A Perfect Blackjack Strategy (Strategy Guide Pt.5)
Posted by: alugoool : Category: Strategies for Blackjack“Son, we are sorry about the tuition funds…your mother and I did not know you are not supposed to split tens…” – Letters home from people visiting Reno.
In my introduction to this manual I referred to the part-time casino player who only plays for the thrill and excitement of the play. As daft as it might have sounded to you there are players who have little or no concept of the idea of playing Blackjack at online casinos as a sound financial proposition.
Just for a laugh go along to Littlewoods Casino (http://www.littlewoodscasino.com/) and download their software. Later on I recommend this site as a good one to play at for a number of reasons however at the moment I would suggest that you join up in Guest Mode and go to one of their Public tables. Here you can play Blackjack against other players.
Now just by spend a few minutes watching the playing strategies of your fellow Blackjackers – if strategy is indeed the correct word, for doing so leads one to the inevitable conclusion that most people just do not have the slightest clue what they are doing. From both their play and betting decisions it is clear that they still regard Blackjack merely as a game of chance in the same mould as Roulette, Slots and Craps. All of their decisions are wild and clearly based upon hope that the flow of play will eventually go their way and land them a win – which it rarely ever does!
After a while you can see them log out and presumably wander off to slap down some more money at another game. This hit and miss approach characterizes the activities of 95% of all amateur casino gamblers and their foolish actions keep the casinos (and ourselves) in business.
Rookies vs. The Pros
I want to show you where they (and possibly also yourself) can go wrong. Imagine, if you will, the following scenario – a game played between an amateur and a professional.
Our game has started and the `fool’ or `Rookie’ has placed down his/her bet – probably at a value that reflects his level of personal optimism at the time. They then consider their cards for a moment.
Player one finds that he has been dealt a King and a 4. This will give him a pip value of 14, which of course is not a large total and a long way off his 21 target – so he selects to `Hit’. His third card is an eight and he has bust out causing him to lose his bet deposit. Undeterred by this he then selects a new deal and then goes on to repeat all of his subsequent playing hands using the same hit or bust strategy.
Now take a look at the same situation, as a professional would play it. Firstly he or she will place a bet at a value that is right for the present state of play. Once again the two cards dealt up are a King and a 4 but this time the player takes a quick glance at the dealer’s upturned card which is a 6 – so he/she decides to stick.
This forces the initiative onto the dealer so he then cuts a 10 giving 16 and being forced to hit (all dealers have to hit on total less than 17) he then reveals a 9 as his third card giving a total of 25. Player wins! I have lost count of the number of times that playing these sorts of hands have given me a playing edge in a game.
The Perfect Blackjack Strategy
So what’s the difference between the two styles of play? Why was a 16 total considered a poor total for the novice player but perfectly adequate for the professional? The answer lies in the laws of probability and in a remarkable system known as `Perfect Blackjack’.
Whilst it cannot predict the outcome of any initial card pairing with 100% accuracy, it does offer the player a remarkable way to dramatically increase the winning odds. This is how it looks in table form If you look at Table 1 you will see that the nearest left hand column is marked `Player’ and the values 5 to 21 beneath it are the only totals available with an initial two card deal. The top row is marked `Dealer’ with the numbers 2 through to 10 and the letter A (meaning Ace) on the line below it. These are the only values that the dealer can have with his/her first deal.
To find the most advantageous response to a deal you simply add up the pip total on your first two cards, locate the total under the `Player’ column and then follow it across until you reach the dealer column. The letter at this point reveals the most propitious action to take and the Key reveals the correct response to make.
Example 1
In the game that I gave as an example earlier the player had a King and a 4 creating a total of 14. Locate the row that extends out from the number 14 until it reaches the number 6, which if you recall was the value of the first dealer card. Where they meet you will encounter a letter S which with reference to the Key means `Stick’ or do nothing.
To many beginners the thought of sticking at 16 would seem a rather daft one. Indeed 9 times out of 10 a player will simply `Hit’ or `Twist’. This is wrong because the odds of the dealer busting with a 6 are extremely high in fact higher than they are of your reaching 21 safely.
Can you see how armed with this simple table you can radically revolutionize your winning strategy? It takes the guesswork out of your playing decisions.
Example 2
Let’s take another example of how we use the Strategy. Player has been dealt a 3 and a 4. This totals to 7. According to our Table 1 no matter what the pip value is of the dealers card you should always Hit here. Now the third card is a 5, which brings you to a total of 12. Take a look at the dealer card, in this case it is a 5 and a quick look at the chart reveals that your best option is to stick.
Example 3
When Aces appear in a hand they add considerably to the options available to you as a player. They also require a different table of actions.
Imagine that you have been dealt an Ace along with a 5. In this instance the dealer has a 6. To determine the correct play for this situation refer to Table 2 on the left this time.
Locate the A, 5 pairing then check across to the player’s 6 column and you will see that the best course of action in this example is to double.
Tip: It may be that in instances where you Hit a third card does not increase your playing edge sufficiently to Stand. If this is the case then total up your card pip values and refer back to Table 1 for the correct playing decisions.
Example 4
Pairs occur in perhaps one in every 25 hands of Blackjack that you play. When they do they certainly make life interesting!
In this game example you have been dealt a pair of 5s against a dealer’s 8. Take a look at the third table (left) and you will see that the recommendation is to Double.
You may also notice that whilst the recommendations for various Ace combinations varies according to the dealer card the optimum action for a pair of Aces is to always split them whilst the best approach for a pair of 10s is to stand. (Some players argue against this and insist that a pair of tens should always be split. Don’t believe them!)
Tip: It is always worth checking out what a particular casinos proceedure is on dealing with pairs. Whilst all games allow you to split your pair there are many differences in how you can progress from there on. Some casinos allow you to split any subsequent pairs again, some allow you just the standard set of options whilst some allow you no options at all. You are merely automatically dealt one more card for each of yoursplit pair and that is your lot!
A Summary
That, very simply, is the Perfect Blackjack System and how to apply it in the most common situations. As a professional player you will rely upon it time and again towards making the correct playing decisions.
Tip: If you want to test your knowledge of the strategy then visit Hit or Stand at http://www.hitorstand.net/ to practice your skills.
Now that we have revealed the best playing strategy let us now take a look at the different betting strategies on offer
