Popular casino games like roulette and blackjack have been making headlines in the gambling world for as long as anyone can remember. Their popularity only increased with the boom of online casinos, giving rise to all sorts of cutting-edge variants.
With so many variations of roulette available, and many more being released, over time, casino players began developing betting systems to help them gain an edge over the house. Although there are many other betting systems out there, one that frequently makes an appearance is the Oscar’s Grind betting system.
Are you curious to learn more? Join us as we dive into how the Oscar’s Grind works and how applying Oscar’s Grind may just be the thing keeping you from hitting losing streaks when playing roulette.
WHAT IS THE OSCAR’S GRIND BETTING SYSTEM?
The Oscar’s Grind system first cropped up in a book called ‘The Casino Gambler’s Guide’ back in 1965. The author, Allan Wilson, set up an interview with a player named Oscar, who was renowned for wracking up a modest profit using a very particular betting system.
The method had many names apart from the Oscar’s Grind system, including the Oscar betting system or Oscar Grind betting system. But, it was also called Hoyle’s Press, similar to the Pluscoup Progression. While these names may sound like the betting system comes with a complex set of bets, it is actually quite an easy technique to follow once you become familiar with betting cycles. This is because this betting system aims to finish with just one unit of profit as the cycle ends.
HOW DOES THE OSCAR’S GRIND STRATEGY WORK?
So, how can roulette players apply the Oscar’s Grind betting strategy?
Well, they must first place a one-unit bet as their first bet. If they win, the betting cycle will end, and they can place another one-unit bet to kick off another cycle. If they lose, their next wager will also be one unit — so the bet remains the same until they win.
Once players secure a win, the next step is to increase their bet size from a single unit to two units. If they lose, the following bet will be two units again. If they win, the cycle will end, and the bet size will increase to three units.
To summarise, the bet size increases by one unit on a win and remains the same on a loss.
THE OSCAR’S GRIND STRATEGY CHARTS – EXAMPLES OF USE
Let’s take a look at the Oscar betting system in action with the following example:
Suppose you’re about to spin a roulette wheel and have set €10 as the value of your base unit. Bear in mind that bet unit values may vary from one player to the next, depending on the size of their bankroll. So, your base unit does not necessarily have to be €10.
It is important that you only use this strategy when betting on even bets rather than non-even bets. This means that you can place Outside bets, including the Red/Black bet, High/Low bet, or Odd/Even bet.
Here’s a chart to help break down this simple example:
Bet | Bet Value | Cycle | Result | Profit |
1 | 10 | 1 | Win | 10 |
2 | 10 | 2 | Loss | 0 |
3 | 10 | 2 | Loss | -10 |
4 | 10 | 2 | Win | 0 |
5 | 20 | 3 | Win | 20 |
6 | 10 | 4 | Loss | 10 |
7 | 10 | 4 | Win | 20 |
8 | 20 | 5 | Loss | 0 |
9 | 20 | 5 | Loss | -20 |
10 | 20 | 5 | Win | 0 |
11 | 30 | 6 | Win | 30 |
12 | 10 | 6 | Loss | 20 |
13 | 10 | 6 | Loss | 0 |
14 | 10 | 6 | Win | 10 |
15 | 20 | 7 | Loss | -10 |
16 | 20 | 7 | Loss | -30 |
17 | 20 | 7 | Win | -10 |
18 | 30 | 8 | Loss | -40 |
19 | 30 | 8 | Win | -10 |
20 | 40 | 9 | Win | 30 |
As you can see, each time you win, a new cycle will begin, and your bet size will increase. However, each time you lose, you must bet the same amount again. For this reason, the Oscar’s Grind system is considered a positive progression system.
The Paroli strategy is a similar system to use if you want slightly more aggressive play, as well as the Reverse Martingale.
WHAT ARE THE PROS AND CONS OF THE OSCAR’S GRIND SYSTEM?
Like all betting systems, this roulette strategy has its imperfections. The gambler’s fallacy suggests that you will eventually hit a win after a series of losses. However, while it can potentially boost your winnings, you never know when you might hit a streak of bad luck. Let’s take a look at the pros and cons.
ADVANTAGES
Let’s start off by going through all the advantages of using this strategy when you play. Take a look:
- Easy to pick up once you’ve gotten comfortable with wagering cycles as your bet increases by one unit at a time.
- You do not need a huge bankroll to use this system as your bet only increases by a single unit.
- If you hit a losing streak, your bankroll won’t take such a huge blow as your bet does not increase on a loss.
- You can manage your bankroll easily since your bet increases slowly.
DISADVANTAGES
Now, here are the disadvantages of using this strategy:
- Earning a small profit may prove to be more tedious than other systems such as the Paroli system or Fibonacci system.
- This technique does not capitalise off of winning streaks.
- Even with a few wins in the bag, you might still not be able to recoup previous losses.
- This strategy can put a large dent in your bankroll if you use it over a longer period of time and hit a long losing streak.
- You might exceed table limits.
HOW TO USE THE OSCAR’S GRIND STRATEGY FOR ROULETTE
As we’ve discussed, the Oscar’s Grind strategy can be used on European roulette tables, French roulette tables, and American roulette tables by placing chips on even-money, Outside wagers, including Odd/Even, High/Low, Red/Black, Dozen, and Column bets.
Note that French or European tables are better choices for this strategy due to their lower house edge (1.35% or 2.7%) as opposed to the house edge in American tables (5.26%).
HOW TO USE THE OSCAR’S GRIND STRATEGY FOR BLACKJACK
The Oscar’s Grind method can also be used in a classic game of blackjack. You begin your bet as you would in roulette by selecting your base bet size and only increasing bet sizes after a win and beginning a new cycle. However, you’ll be wagering on your hand instead of placing a bet on specific numbers. This is pretty similar to chasing losses, so proceed with this system with caution.
This system differs in blackjack because you can win more than your bet and boost your net profit. If you earn a blackjack hand, you win one and a half times your original bet; you can also double your earnings when doubling down or splitting and secure wins by using the optimal basic blackjack strategy on top of the Oscar’s Grind!
HOW TO USE THE OSCAR’S GRIND STRATEGY FOR BACCARAT
This strategy would also be great when playing baccarat! However, it should only be used when placing Player or Banker wagers, as Tie bets hold the least chance for success.
This game has one of the lowest house edges in the industry, so you can expect to make a profit even on a single win; just remember that winning is never a guarantee. Remember only to increase your bet size after every win once you begin a new cycle.
HOW TO USE THE OSCAR’S GRIND STRATEGY FOR CRAPS
Did you know that you can also use this strategy to earn a good profit when playing craps? Profit will accumulate slowly after long sessions, but there are definitely chances of success.
While craps offers many betting options, it is recommended that you stick to wagers, including the Pass, Don’t Pass, Come, Don’t Come, Big 6 and Big 8 wagers. It is not recommended to use this strategy with longer odds wagers like Hardways, Field stakes and Any 7, or wagers with odds less than even money, including Lay bets and Place bets.
Wagers that offer even-money payouts are the best options to go for in craps and all other games. After all, the better your odds of hitting these stakes, the better your chances of earning a profit!
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