Gaming Tips : Understanding House 'Drops' and Casino Payouts

Dear Mark,

If the casino advantage on a game like blackjack is under 1% for those of us who use perfect basic strategy, how come I have read the house "drop" is reported at around 15% at blackjack? Gary O.

The casino "advantage" in all games is correctly called the house percentage. The house percentage applies to each gaming decision in a casino‹be it each roll of the dice, each spin at the roulette wheel, each pull of a slot handle, or each hand at blackjack.

The aptly named "drop" percentage is always much higher than the house percentage and refers to what the player will drop into the casino's appreciative hands. Most players play too long at their game of choice, allowing the house edge to gnaw away at their stakes.

An obliging gambler who loses on average nearly one percent per hand will, if he sticks at it for an extended period of time, wind up dropping (there's that word) about 15% of all the money wagered.

Casinos dearly love players who Super-Glue themselves to the tables, and will happily offer lifetime supplies of the stuff for free. They know that you simply cannot play any casino game over an extended time period and come away a winner; they set the rules that way, you see. Their percentages - house advantage - will always methodically devour your bankroll.

Why? You are always funding a minus computation. Even the most favorable game, blackjack played with perfect basic strategy, is just the least favorable for the casino, eating you in nibbles rather than gorilla gulps.