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Dancer's Answers We publish a brand-new video poker article from Bob Dancer every Thursday in this section. These columns are called "Dancer's Answers". Click on any of the links below for more Dancer's Answers: Bob Dancer Articles - Main Page Vicksburg Video Poker - May 8, 2008 Vicksburg, MS Video Poker - Part 2 - May 15, 2008 Vicksburg Casino Video Poker - Part 3 - May 22, 2008 Common Deuces Wild Mistakes – Juan or the Other – May 29, 2008 Figuring Out Quick Quads - June 5, 2008 Breaking Full Houses in Quick Quads - June 12, 2008 A Quick Quads Puzzler - June 19, 2008 Let’s Go Scouting - June 26, 2008 When You're Not Sure of the Game - July 3, 2008 Can it be Right to Play Hunches - July 10, 2008 Good Hearted Woman in Love With a Good Timin’ Man - July 17, 2008 One-Way Versus Two-Way Straight Penalties - July 24, 2008 Effectual versus Ineffectual Straight Penalties - July 31, 2008 Unusual Dealt Royals - August 7, 2008 Learning from a Horse Handicapper - August 14, 2008 When Bad Is Good - August 21, 2008 I Live For These Moments - August 28, 2008 Next Dancer's Answers column coming on September 4, 2008! |
Can it be Right to Play Hunches?Many people have asked me whether I ever make a play “on a hunch,” or do I ever “go with my gut?” I always answer in the negative. I trust “Video Poker for Winners” and the other tools I have to give me the right answers. I have plenty of personal evidence that if you continually make the right mathematical decisions your bankroll will continue to grow over time. I came across a quotation recently that seems to apply to this type of situation. Marilyn vos Savant wrote, “If your head tells you one thing and your heart tells you another, before you do anything you should first decide whether you have a better head or a better heart.” I don’t know the context in which she was writing but I suspect it had to do with making romantic decisions. I’m going to take her statement out of context, change her use of the word “heart” to “gut,” and apply the concept to video poker. Over the years I’ve read a lot of police detective novels and watched these stories on television or at the movies. Frequently the police hero of the story knows “in his gut” that a particular suspect is guilty of something but can’t prove it. Yet. (Not until the conclusion of the story.) Time and time again, however, it’s said in these novels that these police officers “trust their gut.” For me personally, the only thing I trust about my gut is that it will keep growing! I don’t bet on sports because there I bet with my heart or my gut. I’ve bet enough doing this to know that my record isn’t a winning one. I’m an analytical sort of guy. I trust my calculations. I trust my head. (Shirley will tell you that that keeps growing too!) What I get from the vos Savant quotation is that some people are better off going with their gut and some people are better off going with their head. I think of video poker as applied mathematics, and I try to play like a well-programmed computer would. But others think of video poker as a fun way to gamble. They don’t know all of the odds. They don’t know all of the best plays. They don’t even know whether this particular machine is a good gamble or a bad gamble. These people are forced to go with their gut, because they don’t know enough about the game to usefully use their head. The series of my articles on this site is geared toward helping you learn to profitably use your head. I’m not positive that’s the best way to go, but since it’s what I do and I’m the teacher here, that’s the way I’m going to teach. I can’t teach you how to use your gut because I don’t know how to do it myself. It’s not quite the same thing but there are differences between the way that Asians and Caucasians think as well. My girlfriend before Shirley was born and raised in Taiwan. Ginny and I had many discussions (actually they were more like arguments) as to the best way to do something gambling-wise. For me the proof was always in the numbers. For Ginny it wasn’t always so cut and dried. I do know, however, that there are successful Asian players who approach things much differently than I do. Although I’m not lacking in self-confidence, I’m not nearly so arrogant that I believe that my way is the only way. There are lots of ways to think. My way may or may not work for you. I strongly suggest that whenever you receive well-meaning advice (from me or anybody else), that you filter it through your own belief system and see if it works for you. Or if it can be modified to work for you. And you can use either your gut, your head (or even your heart) to do this. Bob Dancer is America's best-known video poker writer and teacher. He has a variety of "how to play better video poker" products, including the software "Video Poker for Winners," Winner's Guides, strategy cards, his autobiography Million Dollar Video Poker, and his two novels, including Sex, Lies, and Video Poker. Dancer's products may be ordered at www.bobdancer.com or by telephone at 1-800-244-2224 M-F 9-5 Pacific Time.
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Classic Dancer We republish a classic Bob Dancer article every Sunday - often these articles are updated with new insights from Bob Dancer, the master of video poker writing. Video Poker Questions and Answers - May 4, 2008 More Answers to Questions About Video Poker Machines - May 11, 2008 Losing is a Major Part of Winning at Video Poker - May 18, 2008 Video Poker VS Blackjack - May 25, 2008 The Art of Tipping Slot Personnel - Part 1 - June 1, 2008 The Art of Tipping Slot Personnel - Part 2 - June 8, 2008 Putting Your Ducks In a Row - June 15, 2008 Luck and Skill in Video Poker - June 22, 2008 Strategy Adjustments in Video Poker - June 29, 2008 One Coin vs Five Coin - July 6, 2008 Video Poker Progressives - July 13, 2008 High Pairs versus Three Cards to a Rolal in Kings or Better Joker Wild - July 20, 2008 The Double Up Feature -- Does It Ever Make Sense? - Part 1 - July 27, 2008 Doubling Up -- Does it Ever Make Sense? - Part 2 - August 3, 2008 Did I Quit at the Right Time? - August 10, 2008 Money Management: What Does and Doesn't Work - August 17, 2008 "I'm Playing The Wrong Game" and Other Video Poker Fallacies - August 24, 2008 More Classic Dancer coming Sunday August 31, 2008. |
