analysis shows him
only losing $240 per four hour stint - just enough
to be a “casino-level” player and not
RFB.
Indeed Ms. Jones is
a $150 player. She flat bets this amount time and
again at a two-deck game where the casino cuts one
of the decks out of play. She only plays at crowded
tables with six (or seven) spots filled. She prefers
not to play in the high-roller salons where her
action will be scrutinized more thoroughly by the
pit personnel and where often no one but she is
at the tables. Rather, she joins the low-rolling
plebeians in casino steerage during prime hours
where she can be assured that the casino pit crews
are harried, overworked, and not as focused on the
intricacies of her particular play.
She takes her time
in making her hitting, standing, splitting and doubling
decisions. She times her bathroom breaks to correspond
to the beginning of a deal and when she returns
she never jumps back into the game (“I’ll
wait for a new shuffle, I don’t want to disturb
the order of the cards.”). She starts her play
one half hour before the cards are to be changed
(in two-deck games most casinos change the cards
every two hours) thus enjoying the benefit of comp
time without risk as the dealer goes through the
elaborate casino washes and shuffles of the new
decks.
In fact, when all is
said and done, Ms. Jones plays about 40 hands an
hour. Since she is an expert basic strategy player,
the casino only has an approximately one-half percent
edge on her. She will put into action $6,000 ($150
x 40 = $6,000) and her expected real-world loss
will be $30 per hour ($6,000 x .005 = $30). However,
the casino’s computer formula rates blackjack
players as playing 60 hands per hour against a 2
percent casino edge and, in fact, most players do
play against edges this high or even higher. The
computer figures Ms. Jones to lose $180 per hour
($150 x 60 = $9,000 x .02 = $180). Since most casinos
will give back approximately 30 to 50 percent of
a player’s expected losses in the form of comps,
Ms. Jones gets comps worth anywhere from $216 to
$360 per day! That’s RFB in just about any
casino on the planet.
And what of Mr. Ed?
Well, he plays $50 per hand at six-deck shoes in
the high roller pits and at non-peak hours so he
often plays head-to-head against the dealer. He
plays perfect basic strategy but he plays it fast,
making his hitting, standing, splitting and doubling
decisions in the blink of an eye. And when the shoe
is finished, he’ll take his bathroom breaks
while the dealer is shuffling so as not to waste
playing time. More often than that, he’ll just
jump to the table next to him and play there until
his dealer is ready to proceed. Mr. Ed loves the
action. In fact, Mr. Ed averages 120 hands an hour!
Since he too plays against an approximately one-half
percent house edge, he is expected to lose $30 per
hour ($50 x 120 = $6,000 x .005 = $30). Interestingly
enough, the casino rates him as losing twice that.
They have him playing 60 hands per hour ($3,000)
with an expected loss of $60 ($3,000 x .02% = $60).
For four hours, his total expected loss is $240,
of which the casino will return $72 to $120, which
translates into “casino-level” comps -
discounted rooms and comped meals of non-gourmet
fare with caps.
In truth, both Mr.
Ed and Ms. Jones have good deals going for them...but
Ms. Jones is taking her deal to the max! Ms. Jones
has discovered the secret of maximizing comps while
minimizing risk: play the best possible strategies
at the games of your choice and play these s-l-o-w-l-y.
Look for ways to extend you time but not your risk.
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