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When you play Blackjack you have some incomplete information to base your playing decisions on. You know the value of your two cards and you know the value of the dealer’s up card. You don’t know what the dealer’s hole card is and you don’t know what the next card out of the shoe will be. However if you use basic strategy when you play you can make an accurate decision based on just the information that you do know.

Blackjack basic strategy is based on the mathematics of the game. It has been tested and refined through computer simulations. When it is followed correctly it reduces the house edge to the minimum, which is usually about one-half of a percent. When you use basic strategy, you make your decision to Hit, stand or double down based on your two cards and the dealers up card. Many players wonder what percentage of time will the dealer bust based on their up card. (Whenever your hand or the dealer’s hand goes over the total of 21 it is called a bust.)

The dealer will bust more often with certain up cards than with others. Take a look at the chart below. You will see that the worst cards for the dealer are the 5 and 6 followed closely by the 4. When the dealer is showing a 5 or a 6 they have a 42 percent chance of busting and a 40 percent chance when they have a 4 showing. This is why you double down more often when the dealer is showing a 4, 5 or 6.

The cards where the dealer is least likely to bust are the Ace, 10 and 9. When the dealer has one of these cards showing, they also have another advantage since the player has to act first. According to basic strategy, a player with a hand of less than 17 will need to take a hit when the dealer is showing a 7 – 8 – 9 – 10 or ace. If the player busts, he loses the hand even if the dealer also busts so the percentage of times the house will win is greater than just the bust percentage shown in the chart.

Play Correctly
You will make more money when the dealer is showing a card that will allow you to double down, however you must follow the rules of basic strategy. Many novice players will double down with a hand of 7 or 8 against a dealer showing an up card of 5 or 6. This is not correct and even though the dealer will bust 42 percent of the time, you will lose more money if you don’t play according to basic strategy.

Knowing the dealer’s bust percentage is useful information but it should just be used to confirm the decisions you make when you play basic strategy. If you are unsure of the correct plays you should memorize the basic strategy chart or bring one to the table with you. This way you will be playing Blackjack with the lowest house edge possible.

(citation from about.com)

Super Fun 21, usually referred to simply as Super 21, is an exciting variation on the game of Blackjack. In many ways, Super 21 is played exactly like Blackjack, making it an easy game for beginners to learn. The interesting pay-tables for Super 21 adds a nice twist to the game and provides an element of excitement that is not found in traditional Blackjack.

Just as with Blackjack, the object of Super 21 is to build a hand that has more points than the dealer’s hand, without going over 21 points. Aces count as either 1 or 11 points in Super 21, while face cards (Jack, Queen, King) count as 10 points each. All other cards count as the numerical value of the card (2-10).

Although the player can choose to make any move they wish, whether it makes sense or not, the Super 21 Dealer is subject to specific rules that govern how the dealer will play their hand. The typical rules for Super 21 are:

• Dealer must hit on “Soft” 17
• Blackjack Pays Even Money (1 to 1)
• Player may hit or double down after splitting aces and receiving a card
• Player may double down on any number of cards (e.g. double down on 4th card)
• Late surrender and surrendering after a double down (double down rescue) is allowed

Note that even though these rules are standard for Super 21, they may vary slightly from one location to the next. Be sure to consult the local house rules before you play.

People who are accustomed to playing Blackjack may be initially put off by only being paid 1 to 1 for a Blackjack hand in Super 21. The soon realize that the excitement adds up, however, by getting paid larger amounts for hands that do not count as anything extra in normal Blackjack. For example, in Super 21, a 2-card blackjack where both cards are the suit of diamonds pays 2 to 1, which is much better than the 3 to 2 odds the same hand would receive in regular blackjack.

There are a number of ways for the player to win in Super 21. Among them are:

• Any hand with more points than the dealer’s hand, without exceeding 21 points, pays 1 to 1
• Any hand of with 6 cards automatically wins, except after double down
• Any 5 card hand totaling 21 pays 2 to 1
• Any Blackjack pays 1 to 1
• Any Diamond Blackjack pays 2 to 1

These elements combine to make Super Fun 21 an exciting variation on the game of Blackjack, and one that has been widely welcomed by Blackjack players who are looking for something a little different.

The first time I heard of card counting, now many years ago, I distinctly remember how I reacted, and it wasn’t a reaction of love and acceptance. My gut essentially told me that card counting was cheating; I mean how could it not be? Or, at the very least, it has to fall into the most dubious of categories of skill or indeed fair play. As time went on however, and the phrase didn’t disappear, in fact became more common and even boasted famous fans I began to rethink my attitude.

The first thing that came to my attention when I started to research card counting was that it is really not something for the amateur. Unexpectedly I learned that card counting would be very difficult for the blackjack novice and can only really be done well be people who have played the game, enjoyed the game, and internalized basic strategy; which I can tell you is no easy feat. In short the people who card count aren’t in-for-a-quick-buck, hit and run co! n merchants, rather they have spent many hours at the blackjack tables, they have put in the time and have become experts.

The next point that I realize when reading about card counting, was that the basics of it are simply logic; if no 10s have come out half way through the deck that’s good for the player because the dealer has to hit on anything less than 17; if there are lots of big numbers, i.e. 10s he is more likely to bust. Conversely, if all the high numbers have appeared that’s bad for the player, because when the dealer does hit he will only be left with low valued numbers which are more likely to help him than make him go bust. This translates as; no 10s, bet; all low numbers don’t bet.

Having realized that it is veteran blackjack players who partake in card counting and that the basic premise is really just logic, I decided to try to uncover a little regarding how card counting actually works. I was actually inspired to delve quite a lot deepe! r into the card counting concept. Card counting, as it turns o! ut, is h arder online than when you have the cards and the dealer physically in front of you; apparently the pace is quicker than any land based casino and this will ultimately affect your ability to count. However, this is not to say by any means that it’s impossible, and the online casino provides the perfect training ground for learning the art and practicing it until you feel confident enough to try it out in a land based casino.

In order to share the next stage of my blackjack-card-counting-rollercoaster-journey, which includes a basic understanding of how it works, you will have to read part II of my blog entry: suffice to say here, that I have in fact done a 180 degree turn on the subject.