Casino Blackjack Rules: Nevada Las Vegas. Last Update 02/04/02 Includes Henderson, Nevada THIS PAGE IS ARCHIVED - BJRNET FORUM LINKS WILL NOT WORK! Blackjack is blackjack: your goal is to beat the dealer whether you play in land-based or online casinos in the U.S., Europe, Asia, Caribbean, or any other part of the world. However, playing blackjack abroad in a land-based casino has some differences compared to playing in the U.S. The following table summarizes the differences. Stag Party Blackjack Rules, download comic 8 casino kings ganool, poker dealer jobs atlantic city nj, casino santa cruz de tenerife.
I overhear a lot of bad gambling advice in the casinos. Perhaps the most frequent is this one, 'The object of blackjack is to get as close to 21 as possible, without going over.' No! The object of blackjack is to beat the dealer. To beat the dealer the player must first not bust (go over 21) and second either outscore the dealer or have the dealer bust. Here are the full rules of the game.
I've been preaching for years that to play blackjack properly requires memorizing the basic strategy. However, after pitching the basic strategy for 20 years, I've learned that few people have the will to memorize it. In my book, Gambling 102, I presented a 'Simple Strategy,' which is seven simple rules to playing blackjack. The cost due to incorrect plays with the Simple Strategy is 0.53%, under liberal Vegas Strip rules.
Ever since my book was published it has bothered me that the cost in errors to my Simple Strategy was too high. So in September 2009 I developed the following 'Wizard's Strategy.' The cost due to imperfect plays is 0.14% only, relative to liberal Vegas Strip rules. That is the cost of one hand for about every 12 hours of play. Compared to the 250 cells in the Basic Strategy, the Wizard's Strategy has only 21, as follows.
Let me be perfectly clear that this strategy is not right 100% of the time. I continue to get Emails saying that when this strategy was used with my practice game, the player was corrected for following it. For example, my simple strategy says to stand on 12 against a 2, when it is mathematically better to hit. If you want to learn a strategy that is correct all the time you should use the appropriate basic strategy for the set of rules you are playing.
Here are some comments of clarification.
A reader named Jeff provided another table of my simple strategy, with exceptions in small print. Details about the Wizard's Simple Strategy can be found in my Blackjack appendix 21.
See my Blackjack House Edge Calculator to determine the house edge under 6,912 possible rule combinations.
Following is a list of some common rule variations and the effect on the player's expected return compared to standard U.S. rules (8 decks, dealer stands on soft 17, double after split allowed).
Rule | Effect |
---|---|
Single deck | 0.48% |
Early surrender against ten | 0.24% |
Player may double on any number of cards | 0.23% |
Double deck | 0.19% |
Player may draw to split aces | 0.19% |
Six-card Charlie | 0.16% |
Player may resplit aces | 0.08% |
Late surrender | 0.08% |
Four decks | 0.06% |
Five decks | 0.03% |
Six decks | 0.02% |
Split to only 3 hands | -0.01% |
Player may double on 9-11 only | -0.09% |
Split to only 2 hands | -0.10% |
European no hole card | -0.11% |
Player may not double after splitting | -0.14% |
Player may double on 10,11 only | -0.18% |
Dealer hits on soft 17 | -0.22% |
Blackjack pays 7-5 | -0.45% |
Blackjack pays 6-5 | -1.39% |
Blackjacks pay 1 to 1 | -2.27% |
More and more tables are showing up that pay less than the full 3 to 2 on a blackjack. Most of these tables pay 6 to 5, but some even money and 7 to 5 tables are known to exist. I would estimate that 10% of '21' tables in Las Vegas now pay less than 3 to 2. In my opinion, only games that pay 3 to 2 deserve to be called 'blackjack,' the rest fall under '21' games, including Super Fun 21 and Spanish 21. Regardless of the other rules, you should demand nothing less than 3 to 2 blackjack. You should always check the felt to be sure, and if the felt doesn't say, look for a sign. If nothing says the win on a blackjack, then ask.
Articles about 6-5 Blackjack:Three popular bad strategies encountered at the blackjack table are: never bust, mimic the dealer, and always assume the dealer has a ten in the hole. All three are very bad strategies. Following are my specific comments on each of them, including the house edge under Atlantic City rules (dealer stands on soft 17, split up to 4 hands, double after split, double any two cards) of 0.43%.
Never bust: For my analysis of this strategy I assumed the player would never hit a hard 12 or more. All other decisions were according to correct basic strategy. This 'never bust' strategy results in a house edge of 3.91%.
Mimic the dealer: For my analysis of this strategy I assumed the player would always hit 16 or less and stand on17 or more, including a soft 17. The player never doubled or split, since the dealer is not allowed to do so. This 'mimic the dealer' strategy results in a house edge of 5.48%.
Assume a ten in the hole: For this strategy I first figured out the optimal basic strategy under this assumption. If the dealer had an ace up, then I reverted to proper basic strategy, because the dealer would have peeked for blackjack, making a 10 impossible. This 'assume a ten' strategy results in a house edge of 10.03%.
Practice your blackjack game using my two training tools.
Practice Basis Strategy | Practice Card Counting |
Ready to play against the Bank? Ask for a card and make 21!
Blackjack offers everything a player could wish for; easy rules, action and good chances of winning. Considered one of the oldest card games in the world, we are unsure of its origins. Similar games existed in 18th century France, including ‘21’ one of the most popular versions of the game. The game reached the US via French colonialists in around 1800, and quickly spread across the company until it earned its official name in the first half of the 20th century, when it became a hit.
In Blackjack, you need to know:
First, each player places his bet in his box. Then, the dealer says “no more bets”. Then two cards are dealt face up to each player and one for the Bank.
Players can ask for more cards until they reach 21 points or decide to stand. If a player exceeds 21, he loses and the dealer will remove his bets. Then the dealer deals himself a second card, and must deal another if he has 16 points or less; if he has 17 or more he must stand.
All bets pay 1x1 and BlackJack pays 1.5x1. If a player ties with the Bank he neither wins or loses.
Once the dealer has dealt the cards, the following options are available:
Double: When a player gets 9, 10 or 11 points with the first two cards he is entitled to double his bet. In this case, he can only receive one more card. Doubling increases the initial bet twofold.
Opening or playing two hands: If the player receives two cards of equal value he may open two or more independent hands. To do so, he must place a stake equal to his initial bet for the second hand. Any number of cards can be used in a hand, as long as the hand does not exceed 21.
Insurance: If the dealer’s first card is an ace, players can insure against a possible BlackJack by the Bank. To do so, they must place an amount no greater than half of the initial bet on the insurance line. If the dealer makes BlackJack he must pay double (2x1) to each player who has bet on the insurance. If the Bank does not make BlackJack, all Insurance bets are withdrawn by the Bank.
You can bet on the other player’s hand: As well as betting on your own cards, players can also bet on the cards of any other player at the table. To do so, simply place your bet on the area belonging to the chosen player without exceeding the maximum bet per square. It is the player himself who continues to make decisions on asking for a card or holding. A maximum of 3 players can bet on any hand, with priority given to those sitting at the table.