A.P Heat

Baccarat is an interesting casino game, yet it’s still relatively unknown within the U.S. However, the game attracts high rollers and one sure way of keeping the big money playing at the tables is through Non-negotiable chip programs.

As you may recall, Revel Casino had a 100% loss rebate promotion throughout the month of July. I wrote about beating it in this blog post. The question if this promotion was a good idea is still open.

Loss rebate analysis has been a common topic in this blog. There's a good reason: it is one of the top advantage play opportunities worldwide. Exploiting loss rebates is how Don Johnson crushed Atlantic City.

Match play has been around for years as a staple of marketing used to attract table game play. Nevertheless, there are still a number of misunderstandings and misconceptions about its value, its use, and its vulnerabilities. In light of the explosion of free play for slots, there is pressure to issue more match play to keep up.

When I heard Don Johnson (DJ) speak at the World Game Protection Conference last Tuesday, I expected him to dismiss his blackjack winnings as the result of a little bit of advantage play and a lot of luck.

“The fourth way differs in that it is not a permanent way. It has no specific forms or institutions and comes and goes controlled by some particular laws of its own." – G.I. Gurdjieff

The "Holy Rollers" were a Church-based blackjack card counting team operating out of the Pacific Northwest. Recently, a documentary was released describing their remarkable success.

U.S. patents expire 20 years from the date of filing. At G2E (2013), I learned about the expiration of the following patent on September 8, 2013: Patent 05362064

When most people think of the ways APs try to beat video poker (VP), three main opportunities come to mind. The AP may go after a 100%+ machine. He may play to win a large progressive jackpot. Or the AP may discover and burn out a valuable promotion. But these opportunities are often short-lived . The main way APs target VP is much more insidious.

My dog told me I have gone off the deep end with this article and I don’t disagree: I decided to investigate computer-perfect play against the Over/Under 13 blackjack side bet (OU13). In other words, I assume an AP is using a computer program. As each card is dealt, the AP enters that card into his program. The program then computes the edge for both the Over 13 bet and Under 13.

Last Tuesday, I heard Don Johnson (DJ) speak at the World Game Protection Conference in Las Vegas. In case you don't know who he is, DJ is the guy who beat several Atlantic City casinos out of over 15 million dollars in late 2011 and early 2012 by exploiting their loss-rebate programs.

This post gives an overview of the relative vulnerability of the blackjack side bets I've written about in this blog. Some of these side bets have been spectacular one-time opportunities for APs. Others are ongoing income earners: moderately vulnerable, but not so weak as to be burnt out. And some are both popular and safe.

Car giveaways are among the most popular promotions driving repeat traffic in local markets. Allowing players to earn tickets over a period of a month, with a sports car or truck prominently displayed inside the casino, results in excitement building to a climax as the date draws near.

Every once in a while I like to take a step back and see where I am. Such is the case with card counting blackjack, baccarat and their respective side bets. In this article I am going to give summary statistics for every game and side bet I have analyzed for card counting in this blog. I hope this will give some perspective on the overall landscape of vulnerabilities.

Once a year, in preparation for G2E (the Global Gaming Exposition), I take a walk through a host of Las Vegas casinos. I have two primary objectives for this walk. The first is to survey the changing landscape of proprietary table games and electronic versions.  The second is to consider security and advantage play issues for these variants.