by Larry Edell
The Martingale System is one that promises winning results, and you will win most of the time, but just one loss can wipe out all of your winnings, and more.
A Martingale states that you double your bet upon a loss until you are winning again. So if you bet $25 on the pass line and lose, your next bet on the pass line would be $50. Then $100. Then $200, then $400, then... oops sorry sir, looks like you hit the table limit of $500, no more bets.
Of course, if you start out at only $5 you can go seven full levels - $5, $10, $20, $40, $80, $160, and $320. But if you happen to lose at the seventh level you don't just lose the $320, but all of the other bets as well - a total of $635!
Besides, when you bet the Martingale, you are just trying to get even - to recoup your losses, so even if you win, you end up just a little ahead, but is it really worth the risk? If you lose the first six bets and win the seventh bet you will be ahead exactly $5.
In order to provide a better monetary incentive, someone came up with the “Grand Martingale.” In this you not only double your bet but add one more dollar to it. So your $5 flat bet progression is now $5, $11, $23, $47, $95, $191, $383. You still end up capping at the seventh level. And you end up losing more if you lose all seven bets in a row - a lot more - your total loss now is $755! However if you lose the first six bets and win the seventh bet you are ahead by a whole eleven dollars - not much, but more than the regular Martingale.
The third variation of this system is called the “Short Martingale.” It is similar to the Grand one, only well, shorter. You only play for four levels and then if you lose you quit. So your progression would be $5, $11, $23, and $47. If you lose the first three and win the forth you will be ahead by $8, and you have less money at risk.
The fourth Martingale version is the “Rotating Martingale”. You use the same progression as the Short Martingale, only you double your bet and add one to it when you win and decrease it the same way when you lose. For example, you place a $5 bet on the pass line and win, so your next bet is $11. You win again so your third bet is $23. You lose this one so go back to the $11 level. When you get to zero you should quit or switch to the don't pass. Your game ends when you bet at the fourth level ($47) and win.
Martingales are not for everyone, and if you want to try one of these four systems you should find a very low limit table (50 cents or a dollar) and try it out there before you use $5 chips.
And, as always, good luck at the tables!
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