Don't forget the house edge when you go play at the casino. Sure, everybody knows the casino has an advantage, but many players assume they will win each and every time they go gamble. I guess that's why the casinos build beautiful properties from a tiny edge.
Now don't get me wrong, I love casinos, they can be a great source of entertainment, employment, and they can contribute to the sound financial foundation of entire communities. Of course the money has to come from somewhere. When grandma stops playing bridge with her friends and spends all her time at the casino, then there is a problem. Fortunately most people keep their gambling in check and don't develop a gambling problem.
My grandmother taught me to play blackjack when I was 12-years old and I've loved the game ever since. We played for real money, well, pennies, but we had to have a set bankroll to play with each session. She was pragmatic. That's a good thing when you gamble. You have to accept the fact that the house has the edge. You have a greater chance of losing than winning.
While the average blackjack player will play at a 2-percent disadvantage to the house, the house will beat them for about 12-percent of their chip purchases. The amount the house wins is called the "hold" and is obviously different than the house "edge" or "advantage."
If you don't quite understand the house edge, think of a slot machine that advertises a 95% payback. That sounds pretty good, right? If you play one dollar, you will only lose 5-cents on average, so you feed a $100 bill into the acceptor on the machine and fire away.
Now that you're all nice and comfy in the chair in front of the slot machine you notice that the machine has five lines, so you bet five coins each pull of the handle. Now lets say you play pretty fast and pull that handle every 20-seconds. Your right arm is getting stronger! You pull the handle three times a minute and 180 times an hour.
180 x $5 = $900
Your hour of slot play produced $900 in gaming action. The slot machine pays back 95-percent, so the house edge is 5-percent. Five percent of $900 is $45. The house wins $45. You now have $55 left from your $100 start. The house edge is just 5-percent, but the house win is 45-percent.
Although the actual win or loss is dependent on the random-number-generator of the slot machine, in this example, the house will win 5-percent of your total wagers. Be pragmatic. Set a reasonable bankroll for your trip to the casino, and set a time limit! Nothing is worse than driving home broke at 4:30 in the morning, and there is no rule against leaving after just a half-hour of gambling, win or lose. Some of the best movies I have ever seen were after a very short winning session at the casino. It's nice to get ahead and quit!
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