Rules of Blackjack

Evil_Bilbo

Hi everyone.

I know its not poker, but I was in the Fitzwilliam last night playing blackjack (2nd time I've ever played).

Bet a fiver - got AA - split them (tenner in now, and 1 card to go on each). Luckily got 2 tens! Delighted. Thought I had 2 blackjacks.

The Dealer got 21, and I got d!ck. She said a blackjack only counts when you get it straight off. I didnt win anything.

I was totally bummed out (thought I'd be getting 25 back instead of a my original tenner).

I did pretty well after this on a lucky streak, but realise that I kinda should know the rules of a game before playing it. I've never come across this rule.

Anyone know where I can find the rules? Anyone KNOW the rules? Just for future playing.

Cheers

DeVore

If you split you get one card each and no blackjacks. You shouldnt have lost anything (since the dealer jammed 21 he/she drew with you).
Google should give you a million results for "Blackjack Rules"

DeV.

Evil_Bilbo

Cheers Dev,

Was totally suprised by this (didnt even cop that she got 21 till I asked her where my winnings were). A tad embarrasing not knowing the rules of the game you're playing.

Still worth it though. Walked out with 140. A very hard game to leave.

DeVore

"Leaving" blackjack is the most important thing to learn about that game. The odds are (as you would expect) in favour of the house so any profit you make is against the odds and you should leave when nicely up!

DeV.

Krusty_Clown

The rules can vary slightly from Casino to Casino though..
Just finished
Bringing down the house, which is a story about how a number of MIT students beat the casinos by counting cards..

Not a great book, but a good book..

Borzoi

This is one of the main differnces between European and American Blackjack rules. In one, if there's a draw, the dealer wins, the other has the money returned to the player - it's been so long that I can't remember which is which.

Had it explained to me by a croupier in a Casino in Zinbabwe who operated the more punter friendly system, that I wasn't used to and was very pleasently surprised by.

(Did quite well that night:D )

Krusty_Clown

Some of the rules in the US change from Casino to Casino...
So you might get slightly better punter odds in some Casinos.

I'll have a quick look in the book, and see if I can pick out the relevant section, but the card counters used to always hit a selection of Casinos where the odds were slightly better (and where they didn't perform shuffling of the numerous decks)..

Evil_Bilbo

Read that bringing down the house book meself - great stort written badly (sounds like writing from a leaving cert student who thinks he's good at english)

Class story though. Yeah - they shuffle the decks every 5 minutes in the fitz without going through the whole shoe - not that I'd be able to keep a running count of the cards or anything.

Still - It'd be a nice advantage to sort out.

Krusty_Clown

I believe the Vegas casinos now use motorised shuffling machines all of the time now.. So the odds are stacked against you once again!

DeVore

The odds in Blackjack are just about always stacked against you. Though its one of the better casinos games for punters afaik.

The two major differences are in the case where you draw with the house (most will now give you your money back afaik), and the case where the house draws A6 and makes 17 (in all cases that I know of, the house must "stick" on 17). Some casinos allow the dealer to claim that A6 is just 7 and continue to play. Others force him to have to stop. Its the latter you want as it improves your odds by about a percent I think.

Either way, good play and card counting are essential if you want to nudge your odds towards 50:50

The main thing to watch for when playing BJ is not your own cards but the card the dealer gives themselves. A 2345 or 6 is good news for you as the dealer will almost always have to take two cards (they cants stick on anything less then 17). A 5 is the best card for them to have and you should always bet if you see one and can bet. A means the dealer MUST take two cards and they are going to sum to 16 or less. I've often stuck on 14/15 in this situation, the odds are better for you to stay where you are and let the dealer bust out.

I'm sure theres a ton of sites that can explain all this better then I. Personally I dont play the game for long as its a losing proposition. If I play it its with money I'm happy to lose because the house never does.

DeV.

Krusty_Clown

DeVore: The odds in Blackjack are just about always stacked against you.

Except when you have a system for counting cards, which is the premise of the book.. Their team strategy could pretty much guarantee +25% returns...

DeVore

I've heard tell of counting system that can swing the odds in your favour (I'd dispute that any card counting could guaruntee you a 25% return but I'll not argue the point).

The difficulty is that casinos only want you to play if you are going to lose. Most will kick out card counters as soon as they spot them. Even if they are only counting in their heads (as opposed to some in-the-heel-of-your-shoe cheating).

Even if you are doing nothing "wrong" if you win for an extended period you'll be red carded and escorted from the building. Ever seen that documentary about the irish guy who went to Vegas and got kicked out of every major casino simply because he won? Fascinating stuff...

DeV.