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Four reasons to play blackjack12 December 2015
Blackjack has been around for a long time, and it remains the most popular table game among casino players. There is a reason for this, and if you don't know why blackjack is so popular, you will by the time you finish reading this article. So what makes blackjack so special? 1. You can reduce the casino's edge significantly from 2-5% to about 0.5% by learning the basic playing strategy. 2. You can often gain the monetary advantage (or at the minimum play even with the casino) when you play by using the basic playing strategy and then asking for and getting casino comps. 3. You can also gain the mathematical edge over the casino by knowing when to bet more and when to bet less. 4. You can also gain the edge by playing better than your opponents play in blackjack tournaments. Your goal when you gamble is to firstly have fun, and secondly to win money. Blackjack is one of the few casino games that allow you to accomplish these objectives. There is no way you can reduce the casino's edge in blackjack unless you learn the basic playing strategy. It doesn't take long to learn the basic strategy, and once you learn it, you'll be able to use it for as long as you play blackjack. If all else fails, you can always bring a blackjack strategy card with you when you play so you’ll always make the right play. Not all blackjack players take advantage of comps, and that's very unfortunate. Why? Because by asking and receiving comps, a player can often give you the monetary edge over the casino, and that's without learning anything more than the basic playing strategy. This works because the casino assumes about a 1 - 2% edge over the masses of players who play blackjack. However, the smart basic strategy player only faces a 0.5% (or less) house edge. This difference often results in the basic strategy player getting back monetarily more comps then the casino thinks they will win from the player. Thirdly, it's possible to get the mathematical edge over the casino when you play blackjack by betting more when you have the edge on the next hand. How do you know when this happens? You must learn how to count the cards and nowadays there are several very easy to learn card counting systems geared to recreational players that they can use to gain the edge over the casino. There is also another way that smart blackjack players can gain the edge . . . play in blackjack tournaments. In tournaments, your primary adversary is not the casino; it's the other tournament players. Whether you win or lose your bets against the casino is not what is important. What matters is whether you win more chips (or lose fewer) than your opponents. By being more skillful in tournament play than your fellow table players are, you can gain the edge over them. So there you have it. Four reasons to play blackjack. I’ll even throw in a fifth reason . . . winning more often on your casino visits (which you will do if my follow my advice and play blackjack) rather than consistently coming home with nada in your pockets. (You can take that tip to the bank.) Henry Tamburin is the editor of the Blackjack Insider e-Newsletter (www.bjinsider.com. His website is smartgaming.com. 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. Recent Articles
Henry Tamburin |
Henry Tamburin |