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Reason #1 why the Wizard likes Bodog:
Excellent customer support
The thing that separates Bodog from the rest is its customer support. Many other online gaming companies outsource their support. It can be difficult getting a response from them, and if you do it is often slow and handled by somebody with little understanding of gambling or even of English. But Bodog's support is handled by Bodog, and their support staff is actually knowledgeable and helpful. I'm so confident that you'll have a good experience with Bodog that if you have a problem getting paid and you can't resolve it with them on your own, I'll talk to them myself. I personally have known the Bodog management for about three years and always found them to be professional, friendly, and knowledgeable. I have also personally visited one of their call centers so I could see first-hand how they handle customer issues. (More on my mediation service.) If you have a problem with any other casino besides Bodog, I can't help you. I get complaints from players of other online casinos every day who have difficulty getting paid. However that isn't my job nor my problem. If you play at Bodog after clicking through my site I'll stand behind you 100%. Any place else and you're on your own. (Visit Bodog) One click and you're in:
No popups, no download, no registration, no B.S., just the game. |
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Hi I've been playing the Java Let It Ride Game on your website and it's really fun. Thanks for putting it out on your website. I was wondering, is it fairly accurate as to how a game in a live casino would be played? And does it use a virtual new shuffled deck for each new hand that is dealt? It plays just like the real thing. The casinos use a shuffling machine, which I understand to be very good. My program shuffles the deck after every hand too. September 23, 2004 What is the probability of getting two four of a kinds in a two hour period playing Let it Ride? The probability of a four of a kind in any given hand is 13*48/combin(52,5) = 0.0002401. Let's assume in two hours you can play 120 hands. The probability of exactly two four of a kinds would be combin(120,2)* 0.00024012*0.97159621118 = 1 in 72810. May 22, 2004 I trust your Let it Ride advice is correct but I still like raising on a low pair with three cards. Often I have seen these turn into paying hands. So how much is it costing me to raise on low pairs? With a low pair your expected value on the initial bet is -7.40%. So if your original bet was $10 then letting it ride with a low pair will cost you an extra 74 cents. May 13, 2004 I was wondering what happens to the house advantage if you could view all 7 player's hands. Would this result in a negative house advantage? In "Mastering the Game of Let it Ride" Stanley Ko addresses this topic. Ko says, most of the value in seeing other player's cards is when you have a borderline hand of 4 to an outside straight with no high cards or JQKA. Viewing a single card should not encourage you to "let it ride" but seeing a card that won't help you should cause you to "let it ride." Ko doesn't indicate that this can result in a negative house edge, and I doubt this chips away at the house edge much at all. Oct. 15, 2003 I know that mathematically anything is possible, but the other night at the casino I think that I witnessed something that would be a billion to 1 shot, not that those don¹t ever happen. Here is what happened: In the course of 40 hands (40 single 3 card deals about 8 rounds with 5 players) at a let it ride table 3 four of a kinds were dealt. With a four of a kind being about 4100 to 1 what would be the odds of three of them being dealt within 40 deals? Please answer as this is killing me. Long time fan - Michael For the sake of simplicity let's assume each hand is dealt from a fresh deck. The probability of a four of a kind is 13*48/combin(52,5) = 624/2598960. The probability of exactly 3 out of 40 four of a kinds is combin(40,3)*p3*(1-p)37 = 1 in 7378135, where p = 624/2598960. So that is more like a 1 in 7 million shot. Aug. 25, 2003 Hi, I just have a general question. It is about the Poker Table Games. Why is it that almost every casino carries "Let it Ride", "Caribbean Stud Poker", and "3 card poker"? Some of those other Poker games I was reading about on your website sound cool, but they aren't around at the Atlantic City locations. Is it because the above games are more popular, or just because the casino makes more money on them? Just wondering since Bally's and Caesars in Atlantic City are testing the Boston 5 Poker game, and I like that game the best so far. i hope they keep it there. It is nice when the dealer doesn't have to qualify (the reason why I try to avoid Caribbean stud poker) Thanks for your time, Joe Ultimately the games that you see in the casinos are the ones that make the most money for the casino. For a game to make money the players have to like it. So these games you mention are what players find the most fun. It also helps that they are owned by big gaming companies that have the resources to get them out there in the first place. March 7, 2003 This past weekend I played Let it Ride at El Dorado in Reno. Side Bet payout was 20000 (Royal), 2000 (Straight Flsh), 200 Four, 75 Full, 50 Flush, 25 Straight, 5 Three, 4 Two pair, 1 High pair. Did not see this covered on House edge what would edge be? - Bayne Steele from Petaluma, California This pay table has a house edge of 13.07%, the lowest I have heard of for Let it Ride. Still a sucker bet though. Feb. 4, 2003 What is the increased house advantage for letting the following hands "ride" on Let it Ride? 1) three unsuited cards (A-K-Q and K-Q-J for
example) Thanks Mike, great site as usual (I'll say it every time) - Jason Feng from Vancouver, Canada Thanks for the compliment. First, you're supposed to "let it ride" with suited 3-4-5 (three consecutive suited cards) and suited 7-10-J (three to a straight flush with 2 high cards and 2 gaps). My own strategy is as follows. First, measure the effect on your expected return for each of the other hands, measured in units. For example if you bet three units of $1, raising on unsuited A-K-Q would cost you 18.62 cents. My question is a very basic one. Are the odds for slots and the payoff tables for games like Caribbean Poker, Three Card Poker and Let It Ride typically lowered on board the cruise ships from major cruise lines? - Paul Robinson from Novi, Michigan I'm not sure. The only cruise I ever took was from Florida to the Bahamas and it only lasted about eight hours. This was before I ever started this web site so I didn't pay close attention to the rules. However I do recall that the blackjack rules were stingy, and that I lost a lot! Other things I have read corroborate that cruise ships casinos are tight. After all, where else can you play? However the games you mention already have rather high house edges so perhaps there is no need to alter the rules. I also know that Caribbean Stud Poker has a more generous paytable in Europe and Africa, so maybe they use that one. Jan. 15, 2002 I was playing 'let it ride' on a video machine last week. Someone told me I would have better odds if I played at a table with 6 players because more cards are out (20 instead of 5). Is he correct? - Phillip Atwater from Upper Marlboro, Maryland No. Unless you can actually see the other player's cards and use that information correctly in your strategy then the number of other players makes no difference. Dec. 4, 2001 I understand what the odds of being dealt a royal, straight flush are for any individual on a Caribbean Stud Poker or Let it Ride table are and how they are derived. But my question is this: as a 3rd party watching the game what are the odds of seeing any one of these hands being dealt to a player at the table on any given deal. I must believe it is dependant on the number of hands in play...is it merely the individual's odds times the number of hands in play. ie. seeing a royal dealt on any particular hand with 4 players on a table means 4*odds of getting a royal? I'm slightly perplexed! - Amyn dodhia from Brantford, Canada Your method is a good approximation. However by that logic, when flipping a coin, the probability of at least one person in 3 flipping a heads would be 3*50%=150%. Assuming independent events the probability of at least one success out of n trials, where the probability of each success is p, is 1-(1-p)n. In the case of the coin flipping example this would be 1-.53=0.875. In the case of four players of Caribbean Stud Poker the probability of at least one royal flush would be 1-(1-4/2598960)4 = 0.00000615629. However since all the cards are dealt out of the same deck the events are not independent. The math gets very complicated to determine the exact right answer; the approximation should be very close to the right answer. June 29, 2001 I understand the calculations made to determine the house advantage for the various games. My question is most applicable to the games with a large payout (for example, a royal flush in Let It Ride). Would it not be more reasonable to calculate the "house advantage" with the royal flush excluded? While hitting the royal is possible, it is extremely unlikely for the average player. Would this modified house advantage be more applicable to the average player? Thanks for the great site. - Bill from Corpus Christi, USA You make a good point. In terms of what to expect in the short run, you should ignore the highest hands. I know video poker players sometimes disregard royal flushes when determining their short-term expectations. However as a mathematical purist I can't help but consider every possible outcome, regardless of how unlikely. March 11, 2001 I will be visiting Reno in the near future and have frequented your site in regards to Let It Ride and craps. I seem to have more luck at LIR than Craps. What effect does the number of players at LIR have on the probability of winning, if any? - Kevin from Lorain, USA Assuming you are not peeking at any other player's cards it doesn't make any difference. Have a good time in Reno. Jan. 20, 2001 I was wondering why you recommend folding a 2-3-4 straight flush hand in let it ride? I understand folding A-2-3 as there is only "one side" to match. However, 2-3-4 seems the same as any other outside straight? - Kevin Albright from Dallas, USA There are 2 directions to complete a 2-3-4 straight (A-2-3-4-5, 2-3-4-5-6), yet there are 3 directions to complete a 3-4-5 straight (A-2-3-4-5, 2-3-4-5-6, 3-4-5-6-7). Jan. 14, 2001 Has anyone done work on the optimal betting strategies in "Let It Ride" w/ additional information? I know the casinos say players may not look at other players hands, but in practice, it seems that most players know what at least two other players are holding. I may want to go for an inside straight if I know that at least six of the cards on the table are NOT what I need to pull. -- Brian Widdowson of Stafford, Virginia Yes! In "Mastering the Game of Let It Ride" by Stanley Ko, a section is devoted to this topic. Ko explains how the odds change if you have a 4-card straight or flush and can see extra cards. He does not indicate such adjustments at the 3-card stage of the game. You can find this booklet at that Gambler's Book Club. Nov. 11, 2000 I would like to know what the players edge would be in Let It Ride if he can see can see both the dealers cards and then if he can only see one of them? I was told that you could figure it out. ñ Jeff T. Farquhar from Hammmonton, USA If you could see both the dealer's cards your edge would be 42.06%. The answer for being able to see one card is much more difficult to determine. It would also depend on which card it was. I'm afraid this goes beyond what I can do for free. Sept. 10, 2000 Recently, I visited one of the Indian casinos in our state (had an out-of-towner visiting.) They have Let It Ride, however, the payoff is only 500 to 1 on the Royal Flush. I would like to know what that does to the vig on the game? - Gary from Albuquerque, New Mexico. This increases the house edge from 3.50568% to 3.73654%. April 2, 2000 I had the good fortune of hitting 4 of a kind at a local casino, and was subsequently invited to play in a Let It Ride tournament, where approximately 300 players will compete for quite substantial prize money. My question is, what do you think would be the optimal strategy? Each player is to be given $5000 in play chips, and the minimum bet will be $25 a hand. There will be "heats", with the first round having all but 100 eliminated, second all but 25, third will have 6 left, and then the final round. -Donald LaDue of Rochester, New York Good question. The key to winning each heat will depend much more on how you bet then how you play your cards. I would suggest not deviating from the strategy presented in my let it ride section. A good betting strategy to increase your odds for a big win is to bet the minimum most of the time to keep the house edge from grinding you down. However you should have moments of very aggressive betting. I would bet as much as you can enough times so that if you win you'll advance to the next heat. Let me know what happens. March 4, 2000 From your let it ride section you do not list a low pair as a good hand to "let it ride" on. Just how bad of a bet would it be to go contrary to your advice? -Kevin "Letting it ride" on a low pair (9's or less) is definitely a bad bet. The house edge on a low pair with three cards is 6.37%. With four cards the house edge jumps to 45.83%. So don't be tempted to "let it ride" on low pairs. Feb. 5, 2000
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