My favourite games...

Ontario's casinos offer a good variety of games to play. In general, you can see me at any table (except Roulette, which I abhor) but I have a few favourites. Here they are:

Blackjack Switch: You get dealt two blackjack hands and you get to switch the top card for the other. That means if you get dealt a 10-6 and an 5-10, you can switch it to a 10-10 and 5-6, which is way better! You still get to split and double down. The house, however, gets to push on a 22 and player blackjacks get paid 1-1. The Wizard of Odds calculates the house advantage at .58%, but the Great Blue Heron (where I play it) stands on any 17, lowering the house advantage to a mere 0.36%. Because you push on 22, the basic strategy changes slightly, and you should print out the strategy page and bring it with you.

Blackjack: Ontario's casinos mostly have liberal rules for blackjack and use alot of decks and the continuous shuffler to avoid card counters. The house advantage is 0.38% and is an excellent game. What I don't like about this game is the high minimums ($15 - $25) and the people (and dealers) giving me bad advice. Bring your strategy card and follow the advice (in a previous post). This game is my staple as it offers a very low house advantage and is fun to play. You get to multiply your bet to your advantage and you can go up (or down) very fast.

Craps: Name another game where you control the outcome (by throwing the dice). While craps looks complicated, it is a simple game to play (I'll illustrate in a later post) with house advantage sitting below 1.6% for the basic bets. The players are all relying on your throw to determine their financial outcome as well as yours. The game is filled with superstition: female first time rollers are lucky, male ones are unlucky; if you throw the dice off the table, ask for the same dice; throw the same way every time; never say SEVEN; you'll throw badly after the stickman changes; you'll throw badly if you order or receive a drink; you'll throw badly if your partner approaches the table. So the game is alot of fun: cheering when you win; lamenting your losses and trying to figure out how you threw that seven when you lose. You can bet on ANY number, at any time. It is a great, great game. I've had great rolls and I've had terrible rolls.