Fred Renzey Article Archive

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• Solve the Riddle of the Dealer's Bust Card (20 February 2009)
• Getting Counterfeited in Omaha Hi/Lo Split (13 February 2009)
• Blackjack Players Gain an Edge When High Cards Come (16 January 2009)
• The language of poker (9 January 2009)
• Dealer's 3 Up-Card Induces Many Blackjack Errors (26 December 2008)
• A Bad Economy Tends to Improve Blackjack Games (19 December 2008)
• These Tough Blackjack Pairs Need to Be Split (12 December 2008)
• H.O.R.S.E Tournaments Show Other Sides of Poker (28 November 2008)
• Many Blackjack Players Miss These Double Downs (21 November 2008)
• Casino Players Like to Receive Little "Favors" (14 November 2008)
• Your Blackjack Odds Flip-Flop Constantly (24 October 2008)
• Don't Underestimate the Blackjack Dealer's 7 Upcard (17 October 2008)
• No-Limit Poker Raises the Stakes (11 October 2008)
• Forget money management gambling systems (26 September 2008)
• Which Blackjack Games Should You Play In? (19 September 2008)
• In Texas Hold'em, Being a "Blind" Is Tricky (12 September 2008)
• Insure Your Blackjack for Less? It's a Legal Play! (22 August 2008)
• Fold That Poker Hand Instead of Betting It! (15 August 2008)
• Blackjack Players Can't Put Aside Their Superstitions (8 August 2008)
• How Often Will the Dealer Bust That Blackjack Hand? (25 July 2008)
• Poker Is a Game of Intimidation and Respect (18 July 2008)
• Blackjack Players Don't Realize the Value of Their Hands (11 July 2008)
• There Are Many Different Classes of Blackjack Players (27 June 2008)
• Nearly Everyone Mishandles Their Soft Hands in Blackjack (20 June 2008)
• Use the Check-Raise to Improve Your Poker Play (13 June 2008)
• The Most Likely Way to Win Your Blackjack Hand Isn't Always the Best Play (31 May 2008)
• Many Proper Blackjack Pair Splits Lose Money (23 May 2008)
• Bad Beats Abound in Both Poker and Blackjack (16 May 2008)
• In Blackjack, a Deuce Is the Dealer's Ace – NOT! (25 April 2008)
• Even Money and Insurance Are the Same Bet (18 April 2008)
• Can You Play Basic Strategy Blackjack with No House Edge? (11 April 2008)
• In Blackjack, the Cards Tell You How Much to Bet (28 March 2008)
• All Those Little Blackjack Mistakes Add Up (21 March 2008)
• What Do You Have in These Omaha Hi/Lo Hands? (14 March 2008)
• Basic Strategy Blackjack Has Its Exceptions (22 February 2008)
• Omaha Hi/Lo Is an Easier Game to Read Than Hold'em (15 February 2008)
• Don't Confuse Surrender with New Blackjack Gimmicks (8 February 2008)
• Sometimes, the First Poker Player to Bet Wins the Pot (25 January 2008)
• Can You Tell a Bad Blackjack Player from a Good One? (18 January 2008)
• The Blackjack Dealer Never Really Has a Bust Card Up (11 January 2008)
• You can't time your luck in gambling (28 December 2007)
• Odds to improve your hold'em hand by the river (21 December 2007)
• Amusing Anecdotes from the Blackjack Tables (14 December 2007)
• Improving your Texas Hold'em hand beyond the flop (23 November 2007)
• Winning at Blackjack Isn't What You Want It to Be (16 November 2007)
• Key Poker Concepts Must Be Understood to Win (9 November 2007)
• Passing or Failing the Blackjack Acid Test (26 October 2007)
• Four blackjack questions that separate the men from the boys (19 October 2007)
• Omaha Hi/Lo Poker primer: Clearing up the confusion (12 October 2007)
• You Can Lead a Blackjack Horse to Water, But .... (28 September 2007)
• Playing Texas Hold'em Against a "Raggedy" Flop (21 September 2007)
• Blackjack Insurance 101: Do You Understand It? (14 September 2007)
• Can You Explain the Logic of a Superstitious Gambler? (31 August 2007)
• Test Your Blackjack and Poker Knowledge with This Quiz (24 August 2007)
• Test Your Blackjack and Poker Knowledge with This Quiz (18 August 2007)
• Blackjack Winners and Losers Think in Opposite Directions (4 August 2007)
• Silly blackjack quirks abound at the tables (27 July 2007)
• When In Doubt, Fold! (20 July 2007)
• Most blackjack players overreact to the small stuff (13 July 2007)
• Beating the Blackjack Dealer Is Tougher Than It Looks (22 June 2007)
• A question of blackjack ethics (15 June 2007)
• How Big Is the House Edge in Live Poker? (8 June 2007)
• Can you recognize a good poker hand when you see one? (19 May 2007)
• If you don't trust blackjack strategy, test it (12 May 2007)
• Judge Your Chances in Hold'em Poker Before You Call (5 May 2007)
• When Should You Break Basic Blackjack Strategy? (27 April 2007)
• Which Are the Best Hands to Play in Texas Hold'em? (20 April 2007)
• Will the Blackjack "Ploppies" Ever Get It Right? (13 April 2007)
• In Poker, You Usually Raise or Fold - But Don't Call Much (17 March 2007)
• Playing Advantage Blackjack takes discipline and money (10 March 2007)
• Texas Hold'em is not a draw-out poker game (3 March 2007)
• Advanced Blackjack Plays Aggravate Other Players (17 February 2007)
• Turnabout can come swiftly at the blackjack table (10 February 2007)
• Does It Pay to Push Your "Hot Streak" in Poker? (3 February 2007)
• Let's fix those blackjack "problem hands" (20 January 2007)
• Money Management Cannot Help You Win at Gambling (13 January 2007)
• Poker strategy is packed with psychological dilemmas (6 January 2007)
• Most Gamblers Underestimate the Effects of Luck (22 December 2006)
• It Doesn't Matter How Much You Have Invested in the Pot (15 December 2006)
• Blackjack Is a Game of Perfection (9 December 2006)
• Unlike blackjack, poker is a game of mistakes (1 December 2006)
• Inquiring blackjack and poker players want to know (18 November 2006)
• You Need a Better Poker Hand to Call Than to Bet (11 November 2006)
• Blackjack Quiz Answers Separate Contenders from Pretenders (22 October 2006)
• So You Think You're a Pretty Decent Blackjack Player (15 October 2006)
• Winning at Poker Requires Playing Above and Beyond (8 October 2006)
• Improve Your Character to Improve Your Blackjack Game (30 September 2006)
• When Is the Right Time to Quit Gambling for the Day? (23 September 2006)
• Don't Even Think About Not Splitting Aces in Blackjack (16 September 2006)
• Poker Tournaments Involve More Luck Than Regular Poker (27 August 2006)
• Lose Those Dumb Blackjack Myths (20 August 2006)
• Winning Your Blackjack Hands Isn't Supposed to Be Easy (13 August 2006)
• If You Don't Know the Right Soft Doubles, Don't Do Them (29 July 2006)
• How Many "Outs" Does Your Poker Hand Have? (22 July 2006)
• Winning a Texas Hold'em Pot: What Are Your Odds? (15 July 2006)
• Consistency Is Not the Best Thing with 16 Against a 10 (24 June 2006)
• Playing It Smart on the 'Turn' in Texas Hold'em (17 June 2006)
• Avoid Single-Deck 6-to-5 blackjack Like the Plague (10 June 2006)
• A Twist on Tricky Blackjack Hands (27 May 2006)
• Think Outside the Box to Win/Save Extra Blackjack Bets (20 May 2006)
• Don't Underestimate the Power of Position in Hold'em (13 May 2006)
• Which Hands Win These Texas Hold'em Pots? (22 April 2006)
• The Math Proves That Bad Blackjack Players Don't Hurt You (15 April 2006)
• Reading Your Opponents Is a Must to Win at Poker (8 April 2006)
• Can You "Talk the Talk" at the Poker Table? (25 March 2006)
• Should You Split This Pair? (18 March 2006)
• How Should You Handle These Blackjack Situations? (11 March 2006)
• Drawing to Straights and Flushes in Texas Hold'em (19 February 2006)
• What Separates a Top Blackjack Player from the Herd? (12 February 2006)
• Never Underestimate the "Rake" in Poker (5 February 2006)
• "No Limit" and "Limit" Poker Are Two Different Animals (28 January 2006)
• Quiz Answers Reveal How Casino Games Really Work (21 January 2006)
• How Much Did You Learn about Casino Gambling in 2005? (14 January 2006)
• A Deeper Look at Those Odds-'n-Ends in Blackjack (24 December 2005)
• Blackjack Odds-'n-Ends Might Help You See the Light (17 December 2005)
• Poker Can Be an Addiction or a Character Builder (10 December 2005)
• Blackjack Players Don't Know the Right Way to Bet (25 November 2005)
• Pot Odds Are Important in Any Kind of Poker (18 November 2005)
• Telling the Gems from the Junk in Blackjack Options (11 November 2005)
• Drawing to the 'Nut Low' in Omaha Hi/Lo Poker (22 October 2005)
• Blackjack Players Who Know the Least Criticize the Most (15 October 2005)
• Novice Hold'em Players Want to See a Flop with Every Hand (8 October 2005)
• Going Uphill on the Flop in Texas Hold'em (23 September 2005)
• What Comes After Basic Strategy in Blackjack? (16 September 2005)
• Blackjack Players' Moral Standards Vary Widely (9 September 2005)
• Honesty in Blackjack: Where Do You Draw the Line? (26 August 2005)
• Poker Strategy Doesn't Have One 'Sacred' Way to Play (12 August 2005)
• What's the Logic of Soft Doubling Down in Blackjack? (23 July 2005)
• Playing Suited Hands and "Connectors" in Texas Hold'em (16 July 2005)
• Joe Blackjack Doesn't Play As Well As He Thinks (9 July 2005)
• What Is the Dealer's Average Hand in Blackjack? (20 June 2005)
• What Are Your Odds in Texas Hold'em Poker? (12 June 2005)
• 18 Is Not a Winning Blackjack Hand (5 June 2005)
• How Would You Handle These Hold'em and Omaha Hands? (21 May 2005)
• Will the Rampant Poker Craze Breed New Gambling Addicts? (15 May 2005)
• Will the Rampant Poker Craze Breed New Gambling Addicts? (15 May 2005)
• Some Smart Blackjack Plays Look Dumb to Most Players (9 May 2005)
• Don'tcha Hate Blackjack Players Who Keep Switching Hands? (24 April 2005)
• What If You Flop Second Pair in Texas Hold'em? (17 April 2005)
• Wean Yourself Off the Even Money Habit at Blackjack (10 April 2005)
• There's No Such Thing as a Bust Card in Blackjack (27 March 2005)
• Omaha Hi/Lo Is the Other Flop-Style Poker Game (20 March 2005)
• Nobody Wants to Play at an Empty Blackjack Table (13 March 2005)
• How Much Luck Is Involved in Gambling, Really? (27 February 2005)
• The Top 10 Starting Hands in Texas Hold'em (17 February 2005)
• You Can Win at Blackjack, But You Must Be Willing to Change (20 January 2005)
• Why Do Blackjack Players Blame Others When They Lose? (13 January 2005)
• Playing Winning Poker Requires Using Your Head (6 January 2005)
• Blackjack Players Can Capitalize on Others' Superstitions (13 December 2004)
• Play 'Good Poker' on the Flop in Texas Hold'em (27 November 2004)
• Side Bets Can Trim Your Handicap in Blackjack (13 November 2004)
• Test Your Poker Sense With This Texas Hold'em Quiz (23 October 2004)
• Doubling Down for Less in Blackjack Is a Big No-No (9 October 2004)
• Texas Hold'em Is a "High Card" Game (26 September 2004)
• When Shouldn't You Double Down with a Proper Doubling Hand? (12 September 2004)
• Blackjack Questions: Insurance, Surrender, The Value of High Cards (22 August 2004)
• Pick Your Texas Hold'em Hand: Big Slick or Pocket Deuces (8 August 2004)
• Improve Your Basic Strategy Game Beyond Basic Strategy (26 June 2004)
• What Happens When the Dealer Hits Soft 17? (19 June 2004)
• Think You Know Blackjack? (29 May 2004)
• Internet Poker Spawns a Bevy of New 7 Stud Hi/Lo Players (15 May 2004)
• The Odds Aren't Always What They Seem (24 April 2004)
• Poker Tells Take Your Performance Beyond the Odds (17 April 2004)
• Don't Play Hold'em According to What You See on TV (27 March 2004)
• Never Play Less Than Your Best Blackjack Game (11 March 2004)
• I Wanna' Play That Poker Game Where You Go "All In" (28 February 2004)
• Three Ways That "Ploppies" Hurt the Game of Blackjack (14 February 2004)
• Omaha Hi/Lo Poker Is a Spin-Off from Texas Hold'em (24 January 2004)
• Bad Blackjack Players Don't Hurt Your Odds (11 January 2004)
• You Gotta Know When to Hold'em and When to Fold'em (28 December 2003)
• There's More Than One Way to Skin a Blackjack Cat (14 December 2003)
• "No Way I Can Lose This Hand" and Other Famous Last Words (24 November 2003)
• Loose Poker Players Shouldn't Play Caribbean Stud (10 November 2003)
• What on Earth Were These Blackjack Players Thinking? (25 October 2003)
• Figuring Your Pot Odds in Split-Pot Games (11 October 2003)
• Make Profitable Double Downs on Your Neighbor's Hand (27 September 2003)
• Squeeze Something Extra Out of Your Blackjack Pair Splits (13 September 2003)
• Don't Shoot Yourself in the Foot at the Blackjack Table (30 August 2003)
• Grading Blackjack Players by How They Play Soft 18 (16 August 2003)
• Surrender Option Is One Gimmick That Works for the Player (21 July 2003)
• Most Blackjack Players Don't Understand the Odds (14 July 2003)
• A Well-Placed Semi-Bluff Wins a Big 7-Stud Pot (30 June 2003)
• The "10s Follow 10s" Theory (21 June 2003)
• How's Your Poker Opponent Doing in the Game? (24 May 2003)
• Hand Interaction: The Neglected Side of Blackjack Strategy (10 May 2003)
• Advanced Basic Strategy (27 April 2003)
• Poker Tells: When a Player Unexpectedly Bets (13 April 2003)
• Some Top-Notch Blackjack Players Take up Texas Hold'em Poker (23 March 2003)
• How Important Are Small Details at the Blackjack Table? (9 March 2003)
• Blackjack Quiz (23 February 2003)
• Can You Really Recognize a "Ploppy" at the Blackjack Table? (16 February 2003)
• Wake Up! In Blackjack, the Order of the Cards Is Not Sacred (26 January 2003)
• Wheeling and Dealing with Players at the Blackjack Table (12 January 2003)
• Poker Skills You Can't Learn from a Book (29 December 2002)
• Respect Your Superiors; Intimidate Your Inferiors (15 December 2002)
• Figuring Your Pot Odds in Split Pot Games (28 October 2002)
• The Curse of the High Hand (20 September 2002)
• The Biggest Mistake in Poker (15 August 2002)
• BOOK REVIEW: 77 Ways to Get the Edge at Casino Poker: Playing and Beating the Best! By Fred Renzey (14 August 2002)
• You Can't Win at Gambling Just by Quitting When You're Ahead (25 July 2002)
• Conservative Blackjack Play Cripples Your Winning Odds (7 June 2002)
• Blackjack Players Can Eliminate the House Edge (8 May 2002)
• Get Your Blackjack Priorities Straight, or Stay a Loser (12 April 2002)
• Blackjack Player Asks, "What's After Basic Strategy?" (10 March 2002)
• How to Become a Hopeless Loser at Blackjack (10 February 2002)
• How Good Are Your Chances to Win at Blackjack? (6 January 2002)
• I'm Sick of Blackjack Players Who Criticize Everyone Else (7 December 2001)
• Gain an Edge at Blackjack Using Hand Interaction (11 November 2001)
• Why Can't I Make Hands Like the Blackjack Dealer Does? (7 October 2001)
• Be Careful From Whom You Get Your Blackjack Advice (16 September 2001)
• Do You Ever Out-Think Yourself at the Blackjack Table? (12 August 2001)
• Players' Blackjack Questions Reveal Strategy Concerns (22 July 2001)
• Hedge Bets Are Almost Always a Bad Strategy (12 June 2001)
• Blackjack Experiment Shows Bad Players Don't Hurt You (4 May 2001)
• Become a Winner at Blackjack (26 March 2001)
• Bet You Didn't Know This About Blackjack (18 February 2001)
• The Odds Determine Your Overall Fate in Gambling (7 January 2001)
• Many Blackjack Players Leave When They Have the Edge (17 December 2000)
• Use Simple Logic to Remember Your Blackjack Basic Strategy (12 November 2000)
• Blackjack Winners and Losers Have Opposite Thought Processes (13 October 2000)
• Insurance and Even Money Are Both Bad Blackjack Bets (10 September 2000)
• An Inside Look at the Mechanics of Betting Progressions (29 August 2000)
• Pressing Up Your Bets in Blackjack Is Not a Winning Strategy (6 August 2000)
• Blackjack Side Bets Are For Suckers--All Except One! (15 July 2000)
• Most Popular Blackjack Philosophies Don't Work (10 June 2000)
• The Most Misplayed Hand in Blackjack (14 May 2000)
• Soft Doubling in Blackjack is Easy with the "Rule of 9" (15 April 2000)
• Errors of Omission Cost Blackjack Players the Most Money (1 April 2000)
• Who Wants to Be a Millionaire Contestants Ignore the Odds (19 March 2000)
• Which of These Blackjack Hands Would You Rather Play? (5 March 2000)
• Some Blackjack Hands Are Best Played Two Different Ways At Times (19 February 2000)
• Don't Let Short Term Gambling Wins Fool You (5 February 2000)
• Good Gambling Decisions Require Logical Thinking (18 December 1999)
• Can Bad Players Screw Up Your Game? (4 December 1999)
• Always Hit 16 Against a Dealer's 7, No Matter What! (20 November 1999)
• The Art of Playing Your "Stiffs" in Blackjack (6 November 1999)
• Ten Blackjack Tips Most Players Need to Learn (23 October 1999)
• Different Basic Strategies for Different Blackjack Rules (9 October 1999)
• Don't Take Even Money on Your Blackjacks (18 September 1999)
• How Do You Play a Pair of 4s in Blackjack? (4 September 1999)
• Dealer's 3-up Causes Many Blackjack Mistakes (21 August 1999)
• Blackjack and Poker Share Several Important Similarities (7 August 1999)
• Beyond Basic Strategy: Maximizing your Double Downs (17 July 1999)
• The Most Likely Way to Win the Hand is Not Always the Best Play! (3 July 1999)
• Blackjack Players Have Trouble Recognizing Good Hands (15 June 1999)