Blackjack Secrets No One Wants You to Know
The game of blackjack is one of the most popular of all the games in the casino. It is the favorite card game by far. Baccarat has challenged it in the past few years, but the appeal of blackjack remains strong. 21 is also a game of many secrets, and there are blackjack secrets that no one wants you to know. Learn them and you will have an added edge over the house.
Card Counting is Not a Crime
Card counting is one of the ways professional players use to beat blackjack, and it is probably the game’s best-kept secret. The fact that you are visiting the Counting Edge website probably means that you are familiar with card counting on some level.
It involves keeping a running total of cards that have been dealt from a shoe in a game of blackjack. By tracking these cards the player can then determine when the deck is favorable. A favorable deck is a call to make larger wagers. Card counting systems have been developed over time and can be very effective. So effective that the casino wants you to think counting is illegal.
This is a myth. Card counters have been caught over the years and charged with various crimes. The courts in the United States have consistently upheld that card counting does not break the law. It is frowned upon but not illegal. Any casino that tells you so is lying.
As we will see, card counting does not need to be illegal to get you in some type of trouble.
Card Counting Can Be Used to Get You Banned
Once casinos made the determination that they could not have players arrested for counting cards, they decided to go another way. The casinos began to ban players that were suspected of card counting. Banning is just as effective. It gets the player permanently out of the casino.
The courts have largely upheld the right of a casino to ban players. They can do this because they are basically considered to be a private club. You are a guest of the casino, just like you are a guest in someone’s home. Step out of line and the casino or homeowner has every right to ask you to leave the premises.
Casinos have no interest in banning anyone that is losing money on a regular basis, even a little. That is why some good card counters have been able to disguise their activities by losing on purpose now and then. They don’t lose enough to let the casino reclaim the profits made by the player. Just enough that the casino believes the player is lucky and not counting cards.
The Casino Is Tracking Your Wins and Losses
Have you ever been to a live casino and signed up for one of those player reward cards? The casino promotes these cards as a way to reward its most loyal players. In fact, they are more than that. They are also a tool that the casino can use to monitor how much you win or lose on each session.
Before the player card a casino had to depend upon pit bosses to manually enter information on every player. They would write down the buy-in, how much the player cashed out, and how long the player stayed at the blackjack table. These cards with a magnetic stripe have made this process much easier. A single swipe of the card means that your gambling activity is being tracked.
Why would the casino care how much money you won or how much you lost? They care because they must report certain winnings to the IRS in the United States. They also can use the amounts to determine if you are a so-called advantage player. Once you begin winning with consistency, the casino will probably want to know why.
Blackjack is a Game You Can Beat
It sure seems like a lot of trouble casinos go to keep these blackjack secrets they don’t want you to know. There is a good reason for that. Blackjack is a game that you can beat. The online casino would rather you did not know that.
All the games in a casino have a mathematical advantage for the house. They would not be used if they did not. It just so happens that the advantage in blackjack is generally pretty low when a player uses common blackjack basic strategy. When you add card counting to the mix, the house edge can be fully removed. It is even possible to bring the edge slightly in the favor of the player.
That’s right. Blackjack is a game that you can beat. If you have a choice, wouldn’t you choose the game that the casino could lose rather than the one it could win? Of course you would. Now you know.
You Don’t Have to Count Cards in Online Blackjack
Many players have chosen to make the switch to online blackjack. There is good reason for this. Some of them are not able to travel to a live casino. Others just like the convenience of being able to sit on the couch and win money with online blackjack.
If you decide to play blackjack online, good for you. What you need to know is that the experience can be somewhat different that it is live. Most online blackjack games are virtual in nature. They use a virtual dealer and a random number generator to produce the results of the game. The cards are reshuffled after each hand in online blackjack.
You may be wondering how this changes the game. It changes it by preventing card counting. Card counting depends upon something known as deck penetration. That means cards are dealt from a shoe which contains multiple decks. Card counting works because the counter is able to get an idea of how favorable the cards remaining in the shoe are. When the deck is shuffled after each hand, this is impossible to determine.
This is okay because you don’t have to count cards in online blackjack to beat the game. Remember, we told you that basic blackjack strategy is enough to lower the house edge against you. Just stick with this, play smart, and you will be okay.
Using Your Online Casino Bonus Money on Blackjack is Smart
There are many online casinos that are happy to give you a nice welcome bonus when you sign up for an account. There is a catch. You have to wager the bonus money a certain number of times before you are able to withdraw it from your account to your pocket.
Some players take their bonus money to the slot machines. They figure that they will be able to run through the wagering requirement quickly. What they will actually do is lose the money faster. Slot machines are one of the worst bets in the online casino. You should avoid them in most cases.
Blackjack is a good game to satisfy the wagering requirement because it gives you a good chance to win. The only way that you will ever put that bonus money in your pocket when you play casino games online is to win with it. You can do that when you play online blackjack.
Some Live Casinos and Online Casinos Will Teach You for Free
If you are knew to the game of blackjack and want someone to teach you how to play, don’t worry. You have made a good choice by coming here to Counting Edge to learn. There are also live casinos that offer free classes in blackjack for you to try.
Many online casinos also have free games available on their website. You do not have to risk a single penny to play these games. Now, why would an online casino want to teach you how to play the game? The answer is so that you will spend money on it. We didn’t say that the online casino would teach you how to win. We only said they would teach you how to play.
Now that you know about the blackjack secrets that they don’t want you to know, try out one of our recommended online casinos. You can get that free matching bonus or a no deposit bonus when you sign up and make your first deposit. Armed with these secrets, you are going to have a good chance to win. You can read our Casino Max review, Miami Club casino review , High Country casino review, Cherry Jackpot casino review, or Roaring 21 review to name a few.