In the glittering casinos of Las Vegas, a Singapore student has been hitting the jackpot. Mr Zhang Zhihao, 22, even gets the VIP treatment from some casinos, such as Las Vegas Hilton.They shower him with free stays, meals and limousine rides just to make him come back.But this Stanford University student is no high-roller.He gambles until the total sum exchanged between him and the casino adds up to US$1,000 ($1,700). That's the minimum sum required for a free stay, he says.And he boasts a 'special skill' which he claims can make every trip to the casino a 'sure-win'.He is not exactly a 'god of gamblers' like Li Nanxing in the popular gambling drama, The Unbeatables.Mr Zhang cannot predict dice rolls by twitching his ears.Instead he does a quick calculation, using rules of probability, to determine the risks before placing his bets. And, so far, this second-year economics and statistics student says his methods have worked.'Gambling is the best way to see probability concepts at work in real life,' he told The New Paper while here recently for his college holidays.Since last December, he has been to the casinos four times and each time, he says he makes an average of a few hundred US dollars.He reveals his total winnings are in the low four figures so far.He plans to make even more money by organising Las Vegas tours for anyone keen on casinos.Tour participants will be taught how to place bets strategically and he promises to reimburse all losses from his own pocket.Mr Zhang also hopes to work at one of the Integrated Resorts opening here in a few years' time.To add to his 'gambling credentials', he is also applying to teach gambling at Stanford - a top university in California - in January.If approved, it will fall under the Student-Initiated Course programme, where students are encouraged to teach their peers on a subject of their interest.Mr Zhang plans to teach subjects ranging from simple casino terminology to methods of calculating the odds of different games.It has already generated some excitement among fellow students.Mr Daniel Novinson, a second-year economics and public policy student, tells The New Paper over the phone that he wants to attend the course.The Detroit native said: 'I want to find out the maths behind gambling.' To teach his course, Mr Zhang will be borrowing notes from Professor Michael Shackleford, an adjunct casino management professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.They met last year when Mr Zhang attended one of his classes.The 40-year old gaming consultant shares Mr Zhang's interests.'In gambling, there will always be luck involved,' Prof Shackleford told The New Paper. 'But knowing the maths behind it greatly empowers your game.'A straight-A student in maths from PSLE to the A levels, Mr Zhang has always been interested in statistics and probability.He represented Chinese High School in the inter-school Singapore Maths Olympiad.He first visited Las Vegas last December. But he did his homework first. He practised on simulation casino games purchased online.He also researched the different casinos and bought books on gambling from Amazon.com.He found out how the different Vegas casinos cater to different crowds.The famous ones on The Strip, the main thoroughfare in Las Vegas, cater for big-time gamblers and tourists.Casinos off The Strip cater for the less serious gamblers and locals. These are less well-known but give better odds.Mr Zhang frequents Sam's Town, a casino located 20 minutes by shuttle bus from The Strip.Frugal by nature, he would sometimes skip the free limousine service offered by the casino and take the bus instead.His reason: 'I don't like to waste money tipping the drivers.'At Stanford, his weekly expenses come up to a mere US$30.His room and university meal plan have been prepaid by his parents and he doesn't spend on much else. Last year, he ate out four times. He spends on travelling and buying books and VCDs online.