The Oscar’s grind betting system is designed to help meticulous casino players grind out small wins on a regular basis. The general idea is to earn a single unit of profit in each cycle and then start again. This makes it a pretty cautious strategy. You can apply Oscar’s grind to popular casino games. It works with online blackjack, roulette, baccarat, and craps. This Oscar’s grind betting system guide will teach you what the approach entails. You will learn its pros and cons, and how it can be applied to various table games at leading online casinos.

How Oscar’s Grind Betting System Works

The Oscar’s grind was first mentioned in a 1965 book called The Casino Gambler’s Guide by Allan Wilson. The author interviewed a gambler by the name of Oscar, who was renowned for grinding out small wins each day by following a cautious and disciplined approach. It is interchangeably referred to as the Oscar’s grind betting system, the Oscar grind betting system, the Oscar's betting system, and the Oscar betting system, but they all mean the same thing.

The Oscar grind betting system is also known as Holyes Press, and it is similar to the Pluscoup Progression. It is a pretty simple strategy once you get your head around the concept of playing in betting cycles. The goal is to finish each cycle with a single unit of profit.

A unit is a percentage of your bankroll, and it varies from one gambler to the next. If you have a C$1,000 bankroll to play with, you might decide to set your base unit at C$30. You then play a number of cycles throughout your session, and the goal is to win C$30 each time.

You should only use the Oscar's betting system on even chance bets. For example, you would use the Oscar betting system on red/black when you play roulette for free online or pass/don’t pass when playing craps.

You always start the Oscar’s grind betting system by placing a one-unit wager. If it wins, the cycle is immediately over, as you have achieved your goal of winning one unit per cycle. You then start a new cycle by betting on one unit again.

If you lose, you bet one unit again and keep betting one unit until you win. With the Oscar’s grind grind betting system, you only increase the size of your stake after a win. Once you win a bet, you increase the size of your stake to two units. If you lose, you bet two units the next time. If you win, you move up to three units.

Essentially, you keep the size of your stake the same when you lose and increase it by one unit each time you win. The cycle comes to an end as soon as you win a single unit of profit. You can then begin a new cycle by wagering one unit.

The easiest way to explain the Oscar’s grind betting system is to use an example. Let’s say you are playing the Oscar’s grind blackjack betting system, and you have decided to make C$10 your base unit. This chart shows a hypothetical the Oscar’s grind blackjack wagering session you might enjoy:

As you can see, each time you earn one unit ($10) of profit, you end the cycle and start again. If you lose a bet when following the Oscar’s grind betting system, you simply bet the same amount again. However, if you win, you increase the size of your stake.

The Oscar’s grind betting system is an interesting approach. It can be considered a positive progression system because you increase the size of your stake after winning, and you chase a profit rather than a loss. However, it is not particularly aggressive, as you always go back to betting a single unit as soon as you earn a small profit, so it does not really aim to capitalize upon winning streaks.

In that regard, it is different to positive progressions systems like the Paroli strategy – which aims to secure a run of three straight wins – and the 1-3-2-6 system, which pays handsomely when you win four in a row. If you want a more aggressive positive progression system, you can check them out, or look at the reverse Martingale, which is even bolder.

The Oscar’s grind betting system is more likely to appeal to slow and steady players who like trying to grind out small wins and make positive progress after securing a win. Read on to learn the main advantages and disadvantages of the Oscar’s grind betting system and how to apply it to roulette, baccarat, craps, and blackjack with live dealers.

Oscar’s Grind Betting System Pros and Cons

There are several key benefits to using the Oscar’s Grind betting system:

Oscar’s Grind Blackjack Betting System

Whether or not the Oscar’s grind is the best blackjack betting strategy is debatable. But it makes sense due to the high theoretical RTP featured in this popular casino game. Classic blackjack has an RTP of 99.41%, and some variants go even higher due to bonus features. So, your chances of winning are very close to 50/50. Remember, you only use Oscar’s Grind with these roughly even money (1:1) bets, so Oscar’s Grind blackjack betting system is popular among many players.

You start off by choosing your unit price and placing a wager equal to that amount. If your base unit is $20, your foray into the Oscar’s grind blackjack begins with a $20 wager. If that bet is successful, you can congratulate yourself on a job well done. The cycle is complete. You can now start the Oscar’s grind blackjack betting system again by placing another $20 wager.

If you lose, you simply keep betting that amount on each hand until you win. However, at this point, you will not be in profit for your cycle, so you increase the size of your stake by one unit after winning. In the case of this Oscar’s grind blackjack betting system example, you would go up to $40 for your next wager.

The idea with the Oscar’s grind blackjack betting system is to keep increasing the unit by one – in this case, by $20 – with each win. This is quite similar to chasing a loss because you are ultimately chasing just one unit of profit. As soon as you are in profit for the cycle, you go back to start a new Oscar’s grind blackjack cycle, regardless of whether you have just won a bet for a single unit or for 20 units.

Sometimes, you complete the cycle quickly, but sometimes, it takes dozens or even hundreds of bets. That is why it is called the Oscar’s grind and not Oscar’s breeze.

Free game of blackjack differs from other games because you can win more than just your stake when playing it. You win one-and-a-half times your stake if you are dealt blackjack, you can double your winnings by doubling down, you can double your winnings by splitting aces or another pair, and insurance can cut your losses when applicable.

There are no official Oscar’s grind blackjack betting system rules for what to do with your extra winnings. Most players just add them to their bankroll and treat it as a single win. However, if successfully doubling down or splitting aces puts you into a narrow profit, you might decide to end your Oscar’s grind blackjack cycle and start a new one. This is a personal judgment, and different players have different interpretations when following the Oscar’s grind blackjack betting system.

If you think this system is too complex, check out our blackjack betting systems guide for more options. 

Oscar’s Grind Roulette Betting System

You can apply the Oscar’s Grinds betting system to all outside online roulette bets that carry a roughly even chance of success: red, black, high (19/36), low (1-18), odd, and even. Most people following the Oscar betting system make the same bet with each spin of the wheel. However, you can mix it up if you like, as long as you stick to those options with odds of almost even money.

You would not use the Oscar’s grind betting system on individual numbers, columns, and so on because you could quickly go on a lengthy losing streak that wipes out your bankroll and potentially pushes you over the maximum betting limits.

Start off by betting one unit on red, black, 1-18, 19-36, odd, or even; watch the wheel spin and hope for the best. If your bet pays off, you start the Oscar’s grind betting system again. If you lose, keep betting at that same stake until you win. When you win, always increase your stake by just one unit. Keep going until you are in profit for the cycle. That is all you need to remember when using the Oscar’s grind betting system for roulette, so it is actually a very simple strategy.

One thing to note when playing roulette is that systems like the Oscar’s grind work best when the odds are as close to even as possible. French Roulette has the highest RTP, followed closely by European Roulette, but American Roulette has a significantly higher house edge due to the double zero, so you might want to stick to the French or European variants. You can also check to see if there are any other roulette games that offer bonus features to reduce the house edge further.

CHECK OUT: Our guide on how to avoid psychological pitfalls when playing roulette.

Oscar’s Grind Betting System for Baccarat

The Oscar’s grind also works well on certain baccarat bets. This is applicable to any type of baccarat game, even for online baccarat with a live dealer. You should not use it when betting on a tie, as that has a low chance of success. Of course, the odds are much better, but the probability of lengthy losing streaks is high, and that could quickly deplete your account balance.

Your two options when using the Oscar betting system for baccarat are the dealer hand and the player hand. The dealer's hand has a slightly higher RTP, so many players prefer to go for that when following the Oscar’s grind betting system. The RTP is very close to 99% in either case, so it is certainly possible to grind out some small wins, enjoy plenty of time at the baccarat table, and walk away in profit, but there is always the risk of going on a long losing streak and being unable to recoup it.

If your base unit price is $5, that will be your first baccarat bet when playing to the Oscar’s grind strategy. If it loses, you bet $5 again. If that loses, bet another $5. When you win, ramp up the bet to $10. Keep it at $10 if you lose, and go up to $20 if you win. The system requires you to keep going until you end up making a profit for the cycle, so you could eventually end up placing $200 bets.

Oscar’s Grind Betting System for Craps

Craps players often use the Oscar’s grind betting system in order to slowly accumulate units of profit, moderate losses, and enjoy a long session at the table. The Oscar’s grind betting system is only applicable to certain craps bets that carry a roughly even chance of success.

For craps, those bets are pass, don’t pass, come, don’t come, Big 6 and Big 8. You would not want to use it on long odds bets like hard ways, field bets, aces, Any 7, ace deuce, Boxcar, and so on. It would also be rare to use them on bets with odds considerably below even money, such as lay bets of 4 or 10 or place lose bets.

Stick to the bets with a roughly even chance of success, choose your base unit amount, and make your first wager for that sum. If it is $50 and you lose your first bet, your second wager would also be for $50. When you win, increase the stake to $50. Keep increasing it by $50 – the equivalent of one base unit in this Oscar’s grind example – until you are in profit for the cycle.

As soon as you move into profit, close the cycle and start again. This will allow you to grind out a steady stream of small profits if your luck holds up. Remember that the house has a low edge on bets such as pass and don’t pass, so they are probably the best options for an Oscar’s grind strategy.

You can also claim casino bonuses and ongoing promotions to further reduce the house edge. These bonuses can be claimed before following an Oscar’s grind blackjack betting system, an Oscar’s grind craps strategy, or any other game with roughly even chance bets. You can then apply Oscar’s grind system to your favorite games, see if you like it, and check out alternatives like the Labouchere, Fibonacci, and Paroli systems.

• The Fibonacci Betting System
• The Labouchere Betting System 
• The Paroli Betting System