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Fundamental Gambling Concepts and Terms

Gambling is an investment. You put your time, energy and of course money, into it. Whether you gamble for business or pleasure, you should take the time to understand how the casinos do their business. It is the first step to responsible gambling.

We will look at these gambling concepts and terms: house edge, house hold, payback percentage, odds, payout and the vigorish or rake.

Gambling Concepts and Terms

HOUSE EDGE - The advantage of the casino over the player measured in percentage. Games with a low house edge such as video poker and blackjack are preferred by expert gamblers. Keno and slots have a high house edge, but they also have the biggest jackpots.

PAYBACK PERCENTAGE - This is the converse of house edge. If the house edge is the casino's profit, the payback percentage is what is left afterwards; it is returned to players as a collective total of wins. In slots, video poker and keno, much of the payback percentage is given out in the form of jackpots. Payback percentage can change depending on how skillfully one plays.

VIGORISH - A vigorish or vig for short is a commission the house charges on some bets and sometimes, whole games. The house charges a vigorish on some bets that are advantageous to the player, such as the banker bet in baccarat. In poker games like Texas Holdem, the casino plays no part but it may either charge a fee for hosting the game, or take a vigorish from the pot. This commission is also called a rake.

ODDS - The probability of a thing happening or not happening. The worse the odds of a wager, the higher its payoff should be when it wins since the risk is greater. Odds are expressed as X to Y where X is the odds of an event not happening and Y is the same thing taking place.

PAYOUT - How much the casino pays out to winning player bets is displayed in a pay schedule. Each game has its own schedule of payouts and the same game may pay differently from casino to casino.

HOUSE HOLD - This is a concept related to house edge. But whereas the house edge is theoretical in nature, house hold is a real-world figure. It is the actual amount of money a casino makes from a specific game or machine at any one time. The more skillful a gambler is, the less money the house holds.

We hope that with this short guide you have no come to a clearer understanding of gambling concepts and terms. Now that you know what it is all about, it's time to have fun. Play in our approved casinos for guaranteed high payback percentages and the best odds.