While I am fairly new to chip collecting, I am certainly not new to actually using the chips in a casino. I am an avid table player and have learned a great deal along the way. I will use this page to post some of my own experiences and observations. Feel free to ask me any questions or make any comments.

Let me start by saying that the games described here are the only ones that you should be playing. If you insist on playing roulette or feeding the slot machines, nobody can help you. While they may be fun (my wife is addicted to nickel slots and I've been known to stick a fiver in the Wheel of Fortune or play a few hands of three card poker from time to time), those games are designed specifically with the casino in mind and only pure luck will save you. If you are looking for an edge (no matter how small) you should walk right by such games. All casino games have a house edge. If they didn't, they wouldn't be in the casino. However, knowing how to limit that house edge is the key to gaming success.

I will only mention video poker briefly to say that this is the only "slot" machine that anyone should play. However, you must know how to play. If you have never looked at a basic strategy for these machines, then chances are good that you are you are playing them incorrectly. You should pick a game you like (e.g. Jacks or Better, Bonus Poker, etc) and memorize the basic strategy for that particular game and stick to it. If the basic strategy says to throw away that pair then that's exactly what you must do regardless of how counter intuitive it may seem. You must also pick the right machine. If there are two "Jacks or Better" machines in the casino and one pays 45 coins for a full house and the other pays 30, for pete's sake play the machine with the better pay table.

I'll leave the poker room for another day but at this point I'll come right out and say that there are really only three table games in the casino that you should play regularly (if your goal is to win) and these are Craps, Blackjack, and Baccarat.

The house advantage in this game (when played correctly) is less than half a percent (compare that to a game such as roulette where the house advantage is more than 5%)

Blackjack is a game of basic strategy. You don't need to wonder whether or not you should hit, double down, split, etc. It has all been figured out for you. All you need to do is consult the card and in many casinos you can do it right at the table. I once had a person sit down next to me that was just possibly the world's worst Blackjack player. When the -dealer- finally said something the response was "I'm just having fun". Like I said earlier, if you're not interested in improving your edge and just enjoy giving money to the casino, nobody can help you. You will do that which the casino enjoys the most... you will lose.

The only other thing to be said here is: Walk right by all the "gimmick" 21 games. Spanish 21, Double Exposure, etc are all designed to give the house a better advantage. Find a plain ole Blackjack table with no gimmicks, tricks, or unnecessary restrictions (only split aces once etc) and have a good time armed with a basic strategy and a fighting chance to win.

A final thought: Resist the urge to increase your bet during a bad session thinking your luck "must change". Just the opposite is generally true. You should increase your bets when things are going well and decrease your bets when they are not.

I'm at a Blackjack table and the player sitting next to me isn't doing very well. She decides to go for broke (literally) and wagers all of her remaining chips (a very significant bet) and out of the shoe pops a Blackjack and this very nice young lady almost jumps out of her skin she is so happy. As luck would have it, the dealer wasn't paying attention and the shoe ran out of cards so that the dealer could not take a second or subsequent card. Do you know what happens now?

That's right. This is a misdeal and no bets are paid. Everyone at the table thought the pit boss should pay the bet or comp the lady something but he did absolutely nothing. It is one of the most unjust results I have ever seen.

You do not need to understand the game at all. You simply bet "banker" or "player" (only a drunk or a fool would actually bet the tie) and hope you win. You will see folks with long sheets of paper tracking what came up and how often blah blah blah but the reality is that this is a coin toss game. If you like a 50/50 shot, this is your game. If you just bet banker every time at the end of the day you will probably be about even (thus it might be a good game if things aren't going well and you simply want to slow down and have a drink since you - shouldn't drink where you have to think -).

A guy walks up to a Baccarat table and lays down $20 on "player". Just at that time his "significant other" walks up and is hopping mad about something and they exchange words and she stomps off with him right at her heels. Well, as luck would have it, he won. Do you know what happens to the money since he is no longer around?

In my opinion, this is the game everyone should be playing and it is certainly my favorite game. It has some of the best bests in the casino with the lowest house edge and it is by far the most exciting and fun game. The only reason I think everyone doesn't play this is that they are intimidated by it and/or don't understand it. Here's my advice: LEARN IT. It is a great game and the ONLY party game in the casino (everyone is in the game together). If you don't play craps, you have undoubtedly heard the yelling and cheering from the table and wondered what was going on. You don't have to wonder, get in the game!

I believe in three basic strategies at the crap table. However, I want to start by encouraging everyone to play by suggesting something simple: Walk up to the crap table and put the minimum bet on the pass line. When the point is established put twice that amount behind the pass line (called the odds bet). You just made one of the best bets in the casino and you are in the game!

Make up to three come bets (place a bet on the come line) and put maximum odds on each (if three come bets are paid let em ride meaning that you can have more than three on the table).

A come bet is almost exactly like a pass line bet. A 7 or 11 will win and craps will lose. Any other number becomes a point that will pay very well if that number is rolled again. A come bet (like a pass line bet) is one of the best bets in the casino.

This is a strategy to use when the table is very cold, you have limited funds, you are new to craps, or you are forced to play at a higher limit table than you would prefer.

Put down a pass line bet and put down double that bet behind the line (double odds). When the point is made, place a bet on the 6 and 8. If the point is 6 or 8 then you will only place a bet on the one that is not the point.

Playing in such a conservative manner (only the most frequent numbers) will allow you to survive a long time and if the table happens to get really hot, you are in the game. As the bets are paid, resist the urge to press them up (re-wager your winnings). Instead place the 5 and 9. If things really start going well, place a come bet and switch to strategy number 1.

This is a really cool strategy for those that want to cover all the numbers but have limited funds. It also tends to work well at a cold table. I like to use this strategy when the point is 5.

If you look at a crap table you will see a field bet. Generally, this is thought of as a sucker bet because it is missing the common roles of 5, 6, and 8 (any other number except 7 is a winner). However, you can turn this to your advantage.

You make a pass line bet. Let's say the point is 8. You make place bets on the 5 and 6 and then place a bet in the field. Now you have every number covered!! The only number that can hurt you is the 7. Every other number is a winner. It is important to note that you should place more on the place bets than you put in the field or the roll will be a push. For instance if you place $5 on the 5 and $5 in the field and the five is the next number you will win the place bet but lose the field (a push) which isn't so bad but you want to win so you should make a place bet of $10.

If you simply stand at the crap table making only pass line bets waiting for a point of 5, 6 or 8, you will only have to make two place bets and a field bet to cover every single number. Not bad eh?

While at the table a lot of people will be making "hard way", "on the hop", "horn", "yo", and other strange sounding bets. All of these bets have an extremely high house edge and you should stay away from them. While it is fun to take a long shot for a buck, it is a quick way for the casino to part you from your money.

(Ok, I'll give you one of these that I kinda like. Let's say the point is 4 or 10. Now if you have a passline bet, you are already betting that the shooter will roll a 4 or 10. Since there are only two ways to roll a 4 or a 10, you have a 50/50 shot at a "hard way" (2 and 2 or 5 and 5) that will pay 7 to 1. Thus, when you are already betting the 4 or 10, betting the hard 4 or 10 isn't necessarily a bad bet).

On the come out roll the stick man empties the tray of dice on the table and pushes them to the new shooter (a very pretty young lady who had to be "just" old enough to be at the table). The new shooter reaches down and grabs all of the dice (not just two) and tosses them all to the end of the table. I swear the game stopped for a good fifteen minutes until the laughter subsided.

On the very next roll, the young lady takes the dice (only two this time) and starts to shake them with both hands (this is a no no) and the boxman tells her to use just one hand. Somehow in making the switch from two to one she drops the dice to the table and it is a seven (a winner). Do you know what happens now?

Normally, this would be called a "no roll" and the shooter would simply try again. In this case, the pit boss was laughing very hard and felt for the young lady and shouted "pay the line".

I was at a charity casino night where hundreds of people were in attendance. All the games were being played (in fact there wasn't a seat available) except for craps where the table was empty. I was talking to the dealer at the table when a lady walked up and said that she would like to try but didn't know how. She seemed nice (ok, she was really pretty) so I started to teach her to play. Before long the table was absolutely packed. Not with players but with people who simply wanted to learn to play. The dealer went to another table for those that wanted to play and I remained at the current table answering questions and giving instructions. Guess who had all the people at the table?

Above all, gaming is supposed to be fun. When it stops being fun, do something else. Nobody wants to be around a player who gets upset, whines, complains, curses, etc.

I'm a believer in positive energy. Folks who are happy and excited are not only more fun to be around but it always seems like I do better around such folks. So have a good time!