The one with Mr. Martingale

Friday 27th April 2007

OWEN – Not many takers on the $50 challenge yet, so we’ve not got anything too crazy to blog about.

We decided just to do a straight up casino challenge. We registered for an account on Blackjack Heaven (this really is turning into a corporate advert!) and got a $100 deposit bonus. We decided to take that $100 and see who could turn it into the most before without losing it all in an evening.

I’m sure every professional gambler knows that Blackjack offers the most competitive odds in the casino, however I’m equally sure you all know I’m a compulsive gambler.

My two favourite games in the casino are Casino War and Sic Bo, I love them, I could play them all day… if I had a bottomless supply of money, because I always win big for a while, then the odds catch up with me and I lose it all. As this was bonus money however I was going to go for it.

I don’t know if any of you are familiar with the Martingale system but it’s basically doubling your bet every time you lose and then starting again if you win. Using this I often make a few hundred dollars before losing it all and as this was just over the course of an evening I thought I could maybe stay ahead of the game.

I started on Casino War, figuring I’d have six (almost) 50/50 attempts to win a dollar. It doesn’t sound so great saying it like that, but it’s pure gambling fun. Anyway I must have gone to war (tied) about 7 times in the first 10 hands! This is a ridiculous amount and I wish I had some money on ties for all these hands as it would have given me a huge bankroll boost. Regardless I got up to $126 in no time and was slightly safer as I now had seven attempts rather than six.

After this I moved to Sic Bo and started betting small or big, again using the Martingale system. After a time I got bored of that and devised an elaborate plan for betting on 10 and 11. I was lucky and always caught what I needed to stay in the game and continued to drift between Casino War and Sic Bo as the mood took me until I was at about $600.

With only ten minutes left in the day, disaster struck. I foolishly began using the Martingale system starting at $5 on Casino War and lost 6 in a row. With my remaining $300+ dollars I put it down to hopefully double up and be in with a chance. Imagine my disappointment to be dealt a 3, then imagine my elation when the dealer is also dealt a three, then another nadir as I realise I don’t have another $300 to go to war and have to surrender.

I finished up with about $3 from my original $100, that’s including converted comp points. Another £50 no doubt going Jack’s way.

JACK – Owen doesn’t know what he’s talking about – Money Wheel is where it’s at! I sat down at the wheel and started betting on the two most unlikely outcomes, one paying 50x and one paying 25x my wager. I had so few sections to hit, after a few spins I thought I’d have lost my $100 in next to no time. But I’m a gambler so I carried on, and I was rewarded after a few more spins with a hit on the jackpot section which paid 50 times my $5 stake, which took me up to $240. I asked Owen how much he was on.

“Three” he said.
“Damn, I’m right behind you on $240 though!”
“No, THREE.” he repeated, a little more slowly this time.
“Dollars?” I asked.
“Dollars.” he confirmed.

Scoop for me – Owen gave up on his $3 and I performed a small-scale but far from insignificant little dance. In other news, the Snooker World Championship is proving to be an exciting affair, and my tip for the title Neil Robertson battled back from 8-3 down to bring it to 8-8 going into tonight's final session in his second round match with Ronnie O'Sullivan. If he takes down the tournament I'm quite literally going to be rolling in it. This is too easy.

Current Bankrolls

Owen £1,033

Jack £1,335