Before You Play Las
Vegas
The Professor
With all the casinos in Las
Vegas, which ones offer the best games? What are the secrets to selecting a game
with winning potential? How about some answers for choosing a good game
for either craps or blackjack? When it comes to gaming, you become a patient
hunter, hunting for the best game. There is a
good game out there and it is up to you to find it. However, before you can
bag your game,
you first need to select a casino.
The best casino for gaming
is one where you feel the most comfortable and where you feel honored. I like to
play were I stay. Doing so makes it very easy to play at any hour and if am
tired - I just pop upstairs to my room for a nap. If there is not a game at my
“home casino” I have several options. It is best to line up the other casino
options in a logistical and logical order.
For example,
if I take a cab out to Mandalay
Bay and I don’t find a game to my liking, I have traveled a long distance for no
game. On top of that, there’s not much in the way of other choices close by. Not
only that, I have wasted precious time and burned energy on a goose chase.
Chasing around from casino to casino consumes
your energy. In a city where your energy is just as
valuable as your bankroll, you need to
spend your energy wisely. That's why it's much better to design a gaming plan
before you venture out to play.
Mapping out your first choice, followed by a second, third, and maybe a fourth casino, provides you
with viable options. Of course it is best to group the options by their
proximity, close to one another. Also, allow for enough time
to search and play the session. You don’t want to find yourself on a
“heater” of a game with time constraints, like catching a dinner show with your
date or maybe missing your flight home.
Here is an example of a
battle plan with proximity in mind. You start at the Mirage. If there is no game
at the Mirage, it is a seven-minute walk to Treasure Island. It’s a ten minute
walk to the Venetian. To the other side of the Mirage you have Caesars Palace.
You can visit four-world class casinos, within a few minutes walk from one
another. No driving, no cab, no waiting. Just map out the plan and hunt your
game. This works very well for downtown casinos too.
Okay, you are at your first
choice for a session. How do you choose the table that is best for your game?
1.
Watching games before entering is
a free tour. It takes patience’s while you indentify positive conditions, never
the less, your investment in time
watching is invaluable. This technique keeps you out of losing game.
2.
Check out all of the tables.
Minimum bet does not matter at first. Selecting a table is always a learning
experience, so never disregard tables with a higher minimum than you can afford
to play, even though you will not be playing there. You are looking for positive
conditions. Survey everything going on in the pit. As you check out the games,
take note of the tables with a minimum bet that fits your bankroll. Table
selection takes practice and it is recommended that you always check out
everything as you learn to apply the skill. Table selection will make you a
more successful player.
3.
Survey the players. Look for
winners and avoid the losers. Pick your “playmates”. Think like a business
partner who is going into business with other players. You want the best
partners making up a game complexion for winning.
4.
Be alert. During the buy-in, if
several players are coloring-up, you may be buying into the back end of what was
a hot game. It means that you arrived 30 minutes too late. The game is over and
it is going to cost you if you play. This is another good reason to invest a
little time watching before playing. Avoid thinking that while watching, you are
missing out. Finding a good game is
associated with good timing. If you show up at the right time, you will not miss
out just because you were watching for a while. When you are right, the process
of picking a winning game is confirmed. Lock in the feeling of the experience
when your are right.
5.
Does a noisy craps table indicate
a winner? Maybe, or it could be false advertizing.
- If it truly is a hot
table, the players’ cheers advertise good fortune and it will drawn in every
“want to be” to the game. By the time you show up, the table is full and
there’s no room for you. All you can do is watch from the second
row. You arrived 33 minutes too late.
- Everyone seems to be
having fun, cheering and winning. Yet, upon closer examination, several of the
players are acquainted. It’s “boy’s night out”, party energy. Usually, there
is a lot of loose “action” on the prop bets. With almost every roll there is
loud cheering, and often there’s not much to cheer about. It's just misleading reality
with raucous noise. It could be that the cheerleaders may simply be inebriated
and feeling good about everything. “Look at us, were drunk in Las Vegas.
Yahoo!” The table sounds like a winner, but is really just out of control
players propelled by free drinks. Well, sort of free drinks.
6.
What if you are a dice setter?
- If you are really
serious about setting dice, then you better get really serious about being
able to shoot with confidence from any open position. The principles of setting
are basically the same. You just have to make the adjustments physically and
mentally.
- Don’t let dogma of keep
you out of a game with potential.
“I can only shoot from left stick” for example.
Games with potential are scarce. When you find a working table, you better get
yourself in the game.
- The dice in anyone’s
hand can act out of probability. Don’t delude yourself
thinking that you are Superman, and you can only win if you are shooting from your
sacred position. Make all positions sacred.
7.
If you fancy blackjack, here are
a few things to consider in support of your game selection.
- Look
for a soft game and one that is not too fast for you to count.
- You are
looking for positive conditions. Survey everything going on in the blackjack
pit.
- Observe
the games with table limits that fit your comfort level.
- Pick
your game and “playmates” preferably a game with 1-2 players.
- Assess
the players. Look for card counters and skilled players. Avoid the novices.
- Pick
your dealer. Try to find a dealer with “giving” energy, one that is generous
with the cut card
and player friendly.
- Avoid
aggressive dealers. Feel comfortable with the dealer and your chosen game.
-
Although you may have a preferred playing position, you may have to settle for
your second or third choice. If you are drawn to the energy of the game, and
feel good about a table, trust in your perception. You can win
sitting in any seat.
8.
Regarding table energy, you are
looking for what I refer to as “table support”.
- Look within the
personality of the game to observe table support.
- It is the energy that
supports your betting system and your style of play.
- Do you feel support for
your action?
- When assessing any game
consider if it is worthy of your time and investment.
9.
Putting it all together, selecting
your game takes patience, discipline, and practice. It involves the “energy” of
right place and right time. You pick your playmates. You pick a table that feels
like it has potential for winning. You select a game that offers table limits to
fit your bankroll. You may or may not have your first choice of playing
positions. Selecting a winning game is a learned skill. Learning to do so will
prove to be invaluable as it keeps you out of the losing games.
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