Blackjack: 10 Tips

Before you head down to Las Vegas or hit up your local Indian casino check this list of Blackjack ten tips.

1. Learn basic strategy. There’s a reason this is number one on the list of ten Blackjack tips. Basic strategy is the best weapon against the house. The rules are available on a variety of websites. If you can’t remember it all you can buy little laminated cards that tell you when to hit or stay under very circumstances.
2. Ignore hunches. Hunches and gut-feelings are one of the reasons casinos are able to make so much money on their blackjack tables. Basic strategy only works if you use it all the time.
3. Don’t take insurance. It might sting when you lose the bet to a dealer’s blackjack, but in the long run insurance is a drain on your bankroll.
4. Don’t take even money either. Forget what you’ve head about a bird in the hand. Sure it’s tempting but statistically even money is a bad idea.
5. Don’t play side bets. Casinos offer side bets like Lucky Ladies and Royal Match because the odds are great for the house. Sure you win big if you score the right hand, but the single dollar bets are a slow drain on funds.
6. If you insist upon playing the side bet, bet every time. If you only play it every now and then you probably won’t be playing when the right cards do fall your way.
7. Learn to count cards. There are several ways to do this, but basically you want to add one to the count every time a small card comes up, and subtract one whenever a large card comes up. Large totals means the deck is filthy with big cards and you should bet, and play, accordingly.
8. Split aces every time. It doesn’t matter what the dealer is showing, you always want to split aces.
9. Split eights, most of the time. Sixteen is a terrible hand but two eights can be a great place to start. The casino Blackjack guide will tell you when it’s actually in your best interest to play the sixteen.
10. Pick your table wisely. Whatever you do, don’t play at a Blackjack table that doesn’t give you full winnings (3-to-2) on blackjacks. That little bit of difference adds up, if you’re lucky enough to draw the ultimate hand.