Category: Blackjack strategy

How Good is that 17 Really?

A natural blackjack is not the only thing that a player is hoping for when they sit down. Each player is hoping that if they cannot be dealt a natural blackjack that they will receive a 20. Or a 19. Or an 18. Or at least a 17

A Little Effort Goes a Long Way

When I was a child my mother told me nothing comes for free in life. And really? The same could be said about your profits from casino games.

It seems the easier a casino game is, be it a casino game online or in a brick and mortar casino, the worse the odds are. This should tell you something.

Let

Taking Away the Dealer

Did you know that the edge in an average game of blackjack starts out at around 7.8%? This applies to blackjack in a brick and mortar casino and to online blackjack. Does not matter where you find your blackjack, it all starts out at 7.8%

So if blackjack starts out at 7.8% why do most places tell you it really starts at around 5%?

That one is simple to answer really and it is the most direct to take away the dealer

Blackjack Intimidating?

I read this morning that blackjack is intimidating. Yes, I know, I was just as surprised. But apparently casino folk consider blackjack to be intimidating.

Now this rather puzzles me considering that blackjack does not have a lot of fancy rules and strategy. If you can add the numbers 1 through 11 then I do not see how blackjack can be hard. Add up the total of your first two cards, and decide if you want to try to increase your hand total by hitting or decide to stand with your total against whatever the dealer has.

To me adding 1 through 11 is not all that difficult, so I fail to see how blackjack is intimidating there. But it is also being said that strategy for blackjack is intimidating. Really?

Because the first form of blackjack strategy that comes to my mind is basic strategy, and I am sorry, there is no form of strategy that is easier.

Basic strategy is the most commonly used form of blackjack strategy. And it is a chart! If you can locate your hand total on the left side and locate the dealer

Once More with Feeling: Basic Strategy!

Everyday blackjack wins new players. These new players may come to the game in a brick and mortar casino, or perhaps they have tried it out in a game of online blackjack. But chances are they have heard that this is the casino game in which they could possible beat the house. Or at the very least that this is the game with the smallest house edge.

And while it is true that blackjack can have the lowest house edge, it does not happen automatically.

Be it online blackjack or blackjack in a brick and mortar casino, the game will start out with a house edge of 2% to 5%. This depends on what house rules are in effect.

But that house edge can be brought down to as low as 0.5%. How does this happen?

Actually it is quite easy to manage. All a player needs to do is play blackjack according to basic strategy. This is accomplished by checking your basic strategy chart to see what play is recommended. And then make that play.

That is all there it to it. Playing blackjack according to basic strategy lowers the house edge to 0.5% over time when every play is made according to what basic strategy says.

Basic strategy comes in the form of a chart with all player hands running down one side and all of the dealer

Surrender as a Part of Your Blackjack Strategy

Surrender is often an over looked part of blackjack strategy. In fact, not every basic strategy card even tells you when to surrender. But in some instances you need to surrender because it is what is best for your blackjack odds.

Part of a blackjack strategy is knowing when to play offensively and when to play defensively. Surrender is a part of playing defensively. Blackjack strategy is about improving your odds to make the most in advantageous moments, and to minimize losses when the odds of a round are against you.

Surrender is one of those defensive plays that are meant to minimize your losses. It is kind of like folding in poker, except you only lose half of your wager instead of all of it.

We are going to look at early surrender. This is when you can give up half of your wager before making any plays and before the dealer checks for blackjack. This means that you can surrender, give up half of your wager, and still keep the other half even if the dealer has a natural blackjack.

Being able to make an early surrender gives a healthy boost to your blackjack odds. How much? Try an added 0.39% to your blackjack odds. That is how powerful early surrender is, and why any blackjack player worth their salt should not over look this blackjack player.

And as a little extra in this blackjack tip I will tell you when the best times to surrender are, since so many basic strategy charts out there do not tell you. See? They over look it too.

Okay, so the best times to surrender are when you have a hard 15 and the dealer has an up card of 10 or when you have a hard 16 and the dealer is showing an up card of 9, 10 or an Ace.

You want a good blackjack tip? Then surrender when you have one of those two hands and the dealer has any of those up cards. Do it and boost your blackjack odds. Sure you will lose half of your wager, but that is losing all of it, and that is why early surrender is a good defensive blackjack play.

Bad House Rule: Dealer Can Hit Soft 17

I have noticed something rather interesting of late pertaining to blackjack. There seems to have been an increase in blackjack games that allow the dealer to hit on a soft 17. And this happens with the casino industry being hit harder by a hurting economy and an increase in online blackjack.

On the surface a dealer hitting a soft 17 does not sound like too big of a deal. If you are shrugging your shoulders and saying,

Splitting 8

When it comes to blackjack strategy it is important to understand that not all of your strategy should be focused on offensive playing. Meaning, it should not all focus on making money for you. Not every part of blackjack is in good order for you to win. If blackjack was a game that let you win all the time then online casinos and brick and mortar casinos would not offer it.

Anyway. Defensive blackjack strategy.

Regardless of whether you are playing online blackjack or blackjack in a brick and mortar casino you must understand that there will be times when you are dealt a losing hand. It sucks. But it happens. And it is not the time to try to make money. So you play some defensive blackjack and try to minimalize your losses.

Being dealt a pair of 8

Blackjack Myth

While you may not have seen this in online blackjack, unless you were the one doing it, this is a pretty common occurrence at blackjack tables in brick and mortar casinos: players who have lost several hands of blackjack in a row (hope they were not using a progressive betting system) and now feel it is their due to win a round.

It is all too common. Whether the blackjack player has only lost a couple of hands or is just having a bad run with the cards, he will begin fussing about how it is high time he won a hand. As if the cards were really listening. But cards are inanimate objects and the odds in a round of blackjack do not bend to a player