Money Management Techniques in Gambling

Money Mangement Techniques - Gambling There are many money management techniques in gambling. Gamblers have come up with countless devious ways to tip the odds in their favor. I want to focus on one in particular on this page: the Martingale system.

I discuss the Martingale technique because I see so many articles online about how you can win lots of money playing it. I want to dispel the myth of the Martingale technique.

Martingale Systems

The Martingale System was developed back in the 18th century by a Frenchman named Martingale. Some would say that gives Martingale the respectability which comes with age. I would say that it only means this system has been misguiding gamblers for centuries.

The Martingale is based on a flawed knowledge of probability and odds. The simple version of the system is that you bet more when you lose and bet less when you win. The idea is that, if you lost the last hand or the last roll of the dice, then your odds of winning the next hand goes up.

This would be the law of averages. In the end, the odds average out. If I bet more after a loss, I'm increasing my odds of winning. And when I do win, I will not only win back what I just lost, but I'll win a profit while I'm at it. This system can't lose.

Actually, two rolls at the craps table have anything to do with one another. If you busted on the last roll, it neither increases or decreases your chances of winning the next roll. The odds remain the same, so upping your bet after a loss makes no sense.

The law of averages suggests that the odds will even out in some theoretical instance, if you bet an infinite number of times. But the law of averages work on a macro scale, not the limited number of bets that most gamblers have.

In other words, if you had an infinite bankroll, the Martingale system might be worth trying. Since you don't have an infinite bankroll, if you double your bet every time you lose and you are playing against a house edge, then you are simply speeding up the rate that you will eventually lose your entire stake. Sure, you might beat the odds, but you are actually increasing your risk of ruin.

The Difference in Slots and Blackjack

People will say that card counting works in blackjack, so the should work in slots. Card counting focuses on the number of cards worth 10 in blackjack are in the deck at any one time. You count the number of tens, which increase your chances of busting out, then bet accordingly. In this way, really astute players can weight the odds slightly in their favor, turning blackjack into a positive expectation game.

I won't get into the mechanics of the automatic card shuffler and the increasing number of decks that most casinos use, making card counting a less profitable venture than it once was. Let's focus instead on the concept of why focused betting might work in blackjack, but not in slots.

In blackjack, the odds change from one hand to the next, at least until the dealer starts using a new or shuffled deck of cards. In slots, every single spin has exactly the same odds of winning or losing. Therefore, targeting your bets on certain spins or varying your bets after a loss has no advantage to a player.

Maximizing the Jackpot

The best money management technique for slots is to make sure you maximize your jackpot. On many slot machines, the jackpot when betting five coins pays off a higher percentage than the jackpot with 1 to 4 coins wagered. So if you want to increase your percentages, play the five coin bets when the numbers warrant it. If you don't think you can afford to play five coins, drop down to a lower coin denomination and use the same strategy.

Other than that, there aren't too many slots money management techniques which will help you to much. In the end, there is no reading the machine like you might read a player at a poker table. You're just hitting a button.

You might also be interested in reading about video poker online.