Best Online Casinos for US players

You don’t have to be an online gambling professional to win at online blackjack. But you do have to know how to play the game and it will help even more if you know some of the basic blackjack strategies. Where do I start, is the usual first question. I suggest looking at an online casino review and then deciding on which casino to play in. You will be able to download the free software from most of them and play the free games to your heart’s content. This is will give you a good start at online blackjack and will allow you to learn the games without losing your money.

To beat the online casinos at online blackjack you don’t need to count cards. Instead, you can take advantage of the lucrative bonus offers the online casinos make to entice new players into their games. These bonuses can turn the house edge that normally exists in these casino gambling games into a player edge over the house.

If you decide to play, there’s a lot of money in the online casinos that is easy to pick up. Actually, it’s such a nice piece of change and a lot easier to get than the money that can be earned in most other forms of gambling, that we continue to be amazed that it even exists. Compared to card counting in Vegas, making money at online blackjack is child’s play. You’ll risk a lot less of your money and you’ll have a much bigger advantage over the house. These are the kinds of opportunities professional gambling careers get started on.

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Blackjack has been my favorite gambling game since my college days. That was along time ago when we sat on a bed or used small table to deal the cards and wager our pennies in exciting games. Today with the arrival of the internet, blackjack has become online blackjack and the small gambling games have become large to huge online gambling sessions. I log into an online casino, and here I am very careful where I play, choose online blackjack and ten seconds later the dealer is giving me my first card. The old excitement is still there, but the bets are larger now and if I am in need of money for any particular purpose, I will wager large amounts because I know that online blackjack is the one place where one can win if you use your head.

Online gambling is now very sophisticated and a first visit to an online casino can be quite intimidating, so playing online blackjack is easy and private. The online casino has good and reliable software and I can take my time with the play. There is no pressure like that in casinos where everyone is pushing you to hurry up. I choose my sire from a long list of online casinos. On the internet there is a directory of online casinos for new players. It’s very useful.

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In blackjack, the person holding the hand with the highest total that does not exceed 21 is the winner. A hand with a total that exceeds 21 is called a bust. Face or picture cards (jack, queen, king) are worth ten points and cards two through ten are counted at face value. An ace is worth 11 points unless this amount would cause the player holding the ace to go bust. In this case, the ace can be counted as one point. Hands in which the ace is valued as 11 are called soft hands because the player holding that ace cannot go bust when he draws another card.

The objective of each player in blackjack is to have a higher hand than the dealer without going bust. When a player goes bust he loses even if the dealer also goes bust. When both the player and the dealer are holding hands with the same point value it is a tie, also known as a push, and neither the player nor the dealer wins. Since each player plays an independent game with the dealer, it is possible for the dealer to win some players and lose against other players during the same round.

The minimum bet allowed can vary from casino to casino and even from table to table within the same casino. Each table displays the minimum bet allowed and the most common minimum in the U.S. is five dollars. The dealer deals out the cards after the initial bets have been placed. Dealers will either deal from a shoe, which typically holds four or more decks or from one or two hand-held decks, also known as a pitch. The dealer gives two cards to each player and to himself. One of the dealer’s cards is placed face down on the table and one is placed face up so the players can see it. The card placed face down on the table is called the ‘hole-card’. In European blackjack the hole card is not actually dealt until the players have all played their hands. When using a shoe to deal the cards, the dealer will place the players cards face up but they will be dealt face down in a pitch game.

A two-card hand of 21 – an ace plus a ten-value card – is called blackjack and is an automatic winner or a ‘natural’. A player with a ‘natural’ is usually paid 2:3 on his bet but in 2003 some casinos started paying 6:5. Many veteran blackjack players have voiced opposition to this policy.

The play:

• If the dealer has blackjack and the player doesn’t the player automatically loses.
• If the player has blackjack and the dealer doesn’t the dealer automatically loses.
• If both the dealer and the player have blackjack it is a push.
• If neither the dealer nor the player has blackjack, then each player plays out his hand one at a time.
• The dealer plays his hand after all of the players have finished playing out their hands.

The player’s option for playing out his hand:

• Hit: Take another card
• Stand: Don’t take anymore cards
• Double-down: Double the wager, take exactly one more card and then stand.
• Split: An option only available when both cards have the same value, you double the value and have each card be the first card in a new hand.
• Surrender: This option was common during the early and mid-20 th century but most casinos don’t offer it any longer. In surrender, the player forfeits half the bet and gives up his hand.

The player’s turn is over once his hand exceeds a value of 21, or if he has decided to stand, double down, or take a single card. A player loses if he busts even if the dealer goes on to bust as well.

Once all the players have finished making their decisions, the dealer reveals his hidden hole card and plays the hand.

According to house rules, dealers must hit until they have at least 17, regardless of what the players are holding. Most casinos also require that dealers hit when they are holding a soft 17, such as an ace and a six. The lettering on the felt of the table should indicate whether the dealer hits or stands on a soft 17.

If the dealer busts then all remaining players win. Bets are normally paid out at the odds of 1:1.

Some common variations on the rules are listed below:

• One card split aces: one card is dealt on each ace. Player’s turn is over.
• Early surrender: Allows a player to surrender before the dealer checks for blackjack.
• Late surrender: Allows a player to surrender after the dealer has checked for blackjack.
• Double-down restrictions: Doubling down is only permitted on certain combinations.
• Dealer hits a soft seventeen: Where ace-six can play as seven or seventeen.
• European No-hole Card Rule: The dealer deals himself one card, face up and doesn’t receive a second card and, therefore, doesn’t check for blackjack until all of the players have acted. This means that, in addition to losing their original bet when the dealer wins, players also lose any additional money invested from doubling down or splitting.

Every casino has its own odds, rules, strategies and blackjack variations. Players should always check the rules and variations of a table before sitting down to play.

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If you play for long term, consistent profits and make the effort to learn basic blackjack strategy, apply card counting, and play to a predetermined plan, you will gain a distinct advantage when you play.

Below is a list of ten tips that will help you win in blackjack:

1. Learn the Basic Strategy

For each one of the hands a player is dealt, statistically he has one perfect action he can make against the dealer’s up card.  This is known as the basic strategy and is what all other winning blackjack strategies are based upon.

2. Correct Money Management

Managing your bankroll is an important aspect of blackjack strategy since every player will have losing streaks and bad runs.  An effective basic money management rule is to bet with one percent of your bankroll.  For example, if you are holding $2,000, your betting size is one percent or $20.  If you are playing with a 1.5% advantage over the house and you are using a card counting strategy, the chances of you losing your entire bankroll is only five percent.  Since it is mathematically certain that you will eventually hit a losing streak, you must be able to ride out those streaks.

3. Learn to Count Cards Using a Specific System

Most blackjack players usually don’t apply anything beyond basic blackjack strategy, but serious players can actually achieve a positive advantage over the casino by counting cards.  This has been mathematically proven.  When you keep a running count you can work out the probability of the un-dealt cards still to come out of the deck.  There are a number of different card counting techniques and it is important that you find the one most suitable to you.  You can even gain an advantage with the simplest of card counting techniques.

4. Estimate the True Count

You can calculate the true count once you have determined the running count.  The true count is calculated by dividing the running count by the number of decks of un-dealt cards.  The true count gives a better indication of how favorable the remaining cards are than the running count does, and it only needs to be calculated when you want to perform an action such as betting.

5. Learn to Adjust Your Bet Size According to the True Count

Bet size should increase as the true count increases.  Conversely, bet size should decrease as the true count decreases.  You will undoubtedly win fewer hands than you will lose, meaning that you need to up your bet size when the odds are favorable in order to make money over a long period of play.. This tip is the key to winning big in blackjack.

6. Play With Favorable House Rules

Play with favorable house rules.  In order to get a house edge, scout how those tables with favorable house rules.  It is the house rules that dictate how much money you will win over the long run.

7. State of Mind
Stay sharp and focused while you are playing.  If you are playing for money, be sure to stay alert and pay attention – especially if you are playing for money.  It is better not to play after you have had an argument with your spouse or drank too much wine etc.

8. Discipline is the Key to Success
While the final tip may seem obvious, it is important and well-worth repeating.  Once you have formulated a plan, stick to it.  This will help you achieve greater profits.  If you cannot stick to your plan, you might as well not even have a plan.

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Blackjack basic strategy is based on mathematics and computer simulations have been designed to test and refine all possibilities and permutations of the strategy.  It is safe to say that, when applied correctly, basic strategy can be used to effectively reduce the house edge to the minimum, which is usually about 1 ½ percent.  The easiest way to learn basic blackjack strategy is to convert the basic black jack strategy chart into plain and simple English.

How to Learn the Chart

Since basic black jack strategy is not only based on mathematics but has also been tested and refined by computer simulations, it does not vary too much although minor adjustments can be made depending on certain ‘local’ rule variations that casinos choose to use.

In order to become a successful black jack player, you must first possess a thorough understanding of basic black jack strategy.  Players typically gain this knowledge from the basic black jack strategy chart, which shows you how to play your first two cards based on the dealer’s ‘up’ card.  It is a fact that the house gets its edge because the player must make the first move.  Of course, just because the chart only deals with the first two cards, it doesn’t mean you won’t have to learn about what decisions to make after taking a hit.

Translating the Chart to English

When the chart is translated into plain and simple English, it is much easier to follow.  An example of how to play a hand with three or more cards follows:

The chart will tell you to hit if your first two cards are a three and a five and you have a total of eight.  If the extra card is a three, the chart will tell you to double on 11, but you can only double on your first two cards so you must hit.

The word ‘otherwise’ is used when translating the chart to plain English to denote situations that are different because of multiple cards.  For instance, the example described above would be written as: If you have 11, double – otherwise hit.
The multi card decisions are written out for hard hands, soft hands and split pairs. The information is divided into three “How to Play” categories that can be seen below.
This explains in plain English how to apply basic strategy when more than two cards are involved.

Hard Hand: (A starting hand of two cards which does not include an ace).

If you are holding:
Eight or less: Always hit.
Nine: Double if the dealer is holding three or six, otherwise hit.
Ten: Double if the dealer has two through nine, otherwise hit.
Eleven: If the dealer has two through ten, double.
If the dealer is holding an ace, hit.
Twelve: If the dealer has two or three, hit.
If the dealer is holding four through six, stand.  Otherwise hit.
13-16:  If the dealer is holding two through six, stand.  Otherwise hit.
17-21: Always stand.

Soft Hands: (A starting hand of two cards one of which includes an ace).

If you are holding:

Ace 2 or Ace 3: Double if the dealer has five or six.  Otherwise, hit.
Ace 4 or Ace 5: Double if the dealer has four through six. Otherwise, hit.
Ace 6: Double if the dealer has three through six.  Otherwise, hit.
Ace 7: Stand if the dealer has two, seven, or eight.
Double if the dealer has three through six.  Otherwise, hit.
Ace 8 or Ace 9: Always stand.

Playing Pairs:

If you are holding:

A pair of eights or aces always split.
A pair of twos or threes: Split if the dealer is holding two to seven.  Otherwise, hit.
A pair of fours: Split if the dealer has four or five.  Otherwise, hit.
A pair of sixes: Split if the dealer has two through six.  Otherwise, hit.
A pair of sevens: Split if the dealer has two through seven.  Otherwise, hit.
A pair of nines: Split if the dealer has two through six, eight or nine.
Stand if the dealer has seven, ten or ace.
A pair of tens: Always stand.

It is apparent that it is much easier to memorize the basic black jack strategy chart once it has been translated into plain English.  Some people also find it useful to use flash cards to help memorize the different possible card combinations.

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