Archives January 2022

Betting limits are also posted on the table, along with what rules the dealer has to follow while playing.

Blackjack games at the casino use chips to wager. You buy those from the dealer. To play, you place your chips (your bet) in the appropriate circle on the table.

You have the following possible outcomes for each hand.

•  You may lose, in which case the dealer takes your bet. You can lose by busting or having a worse hand than the dealer.
•  You can win, in which case the dealer pays your bet. You win by having a better hand than the dealer.
•  You can get “blackjack” or “natural”. This counts as a win, but usually features a 3 to 2 payout.
•  You can tie the dealer, which is called a “push”. When this happens, you keep your bet but do not earn any winnings.

Win conditions and points

Even if you are playing at a table with several other players, you are only playing against the dealer. The other players’ results have no effect on your hand. It’s not an “us versus them”, either. You have no opportunity to “team up” with the other players to beat the dealer.

Your goal is to get a point total that is higher than dealer, but if you get a point total of 22 or more, you automatically lose. This is called “bursting” or “bursting”.

The point totals for a hand are determined by the rank cards. An ace is worth 1 or 11 points, depending on which is best for your hand. All face cards (jack, queen, and king) are worth 10 points each. And all other cards are worth their rank – for example, a two of spades is worth 2 points, a three of hearts is worth 3 points, and so on. Suits do not matter for this calculation.

Bank Games

Blackjack is one of the best examples of a type of card game called “banking games”. These types of card games do not involve player-versus-player competition. Instead, each player competes separately against a banker – in most cases, the casino dealer.

Banking games are not exclusive to casinos. Home card games can also feature banking games, but players have to figure out who will act as the banker. When these games are played at home, they are usually played with no money involved — my mom and I used to play blackjack for toothpicks.

The deck, the cards and the table

You play blackjack with one or more standard decks of cards. The standard deck has 52 cards and no jokers. There are 13 cards in each of 4 different suits, but suits generally have no effect on the outcome of your hand.

At some casinos, you will only play with a single deck. It is more common, however, to play multi-deck blackjack. In single-deck games, the dealer holds the deck and deals it, but in multi-deck games, the decks are placed in a machine called a “shoe”.

You will play at a specifically labeled table that includes notices about specific casino rules. For example, casinos usually pay 3 to 2 for a “blackjack”, but sometimes they only pay 6 to 5 or (even worse) even cash. In either of these cases, this payment is posted on the table.

Choosing an online casino to play at is the first step to getting started. This can usually be the most exhausting part of the process, as there are hundreds of websites to choose from. Luckily, we’ve provided an awesome list above that should already have this squared off for you. Yes, we think our list is amazing!

What’s the next step after choosing a site to play on? Well, we want to walk you through it now to make sure you’re getting the best possible experience possible. Here is the complete list of steps to get started playing blackjack online today.

Step 1 – Select a reliable online casino to play at

We already talked about this in the step above. Any of the options on this list will give you the best action, the best graphics, and most importantly, a reliable and safe experience.

Step 2 – Create an account and note all bonus offers

Most of the sites on this list will offer you a bonus just for signing up and making a deposit. The links above will automatically credit you with these bonuses; you just need to make sure you understand how they work and how to take full advantage of them. We recommend taking a few minutes and just reading the bonus information on the site before you start.

Step 3 – Start with virtual money

Even if you came here to play real money blackjack online, you need to start with play money for at least a few minutes. Why? Well, you need to get used to how the software works, especially if this is your first time playing online. You need to know how to hit, how to get up, how to surrender, and how to separate. You also need to know how to bet and how to change your bet amount. Fortunately, most of this will be self-explanatory, but you’ll be much more relaxed learning that where a mistake won’t cost you any money. Hit the play money tables for a few minutes until you are comfortable with all the controls and then you can move to the real money tables when you are ready.

Step 4 – Start with small bets for real money

We’re not here to say how much to bet or anything like that. What we will recommend, though, is that you start small and work your way up to your normal bet size. This will allow you to become more accustomed to the experience and make sure you get as much fun out of betting online as you had hoped.

Step 5 – Win!

Of course, the house will always have the upper hand, but that doesn’t mean you can’t win. Grab your favorite lucky rabbit’s foot or four leaf clover and have fun and hopefully win some cash!

Baccarat is without a doubt one of the coolest casino games on the planet. I can’t sit at a baccarat table without instantly looking for the villain of a Bond movie.

Being trendy isn’t the only reason to settle down at the table, however. Baccarat can be profitable and has a relatively low house edge, below 2%. Let’s examine 5 baccarat tips that make a profit.

Bet with The Banker

Many players sit at the baccarat table and intuitively accept the player’s bet. Your intuitions are leading you in the wrong direction.

It seems to go against every fiber of his being to bet on the “casino”. How does one look around at the massive structures in all their luxury and opulence and bet against it?

The banker bet carries a small commission that scares some players away, but it seems like 5% is a small price to pay when you are almost certain to win.

In fact, the banker’s bet will win a little over half the time. It is the 5% commission that eliminates the differences in the player’s bets.

If you limit yourself to betting the banker at the baccarat table, you are guaranteed to see more profits from the game, which brings me to my next point about betting at the baccarat table.

2 – Avoid the Draw Bet

Casinos are full of bad bets. Most casino games actually have pretty equal odds when played conservatively.

Of course the house always has an edge, and because of the edge, they never have to worry about losing money.

Even if the house only takes 2% of the moves, turns or hands. That 2% is a tremendous number and basically gives casinos a license to print money.

Now, factor in all the total sucker bets, and profits skyrocket. Baccarat is actually very friendly; he only has one true sucker bet.

The even bet pays out at 8:1. The casino can offer such a high payout because it has a big edge.

The house edge on the tie bet in baccarat is over 14%. To put this in perspective, penny slots in the range, which are known to be a spectacularly bad investment, have a house edge of under 12%.

Avoid the tie bet by any means necessary; this will greatly increase your chances of making a profit.

3 – Enter, Exit

Baccarat is a game about hitting while the iron is hot. Most veteran players take a fast-in and out approach.

Baccarat, by its nature, is a game of hot bursts and cold runs. Experienced players know how to get to the table, and if the cards heat up, they must perfectly time their output to maximize profits.

I know some professional players who love baccarat more than anything in the world. One of these diehards once confessed that he needed to become an elite poker player to finance his baccarat habit; he did very well.

He will never spend more than 20 minutes at a baccarat table. In fact, if he’s not feeling the heat for the first 10 minutes, he can find another table.

Baccarat is extremely profitable when you can find a raise and run with it for a while, but it is absolutely necessary to get out before autumn comes. The fall always comes.

4 – Find Games with the Smallest Deck

Most land-based casinos have standardized casino baccarat on a game played with 8 decks.

Any card counter on the planet will be happy to explain the complexities of keeping an accurate count with so many decks.

However, if you are lucky enough to stumble, some tables can make counting a lot easier by offering 4-deck games.

If you’re a decent card counter, you might want to take a look at an ability known as edge sorting. This unique casino skill can give the player an almost criminal edge over the casino.

5 – Become a Bankroll Savant

Proper bankroll management is a vital skill for any player who wants to be successful. Bankroll management is even more critical for any player hoping to profit from playing baccarat.

Baccarat players need to split their bankroll for the specific session they are playing. For example, playing $20 per hand will bring you $400 or 20 hands to the table.

It’s understandable that players’ bet sizes vary, but 20 hands is a good start. If you lose, it’s time to take a break.

I don’t care if you just lost $200 playing at $10 a hand and have $30k in your coat pocket. Take a break.

Preferably longer than the time it takes to go to the bathroom and back. Go for a walk, play a game of golf, get a massage, go up to your room for a shower.

It doesn’t really matter how you spend your time; take a break of at least 30 minutes. As I stated earlier, baccarat is a game where striking when the iron is hot is imperative.

Give a cold table time to warm up again, or better yet, find a completely new table. Taking a solid break after a losing streak will preserve your bankroll and clear your head for the next round.