The Online Casino Gambling Blog

I’ll begin by stating the obvious: the type of blackjack you’re playing will determine the odds you will receive. In single deck blackjack, the kind that is most common the house carries a .05% advantage. Beware that while many casinos advertise single deck blackjack they may have an actual policy of Blackjack paying 6-5 which will be posted somewhere near the table if this is the case. This 6-5 cost almost triples the house advantage upping it to 1.44% so be sure to watch out for the fine print before betting.

In most online casinos which are almost all run out of European countries the European style of blackjack is played wherein the dealer employs the ‘no peek’ rule that is the dealer’s hand is not checked for a blackjack after the cards are dealt but waits until the players have made their wagers and looked at their own cards. At this point the dealer then checks the hand if the dealer has a blackjack the player loses the entire amount wagered.

As for the other variants on the game the Atlantic City blackjack odds leave a player with a return of  -0.43% which is quite low leaving us with the idea that standard blackjack may be the way to go when playing this game. Atlantic City blackjack is also much more complicated as it uses eight decks of cards and players can split their hands up to four times. So really until you’re much further along in your understanding of the game you’ll want to stick to just regular blackjack.

At its heart Blackjack is not a complicated game there are just a few simple rules for basic blackjack that I’ll cover in this article. Basic Blackjack begins with a wager – the player places whatever bet (usually the posted minimum at a casino table) they feel is appropriate along with everyone else in the game and then the hands are dealt around the table. Each hand is two cards – the players are either both face down or face up but the dealer is dealt one card face down and one card face up. The object of the game is to reach 21 by adding the face value of both cards in the cases of Kings, Queens and Jacks these are all valued at 10 while the Ace can either count as a 1 or an 11. If your hand adds up to more than 21 this is what’s known as a ‘bust’ and you have lost the game. At the end of the round whoever comes closest to 21 if no one has hit 21 wins. If the dealer and a player have both come up with ‘Blackjack” this is a tie.

Once a player has been dealt their cards they can either elect to ‘hit’ which means drawing another card in hopes of increasing their proximity to 21 without going over or the player can ‘stand’ which means keeping the hand that has been dealt. A dealer is required to ‘hit’ if his hand adds up to 16 and to ‘stand’ if his hand adds up to 17.

In certain blackjack games you may be allowed to “Surrender” before the round is over, this allows you to back out of the game and lose only half your original bet.

Blackjack can be played at home, in land based casinos or even at online casinos but be sure and read the instructions as with every gambling game as there are many variations to the traditional blackjack game. All differing rules will most likely be posted clearly on the tables at land based casinos and can be found in the FAQ or Frequently Asked Section at most online casinos.

As always have fun and gamble safely!

Card counting is a fairly new strategy developed in the sixties by Professor Edward Thorp who was inspired by the mathematician Roger Baldwin. According to Professor Thorp the most influential card on the deck leading to a blackjack for the player is the five card. If the deck holds all its fives the player isn’t likely to have a favorable outcome. The next most important card is the ten, so Thorp’s system for counting cards in blackjack  simply put means that you must keep an eye out for the fives and the tens, if most or all of either card has been played then you the player are likely in for a good round. Of course is not allowed at most casinos so if you do employ this strategy do it discreetly.

Of course Thorp’s isn’t the only blackjack card counting system out there today, many different card counting strategies make the rounds of the internet every day some much more elaborate than simply keeping track of the four fives and four tens a deck holds. Of course one would believe the more complex the system, the greater the advantage the player should hold once he or she masters it. Realistically though the advantage doesn’t increase drastically so ease of use outweighs the minor benefits of the more difficult systems.

The High/Low card counting system is both simple and effective so it’s one of the most popular systems out there. Another excellent card counting system is the Advanced Plus/Minus system which is easy to learn and useful to employ, also there is the High/Low system. Every system is different and has its own level of difficulty but what it all really comes down to is that if a deck has an abundance for high cards: 9’s, 10’s and Aces then the player should bet big because this is a deck that is stacked in his or her favor. If a deck holds a lot of low face value cards 2’s through 8’s then this is not an advantageous deck and the player should bet low. Whatever tricks you use to keep track of the cards left in the deck is then up to you.

With a pair of twos or threes

           – when the dealer’s face card is 2 or 3 if you can double down after a split then split, if you can’t then hit.

           - If the dealer’s face card is an 8,9,10 or an Ace then hit.

           - If the dealer’s face card is a 4,5,6 or 7 split.

With a pair of fours

- If the dealer has a 7, 10 or an Ace then Stand.

- If the dealer has a 2,3,4,5,6,8 or 9 then split.

With a pair of 10s you always stand.

With a pair of Aces you always split.

Only hit on an Ace 2 or Ace 3 soft total when the dealer’s face card is a 2,3,4,7,8,9,10 or Ace, double down if the dealer has a 5 or 6, if you can’t double down then go ahead and hit.

Only hit on an Ace 4 or Ace 5 soft total when the dealer’s face card is a 2,3,7,8,9,10, or Ace, double down if the dealer has a 5 or a 6, if you can’t double down then hit.

Only hit on an Ace 6 soft total when the dealer’s face card is a 2,7,8,9,10 or ace, double down if the dealer has 3,4,5 or 6, if you can’t double down then hit.

Only hit on an Ace 7 soft total when the dealer’s face card is a 9,10 or Ace, stand if the dealer has a 2,7, or 8 and double down if the dealer’s face card is a 3,4,5 or 6, if you can’t double down then stand.

Always stand on an Ace 8, Ace 9 or Ace 10 soft total.

Always hit if your hard total is less than or equal to 8.

Only hit on a hard total of 9 if the dealer’s face card is 2,7,8,9,10 or an Ace. If you have a hard total of 9 and the dealer has a 3,4,5 or 6 face card you should double down, if you can’t double down then take a hit.

Only hit on a hard total of 10 only of the dealer has an ace or a 10. If the dealer has anything lower than a 10 you should double do, if you can’t double down then take a hit.

Only hit on a hard total of 11 if the dealer has an ace. If the dealer has anything less than an Ace double down, if you can’t double down then take a hit.

Only hit on a hard total of 12 if the dealer doesn’t have a 4,5 or 6 face card. If the dealer has any of those cards then you should stand.

Only hit on a hard total of 13 or 14 only if the dealer’s face card is a 7,8,9,10 or Ace. If the dealer has a face card of 2,3,4,5 or 6 then you should stand.

Only hit on a hard total of 15 if the dealer has a 7,8,9 or Ace, if the dealer holds a 10 surrender, if you can’t surrender then take a hit. If the dealer’s face card is a 2,3,4,5 or 6 then stand.

Only hit on a hard total of 16 if the dealer holds a 7 or 8 face card, for 9,10 or ace surrender if you can if not take a hit. Stand on your 16 if the dealer’s face card is a 2,3,4,5 or 6.

Always stand on a hard total of 17 or higher.

Ultimate Blackjack Tips

Always split pairs of aces and eights.
Don’t split fives, fours, tens, jacks, queens or kings.
If the dealer has an eight or less be sure to double down on 10 or 11.
Always hit if the dealer has a 7 or greater and you’re holding a hard twelve to sixteen.
Hit on soft 17.
If the dealer has between a 2 and a 6 always stand if you’re holding 12-16
Don’t forget – ALWAYS stand on 17-21.

Ultimate Roulette Tips:

Don’t get stuck on one system there are too many strategies available for this game for you to keep playing and lose.
Your opening bet should be $1, bet on five different numbers at once.
If you win on one number, spread your winnings equally over the same five you just bet on.
If you win again, walk away. You now have $245 you didn’t before.
Some numbers may come up more often than most, this is all random, there is no guarantee it will come up again.

Most Importantly - don’t bet your whole night’s cash on one number

Once you have mastered standard blackjack, blackjack switch should be a snap for you to pick up. Blackjack switch follows the same rules as regular blackjack except you play two hands with equal opening bets at the same time (the right hand first and then the left).

Here’s the main variation on blackjack switch: of the two hands dealt you have the option to switch the two top cards you were dealt before you hit. This works out very nicely in your favor if you were say given an 6 and a 9 as your top two cards and then a 9 and a 5 as your second cards. So now you’ve two hands that are a 6 and a 9 and a 9 and a 5, neither is really conducive to hitting a Blackjack. But if you were to switch them you’d have two hands that were a 9 and a 9, and a 5 and a 6 much more conducive to winning.

There is also the option of a “Super Match” bet in blackjack switch. This is a bet that wins if a player’s first four cards contain two or more matching cards. This is a nice little benefit to the game.

Blackjack Switch has its counter points though a Blackjack only plays 1:1 instead of 3:2 like it would in the regular game, however there is also a greater chance of getting a Blackjack with the added cards. In Blackjack Switch the dealer always hits soft 17. The dealer doesn’t bust with a total of 22 like in regular blackjack, if the dealer gets dealt a 22 the hand is then considered a push the only exception of course being a Blackjack which always wins out.

Experts at the blackjack tables often rack up unimaginable winnings by employing a very simple method to predict their likelihood of winning – they keep track of the cards already played out. This is called card counting and while a lucrative strategy, if caught the player is often barred from playing at that casino and most likely will not receive their winnings.The detailed semantics of the blackjack card counting strategy will not be covered in this article beyond the obvious statements – a deck where many of the smaller cards (2s through 7s) have already been dealt out is of course favorable to the player whereas a deck where many of the 10-value cards and aces have already been dealt is favorable to the house.In a

single deck blackjack game any player who is watching the game closely can get a good idea of the cards left in the pack. Say in the first round the scenario occurs where mainly aces and tens were dealt, the player who is paying close attention will immediately know the deck is unfavorable to the players and will subsequently pull out of further rounds. If the opposite were to happen where mainly smaller number cards were dealt in the opening round then the player will know it would be in his or her favor to stay in the game for further rounds as they have stumbled upon a favorable deck.This attentive player would then sensibly raise the bet when the first round leads to a favorable deck and lower the bet when the first round held a higher proportion of tens and aces.