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When it comes to playing correct blackjack strategy, players are faced with alot of decisions. The way you play them can effect your overall win percentage. So, know the number BEFORE you sit down.
Is playing at a multi-deck table that pays 6-5 on blackjack (which is not recommended) the same as playing a single deck table offering the same odds?
Find out what our Casino Guru John Grochowski has to say about it!
Sometimes you will see a blackjack player playing two hands instead of one. Other times, you might see a player who has been playing one hand suddenly spread to two hands in the middle of the shoe because he has the misconception that, by “changing the flow of cards,” he will change the luck of the table. Unfortunately, this is not the case, as you are just as likely to keep losing as you are to start winning, so switching to playing two (or more) hands will not guarantee your luck will change.
Q. I play basic strategy blackjack, but I don’t count cards. I’m curious about team play. I heard about the MIT guys playing as a team. How does that work? They can’t help out each other at the table, can they? Where is there any extra advantage in playing as a team? Is it just in pooling their money?
A. Blackjack card-counting teams operate with one player counting cards while making minimum bets. When the count favors the players, the counter signals a big player, who joins the game and makes large bets. When the count turns and favors the house, the card counter gives another signal, and the big player leaves the table, perhaps to go to a different table where another counter has signaled.
The intent of a progressive betting system is to vary the size of your bets in a predetermined manner, according to whether or not you won the previous bet. Many recreational players use them when they play blackjack. I’ll focus on one of the most famous and widely used progressive betting systems—the Martingale, or double-up, system.
Using the Martingale betting system, you double your previous bet after every loss until you finally win a hand, at which point you will be ahead by one betting unit. For example, suppose you wager $10 and the results of the next three hands are loss, loss, and win (L-L-W). You would have lost $10 on the first hand, $20 on the second hand, and won $40 on the third hand. You wind up with a net win of $10, which is the goal of the progression, to win an amount equal to your starting wager.
The one question I am asked most often is “What can I do to win more when I play blackjack?” What follows are some simple steps you can take to do just that.
Learn the “Wizard’s Simple Strategy”
If you don’t have the time or the energy to memorize the complete basic playing strategy, then learn the “Wizard’s Simple Strategy.” Michael (“Wizard of Odds”) Shackleford developed the strategy, and it appeared in issue No. 116 of my Blackjack Insider Newsletter (www.bjinsider.com). The strategy is easy to learn and increases the house edge by 0.14 percent above the traditional basic playing strategy. It’s an ideal strategy for beginners and casual players, and it sure beats guessing when it come to deciding how to play your hand.
