There are some games in the casino that should be avoided at all costs. Barring a lucky streak akin to being struck by lightning, these games are weighted so much in the casino’s favour it is foolish to even consider playing them. Try to avoid the temptation at all costs.
THE CASINO’S BEST AND WORST BETS
GAME BET HOUSE ADVANTAGE
Baccarat Banker 1.17%
Baccarat Player 1.63%
Craps Pass Line 1.46%
Craps Pass Line with double odds 0.61%
Craps Pass Line with 5x odds 0.32%
Craps Pass Line with lOx odds 0.18%
Roulette Single "0" 2.7%
Roulette Double "00" 5.6%
Blackjack Single Pack* 0.0%
Blackjack Double Packs* 0.35%
Blackjack Four Packs* 0.52%
Blackjack Eight Packs* 0.61%
Big Six Wheel $5 Spot 11.1%,
Keno One Spot, 2-1 payoff 25.0%
Big Six Wheel Joker 14.8%
Sic Bo Small or Big 2.8%
Sic Bo Two of a Kind 37.5%
Linked Progressive Slot Machines
The "life-changing" prizes of the million-dollar-plus jackpots carry even greater odds than being struck by lightning. These machines are joined with others in many other casinos, giving you the chance to compete against billions of other combinations conjured up by the random number generator. Unless you believe a higher force is looking to provide you with a trouble-free life – and there must be plenty of people who do, judging from the receipts from state lotteries – avoid the multi-casino linked progressive slot machines. Unless you win the big prize, you’re just making a donation because the chance you will even break even is almost nil.
In-house progressive slot machines with payouts in the hundreds of thousands are a little better, but not much.
BIG SIX WHEEL AND SIC BO
With a casino advantage between 11 per cent and 22 per cent, the Big Six Wheel, money wheel or wheel of fortune ranks as one of the worst bets in the house. Sure, you’ve seen the game on piers and in amusement arcades lined up in great rows, but the casino version isn’t any better. And you can’t even win a fluffy stuffed animal.
Sic Bo is the Oriental version of the Big Six Wheel. Instead of a wheel, however, it uses dice in a cage. On most bets, the house advantage ranges between 8 and 48 per cent. The only saving graces are the "big" and "small" bets which offer a much more reasonable 2.8 per cent house advantage. If you play, don’t be tempted to place any other bets.
KENO
This relative to bingo is actually more like a lottery. From a pool of 80 numbers, you can pick anywhere between one and 20 numbers. The odds are determined by each house, but the house advantage is generally greater than 20 per cent.
The one good thing about keno is that it offers you the least amount of losses per hour if you’re betting £1 for each game. Since there are rarely more than six games an hour, you can relax in the keno lounge and keep guzzling those free drinks without worrying that you’re going to mess up your keno strategy. In fact, there is no valid keno strategy!
That said, anyone can be a winner at any casino game over the short term. The deviations from the long-tenn advantage for the casino can sometimes swing wildly. Everyone has heard of players who have been "struck by lightning" and won the multi-million pound progressive jackpots, or those who win the lottery.
There are inveterate keno players who swear that they can overcome the hefty disadvantage they face when playing their favourite game. But beware.
Roulette, craps, baccarat blackjack and every other casino game has the same stories of gamblers struck by "dumb luck". Sure, it’s all possible, but to make it anywhere close to probable, you’re got to play the games that give you the most chances to win, and you’re got to use all your resources to give yourself an advantage.