jai_alai_simulation


jai_alai_simulation, a MATLAB code which simulates the outcome of a jai-alai match.

Eight players participate in the match. The first game involves players 1 and 2. The loser goes to the end of the line of players, the winner scores a point. The next game involves the winner of the previous game and the next player in line. After seven points have been scored, each win now is worth 2 points. The match terminates when 7 points have have been scored.

The code can simulate a single match, or a tournament of n matches. The interesting question is to observe how the placement of a player in the initial lineup affects their chance of winning the match. Assuming the players have equal strengths, there is a clear bias in favor of the players at the head of the line.

Licensing:

The information on this web page is distributed under the MIT license.

Languages:

jai_alai_simulation is available in a MATLAB version and an Octave version and a Python version.

Related Data and codes:

jai_alai_simulation_test

matlab_simulation, a MATLAB code which uses simulation to study card games, contests, and other processes which have a random element. Usually, the purpose is to try to predict the average behavior of the system over many trials.

Reference:

  1. Steven Skiena,
    Calculated Bets,
    Computers, Gambling, and Mathematical Modeling to Win, Cambridge University Press, 2001,
    ISBN13: 978-0521009621.

Source Code:


Last revised on 01 July 2019.