PROBABILITY GUIDE TO GAMBLING: The Mathematics of Dice, Slots, Roulette, Baccarat, Blackjack, Poker, Lottery and Sport Bets [Paperback]

Catalin Barboianu (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 26, 2006

Over the past few decades, gamblers have begun taking mathematics into account more seriously than ever before. While probability theory is the only rigorous theory that can model the hazards of gambling, even in idealized conditions, numerical probabilities are viewed not only as purely theoretical information, but also as a decision-making criterion, especially in gambling. This book presents the mathematics underlying games of chance and provides a precise account of the odds associated with all gaming events. It begins by explaining in simple terms the meaning of the concept of probability for the layman and goes on to become an enlightening journey through the mathematics of chance, randomness and risk. It then continues with the basics of discrete probability (definitions, properties, theorems and calculus formulas), combinatorics and counting arguments for those interested in the supporting mathematics. These mathematic sections may be skipped by readers who do not have a minimal background in mathematics; these readers can skip directly to the "Guide to Numerical Results" to pick the odds and recommendations they need for the desired gaming situation. Doing so is possible due to the organization of that chapter, in which the results are listed at the end of each section, mostly in the form of tables. The chapter titled "The Mathematics of Games of Chance" presents these games not only as a good application field for probability theory, but also in terms of human actions where probability-based strategies can be tried to achieve favorable results. Through suggestive examples, the reader can see what experiments, events and probability fields mean in games of chance and why and how probability formulas can be applied there. The main portion of this work is a collection of probability results for each type of game. Each game's section is packed with formulas and tables. Each section also contains a description of the game, a classification of the gaming events and the applicable probability calculations. The primary goal of this work is to allow the reader to quickly find the odds for a specific gaming situation, in order to improve his or her betting/gaming decisions. Every type of gaming event is tabulated in a logical, consistent and comprehensive manner. The complete methodology and complete or partial calculations are shown to teach players how to calculate probability for any situation, for every stage of the game for any game. Here, readers can find the real odds, returned by precise mathematical formulas and not by partial simulations that most software uses. Collections of odds are presented, as well as strategic recommendations based on those odds, where necessary, for each type of gaming situation. The book contains much new and original material that has not been published previously and provides great coverage of probabilities for the following games of chance: Dice, Slots, Roulette, Baccarat, Blackjack, Five Card Draw Poker, Texas Hold'em Poker, Lottery and Sport Bets. No formal background in mathematics is necessary to read these sections, although familiarity with some probability and set theory notions is helpful. In most cases, readers will benefit from having some college math to follow the formulas here, but this is not a requirement because the numerical results are given as summaries and tables at the end of each section. Most of casino games are predisposed to probability-based decisions. This is why the approach is not an exclusively statistical one (like many other titles published on this subject), but analytical: every gaming event is taken as an individual applied probability problem to solve. A special chapter defines the probability-based strategy and mathematically shows why such strategy is theoretically optimal. The author is a recognized authority on casino mathematics.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

This title is listed in the collections of several university and gambling institute libraries and stands as reference book for applied math and gambling courses.

About the Author

Catalin Barboianu (born in 1968) is a Romanian mathematician and author, whose fields of expertise and publication are topology, probability theory, mathematical modeling, and philosophy of mathematics. From 2003, his main work was focused on applied mathematics, especially on applications of probability theory in daily life, including in gaming, the outcome being six books on mathematics of gambling, published in several languages. His books have a guide style and are primarily addressed to non-mathematicians, being listed in the official bibliographies of the students of several gaming institutes and organizations around the globe. He also published several articles in leading academic and gaming periodicals,and became a recognized authority on mathematics of games and gambling. He is an active member of MAA (Mathematical Association of America), SIAM (Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics), and BSPS (British Society for the Philosophy of Science).

Product Details

• Paperback: 332 pages
• Publisher: INFAROM (August 26, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 9738752035
• ISBN-13: 978-9738752030
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,182,135 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Catalin Barboianu (born in 1968) is a Romanian mathematician and author, whose fields of expertise and publication are topology, probability theory, mathematical modeling, and philosophy of mathematics. From 2003, his main work was focused on applied mathematics, especially on applications of probability theory in daily life, including in gaming, the outcome being six books on mathematics of gambling, published in several languages. His books have a guide style and are primarily addressed to non-mathematicians, being listed in the official bibliographies of the students of several gaming institutes and organizations around the globe. He also published several articles in leading academic and gaming periodicals,and became a recognized authority on mathematics of games and gambling. He is an active member of MAA (Mathematical Association of America), SIAM (Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics), and BSPS (British Society for the Philosophy of Science).

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Where's the editor?, November 1, 2007

By 

Allan E. Greenberg "Renaissance Man" (Kings Park, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: PROBABILITY GUIDE TO GAMBLING: The Mathematics of Dice, Slots, Roulette, Baccarat, Blackjack, Poker, Lottery and Sport Bets (Paperback)

Lots of annoying liitle typos in the math chapters. I can live with those, the math is correct. HOWEVER, the chapter on roulette is completely incorrect. The author assumes a 40 to 1 payoff on a single number wager but the actual payoff is 35 to 1. This is an eggregious error. Virtually every computation and scheme in that chapter is bogus and totally misleading. The author goes so far as to providing winning schemes. The rest of the book is now suspect. I don't have the patience to verify the other chapters so BEWARE!

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very rigorous: just the facts!, August 2, 2008

By 

DB - See all my reviews

This review is from: PROBABILITY GUIDE TO GAMBLING: The Mathematics of Dice, Slots, Roulette, Baccarat, Blackjack, Poker, Lottery and Sport Bets (Paperback)

Well done work and very well organized. There is no gambling strategy without math. This books explains the math applied for the most common gaming situations for the most practiced casino games. Formulas and numerical probabilities and not so-called winning strategies. Just the facts!

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Average Book, June 19, 2011

By 

Giora Harpaz - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: PROBABILITY GUIDE TO GAMBLING: The Mathematics of Dice, Slots, Roulette, Baccarat, Blackjack, Poker, Lottery and Sport Bets (Paperback)

The book has many math arguments, but has no references. Some of the proofs are hard to follow. The numberical examples are not always clear. I did not find the book very useful.