Lady luck can be a great thing when she is on your side. Some fortunate people have walked into a casino and walked out rich beyond their wildest dreams. As they say “that’s just the luck of the draw.” Understand that 99% of all who decide to gamble in a casino is just doing it for fun. It’s a recreational past time and entertainment. You should approach it just like that, entertainment. Never walk into a casino with more money that you can afford to lose. All the games are set up so that you lose and the house wins. Once you are in a casino, look around you. Does it look like they are losing any money with the rich interiors and luxury rooms. It’s simple. They are winners, and you and most of everyone else who passes through are going to help pay for it. Although it’s free to enter, what you lose is the price of admission. Some get off cheap while others pay dearly. All games are at the advantage of the house, but you hold all the cards. You can stop anytime you like.

Luck or Skill

If you are going to play and risk your money, you should understand the game you are going to play and understand the odds or risk involved. There are just two categories that casino games fall under. The game of luck or the game of skill. The games of luck have predetermined odds and the house has the upper hand. In the game of skill, the outcome is determined more by the choices you make, but keep in mind the house is always going to have rules that put them at a slight advantage.

Play Smart

One big mistake people make is to play a game and not understand the odds. All games are not created equally. Most people will not take the time to learn good playing habits for each game. The casino never guesses or relies on luck to make their earnings. It’s always a mathematical equation and they fully understand the risk. Losers never plan to fail, but winners always have a plan. The best plan is to decide how much money you can afford to risk before you go to the casino in the first place. Your emotions play the biggest factor in your ability to gamble. How much can you lose and not give it a second thought? Gambling is a game of risk; the more your willing to risk, the more the reward can be if you are lucky. All high payout jackpot games will be in a high favor of the house.

Casino Tricks

Most games in a casino require you to trade your money for chips. The major reason is that you won’t look at all those colored chips as actual money, making you more relaxed in betting them away on the games. Other tricks casinos use is paying less money on the odds. If you have a 50% chance to win a game, chances are the casino is only paying 48% odds so you can never beat the house in the long run.

The Best Games to Come Out Ahead

Poker is a game of skill where you compete against other players instead of the house. Your outcome is determined by your skill and not the odds of the house. Black Jack is another game of skill you can do well at, especially if you can count cards. However, the house still holds a slight advantage.
You could do fairly well at video poker but again keep in mind the house has the advantage.

Worst Games to Lose Your Money

Side bets for Caribbean stud is a bad bet every time. The house advantage is around 26%. This is a loser for sure. Keno is like playing the lotto and the odds of wining is not much better at 25%.
Never buy blackjack insurance. Just another side bet the house is going to win in the long run at about 8% in their favor. Remember that all side bets are just sucker bets with big house advantages.

Things to Keep in Mind

Be careful with the speed of any game. This will get your money quicker than anything else if you don’t have time to think about what’s going on. Roulette is a good example where you can lose over half your opportunities each hour playing the full table.

Progressive jackpots pay off big but you are more likely to be struck by lightning than hit the big pay off, and you are just adding money to the pot for the eventual lucky winner.

Always know when to stop. It’s easy to leave when you are broke, but it takes a smart person to realize when they have made a little profit and quit while they are ahead. This is the reason the casino is set up to give you a few perks here and there. They know you will eventually gamble it all back to them, and if you buy into the fool’s dream, they will get even more. Never think just because you’re a couple hundred dollars ahead, you are now playing with their money. Remember that if you cash out, you are taking it home with you.

Never use your credit card for cash advances. The fees are high and if you are borrowing money from your credit card, then you really can’t afford to play, much less lose that money as well.

Always take cash to the casino to play with and leave your credit card at home. Determine how much you can afford to lose or desire to play with and once its gone, enjoy the fun time you had playing with it.

Casinos give out free alcohol drinks for a reason. Don’t drink while your gambling. Casinos know if you are drunk, they can take even more advantage of the situation and they already hold the edge when you walk through the door sober. Be smart and don’t drink.

Make your money last longer. Stay away from tables with high minimum bets if you can’t afford them. There is no shame in playing the nickel slots. Remember that you are there to have fun.

Always enjoy winning a few rounds and stop while you are ahead. You can always go back and drop a few dollars later for a little more entertainment but if you want to walk away a winner then you must realize when your winning streak has ended and just walk away.