TABLE GAMES

CASINO SURVIVOR GUIDE

Essential Things To Remember...

If you are new to casinos, you should go into your visit with your eyes wide open. That’s tough because we dream of winning, and Arizona casinos are bright and beautiful. Your senses may overdose as the images blast away at your brain. There are multi-colored lights, slot machines playing enticing melodies, and overhead music and announcements.

Across the way, you’ll see blackjack tables filled with players, roulette games with dealers pointing at the layout, and at craps there’s a dealer waving a large stick back and forth. What’s the scoop here?

Well, to start with, take a breath. It’s the ultimate adult playground; all you need is time, your nerve, and a little extra cash.

If you want to go through the experience nearly unscathed, you can seek out a quiet place like the Keno lounge, where you can sit, temper your enthusiasm, and relax. You’ll barely need to speak when you turn in your Keno ticket filled with ESPinduced numbers, and if you play multiple games or multipleway tickets, you might get by for just a buck a game. Keno is the ultimate bet-small and dream-big game. Arizona Keno jackpots pay up to $250,000 a game!

If you have ESPN-induced dreams, visit the sportsbook and pick teams to win your favorite sporting event, but temper your choices on your favorite teams because loyalty is great, but you’ll need a cool head to choose correctly.

The poker room might be just right for you if you've got an even disposition. Know the games and limits before you sit down. Texas Hold ’Em is king but wait on No-Limit. A $4-$8 is an excellent place to start if you’ve only played on the kitchen table. Remember that only chips ordered or on the table have action.

Essential Things to Remember in the Casino

Arizona casinos offer plenty of gambling choices, and the games are always dealt on the square. There won’t be any cheating or funny stuff by the dealers. Still, there are no do-overs. If you accidentally ask for another card at blackjack and bust, your chips go in the tray. Boom!

And, while you can tell the dealers at craps what bets you want, the action likely won’t start if the dice are in the air. Get your bets in early.

You’ll need to make hand gestures at blackjack to get a hit, split, double down, and stand. Get those movements firm in your head before you make them while risking your cash!

You’ll also want to remember that casinos are profit joints. They want to beat you, keep paying their staff and build new hotel towers. They’ll only give you a chance to win when they have the advantage, except at craps where pass line and come bet odds have no house edge.

Don’t worry, it’s fair. They put up hundreds of millions of dollars, train staff, and pay good wages for a crack at your cash. You get to use your most important weapons against them, your patience, and your brains.

Learn the games first, limit your bankroll to what you can afford to lose, and don’t exceed that limit. Then, join the player’s club to earn perks, go easy on the free booze, and enjoy every minute, but be smart. $ Writer Al Moe has worked in the casino industry for many years. He has lived and worked in Las Vegas, Reno, and Lake Tahoe. He also attended the University of Nevada, Reno. He is an avid writer and blogger. His book, “Vegas and the Mob," is available online at Amazon.com. He is also the proud father of four beautiful girls.

NEVER DO THIS AT A BLACKJACK TABLE

A Surefire Way To End Your Day

Some of the points I make in this article will be obvious to the more seasoned players, but for the beginners they should help everyone become more comfortable when sitting down at a blackjack table.

1. Never use your mobile phone, don’t even look at it. If you need to answer your phone, step away from the table. Expect the dealer to exclude you from the hand, and the other players to get mad because you “messed up” the cards if they get a bad hand.

2. Use hand signals to inform the dealer what action you want to take on your hand. Don’t tell them. With hand signals, if there is a dispute about what action you wanted to take, the casino can call and play back the video. If you don’t know the hand signals for each action, the dealer can help you.

3. Never touch the chips in the betting circle once the first card has been dealt. If you want to split your hand or double down and don’t know how much you bet, ask the dealer to count it down. Under no circumstances should you touch your bet, the casino may think you are up to no good!

4. Don’t touch the cards! The dealer will freak out if you do! Almost all casinos in Arizona deal the cards face up, so don’t touch them! If you go to a casino that has a pitch game where the cards are dealt face down, it is permissible to touch the cards, but only with one hand.

5. Don’t hand your money directly to the dealer. Instead, place it on the table in front of you. That way if there is a dispute as to how much you put out, the casino can look at the video and verify it.

6. Don’t play at a 6 to 5 blackjack table! This means the casino is only paying $6 on a blackjack bet of $5 instead of $7.50 on a blackjack bet of $5 when playing at a 3 to 2 table. You will find very few basic strategy players who could win in the long run at a 6 to 5 table! The house edge goes from around 0.57% to up over 2%, which is around a 400% increase. My best advice to you: don’t play these tables! If enough players refuse to play these tables, the casinos will have no choice but to go back to 3 to 2 payouts on blackjack. 7. Don’t sit down at a table until you know basic strategy! Knowing when to hit and stand will greatly improve your chances of winning. And, making the wrong play can really upset the other players at the table, especially if it causes them to lose the hand.

8. Don’t get drunk at the table! Drinking and gambling don’t go well together. The casino often asks players to leave the casino if they get too drunk. Don’t be that person.

9. Keep your emotions out of the game. Players tend to make bad decisions when their emotions get involved. And, never yell at the dealer! Remember, they are only dealing the cards and most of the time they are rooting for the player. When you win, they win. That’s when dealers have a happy customer and will most likely earn a tip.

If you learn all these basic tips it will make you more comfortable at the table and help you enjoy your casino experience. $

Writer TJ Jorgensen has been a professional Blackjack player for over 25 years. He is well known for his tournament play and has beaten some of the top tournament players in the world. He has also won the World Series Of Blackjack. His newest book “How To Become A Blackjack Jedi” is available online at Amazon.com.