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The
GameMaster's Blackjack School
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Lesson
1: Basic Strategy
The
foundation of winning at Blackjack
is to utilize proper basic strategy
in playing the hands. "Proper" means
that each decision you make on hitting,
standing, doubling or splitting
pairs is the correct mathematical
play for that hand. There is no
room for intuition, gut feelings
or guessing when it comes to basic
strategy; you must make the "percentage"
play each time. Even if you've doubled
an 11 against a dealer's 10 five
times in a row and lost, when that
hand comes up a sixth time you must
double. Consistency is a big part
of playing a winning game, so resolve
right now that you are going to
make the proper play, regardless
if the dealer rolls his eyes upward
or the other players at the table
groan quietly when you do it. You
are there for the money -- there's
no other reason to play blackjack
-- and the application of proper
basic strategy is going to get that
money for you; what others think
of your play is not important.
The
correct basic strategy for a blackjack
game depends upon the rules of the
casino where you will be playing.
The strategy which applies to a
single deck game in Reno, for example,
is quite a bit different than the
strategy for an eight-deck game
in Atlantic City. I'm going to show
you how to learn the basic strategy
of your choice; exactly what that
strategy is will depend on you.
To select a basic strategy, go to
the "Blackjack
Strategy Engine" and simply
fill in the blanks. Once your strategy
is computed, print it out.
Here's
what that looks like for a fairly
common game: Six decks, double on
any first two cards, double after
splitting pairs is permitted and
the dealer stands on A-6. (If any
of these terms are unfamiliar, go
to ConJelCo's
FAQ ).
Basic
Strategy : 6 Decks, S17, DA2,
DAS, No surrender
Splitting
Pairs
| Pairs |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
T |
A |
| (A,A) |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
| (T,T) |
N |
N |
N |
N |
N |
N |
N |
N |
N |
N |
| (9,9) |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
N |
Y |
Y |
N |
N |
| (8,8) |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
| (7,7) |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
N |
N |
N |
N |
| (6,6) |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
N |
N |
N |
N |
N |
| (5,5) |
N |
N |
N |
N |
N |
N |
N |
N |
N |
N |
| (4,4) |
N |
N |
N |
Y |
Y |
N |
N |
N |
N |
N |
| (3,3) |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
N |
N |
N |
N |
| (2,2) |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
N |
N |
N |
N |
Key:
- Y
= Yes, split
the pair
- N
= No, don't split the pair
Soft
Totals
| Soft
Totals |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
T |
A |
| (A,9) |
S |
S |
S |
S |
S |
S |
S |
S |
S |
S |
| (A,8) |
S |
S |
S |
S |
S |
S |
S |
S |
S |
S |
| (A,7) |
S |
Ds |
Ds |
Ds |
Ds |
S |
S |
H |
H |
H |
| (A,6) |
H |
D |
D |
D |
D |
H |
H |
H |
H |
H |
| (A,5) |
H |
H |
D |
D |
D |
H |
H |
H |
H |
H |
| (A,4) |
H |
H |
D |
D |
D |
H |
H |
H |
H |
H |
| (A,3) |
H |
H |
H |
D |
D |
H |
H |
H |
H |
H |
| (A,2) |
H |
H |
H |
D |
D |
H |
H |
H |
H |
H |
Key:
- H
= Hit
- S
= Stand
- D
= Double;
if unable, Hit
- Ds
= Double;
if unable, Stand
Hard
Totals
| Hard
Totals |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
T |
A |
| 17 |
S |
S |
S |
S |
S |
S |
S |
S |
S |
S |
| 16 |
S |
S |
S |
S |
S |
H |
H |
H |
H |
H |
| 15 |
S |
S |
S |
S |
S |
H |
H |
H |
H |
H |
| 14 |
S |
S |
S |
S |
S |
H |
H |
H |
H |
H |
| 13 |
S |
S |
S |
S |
S |
H |
H |
H |
H |
H |
| 12 |
H |
H |
S |
S |
S |
H |
H |
H |
H |
H |
| 11 |
D |
D |
D |
D |
D |
D |
D |
D |
D |
H |
| 10 |
D |
D |
D |
D |
D |
D |
D |
D |
H |
H |
| 9 |
H |
D |
D |
D |
D |
H |
H |
H |
H |
H |
| 8 |
H |
H |
H |
H |
H |
H |
H |
H |
H |
H |
Key:
- H
= Hit
- S
= Stand
- D
= Double;
if unable, Hit
This
is the chart which you will eventually
know as well as your own name -- but
don't worry, you're not going to memorize
it in this form. What we are going
to do is convert all this into what
a "normal" person can understand.
I call what's above the "Basic Strategy
Matrix" and you will use it in some
of your training. But what we need
to do in order to memorize this is
to translate the information above
into all-inclusive rules. Let's do
a few as examples.
Look
at the strategy for a player's hand
of 9 on the matrix above;
it says to double against a
3,4,5 or 6 and hit it against
everything else. We can turn
that information into a simple rule:
"With a hand of 9, double versus
3 through 6, otherwise hit."
See how this works? We are going
to take each player's starting hand
and convert the proper play of that
hand into one easy-to-understand
rule. Now look at a hand of A-2.
Proper basic strategy says to double
against 5 and 6 and hit it against
everything else, so our rule
for A-2 is "Double vs. 5 & 6,
otherwise hit." As a bonus,
we can group A-2 with A-3
since the play for each is identical.
So we end up with a rule like this
"A-2 , A-3; double vs. 5 & 6,
otherwise hit." One more example;
a pair of 3's. When double
after split is permitted, proper
basic strategy says to split
3's whenever the dealer is showing
a 2,3,4,5,6, or 7. Against any other
dealer up card, we do not split;
we should just hit the hand.
Thus, our rule for a pair of 3's
becomes "3,3; split vs. 2-7,
otherwise hit". Clear on all
that? Good. Below is the basic
strategy chart for the matrix
shown above
Basic
Strategy Chart
| Player's
Hand |
|
Decisions |
| 5
thru 8 |
|
Always
Hit |
| 9 |
|
Double
3 thru 6, o/w hit |
| 10 |
|
Double
2 thru 9, o/w hit |
| 11 |
|
Double
2 thru 10, o/w hit |
| 12 |
|
Stand
4 thru 6, o/w Hit |
| 13
thru 16 |
|
Stand
2 thru 6, o/w Hit |
| 17
or higher |
|
Always
Stand |
| A,2 |
|
Double
vs 5&6, o/w Hit |
| A,3 |
|
Double
vs 5&6, o/w Hit |
| A,4 |
|
Double
vs 4 thru 6, o/w Hit |
| A,5 |
|
Double
vs 4 thru 6, o/w Hit |
| A,6 |
|
Double
vs 3 thru 6, o/w Hit |
| A,7 |
|
Double
3 thru 6, Stand vs 2,7,8 Hit
vs 9,10, A |
| A,8-A,9 |
|
Always
Stand |
| 2,2 |
|
Split
2 thru 7, o/w Hit |
| 3,3 |
|
Split
2 thru 7, o/w Hit |
| 4,4 |
|
Split
vs 5 & 6, o/w Hit |
| 5,5 |
|
Never
Split, treat as "10" |
| 6,6 |
|
Split
2 thru 6, o/w Hit |
| 7,7 |
|
Split
2 thru 7, o/w Hit |
| 8,8 |
|
Always
split |
| 9,9 |
|
Split
2 thru 9 except 7; o/w Stand |
| 10,10 |
|
Never
Split |
| A,A |
|
Always
Split |
|
|
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Remember
The
Basic Strategy Chart shown
here applies only to the game described
earlier; you must produce your own
to fit the rules of your favorite
casino.
Once
you've made your Basic Strategy
Chart, we can begin to memorize
it. To do that, we will produce
a set of "flashcards". Remember
those? You probably learned how
to add or subtract using those cards
and they will also teach you how
to win at Blackjack. You need to
make one flashcard for each starting
hand by reproducing the information
above on a 2" x 2' piece of paper.
(Manila file folder material does
well for this.) Here's what one
looks like;
When
you're finished, you'll have a pack
of flashcards which will help you
to memorize the proper basic strategy
for the game you've chosen. Start
carrying them with you and as you
encounter those "lost" moments we
each seem to have in our day --
waiting for a plane, sitting at
the dentist's office or even while
watching TV, pull your cards out
and start reciting the rule for
the hand shown. Check your accuracy
by flipping over the card and then
put it on the bottom of the pack.
You'll be amazed at how quickly
you begin to learn all these rules.
Homework
I
said this was a school, didn't I?
Well, you will also have some homework
to do before we get together again
next week. Here are your assignments
Flashcards:
Spend a minimum of one hour each
day going through the cards.
Computer
work: Go to
"Blackjack Myths, Facts and Playing
Suggestions" and read those
so you can gain an understanding
of what I'm going to teach you in
the coming months. They also have
a shareware version of a good BJ
program you can try.
Go
to "The
Blackjack Page" and roam around
a bit. This is the premier forum
on the Internet for serious blackjack
players; it will be time well spent.
Next
we'll finish with how to learn basic
strategy through a discussion and
demonstration of additional training
aids and exercises which will give
you the means to check your accuracy.
It is not necessary for you to have
your chosen basic strategy memorized
perfectly at that point; all you
need to know now is HOW to learn
basic strategy. Exactly WHEN you
learn it is up to you, since each
part of this course is separate
and does not depend on you knowing
perfectly what came before.
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