Within a casino there can be many tables each with different rules.
The average player haphazardly picks one while the adjacent table offers a much better game. Remember you have to first hurdle the house edge before you can make any money. ( Note: Online casino generally offer the best games.)
In order to calculate the house edge on a game we need to
have a starting point. It is generally the following:
Single deck; double
down on any first two cards; one card on split aces; dealer stands on soft
17; no surrender. The approximate edge on this game is -0.02%. We start there
and add or subtract the following changes. |
| Baseline |
-0.02% |
| Two decks |
-0.32% |
Four decks |
-0.48% |
Six decks |
-0.53% |
Eight decks |
-0.55% |
Blackjack pays 1 to 1 |
-2.32% |
Blackjack pays 2 to 1 |
+2.32% |
Blackjack pays 6 to 5 |
-1.39% |
Dealer hits soft 17 |
-0.20% |
| Resplitting aces |
+0.06% |
No resplitting of any pairs |
-0.03% |
| No soft doubling |
-0.11% |
| Double down on 10 or 11 only |
-0.21% |
Double down on 11 only |
-0.69% |
| Double down on any number of cards |
+0.24% |
| Double down after splitting a pair (DAS) |
+0.13% |
| Late surrender |
+0.06% |
| When you find a game you calculate the house edge as
follows: |
Example One |
Baseline |
-0.02% |
Two decks |
-0.32% |
Dealer hits soft 17 |
-0.20% |
DAS |
+0.13% |
|
|
House edge |
-0.41% |
Example Two |
| Baseline |
-0.02% |
| Six decks |
-0.53% |
DAS |
+0.13% |
| Resplitting of Aces |
+0.06% |
Surrender |
+0.06% |
|
|
House edge |
-0.30% |
Example Three |
Baseline |
-0.02% |
Hit soft 17 |
-0.20% |
DAS |
+0.13% |
Blackjack pays 6-5 |
-1.39% |
Double on 10 or 11 |
-0.21% |
|
|
House edge |
-1.69% |
Look how bad the 6-5 single deck game is compared to the 6 deck game in example two. People would not play this bad game in the 50's,60's,70's,80's and the 90's. The casinos pulled it. It is tragic that people play it now. Let me tell you that casino execs have absolute contempt for their customers. Wal-Mart wants you to leave feeling that you received a fair value. Casino execs laugh and say their customers are dumb enough to play this rip off game. Of course, you are an informed consumer. You are doing research. That is how I learned; how everybody learns.
Spread the word.
Friends don't let friends play 6-5 single deck.
Money frees you from doing things you dislike. Since I dislike doing nearly everything, money is handy. - Groucho Marx |
