There is no perfect system for winning at blackjack. Playing perfect basic strategy, making the right bets at the right times, and counting cards can all help minimize the house edge. A good card counter on a good game can actually swing the edge in their direction.
Most recreational blackjack players aren’t counting cards. However, one of the easiest ways to get caught counting cards in blackjack is with wide bet spreads. If a player continually changes bets from $25 to $1,000 the dealers and pit bosses will usually sense that the player is counting cards. This isn’t the only way to get the most bang for the buck playing blackjack.
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Recreational gamblers who are focused on playing with perfect basic strategy can still maximize their betting without getting too crazy or risking time in the casino or more money than necessary. All basic blackjack strategy cards have information on when a player should double down and split their hand. This extra bet amounts will help players maximize returns and lower the house edge for the casino.
Let’s first take a look at the hands a player should double down to maximize their return when playing blackjack using the basic strategy:
Player cards total dealt: 9 Total
Dealer showing: 3, 4, 5, 6
Player cards total dealt: 10 Total
Dealer showing: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
Player cards total dealt: 11
Dealer showing: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10
Player cards dealt: Ace-7
Dealer showing: 3, 4, 5, 6
Player cards dealt: Ace-6
Dealer showing: 3, 4, 5, 6
Player cards dealt: Ace-5
Dealer showing: 4, 5, 6
Player cards dealt: Ace-4
Dealer showing: 4, 5, 6
Player cards dealt: Ace-3
Dealer showing: 5, 6
Player cards dealt: Ace-2
Dealer showing: 5, 6
Player cards dealt: 5-5
Dealer showing: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
Doubling down at the right time is one way to reduce the house edge and maximize winnings. Another way to get the most from a blackjack wager when playing with perfect basic strategy is to split hands when it’s appropriate.
Not only does this double the amount of potential winning hands but it also opens up more hands for a potential double down opportunity. Here are the blackjack hands that players should be splitting, according to basic strategy:
Player cards dealt: Ace and Ace
Dealer showing: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, Ace
Player cards dealt: 9 and 9
Dealer showing: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 (note: don’t double when the dealer has a 7 showing)
Player cards dealt: 8 and 8
Dealer showing: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, Ace
Player cards dealt: 7 and 7
Dealer showing: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
Player cards dealt: 6 and 6
Dealer showing: 3, 4, 5, 6
Player cards dealt: 3 and 3
Dealer showing: 4, 5, 6, 7
Blackjack When To Double Down And Split
Player cards dealt: 2 and 2
Dealer showing: 4, 5, 6, 7
Splitting and doubling down blackjack hands at the right time always smart. However, players can get the best returns when allowed to both split and then double down on hands. Unfortunately, this isn’t available at every table in some casinos.
Before sitting down, check the blackjack rules at the table to see if the casino allows players to double after splitting (shorthand for this is DAS) cards. This used to be possible at all tables in all casinos but not today. Blackjack rules may even vary at different tables in a casino. Some casinos only allow players to double after splitting certain cards.
The more changes to the original rules of blackjack usually mean that the house edge is increasing. When the blackjack rules allow players to double after splitting the casino loses a bit of their advantage. Generally, the more restriction on the players making this wager the higher the house edge for the casino.
Always look for the most player-friendly blackjack rules in the casino to get the best returns. Players should learn how to make all the right basic strategy moves. There should probably be a bit of emphasis on learning exactly when to double down and split hands.
One of the reasons many recreational blackjack players don’t learn basic strategy is because the odds and probability take place over time. These gamblers often want to see immediate returns. Making the right moves on these hands can show an immediate bump in the bankroll short term. That’s smart gambling for the short term and long term.
Splittingaces and eights is part of blackjackbasic strategy. Rules vary across gambling establishments regarding resplitting, doubling, multiple card draws, and the payout for blackjack, and there are conditional strategic responses that depend upon the number of decks used, the frequency of shuffling and dealer's cards. However, regardless of the various situations, the common strategic wisdom in the blackjack community is to 'Always split aces and eights' when dealt either pair as initial cards.[1] This is generally the first rule of any splitting strategy.[2]
- 1Splitting
Splitting[edit]
The object of blackjack is for a player to defeat the dealer by obtaining a total as close to 21 as possible without accumulating a total that exceeds this number.[3] In blackjack, the standard rule is that if the player is dealt a pair of identically ranked initial cards, known as a pair, the player is allowed to split them into separate hands and ask for a new second card for each while placing a full initial bet identical to the original wager with each. After placing the wager for the split hands the dealer gives the player an additional card for each split card. The two hands created by splitting are considered independently in competition against the dealer.[4][5] Splitting allows the gambler to turn a bad hand into one or two hands with a good possibility of winning. It also allows the player to double the bet when the dealer busts.[2] Some rules even allow for resplitting until the player has as many as four hands[4] or allow doubling the bet after a split so that each hand has a bet double the original.[6][7] The standard rules are that when a bet is doubled on a hand, the player is only allowed to draw one more card for that hand.[8][9]
Aces[edit]
A pair of aces gives the blackjack player a starting hand value of either a 2 or a soft 12 which is a problematic starting hand in either case.[2][10] Splitting aces gives a player two chances to hit 21.[11] Splitting aces is so favorable to the player that most gambling establishments have rules limiting the player's rights to do so.[2][10] In most casinos the player is only allowed to draw one card on each split ace.[8][10] As a general rule, a ten on a split ace (or vice versa) is not considered a natural blackjack and does not get any bonus.[6] Prohibiting resplitting and redoubling is also common.[2] Regardless of the payout for blackjack, the rules for resplitting, the rules for doubling, the rules for multiple card draws and the dealer's cards, one should always split aces.[10][12][13]
Eights[edit]
If a player is dealt a pair of eights, the total of 16 is considered a troublesome hand. In fact, the value 16 is said to be the worst hand one can have in blackjack.[10] Since sixteen of the other fifty cards have a value of 10 and four have a value of 11, there is a strong chance of getting at least an 18 with either or both split cards. A hand totaling 18 or 19 is much stronger than having a 16.[6] Splitting eights limits one's losses and improves one's hand.[10][11][12] Probabilistic research of expected value scenarios shows that by splitting eights one can convert a hand that presents an expected loss to two hands that may present an expected profit or a reduced loss, depending on what the dealer is showing.[14] A split pair of eights is expected to win against dealer upcards of 2 through 7 and to lose less against dealer upcards of 8 through ace.[15] If a player hits on a pair of eights, he is expected to lose $52 for a $100 bet. If the player splits the eights, he is expected to lose only $43 for a $100 bet.[16]
Blackjack Split And Double Down
History[edit]
Blackjack's 'Four Horsemen' (Roger Baldwin, Wilbert Cantey, Herbert Maisel and James McDermott), using adding machines, determined that splitting eights was less costly than playing the pair of eights as a 16.[17] They were part of a 1950s group that discovered that strategy could reduce the house edge to almost zero in blackjack.[18] Now a typical strategy involves the following sequence of playing decisions: one decides whether to surrender, whether to split, whether to double down, and whether to hit or stand.[19]
One of the earliest proponents of the strategy of splitting eights is Ed Thorp, who developed the strategy on an IBM 704 as part of an overall blackjack strategic theory published in Beat the Dealer: A Winning Strategy for the Game of Twenty-One in 1962.[18][20][21] Thorp was the originator of the card counting system for blackjack.[18]
Notes[edit]
- ^Gros, p. 60
- ^ abcdeOrtiz, p. 56
- ^Gros, p. 48
- ^ abGros, p. 51
- ^Jensen, pp. 22–23
- ^ abcSchneider, p. 47
- ^Gros, p. 52
- ^ abSchneider, p. 49
- ^Gros, p. 50
- ^ abcdefJensen, p. 53
- ^ abJensen, p. 56
- ^ abHagen and Wiess, pp. 68
- ^Schneider, p. 48
- ^Hagen and Wiess, pp. 66–67
- ^Scoblete, Frank. 'Why Splitting Eights At Blackjack Is An Iron Clad Rule'. Golden Touch Craps. Retrieved 24 July 2009.
- ^Tamburin, Henry (25 October 1999). 'Splitting Aces and Eights'. Casino city Times. Retrieved 24 July 2009.
- ^Snyder, Arnold (2005). 'Blackjack Basic Strategy: Aces and Eights'. Player Magazine (republished).
- ^ abcGros, p. 44
- ^Jensen, p. 51
- ^Thorpe, Beat the Dealer as cited in Snyder, Arnold citation below
- ^Levinger, Jeff (10 February 1961). 'Thorpe, 704 Beat Blackjack'(PDF). The Tech. Retrieved 30 May 2009.
References[edit]
- Dunki-Jacobs, Frits. Betting on Blackjack: A non-counter’s Breakthrough Guide to Making Profits at the Tables. Adams Media. pp. 28–34. ISBN1-58062-951-2.
- Gros, Roger. The Winner's Guide To Casino Gambling. Carlton Books Limited. pp. 44–69. ISBN1-85868-899-X.
- Hagen, Tom & Sonia Weiss (2005). The Everything Blackjack Strategy Book: Surefire ways to beat the house every time. Adams Media. pp. 66–68. ISBN1-59337-306-6.
- Jensen, Marten (2003). Beat Multiple Deck Blackjack. Cardoza Publishing. pp. 22–23, 51–56. ISBN1-58042-069-9.
- Ortiz, Darwin. Casino Gambling For The Clueless. Carol Publishing Group. pp. 55–59. ISBN0-8184-0609-7.
- Schneider, Meg Elaine. The Everything Casino Gambling Book (2nd ed.). Adams Media. pp. 47–49. ISBN1-59337-125-X.
- Thorp, Ed (1966). Beat the Dealer: A Winning Strategy for the Game of Twenty-One. Vintage. ISBN0-394-70310-3.