Blackjack Strategy Part 1

Blackjack is not merely a game of chance, like many other casino games. This allows the player to feel that he can influence the game in his favor. It also creates more challenges and creates a thoughtful game to play. So, with that in mind, let's take a look at some of the strategies available in Blackjack.

Playing Your Blackjack Hand: To Stand or to Hit
Most blackjack tips evolve around the decision to stand or hit. Standing means that you do not want any more cards, and you think that your chance of being closest to 21 is high. Hit means that you want another card turned over, so that you can increase your chances of reaching 21. The danger of hitting, of course, is that you might bust, or go over 21.

One of the most comprehensive and detailed strategies is to look at Blackjack strategy tables. These are tables that people have painstakingly put together that help you decide whether to turn over cards or hold, depending on what you have in your hand and what the dealer has. They detail every possible card combination that the player or dealer could possibly get. Note that Blackjack can be played with anything from one to eight decks of cards. The strategy tables will often stipulate the number of decks that are in play for their calculations. Obviously, keep in mind that the tables do not guarantee 100% success. They are built on probability, and probability is built on chance. So, they are better than playing blindly, but are not to be taken as a guarantee.

Card Counting in Blackjack
Blackjack card counting is another strategy to succeed at Blackjack. This means that you chart all of the cards that are turned in any game and take these into account with the number of decks that are in play. This is a long and tedious strategy, but one that people can have great success employing if they are diligent. The MIT Blackjack Team and other Blackjack Legends have made card-counting famous. Basically, you are working out in your head which cards have been used and the probability of other cards turning up. If low cards turned up the most in the past few games, then the assumption is that it's more likely that high cards will now follow, and vice versa. Card counting can be a great winning blackjack strategy in a land-based casino. However, it will not work in an online casino, because the cards are shuffled after each hand in blackjack online.

Blackjack Betting Strategy
The third strategy to offer is betting. There is the idea of sensible betting. This means that you need to decide how much money you are willing to lose before you stop, and how much you want to win before you stop. You have to be quite disciplined to use just your bankroll and not to go over this amount. If you win, you should set aside your winnings and not reinvest this money. This allows you to stick to your target betting limit and to have something left in your pocket, should you start to lose. But there are also advanced Blackjack Betting Systems, like Parlay, Paroli and Oscar's Grind.

With these ideas in mind, it's time to play! Remember that you can always try a free game or two at the online casinos before investing your own money. Do some research before you jump in. Take a look at the strategy tables and be aware of how many decks of cards are in play. Set yourself a bankroll limit and practice card counting. With all of these ideas in mind, you should be able to have an enjoyable and successful game of Blackjack. Think 21 and enjoy!