Snyder, John Grochowski,
Marvin Karlins, Russell Barnhart, Bryce Carlson,
Max Rubin, Sam Grafstein, Stanford Wong, Jean Scott
and Darwin Ortiz. And there are others!
41. What are the
three most important books ever written about casino
gambling?
There were probably books written by mathematicians
such as Pascal that did all the ground-breaking
work in probability that allow us to analyze the
underpinnings of today’s casino games. However,
in the post World War II era, the following three
books are my choices for the all-time most important.
Beat the Dealer by Edward O. Thorp, which was the
first book about card counting. Although the method
advocated by Thorp in his book is now outdated,
the book was the battering ram that broke down the
doors to the casino treasuries. It was also an enjoyable
read. The Casino Gambler’s Guide by Allan N.
Wilson was the first rational analysis of modern
casino games and their mathematical underpinnings
that the non-mathematician could understand. Again
it was a fun book to read as well. And Ken Uston’s
The Big Player, which gave playing blackjack a romanticism
and lore that inspires many blackjack players to
this day. Uston was the Zorro of blackjack! All
of my books are, ah, fourth!
42. How important
are comps?
They are not important at all and they are very
important. If you can con the casinos into giving
you more comps then your play deserves then you
are getting value for your time. If you merely get
the comps that are commensurate with your play then
you are just getting what everyone else would get,
which is also just fine -- take what they give you.
Always hand in your player’s card to get what
the casinos are giving but never give the casinos
more than what you can afford to give in order to
get a comp. Some people equate getting comped with
their self-worth as in “The casinos gave me
a free room, a free gourmet meal, free show tickets
and all the hosts called me ‘sir!’ and
I only had to bet $200 per hand for four hours to
get it.” That’s silly, stupid, and costly
if you can’t truly afford to bet $200 per hand.
Play at the level that gives you the manageable
thrill you are looking for but not for one penny
more. The comps will come and they have absolutely
nothing to do with your self-worth. Casino personnel
would call the devil himself “sir!” if
he bet big enough. Their job is, after all, making
us feel good about losing our money.
43. Is the Captain
a real person or are you the Captain?
Yes, the Captain is a real person. No, I am not
the Captain ... but I am real, too.
44. What is the
average number of craps rolls before a shooter sevens
out?
About 3.5 rolls after the point is established,
about 8.3 rolls all together.
Good
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