The MGM at National Harbor just opened and the Post had an article about poker pros making a killing on wealthy suckers. How does the casino get their cut?
OT: How do casinos make money from poker games?
- Thread starter LionJim
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Most hands in cash games, yes.
If the casino is hosting a tourney, the casino takes a cut of the entrance fee
Thanks. In case the board is wondering, doctorate in mathematics or no, I suck at poker.
If the hand is too small, they won't take a rake, but that doesn't happen too often.
You probably just haven't learned how to apply the math. It's not too difficult. For example, if you have 4 cards to a flush, there are 9 more cards in the deck that make your hand. Assuming 47 cards left in the deck (52 - 2 in your hand and 3 on the board), that is 9/47 = 19% chance. If the amount you have to call is less than 19% of the pot, you should call. If you have two more cards to come, that is about a 38 % chance to hit your hand (but you have to call 2 more bets).
Poker is more math and less bluffing/reading tells than people think.
your odds depend on several other things: type of poker being played, number of players ...
where did you get the 19% of the pot betting strategy?
Sorry, I was assuming Texas hold'em. There aren't many other forms played in casinos anymore.
The odds do not directly depend on the number of players. It is all about the number of cards left and how many outs you have. Now, if there are 5 people in the hand and you think someone may make a better, for example, flush - that may affect your decision. But it doesn't affect your odds of hitting the hand.
Are you asking about pot odds? See link.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pot_odds
The problem is - if you solely "play math", which ain't hard to do for anyone with 1/2 a quantitative mind - unless the table is populated by drunken morons, then you might as well play with your cards face up, 'cause it won't take anyone paying attention long to know what your holding every hand
So Grant: You can do all of that math in your head after you have sucked down a few free casino libations? Or do you go in there toting a calculator? LOL...
Ha! One of the best money makers is to look for a table with drunk dudes at midnight.
I try to drink responsibly at the table. The math actually isn't too tricky. Figure out how many cards you need to make your hand and multiply by about 2 for your odds. Ex. 8 cards to make a straight ~ 16% chance.
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anon_xdc8rmuek44eq
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i was going to post this as well....really good movie and explains it well.
I am not a gambler but had the opportunity to have dinner with a professional gambler in Vegas a while back. he was a good friend of my company's owner and a former employee who was a crackerjack programmer, math major and quit to become a professional gambler (mostly Texas Hold'em). He was 27 years old.
He said the key to the whole thing was getting invited. He pays off dealers so that, when a high roller comes in, they text him and invite him to the game. The high rollers are typically athletes, software moguls or middle eastern oil kids. Most are under the age of 30. So he "buys in" and a handful of players and professionals sit around and gamble. He said his biggest take was $150k in one night. But he said he often loses $10k to $15k. It is common to go home with $50,000 cash in a case or bag. He said his annual income is in the $500k range. He said it was common to play for 24 to 36 straight hours. They take a lot of drugs to stay awake and alert. He said he only does legal drugs but many do illegal substances but he said that he can't think well when on the illegal stuff. He and his friends have a couple of flophouses that they go to and sleep for 24 hours straight after a big game. He said that they paint the windows black so no light comes in and they have inflatable furniture. Common some whacked-out guy loses big and destroys the place so they don't invest much in it. We asked if he enjoys life and he said it has wild highs and wild lows. He said he set a deadline to quit at age 30, on his birthday. He said many people have mood swings where they get very depressed and suicidal. He felt he is better grounded having a degree and a real job, at one time, but others start-up as teenagers and get crazy. Lots of abuse and suicidal tendencies. he said the best part was getting invited to parties where the strippers and dance girls go. He spoke of a middle eastern guy that keeps a mansion outside of the city with a bevy of strippers that live there for "free". When he started he often "partook" of the benefits but the girls are typically coked up and he started to feel bad for them. So he now goes as part of maintaining his network but still meets a girl, from time to time, that he hits it off with and dates. But he said most are so damaged and are beyond repair from a long term relationship standpoint. He said you have to see that these are choices people are making and not get caught up in the human carnage. Everyone knows and sees where their lives are going but make the choice anyway. Regardless, he feels it has been a burden on him and he didn't think he'd be able to make it beyond his 30th birthday. He was saving his money to start up a software company back in Dallas, where he is from. He did name some names but swore us to secrecy....a lot of NBA and NFL stars, at the time. Some music artists and software moguls that I didn't recognize. He wouldn't talk about people from the middle east, specifically. He said that they were really the biggest problem. He said that they had "handlers" in town at all times and if there was even a rumor of indiscretion you were out. We asked if he feared for his life, ever. He said no but he does get followed from time to time after games. He thinks it is because he carries a lot of cash to and from. He parks in a different place and always takes different routes (this was before uber so maybe that part is easier). We asked why he doesn't keep the cash with the cashier at the casino and he said nobody trusts the casino and that there is a tax issue (money gets reported as there is a lot of pressure not to launder money from the feds on the casinos). The money gets reported to the feds if it is kept at the casino and you will often be audited.
I have no idea if any of this is true but he seemed smart and sincere. Thought I'd share.
Like I posted in the thread about all of the people you know that are dying. I'm glad we are not more than BWI internet friends.
That’s a great story. I had a friend who was great at math but didn’t care about school. He financed his way through U Del by going to AC at least twice a month to play Poker and Blackjack. It was suicide to play cards with him. Knew math and could count cards.
yeah....I believe the keys are memorization, math and probabilities. If it were me, I am typically OK are reading "tells" but would get caught up in the emotion and that wouldn't work for me for very long. I'd have to go back to the math and probabilities. I think I am pretty good at that, better than most, but I've met tons of people that blow me away in a second. And when it comes to money, I wouldn't last very long.
How do you feel about people wearing Unabomber shades at the table. I think that’s totally unfair as the eyes say a lot
It is WAY more complicated than that because you have to take into account what others may have. The numbers you posted only work if you have the Ace (so that no one can have a higher flush than you) and the board is not paired (so someone could have a full house or 4 of a kind). If you just calculated the odds based on your hand and bet that way you would lose a LOT.
A thread from a month or so ago talking about covid deaths and issues and you posted a thread about people you knew who had died recently and also a guy who got crushed in his vehicle from a weird accident. I mentioned it's a good thing I don't know you.
I was trying to present a pretty simple method that players very commonly calculate their odds at a table. As I said, these are odds to hit your hand. I didn't mean to infer that it was an auto-call.
You are correct that you also have to try to figure out if your opponent could still beat you if you make your hand. That is a whole other discussion with a lot more variables. For example, if there are 3 cards to a flush on the table (and I'm only holding one of that suit) I'm way more cautious unless I'm holding A, K, or maybe Q. Same goes if I'm holding the low end of a straight.
Jim, you have a doctorate in Mathematics?! (Felt I needed to use an initial capital "M," given the subject matter.) Does SmithtonLion know this? He will be jealous as hell, with good reason.
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Yep. And, just for the record, I kept this information from the board for like nine years (until around 2008) when an argument about Coach Paterno lead someone to call me a quitter. It took me 11 years to get my doctorate, I ain’t a fvcking quitter. I’ve milked it ever since, I’ll admit, lol.Jim, you have a doctorate in Mathematics?! (Felt I needed to use an initial capital "M," given the subject matter.) Does SmithtonLion know this? He will be jealous as hell, with good reason.
Eleven fvvking years to get a doctorate in maths. What was the problem, the adding or the subtracting?
I have absolutely no idea what that is. However I am going to research it, and somehow insert that term into the conversation later on today at happy hour. Now that’s how one builds street cred.
Okay I looked it up. Now if I can slip that convincingly into the conversation with people who’s primary interests are strippers, engine blocks and ridding lawnmowers, then I deserve a PHD in linguistic bullshit.
90% of the math with poker is counting outs and other stuff that's not advanced math degree complicated stuff, tho if you could do numbers in your head like Allen from the Hangover that would certainly give you and edge.
Meandering OT but I've always loved this poker scene.
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anon_xdc8rmuek44eq
Guest
I was never a poker person, but saw this in theaters because a) I had a huge crush on Gretchen Mol, and b) it was Ed Norton's follow up to American History X. I of course dug it, but was surprised to learn of the 'legs' it's had amongst the younger poker crowd (well, younger than me anyway) - I think this did for No Limit/poker what Sideways did for pinot noir/wine. Malkovich is going for it in every scene - KGB is a fantastic character.
Saw this from an article on Decider....
Rounders is the greatest gambling movie ever made. Perhaps you prefer more classic fare like The Sting, The Hustler, or The Cincinnati Kid. Maybe The Color of Money or modern favorite Mississippi Grind is more your style. Awesome. I love those films too. But to a certain subset of lovable degenerates, Rounders was a game-changer. It introduced the world to the seductive highs and debilitating lows of the maddeningly fickle yet undeniably alluring siren of no-limit Texas hold ’em. If you’re reading this, the mere existence of Rounders has either been a financial boon or a monetary scourge.
And if you’re being honest, it’s probably the latter.
Premiering five years before the great Chris Moneymaker-led poker boom of 2003, Rounders evolved into a slick “how to guide” for the burgeoning swarm of young gamblers attempting to be the next rags-to-riches poker success story. Winning the lottery’s a pipe dream; winning the World Series of Poker is… well… a slightly more realistic pipe dream that’s way more fun.
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