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Frank Scoblete Gaming Guru  Blackjack is Semi-Random4 October 2022
By Frank Scoblete Most casino games have as their underpinning randomness. The bets, the flow of the game, how the casino gets an edge, is usually decided by a random distribution of the elements of the game. To secure the money from the players, the casino makes sure it either wins more decisions at the game or it “taxes” the wins of the player by taking a percent of his or her win. Some games do both. Craps is a good example of that. Another example, at roulette on the double-zero (0, 00) wheel, the odds of getting a winning number are 37 to one. The casino wins 37 decisions, the player wins one. The real payout for a win should be 37 units but the casino can’t win money by giving out such a payment. So, it reduces the payment to 35 to one, establishing its edge of 5.26 percent over the player. One game is, however, quite different. That’s blackjack. The casino shuffles between one deck and eight decks (or it has a perpetual shuffler which just keeps spitting those cards out and is more or less random throughout the game) and these cards are then dealt to the players. Indeed, yes, the shuffle is supposed to randomize the cards and it does. However, because once a card is played that card does not go back into the deck(s) until the next shuffle and that means the composition of the remaining decks has been changed. Now, some players are able to keep track of the cards that have been played and change their betting and playing strategies accordingly. Most readers have heard of card counting and that is one of the techniques used for a player to get an edge. You will not find this situation at any other card game as none will lend itself to being truly “counted.” Those other card games remain basically unknowable to its future decisions. Blackjack gets its edge in two ways. By winning more decisions versus the player and by offering large payouts on some hands if they are played perfectly according to the computer derived “basic strategy.” The casino wins approximately 48 decisions, loses approximately 44 decisions and pushes (ties) approximately eight decisions. Some hands such as a blackjack (any hand of an ace and a 10-valued card) pay three to two and some hands allow the player to double their bets or split their pairs and some allow doubling on pairs as well. Wait a minute, isn’t blackjack supposed to have only about a one-half percent house edge against the player? With the special hands blackjack does come in with about a one-half percent edge for the casino for the player playing the basic strategy perfectly. ADVICE and a WARNING Unless you are going to become a card counter, which is probably less than one-tenth of one-percent percent of blackjack players, you have to play each and every hand perfectly to keep the house edge at bay. That means you play basic strategy. Blackjack seems to attract more than its share of players who are not experts who think they are great experts. That’s fine except for one fact about some of them. They can’t shut up and they can’t stop telling other players what to do with their hands. This can be annoying. If you can leave a table that has such experts, do so. All the best in and out of the casinos! [Frank Scoblete’s web site is www.frankscoblete.com. His books are available from Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, Kindle, e-books, libraries and bookstores.] This article is provided by the Frank Scoblete Network. Melissa A. Kaplan is the network's managing editor. If you would like to use this article on your website, please contact Casino City Press, the exclusive web syndication outlet for the Frank Scoblete Network. To contact Frank, please e-mail him at fscobe@optonline.net. Fighting Craps27 September 2022
Craps used to be the favorite casino table game until it was surpassed by blackjack in the mid-1960s. When it was the favorite game, it was dominated by men. World War II taught soldiers, sailors and marines how to play the game and they loved it. Craps was considered a “city game” when in fact it originated along the Mississippi River in the South. ... (read more)
Tackling Slots20 September 2022
This won’t bother most slot players; slot machines are random. Of course. The machines are programmed to be random. This way no one can predict what is coming up next or next or next on down the line. I am sure most slot players are aware of this; at least I hope so. The computer program that makes the machines a random game is called the Random Number Generator. ... (read more)
They Want Your Money13 September 2022
“I went to the butcher yesterday and you can’t believe this but he wanted my money! He charged me for the meat. Can you believe that? His wife was adamant about wanting my money.” “That’s nothing. I went to the doctor and I got this huge bill. She charged me for helping my health. Can you believe that? My husband was outraged. ... (read more)
Ask Frank: Spanish 21 StrategyHello there, Living in Canada, I find that the rules are more liberal here than at other casino locales, such as the dealer standing on all 17s for Spanish Blackjack. In your book, Armada Strategies for Spanish 21, there is only a strategy for when the dealer hits soft 17... (read more)Ask Frank (Playing Winning Craps)Dear Mr. Scoblete: In your book Forever Craps, you recommend to play one Don't Come bet per shooter without odds in order to reduce your exposure to the house. I usually play at casinos that count the spread and odds. If I play one ... (read more)Bad Ways to Play Good Casino GamesYou've met this guy before. He's cantankerous, witless, and loud. He knows everything about everything when it comes to casino games. He's a self-made expert who knows more than all writers and mathematicians combined, and as he doubles on his thirteen against the dealer's ... (read more)The Craps to English DictionaryCraps is another country, a kingdom with its own mores, legends, myths, rites, rituals, superstitions and government. It also has its own language, much of it easily misunderstood as sexual or scatological references. For those of you interested in journeying to this other ... (read more)Craps Crap and Craps Gold - Part 1What do the following sayings have in common? "An apple a day keeps the doctor away." "Better late than never." "High fences make good neighbors." "Always play the Pass/Come and take full odds." Answer: The above statements are true. Yes, some people might quibble and say that you can eat as ... (read more)Frank Scoblete |
Frank Scoblete |
