Reason #1 why the Wizard likes Bovada:

Excellent customer support

The thing that separates Bovada 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 Bovada’s support is handled by Bovada, and their support staff is actually knowledgeable and helpful.

I’m so confident that you’ll have a good experience with Bovada 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 Bovada 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 Bovada, 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 Bovada after clicking through my site I’ll stand behind you 100%. Any place else and you’re on your own.

Visit Bovada

Scossa

Last Update: May 23, 2011

Introduction

Scossa is a dice game I noticed at the Red Rock in Las Vegas on May 17, 2011. The table was closed at the time, but they conveniently had rule cards available. If I'm not mistaken, "scossa" is Italian for toss, as in tossing dice.

Much like craps, no skill is required to play; just make your bets and throw the dice. In other words, the game has the simplicity of roulette but is played with dice like craps. Compared to craps, the odds are a lot better on the exotic bets.

Rules

There are a host of bets available. Most of them resolve based on one throw of the dice. The only exception is the Triple Sevens bet.

The shooter will roll the dice until he rolls a 2, 3, or 12. The average rolls per shooter is nine.

All the specific bets are listed below.

Scossa
Bet	Pays	Prob. Win	Expected Value
2	34	0.027778	-0.027778
3	16	0.055556	-0.055556
4	10	0.083333	-0.083333
5	7.5	0.111111	-0.055556
6	6	0.138889	-0.027778
7	4.5	0.166667	-0.083333
8	6	0.138889	-0.027778
9	7.5	0.111111	-0.055556
10	10	0.083333	-0.083333
11	16	0.055556	-0.055556
12	34	0.027778	-0.027778
3 to 6	1.5	0.388889	-0.027778
8 to 11	1.5	0.388889	-0.027778
2 or 7	4	0.194444	-0.027778
3 or 6	4	0.194444	-0.027778
4 or 5	4	0.194444	-0.027778
7 or 12	4	0.194444	-0.027778
8 or 11	4	0.194444	-0.027778
9 or 10	4	0.194444	-0.027778
Hard 2	34	0.027778	-0.027778
Hard 4	34	0.027778	-0.027778
Hard 6	34	0.027778	-0.027778
Hard 8	34	0.027778	-0.027778
Hard 10	34	0.027778	-0.027778
Hard 12	34	0.027778	-0.027778
Hard 2 or 4	16	0.055556	-0.055556
Hard 4 or 6	16	0.055556	-0.055556
Hard 6 or 8	16	0.055556	-0.055556
Hard 8 or 10	16	0.055556	-0.055556
Hard 10 or 12	16	0.055556	-0.055556
Triple Sevens	200	0.004630	-0.069444
Lucky 7 for the dealer	4.5	0.000000^*	-1.000000

Notes

* Win of 9 to 2 is paid to the dealer. So, the expected return is -2.78% if you count the tip. However, I have traditionally defined the win as what the player gets. For example, in games with an "envy bonus," I count what the player making the bet may win based on the cards of other players, not what other players may win from him. In the case of the "Lucky 7 for the dealer" the player can't win for himself, so I indicate the probability of winning is 0, thus the expected return is -100%.

I'm not saying you shouldn't tip the dealer, but I do think this designated bet for tips is a bit egregious.

Strategy

Stick to any of the bets with a 2.78% house edge.

Outside Links

Scossa on Facebook .