The market cap of two US casino companies exceeds $10 billion and in 2000 90% of US population lived within a 200-mile (or less) radius from a casino. Mensa Guide to Casino Gambling describes the rules and history of 16 casino games. It actually goes further than regular gaming guides and provides a good mathematical model for each game, shows the odds of winning and, moreover, provides good information on the casino’s probability of winning, which is likely to turn many people off gambling forever.
Leaving the argument of whether one should or should not gamble aside (the author actually goes into that, but frequently such discussion turns into a political or religious one), the book is an excellent guide if you find yourself in a casino or are planning a trip to destinations like Las Vegas or Atlantic City.
The author has separate chapters dedicated to blackjack, slot machines, video poker, craps, baccarat, roulette, Caribbean stud poker, Let it ride, pai gow poker, poker, sports betting and keno, a single chapter that briefly talks about three card poker,bingo, casino war and “sucker games” of big six, red dog and sic bo. Each chapter starts off with the rules for the game, followed by variations of a game that might be offered at a casino (like 3-2 blackjack payouts versus 1-1), a discussion of strategy and smarts for playing the game and discussion on whether to play the game or avoid it. Each chapter then finishes off with the “essentials” a list of rules of thumb that’s useful to remember.
The author does not sell any strategies or “secret knowledge that will make you a winner!” But he does discuss the popular systems and their fallacies (hint: people who sell those systems make money by selling systems, not by winning at the casinos). Gambling is inherently connected to the theory of probability, so there’s math in the book, which is expectable, seeing how it’s Mensa guide. However, the book is rarely boring, and the author is often trying to insert a little humor into the discussion.
p. 230:
Bix Six strategy and smartsAre you kidding? The above thing may be the funniest thing you’ll read until Sic Bo strategy and smart on page 232. Roulette is definitely worth a spin over this wheel. Look at the chart above. Go play another game.
The author provides an in-depth analysis of blackjack, shows how variations like the number of decks and allowing doubles after split changes the probability of the player’s win (using eight decks instead of one gives the house an edge of 0.58% and allowing doubles after splits cuts the house’s edge by 0.14%). Card counting and other techniques are also discussed as well as basic strategy to minimize losses in blackjack. The book is almost all about minimizing losses: it’s quite obvious that in every game except one certain variety of blackjack (which is tough to find) the house has a mathematical advantage over the player.
Gambling superstitions and urban legends are discussed, such as the myth that “loosest” slot machines are located the farthest away from the entrance, and the “secret” of knowing which seat to choose by the blackjack table.
Andrew Brisman also goes into discussion of more realistic problems how to get a casino to provide you with a comp meal ticket, show ticket or room, what are the different job types at casino, and what those people on the floor are responsible for. He also discusses the pros and cons of Internet gambling (hint: by far the only advantage is that you can often train yourself for free with their training rooms biased in your favor).
Overall, the book is (a) an excellent guide to the games available in the casinos around the world, (b) a mathematician’s view into how gambling works and why professional gamblers are a rare breed and (c) a pretty good guide into minimizing the losses,choosing the games wisely, and maximizing comps once you’re inside a casino.
