One of the first things that must be done is your research on the game that you will be playing. Not all blackjack is created equal, and you must make sure you have a beatable game. Different rule sets will change the house edge, and while they may not sound like much, every little bit counts. Your long term advantage if you are solely counting cards is only 1%-2%. So that 6 to 5 payout on the blackjack game you're playing reduced your edge 1.71% and effectively killed all profits. In other words AVOID 6 to 5 blackjack, it might as well be a scam.
Rule Set Effects
If there are any terms that you do not understand please check out my Blackjack Definitions (Migrating Soon) page.
Here are some of the bigger rules you'll see, and their effect on your advantage.
Number of Decks:
- 1 Deck - (+0.02%)
- 2 Decks - (-0.31%)
- 4 Decks - (-0.48%)
- 6 Decks - (-0.54%)
- 8 Decks - (-0.57%)
Before we can go into how much each rule effects our advantage we need to come up with a standard game with which to base the rule changes off of. We'll use what's considered the standard in Vegas.
- Dealer stands on soft 17.
- You are allowed to double down on any two cards.
- You are not allowed to double after split.
- You are allowed to split any pair.
- You are allowed to re-split any pair with the exception of aces.
- You only receive one card on each split ace.
- No surrender.
- Blackjack is paid 3 to 2 (very important.)
- Dealer peeks for blackjack, or player only loses original bet placed on dealer blackjack or OBO. If you are playing in America you will hardly ever see anything else, but you must be aware.
- Late Surrender S17 - (+0.08%)
- Late Surrender H17 - (+0.09%)
- Hits Soft 17 - (-0.21%)
- Re-split Aces - (+0.07%)
- Double after Split - (+0.14%)
- Double on 9,10, 11 only - (-0.09%)
- Double on 10, 11 only - (-0.18%)
- Blackjack pays 6 to 5 - (-1.71%) AVOID
- Blackjack pays 2 to 1 - (+2.26%)
Penetration (that's what she said)
Penetration in blackjack is referencing the depth of the deal, or, in other words, how many cards are dealt before the deck is reshuffled. This is a huge factor in the playability of the game which can turn a juicy, profitable, game into a sucker's game. In general, the shallower the penetration is, the larger the bet spread you must make to beat the game. Larger bet spreads equal more heat from the pit crew which may shorten your stay at a store (casino) considerably. I'm not going to go into great detail on penetration, as the information on it is widely available, but just know to keep an eye on where your dealer is placing the cut card. If anything less than 75% of the cards are being played it's probably time to move on to a new game.
Basic Strategy
So now you've found yourself a game that can be beaten, what's your next step? Now you need to determine what the correct basic strategy is to reduce the house edge against you. The best way to do this is to use a basic strategy engine. My personal favorite to use is the one at Blackjackinfo.com. They also have a wonderful message board filled with very helpful posters.
Once you find the one for your particular game you need to have it mastered before every sitting down at the blackjack game. It may not seem like much to make an error here or there, but I can guarantee that if you don't have perfect basic strategy you will destroy your edge, and you aren't anywhere near ready to be a card counter. Here is the basic strategy for the game described above in the rules section:
Once you find the one for your particular game you need to have it mastered before every sitting down at the blackjack game. It may not seem like much to make an error here or there, but I can guarantee that if you don't have perfect basic strategy you will destroy your edge, and you aren't anywhere near ready to be a card counter. Here is the basic strategy for the game described above in the rules section:
You must be able to 100% memorize these charts |
Now that we have the basics out of the way it's time to wade a bit deeper into card counting which can be found in Part 2.
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