Beginner’s Casino Luck Theory Explained

The phrase beginner’s luck is almost as old as time at this point and has been used in so many different scenarios throughout our various different hobbies. Whether it is winning at Chess when playing for the first time, that is beginner’s luck, winning a game of tennis despite never holding a racket before, beginner’s luck. The expression beginner’s luck is a concept that is known around the world and exists in many different languages.

What exactly is beginner’s luck though, the expression refers to a complete novice outperforming the expectation of being absolutely hopeless at a game or sport, especially when played against seasoned players. This is counter-intuitive as you would expect the better player to win the game but not in this case.

Is Beginner’s Luck Real?

The interesting thing to think about is, whether beginner’s luck is real or not. Those people will say that the better player is just having a bad day at the office or that the novice perhaps has experience in a game that is similar to the one they have never played before like going from tennis to squash or the other way around. They may also suggest that rather than it being pure luck, the beginner has the advantage because they re not overthinking things and stressing out about the technical side of the game that they are playing.

This kind of luck is very often seen in card games such as poker or blackjack for example as it is hard to predict what cards you will be dealt and this there is a massive element of luck to these games. This kind of luck is not concurrent across the casino floor though. It does not matter whether you are playing at a traditional land-based casino or you are playing at one of the many top online casinos out there, the chance of a novice outplaying the expert is very well-known.

Beginners v Experts

Experts can be obsessed with the more complex and technical moves that are available in the game. When you are a so-called expert at a game there is a greater expectation for you to perform well like a Premier League striker is expected to score bucket loads of goals and Roger Federer is expected to win Tennis Championships. There is also a lot of focus placed on the players who are at the top level as each element of their game is scrutinised. The beginner on the other hand is completely free to take more risks in their game as there are no expectations.

Novices are also not coming into a game with pre-conceived notions on how to think and play, so is free to think of all sorts of solutions during a game. Experts think in more known ways and can be tripped up more easily.

Luck By Other Names

In the casino world, the winning streak phenomenon is also known as the honeymoon period or winning phase and can be seen right across the casino floor. Is it really lick and does fortune favour the brave? We have already said that there are lots of different explanations for this kind of luck and, as players become more confident at a game, they will develop their own winning formulas.

At the end of the day everything has to come to an end and that includes a winning streak and it is how players deal with this that is important. Most games are done on probability. You should never chase a loss though.

In summation, when it comes to casino games, the house will always have an advantage and this is known as house edge.  A good strategy is for a novice player to just enjoy the game they are playing instead of going to look for big money. If you do end up with lady luck on your side then get into a habit of tapping out at a certain point as a good habit pays dividends.