Expectation (blackjack)
A reference to what a player or the house can statistically
expect to win or lose on a given bet or game. For example, the
house expectation on a pass line bet at craps is 1.4%. This
simply means that the house can expect to win 1.4% of all the
money bet on the pass line over the long run. Since the only
outcomes are win one unit or lose one unit, a 1.4% expectation
means winning 50.7% of the time and losing 49.3% of the time.
If the same bet were described for the player, it may be stated
by saying the player on average gets 98.6% of his money back
on the pass line bet (getting 100% back would be breaking even)
or it could be stated that
the player has a 1.4% negative expectation on that bet.
Expectation (poker)
The long-run advantage of a given situation, specifically without
reference to any particular outcome. I.e., what you figure to
win or lose on average after a large number of repetitions of
the same situation.
Expectation (videopoker)
[1] A term referring to the amount of you expect to gain on
average if you make a certain play.
For instance, suppose you put $10 into a $50 pot to draw at
a hand that you will make 25% of the time, and it will win every
time you make it. Three out of four times, you do not make your
draw, and lose $10 each time for a total of $30. The fourth
time, you will make your draw, winning $50. Your total gain
over those four average hands is $50-$30 = $20, an average of
$5 per hand. Thus calling the $10 has a positive expectation
of $5.
[2] The amount you expect to make at the poker table in a specific
time period. Perhaps in 100 hours play, you have won $527. Then
your expectation is $5.27/hr. Of course, you won't make that
exact amount each hour (and some hours you will lose),
but it's one measure of your anticipated earnings.
