Blackjack : How to beat the dealer?

I assume that if you are interested in reading this post, you will know the basic rules of blackjack. Therefore I will not blog about the rules of blackjack in fact I will go straight to the point – how to beat the dealer at the table.

First and foremost there are a few points I think you should take note of. Blackjack in casino is different from the 21 points or “Ban Lat” we play during Chinese New Year. Let me highlight some important points :

1. Ace could only be counted as either 1 or 11(it could never be counted as 10)
2. There is no minimum point a player need to hit. You could stand even at 12 points.
3. The house will always pay you 1 to 1 when you win(even if you get 21 points) except for Blackjack(Ace and 10) 3 to 2.

The dealer is representing the casino. This means that the dealer must follow the rules set by the casino that is the dealer must draw to 16 and stand on 17. Some casino will require the dealer to hit at soft 17(Ace and 6) and this is considered a disadvantage to the player. However Genting requires their dealer to stand on soft 17. I mentioned that in every game the house must have an advantage over the player. There is no exception for Blackjack. Whenever a player bust(more than 21 points), the dealer will straight away collect the player’s chips. Even though the dealer bust later, the chips will not be refunded. This is the only advantage to the house in Blackjack and is not difficult for a player to overcome it.

Advantage could always be on the player side given that a player :

1. Uses the correct technique in the game that is know when to hit, stand, double down and split.
2. Keep his composure and stay calm during the game.
3. Applies the card counting method.

Knowing all these will help you significantly in playing the Blackjack. During the game there are only four decisions a player needed to make that is to hit, stand, double down or split. This is the ultimate golden rule made by Stanley Roberts, a Blackjack expert according to four decks of cards. In Genting, there are two types of blackjack table, one with four decks of cards and another one with 8 decks of cards. Always check whether you are on the correct table.

If you follow this guide, I believe the house’s advantage would drastically decrease and if you apply the card counting method, you will have the upper hand. Before I go to the card counting method, let me briefly go through how you should make your decision according to these tables.

First, check whether you got two similar cards. If you have two same cards, check whether you should split the cards according to the pair splitting strategy table. If you get two different cards, check whether it’s a hard hand or soft hand. If you have a hard hand, only double down when you have hard 9, 10, or 11 according to the doubling strategy table. Lastly, determine whether you should hit or stand according to the standing strategy table. Similarly, if you have a soft hand, check the soft hand doubling strategy table before going on to the standing strategy table. In short, the sequence of the table you should start with is pair splitting strategy, doubling strategy and standing strategy.

Let me explain some of the strategy on the above table. Stanley Roberts said that you must stand on 12 or more whenever the dealer’s up card is 4, 5 or 6. Why is it so? This is because 4, 5, 6 are considered as a bad hand. Since the dealer is required to draw to 16 and stand on 17, there is a high possibility that the dealer will bust. Therefore standing on 12 points is a smart strategy. As for the splitting strategy, why we are not allowed to split a pair of 9 when the dealer’s up card is 7? The reason is that the dealer has a very high chance to get a total of 17 points and stand on it. This means that if you do not split the 9, 9; you have 18 points and you win the game.

Now, here comes the most important strategy of all. If you could master this strategy – the card counting strategy, you could always end up a winner at the blackjack table. You must have a very good memory power to master this strategy. Let me first explain the logic behind this strategy. Whenever the deck of cards contains more cards of big value, it is an advantage to the player. If the cards contains cards of small value(3, 4, 5, 6) it is an advantage to the house. Why is it so? The answer is simple. The dealer must draw to 16 points and stand on 17 points. If there are more big value cards, the chances of the dealer busted is very high. You could argue that if the dealer chances of busted is high, we as player also have a high chance to get busted. No, this is not the case. Since we are not required to draw to 16 and stand on 17 like the dealer, we could always stand on 12 or 13 and let the dealer hit and get busted. All we need to do is to collect the chips. Likewise, if there are more small value cards, it is considered a disadvantage to the player. Since the dealer could hit without getting busted and get a higher point.

Ok, now that we know we have an advantage if there are more big value cards and vice versa. But how do we count the cards? Is it possible to count and memorize each and every card? When I say count the cards, I do not mean by counting it one by one. I mean counting the ratio of big value cards and small value cards. It goes like this :

• Whenever you see a 2, 3, 4, 5 add a +1 in your heart.
• Whenever you see a 10, J, Q, K add a -1 in your heart.

If the number in your heart is a positive figure. This means that it is an advantage to you and you could increase your wager. Of course the larger the number is, the more advantage you have and the more wager you should increase! The same goes for a negative number. If you have a negative number, reduce your wager. If the number eventually gets drastically small, for example -30, walk away from the table.

Let me warned you in advance. The card counting method is actually barred in the USA’s casinos. I’m not sure in Genting’s casinos but if you would want to use this method in the casinos you need to disguise yourself. When I say disguise, I do not mean a fake mustache and a big hat. You must let the dealer feel that you win because of pure luck but not using the card counting method. Always stay calm no matter in what situation. Do not get over excited whenever the positive number in your heart becomes bigger. Always stay cool.

If you could apply the above strategy and the card counting method, and you bet using the progressive betting strategy I mentioned in my last post. You stand a very high chance of walking away a winner from the Blackjack table.

Last but not least, gambling is not for making money. Always think of gambling as an entertainment(unless you wish to be a professional gambler). When you exchange money for chips with the dealer, tell yourself that you are buying entertainment from the casino. Enjoy your game. If you win, that’s a bonus. Always remember that the casino could never determine how much you could win or how much you could lose. It’s all in your hand. You determine whether the casino is making money. Be confident of your game and stay calm.

P/S : If you have any other blackjack techniques you would want to share with me or you need any clarification on the above techniques, just send me a mail.