• Full House Poker Hand
• Double Double Poker Practice

How would you like to improve your odds at the casino? Of course, the odds are against you—the house gives itself an advantage so that it can turn a profit.

But how greatly the odds are stacked against you depends on which games you play and which bets you place.

• Hands then compete, one at a time, as in a blackjack game, against the player-dealer hand. The player-dealer hand competes against player hands clockwise beginning with the hand in an order determined by the shaking of dice. Double-hand uses poker rankings to compare the two player hands with the two hands of the player-dealer.
• Try your hand at over 225 different slot machines, video pokers, and table games in our free casino games feature. Enjoy a favorite casino game on the go with a cutting edge mobile casino. Learn about bets and basic elements of gameplay for popular table and card games in casino game rules.

If you play blackjack or poker extremely well, those games offer attractive odds—but they are poor choices if you haven’t mastered them.

With three-card poker, you can lower house edge to 2.01%. Three-card poker is the way to go as it offers better wagers for the player. The correct strategy for this particular hand comes. The sixth page is The dealer must always set their hand according to house way. 14th Ace - Queen An unpaired hand consisting of two high cards; an Ace and a Queen.

Among the casino bets with the smallest house edge* that don’t require a great deal of gambling skill…

BACCARAT BANKER BET 1.06% HOUSE EDGE

Baccarat offers fair odds and is very easy to play. Gamblers simply decide whether to bet on the banker, the player or a tie before each hand. The banker bet offers the lowest house edge.

Once the bets are down, both the player and the banker receive either two or three cards. (The rules for when a third card is dealt can be confusing, but you don’t need to understand this to play.) Aces are worth one…face cards and 10s are worth zero…and other cards are worth their face value. The totals are added up, and the score with the higher final digit wins.

Example: A hand containing a three and a five beats one containing an eight and a nine because three and five make eight, while eight and nine add up to seventeen—which is a score of seven because only the last digit counts.

CRAPS PASS LINE BET 1.41% HOUSE EDGE

The craps table features some of the best bets in the casino. Put your chips on the pass line, and you will win if a seven or an 11 is rolled and lose if a two, three or 12 is rolled. If any other number is rolled, you will win if that number is rolled again before a seven is rolled but lose if it isn’t.

Helpful: The “don’t pass” line actually offers slightly better odds than the pass line. But the advantage is extremely slim—just two cents for every $100 bet—and gamblers who bet “don’t pass” are betting against their fellow players. The tiny advantage isn’t worth the nasty looks.

CRAPS ODDS BET 0% HOUSE EDGE

This is a rare example of a bet where the house has no advantage. It’s such an attractive bet that casinos don’t promote it—craps tables don’t specify where odds bets should be placed, and dealers don’t mention these bets as an option. One catch—you can place an odds bet only if you already have placed a pass line bet.

It works like this—if you make a pass line bet and a four, five, six, eight, nine or 10 is rolled, you place additional chips on the open green felt behind your original pass line bet. If the point is made—that is, if the number rolled on the initial “come out” roll is rolled again before a seven—this additional bet pays off two-to-one if the point was four or 10…three-to-two if it was five or nine…or six-to-five if it was six or eight.

Casinos limit the size of odds bets. These limits vary depending on house rules, the amount initially bet and the point to be made. There should be a sign listing these limits on the table.

Example: If the sign says “3-4-5X,” you can bet up to three times the amount of your pass line bet if the point is four or 10…four times if it’s five or nine…or five times if it’s six or eight.

If you’re not certain of the size of the odds bet that you’re allowed to make, ask the dealer for clarification. Dealers sometimes even will provide these limits on a hand-by-hand basis—particularly for gamblers who tip.

CRAPS 6/8 BET 1.52% HOUSE EDGE

If you get bored making pass line and odds bets at the craps table, consider making a place bet on six or eight. You’ll win if the number you selected is rolled before a seven but lose if it isn’t. The bet remains until one of these numbers appears, even if it takes many rolls. A winning six or eight place bet pays $7 for every $6 bet—always make this bet in multiples of $6. (You can make place bets on numbers other than six and eight, but the odds are less attractive.)

To make a place bet, wait until the stickman controls the dice and you have the dealer’s attention, then say, “Place the six, please,” or “Place the eight, please,” and push the chips you wish to bet toward the dealer. Do not attempt to put your chips in the six or eight box yourself. If you win, the dealer will give you your winnings but leave the original bet in place. If you don’t wish to continue betting this number, say, “Take down the six” or “Take down the eight.”

Warning: Don’t put your chips in the “Big six and Big eight” box just inside the pass line—this offers worse odds.

PAI GOW POKER 2.3% HOUSE EDGE

Pai Gow requires some skill, but it’s easy to learn and fun to play and the odds aren’t stacked too badly against players. The pace of play is relatively slow—perhaps three to four minutes per hand —further limiting potential losses.

Players are dealt seven cards facedown, which they divide up into two hands—one a traditional five-card poker hand…the other a two-card hand where only pairs and high cards matter, not flushes or straights. Each player’s five-card hand must beat his two-card hand, a rule novices sometimes forget.

Casino gamblers play Pai Gow poker against the house (or a player acting as banker), not against the other players. Beat the dealer with both the five-card and two-card hand, and it pays even money, minus a 5% commission. If the dealer and the player have the same hands—called a copy—the tie goes to the dealer. If the player wins one hand and loses the other hand, it is a push—you keep your bet but win nothing. Pushes are fairly common, so competent players can play a lot of cards without losing a lot of money. If the dealer wins both hands, the player loses the entire wager.

Google the terms “Pai Gow” and “strategy” to learn the basics before you play in a casino. It takes only a few minutes to learn enough to get by.

Warning: The Pai Gow poker deck includes a joker, but at most casinos, this joker is not completely wild—it can be used only as an ace or to complete a straight, flush or straight flush.

WORST BETS

Casinos claim much more than their fair share from unwary gamblers on certain bets. Among the bets to avoid…

Baccarat Tie Bet. 14.36% house edge. This is the one truly bad bet at the baccarat table.

Blackjack insurance bet. 7.47% house edge (assuming an eight-deck game). When the house shows an ace, players can buy “insurance” against the chance that it has a 10 or face card in the hole (underneath). Decline this offer—insurance costs a lot more than it saves in the long run.

Craps prop bets. 5% to 17% house edge. All of the bets in the middle of the craps table offer very poor odds. Examples: “Hardways” and “One Roll” bets.

Keno. 25% house edge. This game is designed to appeal to lottery players —and the odds are nearly as bad.

Slot machines. 5% to 17% house edge. Not only does the house have a big edge with slots, the game moves very quickly, accelerating gamblers’ losses.

*House edge (advantage) is the ratio of average loss to the entire bet.

The extra bonus payoff is a plus, but beware the volatility

By Henry Tamburin

The most important fact to remember about DDB is that it’s a highly volatile game, meaning the bankroll swings are much greater than a less volatile game such as Jacks or Better. Let me repeat this so it sinks in: DDB is very volatile.

Double Double Bonus (DDB) poker is by far the most popular video poker game. Its popularity stems from the extra bonus payoff that you get with four aces, 2s, 3s, or 4s accompanied with a “kicker” (a specific fifth card that is in the same hand as the four-of-a-kind). What follows are some facts about the game (good and bad), and some tips to improve your chances of winning.

Kickers

DDB Poker was the first video poker game to implement kickers. In fact, its name “Double Double Bonus” is the result of the fact that the payoffs for specific four-or-a-kind hands pay double the amount paid in Double Bonus when a kicker is present. In DDB, a kicker is an ace, 2, 3, and 4.

The key hands in DDB that result in a bonus payout are:

Thus, it’s possible to be paid the equivalent of half a royal flush (i.e. $500 on a quarter-denomination machine) when you are dealt four aces with a 2, 3, or 4 kicker. How often will this occur? Roughly once in 16,000 hands. This is greater than the once in about 40,000 hands occurrence for the royal flush. This payout of half a royal flush is what makes DDB such an exciting game for players.

Pay Schedules

The following table summarizes the different pay schedules for DDB that you are likely to encounter, and the accompanying ERs (expected returns). The most prevalent pay schedule is 9/6. The expected return for this game is 98.98%, assuming you play every hand perfectly and you play max coins. I would strongly encourage you to not play a 9/5, or even worse, an 8/5 DDB game, simply because the ER is miserable. (Note: I’ve seen even lower pay schedules for DDB; these games should absolutely be avoided!)

Finally, you’ll see I’ve included a 10/6 pay schedule with a 100.06% ER. Unfortunately, this pay schedule is not readily available in most gaming jurisdictions. You will find them in certain locals casinos in Las Vegas, where the 10/6 pay schedule is offered in $1 and lower denominations. Check www.vpfree2.com for a listing of casinos that offer 10/6 DDB.

Double Double Bonus Pay Schedule

Payout per Coin Played

Ho chunk casino madison shuttle. Ho-Chunk Gaming Madison is the only 100% smoke-free casino that has a 95% slot payout that is the highest you will find at any casino in the region. Join us on a day trip to Ho Chunk Dells in Baraboo, WI and Ho Chunk Madison in Madison, WI. Rebates: $25 in free play from each casino. Cost Per Person: $32. Hotels near Ho-Chunk Gaming Madison, Madison on TripAdvisor: Find 15,253 traveler reviews, 5,827 candid photos, and prices for 30 hotels near Ho-Chunk Gaming Madison in Madison, WI. Public Transportation to Ho-Chunk Gaming, Madison in Madison. Wondering how to get to Ho-Chunk Gaming, Madison in Madison, United States? Moovit helps you find the best way to get to Ho-Chunk Gaming, Madison with step-by-step directions from the nearest public transit station.

*4000 for a five-coin royal flush.

Playing Strategy

You might think the playing strategy for DDB would be identical to Double Bonus (after all, the names are nearly the same). But this isn’t the case. The factor that most affects the strategy is the payoff for the flush (rather than the payoff for the full house and straight). The flush payoff for 9/6 DDB is 6 coins times your bet, whereas it’s 7 coins in Double Bonus. (In fact, the playing strategy for DDB is closer to 9/6 Jacks or Better, because the flushes in the latter game pay 6 coins times your bet.)

The playing strategy for DDB is unique because of the extra value of Aces and kickers. For example, if you play DDB and you have a full house that contains three aces, you’d break up the full house and hold the three aces. Likewise, if you have a hand that contains two pair and one of the pair is aces, you only hold the two aces. You’ll also be going for inside straights more often playing DDB, compared to Jacks or Better.

You’ll find an accurate playing strategy for DDB on the video poker page at www.wizardofodds.com, including a list of 39 practice hands to test your playing skills. I’d also recommend that you consider using a video poker software training program on your home computer to practice the strategy—and there’s no shame in bringing a strategy card to the casino, either.

Variance

The most important fact to remember about DDB is that it’s a highly volatile game, meaning the bankroll swings are much greater than a less volatile game such as Jacks or Better. Let me repeat this so it sinks in: DDB is very volatile.

The reason the game is more volatile is because those juicy four of a kind jackpot hands containing aces through 4s with a kicker occur infrequently, at the expense of a reduced payoff for the more frequently hit two pair, straight, flush, and full house hands. If you don’t get lucky and get at least one four of a kind hand during a session, your bankroll will head south rather quickly. Because DDB has a high volatility, it also requires a relatively greater bankroll to get you through those long stretches from one jackpot to the next. Heed my advice and be prepared—emotionally, and financially—for the volatility that is inherent in this game.

Summary

DDB has these characteristics:

Full House Poker Hand

1. The game offers mini-jackpots for infrequent four of a kind hands with a kicker.
2. The ER of the common 9/6 DDB is 98.98%. This means most recreational players will lose in the long run playing this game because it’s rare to find casino perks that will increase the overall EV to greater than 100%. If you’re in Las Vegas, play the 10/7 DDB game.
3. The playing strategy is unique, and you need to learn it before you play (don’t use the Double Bonus strategy even if the names of these games sound almost the same).
4. The game is very volatile, so expect large swings in your bankroll.

Tamburin’s Tip of the Month

How would you play this hand in DDB?

Double Double Poker Practice

Most players would hold the three aces along with a kicker because they’re hoping to draw another ace, which would give them four aces and a deuce kicker for a half-royal payoff. However, making that play is a mistake. With DDB, if your hand has three aces and a 2 through 4 kicker, you shouldn’t keep the kicker. The play that has the higher expected value is to hold the three aces and draw two cards.

A Closer Look At Double Double Bonus Poker.