets even number of decisions for every point are made, and then taken down before total, and eliminate the need to talk in pushing. Then you’d see from the above that we would not take out the 55 rolls they are resolved. Since the p.c.s given in fractions of a roll or fractions of a deci- books are calculated based on the sion; this just means we’re doing things for the 12, and instead we would view the money bet there as being part of the assumption that a bet, once made, is the second of the two ways we men- going to ride until it is resolved, if your tioned). bet handle. The total amount wagered would be $1980, and so the p.c. calcu- betting behavior does not conform to In 1980 come-outs, we’ll have the fol- lated in this way is 1.364%, about .04 of this, your actual results may differ from lowing for the don’t pass bet: a percent less than was calculated in the what is predicted by the books. For other way. instance, if you go up to a table, place the On points of 4 and 10, 2/3 of the time 6 for one roll, and then walk away (win, we’ll seven out. Likewise, we’ll seven So, which way is the “right” way? The lose, or no decision), the house p.c. for out 3/5 of the time on 5 and 9, and 6/11 answer is...there is no right way; both that method of playing is .463%! How- ever, nobody plays that way; it’s just a Possible Decisions in 1980 Come-out Rolls game we’re playing with numbers. So what is the point of all this? Basically, Number # on Come-Out # of “Wins” # of “Losses” you need to be sure you understand how the numbers are calculated when evalu- 255550 ating claims. If someone is trying to sell you a system that claims to have, for 3 110 110 0 instance, “Place bets with lower vig than 4 165 110 55 double odds”, they are almost certainly just manipulating numbers. The other 5 220 132 88 point is if you’re using computer simula- tions to arrive at numbers for the house 6 275 150 125 p.c., in an attempt to compare these num- 7 330 0 330 bers with other, “well known”, numbers, you need to know how the simulator is 8 275 150 125 calculating the numbers so that you don’t end up comparing apples to oranges. In 9 220 132 88 the CrapSim version 2.0’s SysSim prod- 10 165 110 55 uct, a “decision” on the don’t pass bet includes a push. This means that SysSim 11 110 0 110 “counts” the amount bet on the don’t pass line every time you make a bet, not 12 55 0 0 just when a decision occurs. Again, this Totals: 1980 949 976 makes no difference to your bottom line; it is just useful to know if you’re going to ♠ Intelligent Gambler 4

try to compare one bet or system to but would not double down with any There are so many system sellers out another using the house advantage. minus count. there peddling this garbage, knowing © 1995 KBEIIICO. Ken Elliott is Since you are not a card counter, my that most players are not competent the author of ConJelCo’s Ken advice would be to generally follow enough with the mathematics of gam- Elliott’s CrapSim Professional, a basic strategy. Double down in single- bling to see through the illogic. full casino craps simulator. ♠ deck games, but not in multiple-deck Probably the biggest single fallacy games. In your case, however, another among amateur gamblers, both recre- factor plays into this decision. You say ational gamblers and diehard compul- SERIOUS QUESTIONS FROM A that you vary your bets according to a sives, is that “trends” lend themselves to SEMI-SERIOUS STUDENT “progressive money management sys- prediction at the gaming tables. Almost Arnold Snyder tem.” This means that at times you will everyone—except the serious pros— Q: I am a beginning semi-serious black- have a large bet on the table when you do believes that tables get “hot” and “cold,” jack student. I have studied basic strat- not actually have an advantage over the and that the way to make money gam- egy and practiced with a double deck. house. Because 9 vs. 2 is such a border- bling is to find the “hot” tables and ride After three months of this, I have played line double down decision, I would them to riches. four times in a casino, about two to three advise you not to double down on 9 vs. 2 We’ve all seen winning and losing hours each time, and have had good whenever you have a substantial bet on streaks that seem phenomenal, but the results. A winner, but not a big winner, the table—regardless of the number of fact is that no one can predict when such because I do not bet big money ($20 to decks in play. Since you are already risk- streaks will start or stop. Casinos, of $30 a hand on a progressive money man- ing more of your bankroll than you course, would be broke if winning were agement system). should be risking, it would not be wise to easy. Unscrupulous system sellers feed I have two main questions you may be double your bet, risking even more off of this public misperception, how- able to help me with: money, despite what basic strategy might ever, by offering methods of determining call for. just when the “trend” is indicative of a 1 What is your position concerning A few years ago, Joel Friedman pre- winning (or losing) streak, so that the trends and charting tables before sented an important mathematical paper system player may jump in and out at play? to the gambling community on “risk just the right times. 2 How do you feel about not doubling adverse” strategies, in which he showed against a dealer’s upcard of 2 when Don’t waste your time or money with that even card counters should violate the your first two cards total 9, 10, or 11? these types of systems, no matter how “technically correct” doubling and split- A: Let’s take question #2 first. logical or intelligent they sound. If you ting strategies if the amount of money like using progressive betting systems at Doubling down on totals of 10 or 11 vs. already bet on a hand exceeds the opti- the blackjack tables, and you stick to a a dealer 2 are very strong basic strategy mum bet based on the “Kelly Criterion.” fairly solid basic strategy game, you’ll plays, regardless of the number of decks Ultimately, as you might suspect, my hold your own, provided you don’t over- in play. You should always double down advice to you would be to give up the bet your bankroll. If you enjoy seeking on these hands vs. a dealer deuce. If you progressive betting systems—which will out “hot” tables based on various factors were a card counter, it would take a very only lead to negative expectation in the that help you to identify these games, extreme negative count, i.e., a very large long run—and learn to count cards. fine. Many people find this type of play proportion of the tens would have to be exciting. But don’t delude yourself into depleted before you would not double Which brings us to your first question— thinking that this is what the real gam- down on these hands. my “position” concerning “trends” and “charting tables” before playing. bling pros are doing. It’s not. This type of play can be very dangerous to anyone My position is that these methods are who tends to get carried away with the often fun, and can lend excitement to the action on the tables. Keep your cool, and game, but as methods of attempting to don’t blow the rent money on a dream. get an edge at blackjack, they are a lot of baloney. These are the same methods ©1995, Arnold Snyder. Arnold Snyder’s that have been used by craps players and RGE is the publisher of the quarterly roulette players for eons—just like pro- Blackjack Forum, the leading magazine gressive betting systems—they don’t do about blackjack. RGE publications are Doubling down on 9 vs. 2, on the other available from ConJelCo. ♠ hand, is a borderline basic strategy deci- a thing. sion. Technically, in a single-deck game, Blackjack is the one casino game in correct basic strategy is to double down. which a smart player can beat the house RANDOM NUMBER With two or more decks in play, correct with an intelligent strategy, yet many GENERATORS basic strategy is to not double down (just intelligent players persist in following Lenny Frome hit). A card counter would usually dou- these nonsensical methods. Of course, I There have been two events recently ble down on 9 vs. 2 with any plus count, can’t really blame the players for this. involving people busting KENO for big

♠ Intelligent Gambler 5

money by virtue of their very astute In the first KENO-busting case, a Cana- Video Poker, and Video Poker—Amer- observations or their specialized knowl- dian player observed that every morning ica’s National Game of Chance, with edge. These have been played up heavily the KENO numbers were the same as the Maryann Guberman. All of Frome’s pub- by the news media, which generally previous morning. The casino was mis- lications are available from ConJelCo. ♠ opposes gaming (but greedily accepts takenly resetting the stack to the initial ads), as somehow inferring that games number by shutting off the equipment using “random-number-generators” every night. This equipment was not pro- SOZOBON POKER FOR (RNG) are suspect. The inference is vided with a means to keep running con- WINDOWS drawn that if these RNG’s are man- tinually, nor with a “seed-generator” to Chuck Weinstock made, and can be beaten by mere mor- start it up in a different place in the stack The latest addition to the ConJelCo prod- tals, then they must be biased to favor the the next morning. He won $600,000 in a uct line is new software for serious poker house. couple of days picking. players to help them improve their game. The fact that very little is known about In the second instance, a former Sozobon Poker for Windows is a poker RNG, because much of the science has employee of the Nevada Gaming Control simulator that plays both Texas Hold’em been wrapped up in military secrecy Board, was allegedly using privileged and Seven Card Stud. The program sim- because of their application in cryptogra- information about the RNG and its seed- ulates live play in both ring games and phy, favors its critics. ing, along with a laptop computer, to fig- tournaments providing realistic practice ure out where the RNG was in its cycle. for serious poker players. All facets of Surprisingly, there is no such thing as a On ten tickets, one came in for $100,000. the interface may be customized includ- true random number generator, i.e. an ing game speed, screen colors, window Neither of these incidents should cast electronic device which over the long size, and sound effects. The program can any doubts in the minds of players about term, outputs a “flat distribution”, i.e., an be played conveniently using either the integrity of the game. Of course equal frequency of every number in a mouse or keyboard. Video Poker is the most up-front game, way that is totally unpredictable. What since the pay table which is required by You can create your own custom config- we have are pseudo-random devices, but law to be posted, combined with the nat- urations by setting: table size from 2 to from the player’s point of view all that ural stats of the card game itself, makes 12 players (8 for stud); ante, bring-in, matters is that they provide an honest the payback calculable. and bet amounts; rake percentage and game. cap; one or two blinds (for hold’em); and KENO is also calculable, but with pay- the type of bring-in for stud. You can also backs ranging from 75% to 85% the They can be thought of as a stack of bil- create your own tournaments and set the chance of winning session are minus- lions of dishes, each bearing a number pace at which the bet amounts double. (which the computer will convert to a cule. The computer players can be configured card in Video Poker, or a KENO number, With Reel-Slots the players are entirely in terms of their general looseness and or a combination of symbols in a reel- at the mercy of the machine, the casino, tendency to bluff. You can configure each slot.) Ideally, each number would be and Lady Luck. It wouldn’t make any player specifically or the tendencies of completely independent of any other, but difference what kind of RNG was inside, the player population as a whole. The such a condition is not possible to create. because the computer literally deter- computer players can be configured to mines the odds. Instead, each number is created using the track the betting patterns of their oppo- previous number in some way. As a very nents (including you) and adjust to crude example, if two ten-digit numbers overly tight or loose play. are multiplied together, then the middle The program provides several learning ten digits of the product can be used as a tools to improve your memory of the pot new number. In turn, that number when size and dead cards (in stud). A hand multiplied by itself creates a new product evaluator estimates your chances of from which the middle ten digits is making various hands based on your gleaned, etc. Early machines did use cards and the cards on the board (in such a “middle digits” method, but far hold’em) or your opponents’ up cards (in more sophisticated RNG’s are available stud). today. Generally they use a string of Sozobon Poker for Windows requires binary digits, fed back on itself after spe- Windows 3.1 or higher and includes cific groups of digits are added or sub- extensive online help. Context-sensitive tracted in AND/NOR circuitry. With a 64 The bottom line is that Video Poker play- help is provided in all configuration win- bit machine a stack of 263 numbers can ers should disregard the inferences that dows. be generated, but here again the stack is reporters are injecting into these cases. predictable once we know the starting ©1995 L. Frome. Lenny Frome is the Sozobon Poker for Windows will be (seed) point or where the process has author of numerous books on video ready for shipment in June, 1995. It will advanced to. poker including Winning Strategies for retail for $49.95 and will come with a

♠ Intelligent Gambler 6

3.5” disk (free exchange for a 5.25” disk) ware are amazing, and there is even and how to use your knowledge of your and a printed manual. sound support (for the Microsoft Sound opponents to beat them. As a thank you to you, our regular cus- System) so you can give it verbal com- Tournament poker is addressed in several tomers, we’re making a special pre-pub- mands (e.g., “hit”.) software packages, in addition to our lication offer for Sozobon Poker for John Imming’s Universal Blackjack Sozobon Poker for Windows. Wilson Windows. If you order the software prior Engine is the ultimate in blackjack simu- Software has just released Tournament to June 30, 1995, you can purchase it for lation software for the serious student of Texas Hold’em, Tournament Omaha the reduced price of $44.95 plus the the game. You can simulate complex bet- High, and Tournament Omaha High- usual shipping and handling charges. See ting patterns such as Kelly betting. You Low Split. Each of these packages allow the catalog for ordering information. ♠ can specify the shuffle to be used. You you to practice tournament strategy, set- can define your own special rules. UBE ting your own tournament rules. You can will also generate a complete set of strat- simulate everything from a single table THE WINNING SESSION egy tables for any count that you give it. satellite, to a 300+ person championship Chuck Weinstock Craps event. Other poker products added to the cata- One issue of the ConJelCo Catalog looks The big news at ConJelCo this Winter log include our own Winning Low-Limit pretty much like another, so we’ll use was the release of Ken Elliott’s CrapSim Hold’em (covered in detail in the last this section to call your attention to some Professional and Ken Elliott’s CrapSim issue of the Intelligent Gambler), JV’s of the items that have been added to the Interactive. We went into full details on Pro Poker Playbook by Card Player col- catalog since the last edition of The Intel- these products last issue, but in case you umnist John Vorhaus, Caro’s Power ligent Gambler. There are lots of new missed it, CrapSim Professional now has Poker Seminar, a video tape by Mike products in this issue. In addition to improved graphics and simulation capa- Caro, and Chinese Poker: 13 Card Pai Sozobon Poker for Windows, announced bilities. above, we have new items in almost Gow Poker (book and software) by Don For those not interested in strategy simu- every category. Smolen. Incidently, chinese poker is the lations we’ve made the interactive por- newest game to be offered in the World Blackjack tion of CrapSim Professional available Series of Poker. separately, as CrapSim Interactive, at a We’ve added four new blackjack prod- reduced price. Video Poker ucts (one book and three software pack- The video poker expert Lenny Frome has ages) to the catalog in the last several collaborated on an introductory instruc- months. The book is an old classic, Ken tional video tape, Winning at Video Uston’s Million Dollar Blackjack. The Poker. late author writes in a lively style and entertains with tales of his exploits in the Other Gambling casino as he teaches the Uston Ace-Five Count, the Simple and Advanced Plus- We’ve added two guidebooks to the cat- Minus Count, and the Uston Advanced alog. The 1995 Casino/Resort Riverboat Point Count. & Fun book Guide lists every casino in the United States. The 1995 Card Play- The new software products include Tour- ers Travel Guide does the same for poker nament Blackjack, Casino Verite Black- rooms. jack, and the Universal Blackjack Engine. Stanford Wong’s exciting new Caribbean Stud Poker fans can play to Poker software Tournament Blackjack. With their hearts content with Masque’s new this software, which runs under Win- Poker tournaments are hot, and we’ve software which is a part of their Five dows, you can learn expert tournament added new books and software on the Game Super Pak. strategy. Tournament Blackjack is an subject. We’ll cover the books first. Richard Epstein’s The Theory of Gam- excellent companion to the author’s Shane Smith’s Poker Tournament Tips bling and Statistical Logic has been book, Casino Tournament Strategy. from the Pros is a collection of advice available for years in a hardcover version Casino Verite Blackjack by QFIT, is per- from theorists, professionals and others. costing over $50.00. A new edition has haps the most realistic casino game on Tom McEvoy’s Tournament Poker is an just come out in paperback with new the market. It is fully configurable to the excellent look at each of the games material and at a much more reasonable rules (including strange ones) found in played in the World Series of Poker held price. hundreds of casinos around the world at Binion’s each year, and how to win Finally, we’ve added a racing title to the and supports most of the techniques them. In another excellent book on the catalog. Efficiency of Racetrack Betting developed by card counters over the subject, the Secret To Winning Big In Markets, by Hausch, Lo, and Ziemba is a years, including Wonging, peeking, Tournament Poker, Ken Buntjer teaches collection of academic papers on the spooking, etc. The graphics in this soft- the eight stages of tournament action, subject of horse racing. ♠

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