Gambling 101 — This series of posts will be a “Gambling 101” course. If you’re an experienced gambler I invite you to come along and participate too. You’ll probably have a number of things to contribute, and I’ll probably need a hand for some games that I don’t play.
Gambling can be a fun hobby — I’ve always thought it was more fun to win than to lose. Check out the smile on my face after hitting the Progressive Royal Flush on this video poker machine!
Of course the casinos would go out of business if everybody came away a winner, so they maintain an advantage over the general public on every game in the house. Everyone knows that — but what you may not know is how much difference there is between games!
What if you were getting a new credit card, and had a choice between interest rates of 1%, 6%, and 14% which would you choose? I bet you’d choose the 1% card wouldn’t you? Believe it or not, casino games vary that much in expected player loss rates!
Knowledge is the key — If you enjoy gambling and want to win more frequently, and lose less overall, the way to start is by becoming an informed player. This is especially true if you’re a Casino Camper, and a new or infrequent gambler. Below are a few links to some fun gambling quizzes to test your knowledge. At one time I thought I might write a quiz, but there are many in cyberspace.
Discussion and Questions – Here’s a link to a discussion thread on the Open Roads Forum where we can talk about this week’s topic.
Games to play — In my next post, I’ll tell you what I consider to be the 8 best games to play in a casino and why.
Speaking of the “next post”, I won’t be posting week-after-week on this topic. Gambling is just one aspect of casino camping, along with things like dining, entertainment, family vacations, destination resorts, sports, etc. I don’t want our non-gambling friends to have to endure more than one gambling post every couple of weeks.
Happy Travels and Good Luck!
If you feel that gambling has become a problem for you and is no longer fun please visit Gamblers Anonymous.