Tag: Basic Strategy

Worst Stiff Hand in Blackjack

It is never fun to be dealt a stiff hand in blackjack. You always feel like you have lost the round before it is even your turn to play. Or in the case of online blackjack, as soon as you see the cards you have been dealt.

You wind up basing your play off of whatever up card the dealer has. For hard hands 13 through 16 you stand if the dealer is showing a 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6. And if he is showing a 7, 8, 9, 10 or Ace you hit. A hard 12 is the same except that you do hit when the dealer is showing a 2 or 3, so it is a little more flexible.

So if four of the five stiff hands are all played the same, which one is the worst one?

It would be the hard 16. Players have a 61% chance of busting with this hand. This is because when the dealer has a 7 or higher showing, the player

Is Blackjack Beatable or Not?

You can go online and read about how blackjack is a beatable casino game. But then when you go to the casino and lose money or watch how another player makes more money than you. How does that work? Is blackjack really a beatable casino game? Is it more beatable for one player over another?

First, yes, blackjack is a beatable casino game. But it does require skilled card counting. Very skilled card counting.

The way it works is like this: the odds in blackjack are constantly shifting because cards are dealt and the makeup of the remaining deck changes. When the cards are running with high cards the odds favor the player. This is because there is a greater chance for the player to be dealt a blackjack.

The 3-2 payout is what makes up a good chunk of the player

Types of Pair Splitting Part II

Yesterday I wrote a post about the types of pair splitting there is in blackjack. Pair splitting happens no matter if you are playing blackjack online or in a casino. In order to make the most of pair splitting in terms of strategy and improving your blackjack odds, you need to know when to split pairs.

Basic strategy is the first place to start. A basic strategy chart can be used in blackjack as the most basic way to gain an advantage through splitting pairs. But eventually, once you have mastered basic strategy, you can begin to work in other little bits of strategy. These other little bits offer you the chance to tweak your strategy to increase your blackjack odds a little more.

In yesterday

Types of Pair Splitting

Knowing when to split pairs is according to basic strategy is one thing. Knowing the difference between types of pair splits in blackjack is another. Sometimes you have to deviate from what basic strategy tells you to do. It all has to do with the type of pair splitting that is necessary.

Pair splitting happens no matter if you are playing regular blackjack or online blackjack. So you will have to eventually decide how to split a pair whether you are at a blackjack table or playing blackjack online.

There are four types of pair splitting in blackjack: Offensive, Aggressive, Defensive and Reckless.

I am going to show you how these types play into improving your blackjack odds. All of the money figures are based on a $10 wager

In the case of Offensive pair splitting you are starting with an average or potentially losing hand and improving your odds. An example of this would be if you were dealt a pair of 7s and the dealer is showing a 5. If you were to stand you could expect an average of a $3.30 loss. But if you split you have a net average of about $1.20. This taking a loss and turning it around, making it an offensive pair splitting.

With an aggressive split you are taking a good hand and pushing the limits on it. For this example we are going to say that you have been dealt a pair that you would probably normally stand on: a pair of 9s and the dealer has a 6 showing. You could expect a $2.80 profit on standing, but by splitting you could expect $4.40 in profit. That is taking a strong hand and pushing it for something more.

Defensive pair splitting is when you have a pair that you know you are probably going to lose with no matter what, and your play is to try to minimize the loss. Let

Playing for Charlies

Last week I wrote a post on a rule variation for blackjack that allowed for a Charlie. Charlie hands tip the odds in favor of the player in blackjack. So, right off, if you see a blackjack game that allows for automatic Charlie wins, sit down and play there.

Just a quick recap, in blackjack a Charlie is a hand with a certain number of cards whose total value is less than 21. If the Charlie rule is in place in the blackjack game you are playing, it will automatically win no matter what the dealer is holding and no matter what your Charlie

Easiest Way to Lower the House Edge

While blackjack is a game of skill, meaning that the players have a say in how they can play out their hands, that skill requires practice. Or the use of a strategy. In most cases such skills and strategies require time and effort and energy. But everyone will try to find the easiest and fastest way to lower the house edge. Such is the way I guess. It is a something for nothing mentality. And in blackjack, that mentality can be met.

Basic strategy is the fastest and easiest way to lower the house edge. And not only can a blackjack player lower the house edge easily, they can lower it significantly.

Blackjack usually starts out with a house edge of 2% to 5% depending on what the house rules are at a particular table or a particular online blackjack game. Basic strategy can lower the house edge to 0.5% without too much effort.

All basic strategy is is a chart with every player starting hand running down the left. Ever dealer up card runs across the top. Where each lien intersects is the best statistical play for that player starting hand versus that dealer up card. All you have to do as a blackjack player is make that play. It really is that easy. All of the math and calculations and testing have already been done.

While the basic strategy chart has the best statistical play it does not mean you will win every single hand in a game of blackjack. However, it will allow you to win more often and, most importantly, lower the house edge to 0.5%

Basic Strategy or Instinct

Basic Strategy is the single easiest blackjack strategy tool that can be used. Basic strategy can be used for blackjack in a brick and mortar casino, and also for online blackjack. This is because it is based on the basic rules of the game, making it a versatile blackjack strategy tool.

However, this does make it ineffective for variations with different house rules, such as Spanish 21 and Pontoon. It can be used in variations in which the game play is the same as regular blackjack with the variation coming from a side bets. But you should not be playing side bet variations anyway.

What makes basic strategy the easiest blackjack strategy tool? It is because the hard work has already been done. All you have to do is find out what play is the best recommended for the hand you have been dealt against whatever the dealer

What Basic Strategy is and What it Isn

Every now and then the time comes when I need to clarify some things about basic strategy. It amazes me that as easy as this strategy is, it is constantly misunderstood or misrepresented. And then it all has to be all untangled again.

Let