I was only going by the way you described this hypothetical rebate Alan.

Originally Posted by RS__ View Post
Alan Mendelson: Each time you lose you lose $80. The overall payback on the game is 99.9%
What's the difference if it's a single hand or a million hands?
In your example, you were paid the rebate on each losing hand.

I'm going to plagiarize a concept from Mike Caro's Chapter in Super System 2 by Doyle Brunson. It goes something like this.

A gambler finds a magic lamp and rubs it. A genie comes out and grants him just 1 wish. The gambler of course wishes for money.

Genie: How would you like to be ahead $100,000 this year after all of your gambling sessions?

Gambler: Sure! How are you going to do that!

Genie: Well, first you need to answer a question. Would you like me to ADD extra winnings onto each of your winning sessions totaling an extra $100,000 or REDUCE the amount you lost during each losing session to total the $100,000?

Gambler: It doesn't make a difference. Just do it.

That's right. It doesn't make a difference.

Of course your profits/losses at the end of the year do depend upon how much you lose.

In your example reducing your losses by 20% on each losing bet is huge. You effectively stand to lose only $80 per bet, but have the chance to win $100.

If you want to start adding in new requirements or stipulations, then we're talking about something else entirely.