Gambling Guide
Ask the Wizard #140
Haig from Englewood
The fewer the sevens the greater the odds favor the pass line bet. The following table shows the house edge according to the percentage of sevens, assuming the probability of all other numbers is proportional to the fair probability.
House Edge in Craps According to Seven Probability
| Seven Probability | Pass House Edge | Don’t Pass House Edge |
| 15.000% | -0.666% | 3.499% |
| 15.333% | -0.202% | 3.024% |
| 15.667% | 0.237% | 2.574% |
| 16.000% | 0.652% | 2.148% |
| 16.333% | 1.044% | 1.744% |
| 16.667% | 1.414% | 1.364% |
| 17.000% | 1.762% | 1.005% |
| 17.333% | 2.089% | 0.667% |
| 17.667% | 2.395% | 0.349% |
| 18.000% | 2.682% | 0.051% |
| 18.333% | 2.949% | -0.227% |
Björn from Göteborg, Sweden
The two ways you mention are the only ways to throw a total of 100 in 17 throws. The probability of throwing 16 sixes and one four is 17*(1/6)17. There are 17 possible positions of the 4 and each sequence has a probability of (1/6)*(1/6)*...*(1/6) with 17 terms. The number of ways to get 15 sixes and 2 fives is combin(17,2) = 136. So the probability of 15 sixes and 2 fives is 136*(1/6)17. So the total probability is (17+136)*(1/6)17. = 1 in 110,631,761,077.
TODD from CHICAGO
First, it doesn’t make any difference that the shooter is making lots of money. Your odds are the same on an ice-cold table. The past does not matter. However if you are going to play then wait patiently for a come out roll. Never make a pass bet after a point has been established.
Todd from New York
Speaking only for the Bahamas and Curacao the gambling is similar to the U.S.. Don’t expect to find any great rules. The blackjack is played with six decks and the dealer hits a soft 17. Gambling is a good aphrodisiac if you win.
Mark from New York
Every casino has some kind of limits to protect itself from losing more than they are comfortable with. However, on most tables the maximum is much less than it is in the high-limit area. The reason for this has nothing to do with protecting the casino against is Martingale players. Any casino manager worth his weight in salt knows betting systems always lose in the long run. I asked an executive with a major Las Vegas casino, who wishes to remain anonymous, why a casino would refuse a $10,000 in the main casino when they would accept it in the high-limit room. He said a casino manager only has so many employees he truly trusts. The big action he prefers to be under the watch of those people.
- Did my waiting for 5 spins without a low number popping actually increase the chances of probability for a L to show up?
- What are the odds that a Low number won’t show up 16 times in a row?
- What are the odds that a Low number won’t show up 17 times in a row?
Thank you, I also want to thank you for that Blackjack Guide, I turned $5.00 into $100.00 using your method.
Brad from Sydney, Nova Scotia
- No
- A single-zero wheel is used at Casino on Net. So the probability of going 16 times with a zero is (25/37)16 = 0.1887%.
- (25/37)17 = 0.1275%.
Bob from Largo
The same game without the side bet was once played in Atlantic City and is analyzed in my baccarat appendix 6. There it show that the probability of a Super 6 is 5.3864%. So the house edge at 12 to 1 would be 29.977% (ouch!).
Chopper from Baldwin
The best hand against two random aces are the other two aces. Aside from that using my 2-player hold ’em calculator we can see the expected value (probability of winning less probability of losing) is greatest with a suited 5 and 6, whether or not one of the aces share the same suit as the 5 and 6. So against a random set of pocket aces the suited 5,6 is still better. To correct you, if you have a suited 5 and 6 and you know somebody else has pocket aces there is a 50% chance that one of them match your cards in suit.
Ashlee from Hartford
My advice is to stick with the nice guy you have now. You seem to have a fear of commitment, which is causing you to second guess yourself. The grass is not greener on the other side of the fence. Hold onto the good thing you have now.
