Great read that I'm certain Mr. Dancer will appreciate.
It’s interesting that humans persist in their belief that they can beat the Kelly system, even humans with mathematical or financial training. It’s ironic really, mathematicians discover “Fortune’s Formula” (to borrow Poundstone’s book title) and yet humans continue to act as if it doesn’t exist or somehow doesn’t apply in their corner of the universe. In video poker it’s common to hear the claim that Kelly doesn’t apply because there are limited bet sizes or perhaps only one useful betsize. Nonsense. And yet the belief persists, humans want to believe they can beat Kelly, in ignorance of the math.
[In cases where there is only one allowed bet size, Kelly becomes a go, no-go, green light, red light, system. As an approximation, take the bet if your current bankroll is variance/edge bet-sizes or more, otherwise decline the bet.]