Blackjack – What Are the Odds?-Gambling
Blackjack - What Are the Odds?
It goes without saying but we'll say it anyway: the odds are always in favor of the house. How else do you think they can create billion dollar mega-casinos in Las Vegas? The Blackjack rules are carefully structured to ensure a house edge.But just how heavily are the Blackjack odds weighed in favor of the house? If you're a smart player, not as great as you might think - and certainly not
insurmountable. Let's start with some basic facts about Blackjack odds with the
most common Blackjack rules.The house's advantage - also known as the house edge - comes from the
fact that the dealer's hand is played last. All players that bust (go over 21) lose immediately. Then, the dealer plays its hand and if the dealer busts, players that don't bust are paid. The casino makes its profit from the fact that players who bust lose immediately, even if the dealer subsequently busts. Regardless of how favorable the Blackjack rules might be in a particular casino, this one aspect always gives the house an edge.If you, the player, use the same strategy as the dealer, standing on 17 or higher and hitting on 16 and less, you will bust approximately 29% of the time and the dealer will bust 29% of the time. This would seemingly make the odds even.Ah, but remember: Blackjack rules say that the dealer wins the bets of all players that bust, even if the dealer busts. This puts the house's edge against you at about 8% or so. However, since you are paid three for two when you get a
blackjack dealt to you, so this reduces the house edge down to just under 6%.If you follow all the Blackjack rules and play perfect basic strategy the
house edge is reduced to about .5% in game with favorable rules. By
favorable rules, we mean the following rules, which you are only likely to find in a 6 deck game:* Dealer stands on all 17s* Double down on any first two cards* Double down after splitting pairs* Natural pays the proper 3 for 2 oddsMany games have subtle variations of these rules, some of which help the player and others which hurt the player. Taking the above rules as the baseline, here are the common variations you will find and how each one affects the house edge. Positive values add to the house edge and negative values decrease the house edge.Eight decks: +.02%Natural pays 6 to 5: +1.45%Dealer hits soft 17: +.20%Double down on 9-11 only: +.09%Double down on 10 or 11 only: +.22%No double after splitting pairs: +.13%Double down on any number of cards: -.21%Resplitting of Aces: -.06%Of course, your goal is to avoid the unfavorable variants (one which add to the
casino's edge), such as: Naturals pay 6 to 5, or Dealer hits soft 17. To calculate the edge against you in any blackjack game, simply take the baseline edge of .5% and add or subtract the values of the variants.For example, assume you find a 6 deck game in which the Dealer hits a soft 17 and you can only double down on a two card count of 10 or 11. This game has a house edge of: .50% (baseline) plus .20% (for dealer hits soft 17) plus .22% (for double down on 10 or 11 only), for a total house edge agains you of .92%.Your job is to look for those games with rules that give you the best odds. Good luck, gamble responsibly and always remember that it's just a game - so have fun!Tom is the webmaster for http://www.blackjack-for-everyone.com, which is a website dedicated to the beginning all the way up to serious recreational player.
Blackjack Strategy: How To Avoid Unnecessary Losses By Avoiding Emotion-Gambling
Blackjack Strategy: How To Avoid Unnecessary Losses By Avoiding Emotion
Most blackjack articles seem to be written by people who were never unsuccessful when playing the game. Well, I've got to say straight off to you that in the beginning, I did lose about $200. I had a rough plan for gambling at Blackjack, like many other players do. I simply bet more each time I won, and less every time I lost.My gambling plan was working for me during the day, as I'd casually play every few minutes, usually winning a nice sum of cash. But late at night, it's harder to stop emotions from interfering. I'd really get into it, win some, then start losing. Then like most people, I'd become depressed, and just give up, purposely betting the max bets in order to get rid of my money. That way, I'd never have to deal with the stress again.As you've probably decided, I'm not a very good gambler. Well, I've learned from my mistakes, and now I make sure I don't do it at times when I'm vulnerable to emotional swings. So, I've passed this advice along to you. I hope it helps.I use an antimartingale strategy now, along with black jack tables specifically designed for use with my favorite online casino, GoldenPalace. I find their software aesthetically appealing, and easy to play. I feel minimal tension and stress when playing the Golden Palace Playtech software, and recommend that you give them a shot. You can read more about it at my website. Good luck and have a good day!Ian Mason, owner of AllPoker.net, your source for blackjack
strategy online casino gambling tips.
Online Blackjack Basics-Gambling
Online Blackjack Basics
Online blackjack or "21", as it is commonly known, is by far the most popular card game offered in virtual casino establishments. This page will tell you what you need to know to get started.The idea of online blackjack is simply that you want to have a hand value that is closer to 21 than that of the dealer, without going over 21. Other players at the table are not playing against each other; every player plays against the dealer, so your hand is strictly played out against the hand of the dealer.In casino blackjack the dealer's parameters of play are strictly set out, meaning that the dealer does not need to make any decisions regarding his strategy. Basically an example of a strategy a blackjack dealer would have is to keep drawing a card until he has a hand of 17 or more ? this is often described as 'Dealer stands on 17'.The value of the cards:In blackjack an ace counts a either 1 or 11, cards from 2 to 9 are valued as shown and 10, Jack, Queen and King are all valued at 10.So as an example, if a player is dealt an Ace and a 5, the value of the hand would be 16 (ace = 11 and 5 =5), if the next card dealt to the player is 9 the value of the hand would be 15, the ace now equalling 1 not 11.If the hand is equal to 21 exactly, this is referred to as blackjack.The game begins by each player at the table being dealt 2 cards and the dealer drawing two cards. The dealer will then display the value on one of his cards.Each player has an option of drawing another card (hitting), keeping their hand as is (standing) and, depending on the cards, they could choose from some more advanced betting options such as doubling up or splitting...Read more: Online Blackjack BasicsChen Ching-feng is a successful writer and online gambling expert providing valuable tips and advice for those interested in gambling and online gambling strategies.His numerous articles found on virtual casino web ,provide useful and factual gambling information and insight.