To emphasize and expand on what Elliot said - I think the biggest mistake that I see advantage players make is, that even if they study and learn very accurate strategy, they don't choose the best PLAYS. That's NOT the same as choosing "good" GAMES, which sometimes is used to describe all games over 100% even if they are only .1% over.
If you play quarter Double Bonus or 10/6 DDB at the Palms, for example, with no cashback and no or very small bounce-back, instead of playing FPDW there, your edge is so small (and often non-existent since few people play DB or 10/6 DDB at nearly the theoretical EV), you will have to have umpteen times the bankroll to be quite confident of not going broke. (Math heads can be more precise than "umpteen.")
A "good" play that gives you only a razor-thin edge is only for the adventurous who have a HUGE financial bankroll AND the psychologically bankroll to endure unbelievably long losing streaks!!!!! Losing streaks can be pretty bad even if you are playing with a 1-2% edge!!!
Many of you who live and/or play in Vegas who are losing badly and complaining so loudly need to stop and figure what your edge is for every play you do. Go ahead and count the comps, but only to the extent that you would pay money for this same stuff if you didn't get it comped. Be honest with yourself here. And you might find that you would be happier if you dropped some casinos and/or some plays from your schedule and started looking in the full-pay data bases for some better ones.
The above discussion is not to disregard the fact that some people have different goals and some do not have the goal to make money but to stretch their entertainment/vacation time and they keep their losses to what they can afford to lose, enjoying the comps they do get.
But I fear for you who really expect to live long enough to come out winners or at least not go broke - but you continue to ignore the better/best plays to go for the very marginal ones. It's a recipe for disaster.
An advantage player is one who never plays unless he has the advantage. A skillful player may deliberately choose to not be an advantage player. One is not a "better" person than the other. But I hate to see people think that they are advantage players, meaning they would expect to have a good chance of being a winner in the long term, when they are making playing decisions that will make that a very iffy result - and many will be in shock when they go broke. Most do not play as accurately as they think they do. Just practicing a few hours at the beginning of your VP study does not mean you can switch games all the time and still keep good accuracy for years after. The most successful gamblers stick to one game at a time and won't switch games frequently until they have studied and had long experience on each of the games for an exclusive period of time. Good gamblers practice on software long into their playing career - and never stop brushing up on strategy frequently. Some of you should cut your playing time in half (or quit for a little while) and go back and do some reviewing. Try switching games on the computer every hour like you do in a casino - and see how accurate you are.
It is just SO easy to fool yourself.
I agree with a lot on BOTH sides of recent arguments. Very few players, even on these VP lists, CAN make a profit, but it's not because of the decline of good games in Vegas. The fact of the matter is that being a WISE advantage player means a lot of practice, a lot of self-discipline, and wise play choices. Because of the decline in good games, these wise players need my next book even more. And the ones who aren't wise advantage players, whether by lack of knowledge or by deliberate choice of different goals (and these are the biggest part of my readers) can save hundreds, even thousands of dollars, by using the hints in this book.
So I don't regret, or apologize to anyone for writing it.
By the way, I hope the long delay will be worth it. Just finished going over the galley sheets for the umpteenth time (it's very tiring to be a perfectionist!). This sucker is over 400 pages!!!!
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Jean $cott - "The Frugal Gambler"
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