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Become a Better Gambler

This article is really just focusing on casino gambling. And your average recreational player. And though we could write about card counting and strategic plays, let's keep this simple. Let's discuss the ways and means that a regular gambler can become a better gambler. They can still lose money and yet still get the maximum bang for their buck. And though many of these tips might appear obvious to you, there are many gamblers who never consider many of these points.

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There Are No Sure Things in Casino Gambling

Whatever happens, you’re probably not going to be beating the casino today. Those that have or maybe can crush it at the casino are a tiny minority. Of those players sitting at the poker table, only around 5% of them are in profit. And as far as money-making games go, well poker is up there with the best of them. So even though there’s a better possibility of earning, most players just don’t want it that badly.

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It’s All About Entertainment and Money

Of course, gambling is all about money. But also we shouldn’t forget the entertainment value. The excitement you are spending your money on. But too many players simply wander into the casino from off the street and start playing in the most lackadaisical manner. That’s no recipe to find any success. As a regular player, you will eventually lose all your money. It’s a simple fact. That’s how a casino stays in profit and pays for all the stuff around you. You see, when you’re playing any casino game, it’s have a build-in mathematical edge, that will favor the house. Not you. It doesn’t matter whether this edge is 2% or 5% or 50%. If you play long enough, then the casino will take all your money.

Become a Better Gambler: Budget Control

Now we understand that the main purpose of our trip to the casino should not be to try and mitigate that fact, but rather to try and stretch out our budget long enough to have a good time. Keep in mind that on a game with a higher house edge, you might end up losing all your money just as quickly as you might on a game with a lower house edge, which just plays more hands in each hour. More action, in less time, equals a greater burn rate. Essentially you should try to compare the number of funds being lost with the fun element. If you find that you’re losing money and not having a good time doing so, then try to find another game that’ll keep you entertained at the same time.

Which Bets Are Better

If you’re comparing good bets with bad, then we suggest that you first look at the house edge for each of them. If all things are equal except in the house edge, then as a rule of thumb, the higher the house edge, the worse the bet. For example, with the game of blackjack, the house edge is probably less than 0.5%. This means that for every $100 bet, you’ll lose an average of 5 cents. But do keep in mind that this is an average over a long period of time. In other words, your actual mileage may vary. Now if we head over to the roulette tale, we’ll find a house edge of 5.26% on average. So for every $100 wagered, we’re losing $5.26 to the house. So, if you’re just making single bets, then the blackjack table offers better value.

The Projected Hourly Loss Rate

But in order to see the real cost of a specific game, you’ll be needing yet even more information than just the house edge. To be a better gambler it’s also important to know how many bets you’re going to be able to place within a certain time frame and how much each bet is going to be worth. For example, when you’re playing blackjack with a couple of other players sat around the gaming table, then you get in around 90 hands in each hour. Take a stroll over to the roulette table and the rate of play is down to 45 hands for each hour. However, this rate is way higher at the online jackpot sites.

Now, to project what your hourly loss might be you’ll need to multiply the house edge by the amount you’re going to be betting, and then multiply that y the number of bets you could place within one hour. So if you’re betting $5 a hand at the blackjack table, then you’re putting $450 into the game each hour. If you’re projecting a 0.5% loss, then that’s an hourly loss rate of $2.25. Going over to the roulette table, and you’re betting the same wager of $5, but with around 45 bets per hour, which totals up to $225 in action. With a roulette house edge of 5.26%, then you’re looking at a loss of$11.84.

Become a Better Gambler: Look At The Numbers

So in spite of playing more hands, blackjack still remains the value for money option. Though these numbers have quite a significant difference between them, it’s nothing compared to some other casino games. Take Keno for example. You can buy, let’s say, 5 Keno ticket for $1 every time you play. As there are only 6 draws per hour, it equals to $30 per hour in action. Gulp! With a house edge of 35% it’s probably the worst game in the casino. But on the other hand, your expected hourly loss is $10.50. So even a game like Keno, with the highest edge in the house, is still cheaper to play, than say, roulette. In other words, you’ll lose less money playing keno than spinning the ball with roulette.

Betting Systems Don’t Work in the Long Run

A great example of a betting system is the Martingale. This is where you continuously double your next bet based on how much you lost on the last one. It’s really for games with an even money payout. If you’re sitting at the roulette table and betting on the black. You bet $5 and lose. On the next bet, you must bet $10. Suppose you won this, then you have back your $5 lost and you win and are technically up $5. And if you happen to lose twice? Well, then you’ll have to pony up another $20. Eventually, the profit gets very small compared to the size of bet needed to win it.

That Doesn’t Mean You Can’t Have Fun Using a Betting System

One piece of good advice to be a better gambler is to set stop-loss limits and win goals. Essentially these are amounts at which point you decide to quit the slot machine or games table. It’s more usually expressed as a percentage of your total starting bankroll. For example, if you started with a bankroll of $250 and your self imposed stop-loss limit is 20%, then you quit when your bankroll drops to $200. On the other hand, if you’re doing well, then the same win-loss percentage would mean that you quit the game as soon as you’re at $300.

Become a Better Gambler: Conclusion

The main point of it all is to have some fun. Don’t get too tied up with these numbers. But if they can prove useful in slowing down your rate of spending, then that’s no bad thing either.