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Macau Casino
At the time of writing, Macau had a dozen casinos, with at least two more on the way. All of them operate 24 hours a day.
Although the games in Macau are somewhat different from those played in Las Vegas and elsewhere (Read more), the same basic principles apply. No matter what the same, the casino enjoys a built-in mathematical advantage. In the short term, anyone can hit a winning streak and get ahead, but the longer you play, the more certain it is that the odds will catch up with you.
The legal gambling age in Macau is 18 years (21 for Macau residents). Photography is absolutely prohibited inside the casinos. Men cannot wear shorts, even relatively long ones, or a singlet (undershirt) unless they have a shirt over it. Women wearing shorts or vests are refused entry, as is anyone wearing thongs (flip-flops).
None of the casinos in Macau offers the atmosphere or level of service considered minimal in Las Vegas, though that is expected to change when the American casinos – Wynn Resorts' Wynn Macau and Sand's Venetian Casino - open in 2005 or 2006. There are no seats for slot-machine players, nor cocktail waiters offering free drinks to gamblers. A most obnoxious custom is the automatic tip: dealers and croupiers take 10% of your winnings without even asking.
Most of Macau's casinos are located within big hotels such as the Holiday Inn Macau, the Kingsway, the Lisboa and the Mandarin Oriental on the peninsula, the New Century and the Pousada Marina Infante, situated on Taipa.
Independent casinos include the Macau Palace Casino, a 'floating casino' moored in the Outer Harbour southwest of the ferry terminal the Jai Alai Casino, the Kam Pek Casino, close to the Lisboa Hotel, and Pharaoh's Palace Casino. The Legend Club, two floors above Pharaoh's Palace, is for high spending members only.
Some Fun & Games in Macau
Baccarat Also known as chemin de fer (railroad), this has become the card game of choice for the upper crust of Macau's gambling elite. Two hands are dealt simultaneously: a player hand and a bank hand. Players can bet on either (neither is actually the house hand), and the one that scores closest to nine is the winner. The casino deducts a percentage if the bank hand wins, which is how the house makes its profit, if the player understands the game properly, the house only enjoys a slightly better than 1% advantage over the player.
Blackjack Also known as 21, this card game is easy to play, although it requires some skill to play well. The dealer takes a card and gives another to the players. Face cards count as 10, aces as one or 11. Cards are dealt one at a time – the goal is to get as close as possible to 21 (blackjack) without going over. If you go over 21 you 'bust', or lose. Players are always dealt their cards before the dealer, so if they bust they will always bust before the dealer does. This is what gives the casino the edge over the player. If the dealer and player both get 21, it's a tie and the bet is cancelled. If players get 21, they get even money plus a 50% bonus. Dealers must draw until they reach 16, and stand on 17 or higher. The player is free to decide when to stand or when to draw.
Boule This is very similar to roulette, except that boule is played with a ball about the size of a billiard ball, and there are fewer numbers. Boule has 24 numbers plus a star. The payoff is 23 to one on numbers. On all bets (numbers, red or black, odd or even) the casino has a 4% advantage over players.
Dai Siu Cantonese for 'big little', this game is also known as sik po (dice treasure) or cu sik (guessing dice) and is very popular in Macau. The game is played with three dice. The dice are placed in a covered glass container, the container is then shaken and you bet on whether the toss will be from three to nine (small) or 10 to 18 (big). However, you lose on combinations where all three dice come up the same, such as 2-2-2, 3-3-3 and so on - unless you bet directly on three of a kind. For betting dai siu the house advantage is 2.78%. Betting on a specific three of a kind gives the house a 30% advantage.
Fan Tan This is an ancient Chinese game practically unknown in the West. The dealer takes an inverted silver cup and plunges it into a pile of porcelain buttons, and then moves the cup to one side. After all bets have been placed, the buttons are counted out in groups of four. You have to bet on how many will remain after the last set of four has been taken out.
Pai Kao This is a form of Chinese dominoes similar to mahjong. One player is made banker and the others compare their hands against the banker's. The casino doesn't play, but deducts a 3% commission from the winnings for providing the gambling facilities.
Roulette The dealer spins the roulette wheel in one direction and tosses a ball the other way. Roulette wheels have 36 numbers plus a zero, so your chance of hitting any given number is one in 37. The payoff is 35 to one, which is what gives the casino its advantage. Rather than betting on a single number, it's much easier to win if you bet odd or even, or red versus black numbers, which only gives the house a 2.7% advantage. If the ball lands on zero, everyone loses to the house (unless you also bet on the zero).
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