In article >,
Steve Wertz > wrote:

> On 27 Apr 2006 11:15:45 -0700, aem wrote:
>
> > Did you know that the only bet in Vegas where you are paid the true
> > odds is at craps? -aem
>
> Not quite. Casinos wouldn't be offering ti if they didn't make
> any money at it. Mnay people don't play the free odds, which the
> casinos like, but you had to place a regular bet to get into that
> position in the first place.
>
> Blackjack is the only game where you can gain an edge over the
> house, by card counting.

Which is also a myth. I have seen two or three card counters play. All
they manage to do is keep their money in play longer than the average
guy. There is some very advanced mathematical theory that the casinos
know quite well that allows them to always have the odds in their favor
at black jack. This is mainly achieved by always having the house be the
dealer. As long as none of the players never get to deal, they will
almost always lose their money if they play long enough.

I sat in on a casino gaming theory course a few years ago that was
taught by a famous Harvard-educated mathematician and he showed quite
clearly why people will usually lose at black jack in the long run. The
house has a huge advantage by always being the dealer, and than they
stack that advantage even more in their favor by playing with multiple
decks.

The reality is that no card counter can count perfectly enough to offset
a casino's odds and even those few who can, still do not have the same
odds that the casinos do.