The Importance of Knowing the House Edge in Blackjack

Every casino player who engages himself in the various casino games offered by the casino tends to ponder on the very thought as to what made him lose the game. Well, to answer this question of yours squarely, we bring to you an in-depth understanding of the wagers, gaming statistics and the skillset you need to adopt while exploring and discovering the Blackjack probabilities.

The Mathematics Involved in Blackjack

It is to be noted that Blackjack is a game which is subjected to dynamic probabilities and shifting percentages. The Blackjack software programs that online casinos use include all of the cards in every new round of play. But even though the percents are constantly changing, the cumulative percentage of the overall advantage remains constant.

Well, let us take an example to understand this better. Always keep in mind that in order to get to know about the gameplay advantage, it is important to take into consideration the sum of the advantages of all t possibilities. Say, for instance, if one hand total has an advantage of positive 5% and another hand has an advantage of -6%, then the total advantage for the two hands is +1%. When you understand this clearly, you will indeed find it easy to translate the concepts to all the other casino games with a static advantage.

Gameplay Statistics

Familiarising yourself with the gameplay statistics is extremely important as it helps in the evaluation of results. The comprehension of the game statistics helps you in determining whether the results are good or bad and in understanding the statistical realm of possibility.

A majority of the games offered by the casinos are based on luck and chance. And so, these casino games reflect the mathematical concept known as “the law of independent trials.” This states that the past events that have occurred have no relevance on future events. This can be easily observed in games like Roulette and Craps. For example, when a coin is flipped there is a 50% chance that the outcome would be heads and a 50% chance that the outcome would be tails. The same analogy applies to Roulette and Craps to name a few.

But on the contrary, in the game of Blackjack, things are different, meaning, in Blackjack what happens in the past directly affects the future. Blackjack has memory, and hence, the law of independent trials stands invalid.

How is Blackjack Distinct?

In Blackjack, each card comprises of a predetermined value that it adds to, or subtracts from the initial advantage that the casino has over the players. The initial advantage is derived from the rules of the game. After the right cards are dealt, the advantage swings in the players’ favour. In the game of Blackjack, when an Ace or 10 value card is dealt, the casino advantage over the player increases. When lower value cards are put in play (2-7) the casino advantage decreases, and when enough of those cards are dealt, the player has an advantage over the casino.

However, in Blackjack, the percent advantage that the casino has over the player or vice versa is not constant. There are numerous approaches that the players can come up with in order to keep a track of the shifting percentages and the Blackjack probabilities. But one of the simplest and the one that is least subjected to errors is the Hi/Lo counting system. This system assigns values of either: 1, -1 or 0 to the cards. All cards 2-6 are assigned a value of 1 and all cards with a face value of 7, 8 and 9 have a value of 0. All tens, face cards and Aces have a value of -1. As and when the cards are dealt, the player adds the assigned values of the cards up and the summation of these cards after a round of Blackjack is termed as the ‘running count’.

Points to Take Into Consideration for Calculating the Win

Remember that in order to determine the amount you can expect to win over a given time, either the casino or player, there are three main key points you need to focus on:

1. 1.Bet size
2. 2.Number of hands or spins
3. 3.Percent advantage