Folks, I went to Las Vegas last week for business meetings, but during the evening I did take a little break from working on Layered Technologies and Woopra stuff for a few hours to go have dinner at the Bellagio Buffet, and then do a little gambling after dinner.

Had such a great time that I thought I’d share it with you guys.
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In keeping with my ongoing theme of posting casino games, I present for your entertainment the classic 3 Card Poker! (Don’t forget we’ve also got Blackjack and Roulette.)

3 Card Poker (or tri-card poker as it’s also called) is an American version of a British game called Brag. This game originated over three hundred years ago as a game known as Primero, a fast-moving betting game using only three cards. As the game evolved, it became known as Post-and-Pair and then again as Brag. This game made it to the States as Casino Brag and Brit-Brag, but eventually evolved again into the game we now know as 3 Card Poker.

The game is comprised of two different components and here is how they are played…
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Roulette is a casino and gambling game named after the French word meaning “small wheel”. In the game a croupier spins a wheel in one direction, then spins a ball in the opposite direction around a tilted circular surface running around the circumference of the wheel. The ball eventually falls on to the wheel and into one of 37 (in European roulette) or 38 (in American roulette) colored and numbered pockets on the wheel.

Albert Einstein is reputed to have stated, “You cannot beat a roulette table unless you steal money from it.” And indeed he was mathematically correct. Roulette is an absolute game of chance in which the house odds are stacked from 2-5% against you. Still, the little game I’ve embedded here is awfully fun to play!
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Who loves ya’ baby? Yeah, that’s right - The Man Does! So, being a fan of Casino games it’s only fitting that the first one I share would be the king of all casino games (in my opinion), Blackjack!

Not only can you play it right here (skip to it already), but I’m going to teach you how! (You did see my previous Gambling Tips, right?)
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I first went to Las Vegas when I was 27 years old. Until that time I had no interest whatsoever in gambling - courtesy of one of my professors, Dr. Jargowsky, from UTD. He taught a class that dealt with statistical analysis in which I finally came to understand just how futile it is to bet against the odds.

So, when I finally decided to go to Vegas, I also decided to learn to count cards at Blackjack so that at least I’d lose my money slowly. I chose a book called Best Blackjack by Frank Scoblete, I memorized the tables, and then I practiced for weeks using Microsoft Casino (you can download a free trial here). This actually helped a lot as I found that if I played properly I could usually sit at a table all night and come away even or a little up or down (usually down).

Since that time I’ve had a lot more experience in the casinos and as a result I have three bits of advice to offer:
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