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Showing posts from December, 2019

Why Slots are So Popular?

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The most popular slots in land-based casinos are video slots, yet the games that hold their places on casino floors longest are three-reel games. Not only that. Slot games in an  online casino , which essentially are video slots in an Internet environment, earn their keep longer than video slots offline. If there seems to be a contradiction in all that, with the games in the least popular format holding their popularity the longest, there’s really not. There are reasons the most popular three-reel titles such as Double Diamond hold their own for decades and hot  new video slots  titles can be on and off casino floors in a matter of months. In any format, slot games must earn their keep. They must pay for their own purchase or lease, and they must earn enough above and beyond that to justify retaining them instead of turning the floor space over to a new game. Let’s take a look at some of the issues surrounding popularity and endurance in each format. THREE-REEL...

When to Split in Blackjack

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If there is one playing decision that seems to confound most blackjack players, it’s knowing when to split a pair (and when not to). Don’t believe me? Assume you are playing a six-deck game with the dealer standing on  soft 17  (S17) and doubling down after pair splitting is allowed (DAS). How would you play the following initial two-card hands vs. the dealer’s upcard? 9-9 vs 9 4-4 vs 5 6-6 vs 2 10-10 vs 6 8-8 vs A with surrender offered 2-2 vs 2 9-9 vs 7 Note: DAS =  doubling down after pair splitting is allowed NDAS =  doubling down after pair splitting is not allowed H17 =  Dealer will hit soft 17 S17 =  Dealer will stand on soft 17 The mathematically correct way to play the above hands is:  Split Split if DAS  (If NDAS, Hit) Split if DAS (If NDAS, Hit) Stand Surrender (If H17, otherwise, Split) Split if DAS (If NDAS, Hit) Stand If you got a few of the above playing decisions wrong, don’t fret because you are not alone...