Blackjack is a casino game that has been around for centuries. It was the first casino game to be played in casinos and it has probably been played in some form since its invention.
It’s also one of the most popular games in casinos today, despite being a relatively simple game to play.
To start off with, there are two basic strategies when playing blackjack. You can either go all-in or stay ‘tight’ (not hit on any cards). The former strategy will give you a better chance at winning but the latter strategy is less risky.
As an example, if you have a $5 bet on blackjack, you would want to go all-in on your first card because this gives you the maximum return from a win. If you had $10 on blackjack, you would not want to go all-in as this would only return you $9 even if you won.
On the other hand, staying tight means that you don’t risk losing more than what you already put down. In our $5 example, if you stayed tight and lost your $5, you would lose just $4.
In reality, there are countless variations of blackjack out there as it is one of the oldest casino games. However, for the sake of simplicity, we’ll focus on traditional blackjack rules here.
How Does Blackjack Work?
If you’re interested in learning how blackjack works, we recommend checking out this article which goes into depth about how blackjack is played. The gist of it is that each player gets two cards face up and then they use their cards to try and get closer to 21 without going over 21.
After everyone has revealed their cards, the dealer deals new cards to both players and himself. After he does so, the dealer compares his cards to yours and if they total 17 or higher, he wins. Otherwise, he loses his money back.
The dealer is allowed to make a side bet called the “dealer’s fee” which pays 1% of the initial wager. This means that if the dealer has a 10% house edge, the customer should expect to lose 10 cents on every dollar bet placed. This is why blackjack is considered a low-risk game compared to many others.
The House Edge
Before we dive into the math behind blackjack, let’s take a look at the house edge. For those who aren’t familiar with the term, the house edge is the difference between the amount of money you win and the amount of money you lose in terms of percentage points.
For instance, if we were to compare blackjack to roulette, we could say that the house edge of blackjack is 2.6%. This simply means that if you place a $1 bet on blackjack, the chances of you losing this money is $0.026 per cent.
Of course, there are numerous factors which influence the house edge. For starters, the house edge tends to increase over time. This is due to the fact that people gradually realize that they’re better off sticking with the same strategy rather than trying to change tactics mid-game.
Another factor is the number of hands dealt. When dealing fewer hands, the probability of making a mistake increases. This is because it’s harder to keep track of multiple hands simultaneously.
Lastly, the house edge depends on which table you’re sitting at. A high-roller table usually has a lower house edge whereas a low-roller table has a higher house edge. This is because the house makes more money off a high roller table as opposed to a low roller table.
If you’re curious about how much money you stand to win or lose by playing blackjack, check out this site where you can enter your bankroll and see the house edge based on your bankroll size.
Now let’s talk about how to beat the house edge.
Beat The House Edge With An Expert Strategy
If you want to improve your odds of beating the house edge, you need to learn a few advanced techniques. One of the best ways to do so is to read through our guide to playing blackjack online. We go into detail about everything from how to play blackjack to how to beat the house edge.
There’s no point in doing all that work if you don’t know how to actually bet on the game. So before you take your seat, make sure you’ve learned about betting systems and strategies.
Then you’ll be able to follow along with us and learn exactly how to beat the house edge during your next visit to a casino.
Betting Strategies
Let’s now talk about some of the betting strategies that will help you win against the house edge.
First of all, you need to understand that there are two types of bets you can make while playing blackjack. These include a “soft” bet and a “hard” bet. Soft bets make it easier to win money back whereas hard bets make it harder to win money back.
If you’re wondering which type of bet to pick, you should opt for the softest bet possible. This is because if you choose a hard bet, you might find yourself having to stick with the same bet throughout the whole game.
If you’re not confident in your decision, you can always go with a 50/50 bet. This means that half of your chips will be used on one type of bet and the other half will be used on another type of bet. This way, you can still enjoy the thrill of betting.
Once you’ve decided on whether to bet soft or hard, you’ll have to decide which bet to put your money on. There are different betting strategies that you can use depending on whether you’re betting soft or hard. Here are some examples:
- With a soft bet, you can bet on anything ranging from blackjack to splitting pairs. You can even bet on a single blackjack as long as the dealer doesn’t bust.
- If you’re betting hard, you can bet on getting a pair or a straight. Also, you can bet on getting two blackjacks, three aces, or three eights.
You can use these strategies to either gain an advantage over the house or to minimize your losses. Of course, it’s best to play with a strategy that you’re comfortable with as well as one that fits your bankroll.
Dealing Cards
You can easily calculate the expected value of a particular strategy by using mathematics. But you can get a much better feel for how well you’re doing by using a system called EVM (Expected Value Method).
What EVM does is to basically take the mathematical formulas for calculating expected values and apply them to real world scenarios. This will allow you to know what kind of results you’re likely to get from one specific strategy.
To begin with, you can use the following formula to calculate the average payout for each round. Then you can add up all the payouts together to figure out how much you’d stand to make over the course of the entire game.
Note that the above equation assumes that you’re using the softest betting technique. If you’re using a hard bet instead, the formula would be slightly different. However, regardless of which method you’re using, the expected value of blackjack is always going to be negative.
Play Blackjack Online
If you want to play blackjack online, you can do so using apps like Bovada. This app offers a great variety of games including blackjack. Plus, it has a live chat feature so you can ask questions to fellow users and receive personalized advice.
If you’re looking to play blackjack online but aren’t really sure where to start, Bovada is a good place to start. Once you’ve set up an account, you can start playing immediately. Just make sure that you’re 18 years old or older as minors aren’t allowed to play blackjack online.
Robert Cherry is a professional blogger and content writer. He is the author of Casino blog. He loves to write about casino sites and casino online games. He is keen in finding the latest online casino bonus offers. He has a keen sense of what game gamblers would love and cherishes their value for money.