Mission146
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August 3rd, 2018 at 3:54:27 PM permalink
Quote: Nathan

$50 for one scratch off ticket is disgusting. :( And I thought $25 for one scratch off ticket was disgusting. :(



No more disgusting than $50 for fifty $1 scratch off tickets.

In fact, I wouldn't be shocked if the higher denomination tickets paid back a better percentage, but then, I also wouldn't be shocked if they didn't.
https://wizardofvegas.com/forum/off-topic/gripes/11182-pet-peeves/120/#post815219
TigerWu
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August 3rd, 2018 at 3:57:37 PM permalink
Quote: Mission146

No more disgusting than $50 for fifty $1 scratch off tickets.



Yeah, but 50 $1 tickets is a lot more fun... Get a case of beer and a couple friends and you could easily milk that for a couple hours of entertainment.
Mission146
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August 3rd, 2018 at 3:59:57 PM permalink
I guess. Usually when people get me lottery tickets for my birthday, Christmas or something, I say, "Just the cash next time, please."
https://wizardofvegas.com/forum/off-topic/gripes/11182-pet-peeves/120/#post815219
Nathan
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August 3rd, 2018 at 4:01:31 PM permalink
Quote: Mission146

No more disgusting than $50 for fifty $1 scratch off tickets.

In fact, I wouldn't be shocked if the higher denomination tickets paid back a better percentage, but then, I also wouldn't be shocked if they didn't.



Most people aren't foolish enough to spend $2500 in 50 $50 scratch off ticket games at once to be fair.
Last edited by: Nathan on Aug 3, 2018
In both The Hunger Games and in gambling, may the odds be ever in your favor. :D "Man Babes" #AxelFabulous "Olive oil is processed but it only has one ingredient, olive oil."-Even Bob, March 27/28th. :D The 2 year war is over! Woo-hoo! :D I sometimes speak in metaphors. ;) Remember this. ;) Crack the code. :D 8.9.13.25.14.1.13.5.9.19.14.1.20.8.1.14! :D "For about the 4096th time, let me offer a radical idea to those of you who don't like Nathan -- block her and don't visit Nathan's Corner. What is so complicated about it?" Wizard, August 21st. :D
Mission146
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August 3rd, 2018 at 4:18:45 PM permalink
Quote: Nathan

Most people aren't foolish enough to spend $$2500 in 50 $50 scratch off ticket games to be fair.



Suppose you got a hankering to play the lottery, but your net worth was ten million dollars, what denomination would you buy and how many?

You have stated you work at Walgreen's and bought $150 in lottery tickets on a better than usual paycheck. How much would you buy in lottery tickets if you had even $100,000 to your name?

I grant most people would not buy $2,500 in tickets at once. However, I contend that some people who have purchased even one $50 ticket have probably purchased a total of $2,500 in $50 tickets lifetime, and really, what's the difference? There is no difference. Same expected loss. All at once or one at a time.

What percentage of your paycheck was that $150? I'm not seriously asking. But, how is one thing a foolish thing to do (Not calling you foolish) and not the other?
https://wizardofvegas.com/forum/off-topic/gripes/11182-pet-peeves/120/#post815219
Nathan
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August 3rd, 2018 at 4:24:30 PM permalink
Quote: Mission146

Suppose you got a hankering to play the lottery, but your net worth was ten million dollars, what denomination would you buy and how many?

You have stated you work at Walgreen's and bought $150 in lottery tickets on a better than usual paycheck. How much would you buy in lottery tickets if you had even $100,000 to your name?

I grant most people would not buy $2,500 in tickets at once. However, I contend that some people who have purchased even one $50 ticket have probably purchased a total of $2,500 in $50 tickets lifetime, and really, what's the difference? There is no difference. Same expected loss. All at once or one at a time.

What percentage of your paycheck was that $150? I'm not seriously asking. But, how is one thing a foolish thing to do (Not calling you foolish) and not the other?



I would say the percentage was like 25 percent. My bills were paid and I had the expendable $150 to play in Lottery.
In both The Hunger Games and in gambling, may the odds be ever in your favor. :D "Man Babes" #AxelFabulous "Olive oil is processed but it only has one ingredient, olive oil."-Even Bob, March 27/28th. :D The 2 year war is over! Woo-hoo! :D I sometimes speak in metaphors. ;) Remember this. ;) Crack the code. :D 8.9.13.25.14.1.13.5.9.19.14.1.20.8.1.14! :D "For about the 4096th time, let me offer a radical idea to those of you who don't like Nathan -- block her and don't visit Nathan's Corner. What is so complicated about it?" Wizard, August 21st. :D
Mission146
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August 3rd, 2018 at 4:29:30 PM permalink
Precisely my point. So, what denomination would you buy if you had $100,000 and your bills were paid and how many?

Your check was about $600, if your math is right. $25,000 of $100,000, same thing, so $2,500 doesn't seem much of a stretch at all.
https://wizardofvegas.com/forum/off-topic/gripes/11182-pet-peeves/120/#post815219
odiousgambit
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August 4th, 2018 at 2:44:41 AM permalink
Why is there such an abundance of bad gambling advice out there?


How many mistakes do you count in this gambling video? Count bad, nonsensical, or dubious advice as well as outright error. My count is below. 






*error: true odds for rolling a 2 in dice shown wrong, are not 36:1 but 35:1 , in intro
*dubious: saying splitting bankroll up into many small bets is better than a few large bets, in no. 8
* error: saying roulette column betting is better odds [can't be, right?], in no. 8
*nonsensical: saying keno only offers preposterously low chances of winning a bet , in no. 7
* dubious: stop when you are ahead type advice, in no. 6
*nonsensical: showing pacman as a high HE slot game, in no. 5
*dubious advice, indicating what is involved in detecting biased roulette wheel, more likely to result in foolish searching for patterns, in no. 4
*dubious advice, saying ploppies have any business in trying to exploit RNGs like some Russians did, in no. 4
*error, again suggesting certain bets are better in roulette, in no. 3
*omg don't let the wizard see no. 2, all about how betting systems esp. martingale are essential. 
*error: misuse of term 'double down' , in no. 1


not included, just carping, but noting too, 
*true odds vs actual payoff odds not explained - not just shown wrong
*saying all bets in craps are bad
the next time Dame Fortune toys with your heart, your soul and your wallet, raise your glass and praise her thus: “Thanks for nothing, you cold-hearted, evil, damnable, nefarious, low-life, malicious monster from Hell!”   She is, after all, stone deaf. ... Arnold Snyder
RS
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August 4th, 2018 at 3:11:32 AM permalink
I bought a few scratchers like a month ago. They cost $40 total....a few $10 and $15 tickets (3 total IIRC). We scratched them all up, thought we were getting $30 back, so just a $5 loss each. I just gave the counter person all 3 tickets and they totaled $70. So we won $15 each. The counter person dude was like, "Alright, so which ones you want?"

I'm like nah bruh, gimme the money. #MoneyPlease #Parks'nRec


There's probably a crap ton of money that goes uncollected because dumbasses like me don't know how to do scratchers properly and throw away a ticket that they think lost. Thankfully I just gave the counter dude all the tickets.


Funny how the same thing happens in sports betting. Likely many tickets go un-cashed. I had a friend in town a while ago who was upset he lost his $10 or $20 bet on some basketball game. It turns out he bet the spread (getting points) and won. I told him to cash it, he didn't know why, but was surprised they gave him his money back plus winnings. Also seems like whenever I cash a ticket, they ask what other bets I'm going to be making. Maybe it's selective memory, since I don't bet frequently live (I do most of my betting on them nifty apps).
RS
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August 4th, 2018 at 3:32:44 AM permalink
Quote: odiousgambit

Why is there such an abundance of bad gambling advice out there?


How many mistakes do you count in this gambling video? Count bad, nonsensical, or dubious advice as well as outright error. My count is below. 






*error: true odds for rolling a 2 in dice shown wrong, are not 36:1 but 35:1 , in intro
*dubious: saying splitting bankroll up into many small bets is better than a few large bets, in no. 8
* error: saying roulette column betting is better odds [can't be, right?], in no. 8
*nonsensical: saying keno only offers preposterously low chances of winning a bet , in no. 7
* dubious: stop when you are ahead type advice, in no. 6
*nonsensical: showing pacman as a high HE slot game, in no. 5
*dubious advice, indicating what is involved in detecting biased roulette wheel, more likely to result in foolish searching for patterns, in no. 4
*dubious advice, saying ploppies have any business in trying to exploit RNGs like some Russians did, in no. 4
*error, again suggesting certain bets are better in roulette, in no. 3
*omg don't let the wizard see no. 2, all about how betting systems esp. martingale are essential. 
*error: misuse of term 'double down' , in no. 1


not included, just carping, but noting too, 
*true odds vs actual payoff odds not explained - not just shown wrong
*saying all bets in craps are bad



1:34 - water bottle on the table wtf? not that it really matters though because it's clearly just a photo-op type picture because chips aren't real. just funny
1:55 - seasoned poker experts can get the HE down to 0.5%. wtf????
3:59 - if you lose the column bet, you don't have a 47% chance to break even. there will now be 8 reds and 4 blacks removed (since you didn't hit that column), leaving 10 reds and 14 blacks (and 2 greens). There'll be 26 numbers remaining and you'll have 10/26 chance to win the 'red' bet, or 38.46%.
4:09 - kinda true kinda false (I'm assuming this is for a pick-20 or whatever and their math is right).

I don't think advice to quit when ahead is necessarily bad advice, because the less you play the less you'll lose.

I think what he may have meant about 0,1,2,3,00 bet is that the bet that contains all five of those numbers at the same time is worse. Every other bet on 00 roulette is 5.26% HE, but that bet itself is higher. Or something like that. I don't remember it exactly TBH.

10:14 - I was really hoping he'd say SCHUTE instead of SHOE. I love it when people say "schute". It tickles my goat, or something.
prozema
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August 4th, 2018 at 5:13:21 AM permalink
Quote: RS




There's probably a crap ton of money that goes uncollected because dumbasses like me don't know how to do scratchers properly and throw away a ticket that they think lost. Thankfully I just gave the counter dude all the tickets.




I received a few Scrabble themed lottery scratchers as a gift recently. It wasn't a bad idea... People know I like Scrabble and gambling, so the thought was there.

Anyway, those tickets are loaded with potential for mistakes. First you have to find all the letters on the board, then count the number of complete words, then look up the number of words on a paytable. Each ticket took me 15 minutes and I still wasn't 100% sure I didn't miss anything.

I think they were $3 tickets... Maybe $5.

I can see the value proposition here. Someone would be getting an hour of entertainment by investing $12 - $20 with and expected loss in the neighborhood of $8 with at least some chance of leaving a winner.
Joeman
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August 4th, 2018 at 5:41:40 AM permalink
Quote: odiousgambit

Why is there such an abundance of bad gambling advice out there?


How many mistakes do you count in this gambling video? Count bad, nonsensical, or dubious advice as well as outright error. My count is below. 






*error: true odds for rolling a 2 in dice shown wrong, are not 36:1 but 35:1 , in intro
*dubious: saying splitting bankroll up into many small bets is better than a few large bets, in no. 8
* error: saying roulette column betting is better odds [can't be, right?], in no. 8
*nonsensical: saying keno only offers preposterously low chances of winning a bet , in no. 7
* dubious: stop when you are ahead type advice, in no. 6
*nonsensical: showing pacman as a high HE slot game, in no. 5
*dubious advice, indicating what is involved in detecting biased roulette wheel, more likely to result in foolish searching for patterns, in no. 4
*dubious advice, saying ploppies have any business in trying to exploit RNGs like some Russians did, in no. 4
*error, again suggesting certain bets are better in roulette, in no. 3
*omg don't let the wizard see no. 2, all about how betting systems esp. martingale are essential. 
*error: misuse of term 'double down' , in no. 1


not included, just carping, but noting too, 
*true odds vs actual payoff odds not explained - not just shown wrong
*saying all bets in craps are bad


1:57: "Seasoned (poker) players could keep the house edge down to less than 0.5%" -- WTF? Anyone can lower the house edge to 0.5% by ensuring there is $800 in the pot (assuming a $4 max rake)! Now your opponent's edge over you, that's a different story. [EDIT: Looks like RS caught this one, too.]

But I guess as long as I can recognize the nuts, and memorize (2:14) hand rankings from a "royal flush down to two pair," I'll do OK. Are they saying I shouldn't bother with one pair or high card only hands? Maybe they are saying if all hands at showdown are less than two pair, it's a tie!

At 2:39, the narrator references a "4th street bet," but in all (except maybe 1) of the images in the video, everyone looks to be playing 5-card draw.

4:18 -- Narrator states that there are less than 1 quintillion (18 zeroes) stars in the universe. Most estimates put the number of stars at 1 septillion (24 zeroes). Dude, stick to gambling "facts." At least with those, you are only off by factors of less than a million!

5:22 -- "Stay away from the free drinks"? Pffft! :)

At 2:45, we are instructed to "diversify" our bets at the roulette table to lower variance and to increase our time at the tables, but at 6:23, we are instructed to bet higher denomination slots, increasing our variance and shortening our gambling time. Not saying either of these is necessarily 'bad' advice, but the two ideas seem to oppose each other.


Quote: RS

I bought a few scratchers like a month ago. They cost $40 total....a few $10 and $15 tickets (3 total IIRC). We scratched them all up, thought we were getting $30 back, so just a $5 loss each. I just gave the counter person all 3 tickets and they totaled $70. So we won $15 each. The counter person dude was like, "Alright, so which ones you want?"

I'm like nah bruh, gimme the money. #MoneyPlease #Parks'nRec

More than once while I have been shopping/waiting at a gas station, there is a dude there continuously scratching tickets and handing them over to the clerk for more tickets. Rinse, repeat until broke.
"Dealer has 'rock'... Pay 'paper!'"
Mission146
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August 4th, 2018 at 7:16:25 AM permalink
Quote: odiousgambit

Why is there such an abundance of bad gambling advice out there?

How many mistakes do you count in this gambling video? Count bad, nonsensical, or dubious advice as well as outright error. My count is below. 



spoiler=my count is 11



I decided to handicap myself on this one. (I'm actually going to do a more detailed version of this as an LCB article illustrating how bad some of the gambling advice out there is...so thanks!)

Anyway, my handicap was that I was not allowed to pause the video, (except once to get coffee) so I'm afraid I didn't put timestamps like everyone else did due to the fact that I wasn't allowed to pause.

With that, I came up with twenty errors.

1.) There are not 37 combinations of dice, therefore, the odds expression of rolling Snake Eyes is 35:1.

2.) At 1:02 when he says slots can't be beaten, and this is nitpicky, but strictly speaking, it depends on the slot. (Variable game states, progressives, etc.) If you're talking about, "How to beat the casino," it deserves a passing mention, though.

3.) The result of a slot spin is not predetermined as the video says, the RNG just continues to cycle through possible results until the spin button is hit.

4.) The Field is far from being the worst bet on the Craps Table.

5.) 6:5 Blackjack must be accounted for, which makes Craps often the superior game...even if you don't account for the Odds bet. (Pass Line or Don't Pass only...sometimes certain Place Bets.) If you count expected loss v. total action, then Craps is almost always better than Blackjack once Odds are considered.

6.) He referred to a poker, "House advantage." The House Advantage in poker is zero. The house does not play poker. There is a rake.

7.) "Skilled poker players can cut the house advantage in poker to 0.5%."

-Again, poker has no house advantage. Secondly, this figure seems arbitrary AF.

8.) Aggressive poker players do not always have an advantage, otherwise the best poker strategy would just be to always go all-in in the dark. That's the most aggressive possible way to play poker.

9.) "Split bankroll," is nonsense. Money is money. Also, the best way to hit a win goal on a game with a house edge against the player is to bet in such a way that you reach the win goal with as few bets as possible. (All else being equal)

10.) Other than the basket bet, Roulette has the same house edge no matter what a player bets on. There is no way to play Roulette that is inherently better or worse than any other. Now, if there are win goals, then yes, there are ways that one has a higher probability of reaching those than other ways.

11.) "Odds of winning Keno are 1 in 3.5 Trillion?" WTF!?

12.) Loss limits make sense as a pragmatic concern, but have nothing to do with house edge. Also, I thought the video was about, "How to beat the casino," not, "How to not lose too much."

13.) Slots rarely operate with coins anymore. Therefore, your average casino patron does not, "Hear the sound of coins dropping."

14.) While higher denomination slots usually have a lower house edge than penny slots, that's not always true. Slots with huge progressives, at base, might be $1 (or more) denomination, but have a greater edge working against the player than penny slots depending on where the meter is at.

15.) "Higher denomination = More time at machine."

-This requires some explanation, but the answer is no. What's greater? 10% of $0.40 or 5% of $3.00? In the first case, you have an expected loss of $0.04/spin whereas, in the second case, you have an expected loss of $0.15/spin. Assuming the spins take roughly the same amount of time, the money will be lost faster in the $3.00/spin machine, even though the House Edge may well be lower.

-An extreme version of this example is putting $500 into a penny slot machine and max betting vs. putting all $500 on the Pass Line at Craps. The player bucks a much lower house edge in Craps, generally, but if the player loses that first bet, the player will not play nearly as long.

16.) The advice on biased Roulette wheels will result in people either playing based on too small a sample size, or worse, spending cumulative days watching roulette wheels in casinos for absolutely no reason. Many Roulette wheels are now set to detect their own biases via computer, which will do a better job than non mathematically skilled people. Other than for a very small handful of people, it's just not viable.

17.) 00 Roulette 5% HE v. 0 Roulette 2.8% HE?

-First, it's much closer to 2.7% HE...like...almost 2.7% exactly close (2.70270270%). Secondly, why round off to the first decimal place with single-zero, but not double? The House Edge of 00 Roulette is 5.26%, which is substantially greater (if you're a math person) than 5%.

18.) "The worst bets are 0, 00, 1, 2 & 3." He's confusing the, "Basket bet," with betting those numbers individually. Betting 00 is no different than betting 17. Betting 0, 00, 1, 2, 3 individually is no different than betting 7, 16, 29, 8 and 4 individually.

19.) BETTING SYSTEMS!!?? MARTINGALE!!?? GFY!!!

Also, suggesting Roulette for the Marty!? Pass Line, much?

20.) He makes reference to, "Double Down," when card counting when what he really means is increasing the bets in a favorable count. Also, a 1-2 bet spread is not enough to make card counting advantageous overall. Finally, "Double Down," as we all know, has actual meaning in Blackjack and it is to double one's bet when a player's first two cards are such that (compared to the dealer's card) the player is at a substantial advantage even taking only one card.
https://wizardofvegas.com/forum/off-topic/gripes/11182-pet-peeves/120/#post815219
onenickelmiracle
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August 4th, 2018 at 7:57:50 AM permalink
I only scratch off the bar code and check Lotto tickets at the machine. I rarely ever waste money buying them, only scratch off gifts from casinos and occasionally from family for b-day/holidays.
I am a robot.
gamerfreak
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August 4th, 2018 at 8:01:49 AM permalink
Quote: RS

I bought a few scratchers like a month ago. They cost $40 total....a few $10 and $15 tickets (3 total IIRC). We scratched them all up, thought we were getting $30 back, so just a $5 loss each. I just gave the counter person all 3 tickets and they totaled $70. So we won $15 each. The counter person dude was like, "Alright, so which ones you want?"

I'm like nah bruh, gimme the money. #MoneyPlease #Parks'nRec


There's probably a crap ton of money that goes uncollected because dumbasses like me don't know how to do scratchers properly and throw away a ticket that they think lost. Thankfully I just gave the counter dude all the tickets.


Funny how the same thing happens in sports betting. Likely many tickets go un-cashed. I had a friend in town a while ago who was upset he lost his $10 or $20 bet on some basketball game. It turns out he bet the spread (getting points) and won. I told him to cash it, he didn't know why, but was surprised they gave him his money back plus winnings. Also seems like whenever I cash a ticket, they ask what other bets I'm going to be making. Maybe it's selective memory, since I don't bet frequently live (I do most of my betting on them nifty apps).


I don’t get scratchies often, but when I do I get the crossword puzzle or bingo games that take like 30 mins to scratch completely. It’s very easy to miss letters/numbers and not realize you won.

But the PA lottery has a phone app where you can scan the QR code on the ticket and it tells you how much you won.
MaxPen
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August 4th, 2018 at 9:18:21 AM permalink
Quote: gamerfreak

I don’t get scratchies often, but when I do I get the crossword puzzle or bingo games that take like 30 mins to scratch completely. It’s very easy to miss letters/numbers and not realize you won.

But the PA lottery has a phone app where you can scan the QR code on the ticket and it tells you how much you won.



Do you scratch the ticket to expose the QR code?
KevinAA
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August 4th, 2018 at 10:39:08 AM permalink
ALWAYS scratch off the bar code and scan it at a store. NEVER throw away a ticket you think that you lost. Scan it yourself to avoid getting scammed by an unscrupulous employee.

--------

Using the Texas lottery as a guide (because they provide so much information), here are two examples:

$1 scratch-off ticket "5X the cash"
top prize $5,000
Probability of winning the top prize, starting from the beginning (i.e. no other tickets sold yet, sort of like 1st hand of the deck in BJ) = 1 in 611,855
Payback percentage 60%

Probability of winning the top prize as of today 1 in 459,000 (49% of the tickets printed have been sold but only 9 of 28 top prizes have been claimed); the real prob(win) is slightly less than that but an unknown because of ? winning tickets sold but not yet claimed

-------

$50 scratch-off ticket "200X the cash"
top prize $5,000,000
Probability of winning the top prize, starting from the beginning = 1 in 1,203,700
Payback percentage 78%

Estimated probability of winning the top prize as of today 1 in 1,020,560 (15% of the tickets printed have been sold but all 3 top prizes are still out there, but again someone may have bought one and not claimed it yet)

---------

So, as you can see, there is a significant difference in the house edge between the cheapest and the most expensive scratch-off ticket. But even the worst one, a 40% house edge on the $1 scratcher, is better than the draw games that are typically 50%. The $50 scratch-off house edge is that of live keno in a casino!

If you are going to blow 50 bucks on scratch-off ticket(s), I would highly recommend one $50, not 50 $1's. With 50 $1's, not only is the house edge much higher (almost double), but there is no chance at winning a large amount of money. The absolute maximum you could possibly win is about $100,000, and that is assuming that ALL 19 of the remaining $5,000 winners are in the 50 that you buy, which is a chance of either nearly zero, and if the printer is programmed to spread them out a little bit on purpose, then ZERO (unless you traverse the state to get a truly random selection of tickets).

With one $50 ticket, you have a chance to win 5 million dollars, and the 2nd prize is $200,000.
Mission146
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August 4th, 2018 at 10:52:59 AM permalink
Quote: KevinAA



Probability of winning the top prize as of today 1 in 459,000 (49% of the tickets printed have been sold but only 9 of 28 top prizes have been claimed); the real prob(win) is slightly less than that but an unknown because of ? winning tickets sold but not yet claimed.



I disagree with your conclusion. If they have not yet been claimed and we do not know that they have been sold (because they are unclaimed) then we do not know that those tickets are, "Out." All nine of those tickets could still be available.

Quote:

Estimated probability of winning the top prize as of today 1 in 1,020,560 (15% of the tickets printed have been sold but all 3 top prizes are still out there, but again someone may have bought one and not claimed it yet)



May have, may have not. We should only speak to known results.

Quote:

So, as you can see, there is a significant difference in the house edge between the cheapest and the most expensive scratch-off ticket. But even the worst one, a 40% house edge on the $1 scratcher, is better than the draw games that are typically 50%. The $50 scratch-off house edge is that of live keno in a casino!



Very good. 100% agree. The only exception is draw games of a progressive nature, sometimes.

Quote:

If you are going to blow 50 bucks on scratch-off ticket(s), I would highly recommend one $50, not 50 $1's. With 50 $1's, not only is the house edge much higher (almost double), but there is no chance at winning a large amount of money. The absolute maximum you could possibly win is about $100,000, and that is assuming that ALL 19 of the remaining $5,000 winners are in the 50 that you buy, which is a chance of either nearly zero, and if the printer is programmed to spread them out a little bit on purpose, then ZERO (unless you traverse the state to get a truly random selection of tickets).

With one $50 ticket, you have a chance to win 5 million dollars, and the 2nd prize is $200,000.



I agree depending on the state and the nature of the game. That might not all be true everywhere, but it probably generally is, like higher denomination slot machines v. lower denomination ones. Generally true.

I disagree that there is, "No chance at winning a large amount of money," because, 'Large,' is a subjective term.

For someone with only $50 to spend, $500 might be a large amount of money. I guess the probability of achieving a certain win goal just depends on the distribution of the tickets, which probably has a correlation towards higher denomination tickets, but doesn't always have to be the case.
https://wizardofvegas.com/forum/off-topic/gripes/11182-pet-peeves/120/#post815219
Mission146
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August 4th, 2018 at 10:57:38 AM permalink
KevinAA,

Sorry, but one other thing. As I mentioned before, in some states, I think that mandatory W2-G reporting can be a very reasonable consideration. This is especially true in states with a state income tax that cannot use losses to write off wins, such as Ohio.

That can drastically dilute the value of the lower prizes, and definitely does with the very high ones.

I bet I could find at least one example of a scratcher game, "With lots of $XXX prizes," that would not trigger mandatory reporting that therefore have a better effective return than high dollar games as a result.
https://wizardofvegas.com/forum/off-topic/gripes/11182-pet-peeves/120/#post815219
KevinAA
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Mission146
August 4th, 2018 at 11:05:38 AM permalink
Quote: Mission146

I disagree with your conclusion. If they have not yet been claimed and we do not know that they have been sold (because they are unclaimed) then we do not know that those tickets are, "Out." All nine of those tickets could still be available.



No, it is 9 that have been claimed. 28-9 = 19 have NOT been claimed. They are either sitting in a store, waiting for someone to buy them, or they have been sold and the ticket is in the mail to Austin, TX. TX Lottery updates their system every day, but they don't know when a winning ticket has been purchased. They only update the number of claimed prizes when they are actually claimed i.e. scanned and paid (only the $5,000 winner needs to be claimed at headquarters; 2nd prize is 100 bucks which can be done at any store, and then computer knows and updates the figures the next day).

The actual number of $5,000 winners available for purchase at some store somewhere in that vast state probably is 19, but there is a chance that it is less, like 18. These tickets run for months.


Quote:

I disagree that there is, "No chance at winning a large amount of money," because, 'Large,' is a subjective term.

For someone with only $50 to spend, $500 might be a large amount of money. I guess the probability of achieving a certain win goal just depends on the distribution of the tickets, which probably has a correlation towards higher denomination tickets, but doesn't always have to be the case.



Sometimes I don't know why I bother with this forum. I spent all that time looking up information and doing calculations (payback % is not published, you have to calculate it), and then you complain about "large" being a subjective term. GMAFB

Look at the top prize for the $50 ticket... it's FIVE MILLION DOLLARS! The 2nd prize is $200,000. Yet, with the $1 scratcher, only in theory could you possibly win even half that, and that is so unlikely to happen you're better off picking 15 numbers in keno and hitting ALL 15.

You are going to have to either apologize or start paying me to provide this kind of information. Why should I stick around for free if you're going to be a jerk?

This forum is turning into a private club that harasses new members (like the woman asking about slot machines in NY; I'm surprised she stuck around, must be incredibly bored) so you can maintain this little group of degenerate gamblers. Get a grip!
gamerfreak
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August 4th, 2018 at 12:03:45 PM permalink
Quote: MaxPen

Do you scratch the ticket to expose the QR code?


Yes you have to scratch to expose the code.

But along the same lines, there’s bingo games with random free spaces you can see without scratching, and I think tickets with free spaces in one of 4 corners or in an X pattern would be more valuable. In fact I think I saw an article about a college professor beating the lottery this way. You would need to know someone working at a lottery retailer to allow you to pick and choose these tickets, but that wouldn’t be hard. But even then, I’m not sure if they would be +EV without doing a good bit of math.
Mission146
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August 4th, 2018 at 12:37:12 PM permalink
Quote: KevinAA



Sometimes I don't know why I bother with this forum. I spent all that time looking up information and doing calculations (payback % is not published, you have to calculate it), and then you complain about "large" being a subjective term. GMAFB



I'm not complaining, that was excellent work and I agree with you completely. If $200,000 is what qualifies as, "Large," then that is absolutely correct, there is no scratcher of a lower denomination that enables that.

Quote:

Look at the top prize for the $50 ticket... it's FIVE MILLION DOLLARS! The 2nd prize is $200,000. Yet, with the $1 scratcher, only in theory could you possibly win even half that, and that is so unlikely to happen you're better off picking 15 numbers in keno and hitting ALL 15.



I agree with that.

Quote:

You are going to have to either apologize or start paying me to provide this kind of information. Why should I stick around for free if you're going to be a jerk?

This forum is turning into a private club that harasses new members (like the woman asking about slot machines in NY; I'm surprised she stuck around, must be incredibly bored) so you can maintain this little group of degenerate gamblers. Get a grip!



I'm not going to apologize, but I will grant the point that if we are defining $200,000 (or some other great amount), or more, as a large win, then you're 100% correct. I apologize that you were offended by my objection, but I don't apologize for making the objection.

I'm not going to pay you or offer to pay you to figure out lottery information. Not only could I do it myself if I were so inclined, (which I'm not) but the information has no value to me aside from something to talk about. I do see where it could theoretically become advantageous at a certain point, but unless you had a network that could lock up all (or a high percentage of) the tickets, the Variance would be through the roof. Either way, the bankroll needs would be quite substantial.

Thus, even if an advantage were to be found, I'm not well-bankrolled enough to take advantage of it. What then would I be paying for?

I didn't have anything to do with any ill treatment of LoneStarLyla, so I have no idea why you're addressing me with that. I hope that she comes back and shares the PM with BBB of whoever asked her to post bikini pics (as she claimed) because that would be straight up sexual harassment, in my opinion. That'd be a insta-Nuke if it were up to me, but I'm not even an Admin here anymore.

I basically explicitly agreed with most of your post with only the very minor caveat that, "Large," is a subjective term. I think we actually agreed about the first part, too, I just read what you said wrong.
Last edited by: Mission146 on Aug 4, 2018
https://wizardofvegas.com/forum/off-topic/gripes/11182-pet-peeves/120/#post815219
DRich
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August 4th, 2018 at 1:08:20 PM permalink
Quote: Mission146



I hope that she comes back and shares the PM with BBB of whoever asked her to post bikini pics (as she claimed) because that would be straight up sexual harassment, in my opinion. That'd be a insta-Nuke if it were up to me, but I'm not even an Admin here anymore.



I am not aware of the circumstances of the incident, but if it was a one time request, with no other mitigating factors, I would not consider it sexual harassment.
At my age, a "Life In Prison" sentence is not much of a deterrent.
Mission146
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August 4th, 2018 at 2:23:49 PM permalink
Quote: DRich

I am not aware of the circumstances of the incident, but if it was a one time request, with no other mitigating factors, I would not consider it sexual harassment.



Perhaps not for lawsuit purposes, but imagine if a handful of guys on the forum all sent their own single PM to the effect of posting up a bikini pic...I can tell you that a female poster wouldn’t be inclined to stick around very long.
https://wizardofvegas.com/forum/off-topic/gripes/11182-pet-peeves/120/#post815219
DRich
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August 4th, 2018 at 2:37:55 PM permalink
Quote: Mission146

Perhaps not for lawsuit purposes, but imagine if a handful of guys on the forum all sent their own single PM to the effect of posting up a bikini pic...I can tell you that a female poster wouldn’t be inclined to stick around very long.



I think the majority would find it amusing because most of those "female" posters are men.
At my age, a "Life In Prison" sentence is not much of a deterrent.
Nathan
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August 4th, 2018 at 3:38:30 PM permalink
Quote: Mission146

Perhaps not for lawsuit purposes, but imagine if a handful of guys on the forum all sent their own single PM to the effect of posting up a bikini pic...I can tell you that a female poster wouldn’t be inclined to stick around very long.



I really do wish Lyla wasn't run off the board and I sincerely apologize for comparing her to Aimee. Lyla seemed to have the potential to be a really great Member.
In both The Hunger Games and in gambling, may the odds be ever in your favor. :D "Man Babes" #AxelFabulous "Olive oil is processed but it only has one ingredient, olive oil."-Even Bob, March 27/28th. :D The 2 year war is over! Woo-hoo! :D I sometimes speak in metaphors. ;) Remember this. ;) Crack the code. :D 8.9.13.25.14.1.13.5.9.19.14.1.20.8.1.14! :D "For about the 4096th time, let me offer a radical idea to those of you who don't like Nathan -- block her and don't visit Nathan's Corner. What is so complicated about it?" Wizard, August 21st. :D
Mission146
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August 4th, 2018 at 5:47:34 PM permalink
Quote: DRich

I think the majority would find it amusing because most of those "female" posters are men.



Most!?

Small sample size!

How many female posters have we had here? Like, six?
https://wizardofvegas.com/forum/off-topic/gripes/11182-pet-peeves/120/#post815219
prozema
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August 4th, 2018 at 6:08:49 PM permalink
Quote: Mission146

Most!?

Small sample size!

How many female posters have we had here? Like, six?



Chicks dig math.
djatc
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August 4th, 2018 at 11:00:58 PM permalink
I think I'm up lifetime on scratchers. Also up on live roulette. Down $2 on powerball tho, that thing is rigged.
"Man Babes" #AxelFabulous
beachbumbabs
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August 23rd, 2018 at 8:41:15 PM permalink
This is a pretty interesting story.

https://www.cardplayer.com/poker-news/23160-poker-pro-suing-wsop-for-main-event-dq-that-ruined-his-gambling-career

He was retroactively tossed from CET properties for an incident in 2014, when he was card counting BJ athe Horseshoe Baltimore. They dumped him out of the 2017 WSOP Main Event and confiscated $610k in tournament chips on Day 3.
If the House lost every hand, they wouldn't deal the game.
gamerfreak
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August 23rd, 2018 at 8:46:27 PM permalink
Quote: beachbumbabs

This is a pretty interesting story.

https://www.cardplayer.com/poker-news/23160-poker-pro-suing-wsop-for-main-event-dq-that-ruined-his-gambling-career

He was retroactively tossed from CET properties for an incident in 2014, when he was card counting BJ athe Horseshoe Baltimore. They dumped him out of the 2017 WSOP Main Event and confiscated $610k in tournament chips on Day 3.


I wonder if BN is involved in his defense?
DRich
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August 24th, 2018 at 4:30:36 AM permalink
It sounds like he should have a case because most properties can not ban you from all of their entities. My only concerns would be does playing under a different name possibly disqualify him for using a second identity?
At my age, a "Life In Prison" sentence is not much of a deterrent.
unJon
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August 24th, 2018 at 4:35:01 AM permalink
Wow I can’t believe they booted him from the WSOP ME without a refund. For that alone I hope this guy gets something out of them. Not great that he’s acting pro se .
The race is not always to the swift, nor the battle to the strong; but that is the way to bet.
FleaStiff
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August 24th, 2018 at 4:49:33 AM permalink
Names? People often enter a hospital under a false name. Its illegal only if done with intent to defraud. Moviestars just want privacy, some people want to conceal it from their employers, its not a crime.

Trespass? If you are banned from a casino they can yank you out of your COMPED hotel room but if you paid for that hotel room they can't remove you or your property from the hotel merely because something happened in the casino.
RS
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August 24th, 2018 at 5:07:05 AM permalink
Quote: gamerfreak

I don’t get scratchies often, but when I do I get the crossword puzzle or bingo games that take like 30 mins to scratch completely. It’s very easy to miss letters/numbers and not realize you won.

But the PA lottery has a phone app where you can scan the QR code on the ticket and it tells you how much you won.


Mhmmmm, suuuuuure!

> Don't get scratchers often
> Know there's a phone app to scan QR code

Pick one.
beachbumbabs
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October 3rd, 2018 at 4:55:00 AM permalink
Next part of Lucky Dragon's demise. Interesting for various quotes and key points in development and downturn arc from local competitors.

https://www.reviewjournal.com/business/casinos-gaming/lucky-dragon-hotel-set-to-close-tuesday-in-las-vegas/amp/
If the House lost every hand, they wouldn't deal the game.
gamerfreak
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October 3rd, 2018 at 5:27:22 AM permalink
Quote: RS

Mhmmmm, suuuuuure!

> Don't get scratchers often
> Know there's a phone app to scan QR code

Pick one.


Bruh... it’s both.

PA passed an expanded gaming sometime last year. Along with sports betting being legalized nationally, the state lottery is becoming more like an online casino by offering Keno and Slot-Like games among other things.

I’ve been keeping tabs on everything out of general interest, and to see if they offer any good promotions.

Some of the games I analyzed have a surprising 85% return, but so far the only promo beyond $10 free play has been a 50% deposit bonus with 5x playthrough, which you’d need a >90% return to beat.

It’s prinably been 3 months since I bought a scratchie.
savvygambler
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October 19th, 2018 at 9:15:29 PM permalink
I would read the rules of the promo chips. If you are unsure ask the pitboss. Most of the time promo chips are one time bets only win or lose they usually let you keep on a push. If the promo chips are one time only bets ask the pit boss if you can make long shot bets. Believe it or not one time promo chips have more value if you make bets you are less likely to win with a higher payout.
If the bets are restricted to even money bets use them on blackjack if you get a double down hand use real money chips to double down with double down hands you are more likely to win and with promo chips you get more value on bets you lose because you are saving real money chips.
If they are keep on a win treat them like real chips.
terapined
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January 1st, 2019 at 1:21:42 PM permalink
Quote: gordonm888

I have 13,000 comic books, but none more recent than 1993. The first Spider-Man (AF 15), the first Thor (JIM 83), Batman #6, 11, etc. Saving my old comic books has been very +EV.



Just saw this and I know some of our members collect in Vegas
Hopefully this was not a member

"Police in Las Vegas are looking for the thieves who stole with $100,000 worth of rare comic books.
Investigators say the two thieves sawed through a storage unit and stole 3,000 comic books and collectibles

https://6abc.com/$100000-worth-of-comic-books-stolen-from-storage-unit/4999061/
AxelWolf
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March 26th, 2019 at 11:33:39 AM permalink
Quote: OnceDear

Agreed. It's taken a very specific route off topic. I doubt it was a deliberate hijack: these things happen.

WatchMeWin & Axelwolf, Please take your little spat to another thread, or better still to PM.... Thanks in advance.

And well that's the thing, we had discussed this Via PM and I told him to set up a payment method with me such as BC and I would book his bets because I'm not mailing payments back and forth or giving him credit. I also mentioned before somewhere that he could send Mike or somome else money(and I would do the same).

It's a pain in the ass because I don't want to look up everything whenever he makes a bet to make sure hes not taking stale lines or some convoluted bet that may be +EV by accident.

Since we already seems to squabble often I cant see any good coming out of this just to make a little vig on small bets.

If he is good at sports somehow it's -EV for me, if I don't get paid one time its -EV for me, if there is a misunderstanding it's potentially -EV. We are already mix like oil and water, I can't imagine this would go smoothly so any hassle is a BIG -EV for me and that's my main concern.
♪♪Now you swear and kick and beg us That you're not a gamblin' man Then you find you're back in Vegas With a handle in your hand♪♪ Your black cards can make you money So you hide them when you're able In the land of casinos and money You must put them on the table♪♪ You go back Jack do it again roulette wheels turinin' 'round and 'round♪♪ You go back Jack do it again♪♪
GWAE
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OnceDear
March 26th, 2019 at 12:21:53 PM permalink
Wmw should just come to spring fling and settle it
Expect the worst and you will never be disappointed. I AM NOT PART OF GWAE RADIO SHOW
TigerWu
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February 19th, 2020 at 2:12:18 PM permalink
I just realized that in the song The Gambler, the advice that the gambler gives the narrator is just plain terrible.

Quote:

You've got to know when to hold 'em
Know when to fold 'em



I mean... duh... what kind of advice is this?

Quote:

Know when to walk away
And know when to run



Why am I running away from a poker table? What kind of trouble are you expecting me to get into?

Quote:

You never count your money
When you're sittin' at the table



Why not? This is terrible advice. How else do I know how much to bet/raise/etc.?

Quote:

There'll be time enough for countin'
When the dealin's done



Wait, so now I CAN count my money at the table, but only after the deal? Shouldn't I be counting in-between hands and not while I'm supposed to be playing or paying attention to the other players?

Quote:

Every gambler knows
That the secret to survivin'
Is knowin' what to throw away
And knowin' what to keep



Again, duh....

Quote:

'Cause every hand's a winner
And every hand's a loser



If you take this at face value, it makes no sense. On the other hand, it could be some vague mumbo-jumbo about how you shouldn't play the cards, but play the player. This is probably the most "rational," albeit still fairly obvious, advice the gambler gives.

Quote:

And the best that you can hope for is to die
in your sleep



Uh, cool, dude... what does this have to do with playing cards?

I pretty sure the whole song is about some crazy guy who tricks the narrator into giving him his last bit of whiskey, offering some bull**** advice in exchange, then just rolls over and dies. Weird song, indeed.
jjjoooggg
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February 19th, 2020 at 2:58:03 PM permalink
........
Born in Texas and lived in Texas my whole life.
Face
Administrator
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beachbumbabsMinty
February 19th, 2020 at 3:05:45 PM permalink
Every gambler knows
That the secret to survivin'
Is binomial coefficients
And Kelly criterion

Weird Al, eat your heart out.
The opinions of this moderator are for entertainment purposes only.
ApellesPromptov
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February 19th, 2020 at 11:41:30 PM permalink
Sometimes i place bets on cs:go. For some reason I am very ashamed of that fact.
TigerWu
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February 20th, 2020 at 11:28:58 AM permalink
What is Vegas like in June? I don't mean weather-wise, just crowds, hotel costs, conventions, etc.
lilredrooster
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odiousgambit
February 20th, 2020 at 1:21:12 PM permalink
Quote: Face

Every gambler knows
That the secret to survivin'
Is binomial coefficient




this might help some in dealing with binomial coefficients which can be tricky:




I hope that was helpful
Please don't feed the trolls
Joeman
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February 20th, 2020 at 2:14:10 PM permalink
Quote: lilredrooster

this might help some in dealing with binomial coefficients which can be tricky:

I hope that was helpful

I'm not so sure how this can be worked into the lyrics...

So I handed him my bottle
And he drank down my last swallow
Then he bummed a cigarette
And asked me for a light
And the night got deathly quiet
And his faced lost all expression
He said, "Here ya go:"


"Dealer has 'rock'... Pay 'paper!'"
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