CHOOSING A CASINO
Theoretically, one casino should be just like another. They are normally regulated by the local government and periodically checked by agents for compliance with the rules. They play the “same” game. When the IBC initiated its first survey, we wondered if the playing results would bear this out. They didn’t.
That first survey, in 1975, showed a 24 per cent difference in the ratio of winning sessions to total sessions for casinos with enough playing reported for statistical validity. Club members in the Hilton (Las Vegas Strip) won 64 per cent of their sessions, while members in the Dunes (also on the Strip) won only 38 per cent of their sessions.
There are a couple of reasons that could explain the difference, one fairly normal and obvious and the other sneaky and insidious. The first reason, as mentioned earlier, is that Blackjack has not yet stabilized as a casino game. Roulette, for example, is very stable. The only difference in the games is the “European” wheel versus the “American” wheel.
The European game has only one zero while the greedier Americans have a double-zero wheel. Craps, a game that seems to have been around almost as long as we have, shows essentially the same layout no matter where you play.
In Blackjack, each casino chooses which of the options described in Post Two it will allow and what restrictions it will place on those favorable to the player, such as doubling, splitting, or surrendering. The table below contains the options listed by effect on and importance to the player. The more significant options are at the top of each list. The best online gambling is in the trusted and popular casinos like the ones we recommend.
