... I'm talking apples and you're talking oranges. The bottom line is a whole different thing than the statistical probabilities.

What you are talking about is how much money the casino ends up with, NOT the rate at which it gets there. Taking any of my examples, if the player continues through a second round of betting, the house gets ANOTHER 5.26%. If the player keeps playing long enough, the 5.26% will come out of every round of betting. So, if the player starts with $380, eventually, the house will have it all. Or, a "hold" of 100% if you will.

So, if by "hold" you mean how much of the player's money you end up with, there's no doubt it will, on average, be much more than 5.26%, because most players will not run through their bankroll one time and stop. Most, because the correctly consider it entertainment (or for other less pleasant reasons), will play until they've lost their entire bankroll.

That makes the bottom line -- as I said, a whole different thing than the statistical probabilities by which it is arrived at.

BTW, wasn't doubting your knowledge of how much casinos win (you just have to look at the places to know you're right!), just couldn't figure out how in this particular case they could win more than the odds called for. The answer, of course, is that they can't. But, if the player keeps going, it's sorta like compound interest in reverse -- and the house ends up with a whole lot of money.

----- jim o\-S