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Bonus Blackjacks

As the casino business becomes increasingly competitive, short-term opportunities seem to be popping up more and more. By "special promotion", as it relates to Blackjack, I mean an extra payout on a particular hand, or some other non-standard rule which may be in place for a short period of time. These are often advertised through mailings by the casinos to their lists of slot club cardholders, so this is a good place to remind you to sign up for any such cards, even if you don't play slots or video poker. The $$$ you may make on a special promo can be fairly large, but you have to first know that they're being offered. Signing up for the slot club is the best way to do that.

The next thing you have to know is the value of a promo, so you can figure whether or not it's worth your time. For example, the President Casino on the Admiral, here in St. Louis, recently offered a free 6-pack of soda for each suited Blackjack received. If you drink a lot of soda, it's probably worthwhile, especially if you play there a lot anyway. But worth traveling a hundred miles or so? I doubt it. But, as another example, the Alton Belle Casino in Alton, IL ran a promo a few years ago where they were paying 2 to 1 on all Blackjacks every Tuesday, and that was worth a drive -- even if it was a looong drive. But how is the value figured? Let me show you.

Special promos can take many forms, but most revolve around an increased payout on a Blackjack or 'natural' - that is, a hand consisting of a 10 or face and an Ace. Since a player is already paid 3:2 for a natural, any change can be significant. If a casino offers to pay 2:1 for all naturals, the basic strategy player gains an additional 2.3%. Yes, that's 2.3% to the basic strategy player! So, if the casino's rules give them a .5% edge 'off the top', paying 21 on all naturals gives a non-counter an overall advantage of 1.8%. Combine that with counting cards and an edge over the casino of 3% is possible!!! If your casino ever offers this promotion, get there ASAP. Even if the penetration sucks, the smoke is thick enough to cut with a knife, the boat is in danger of sinking and/or the pit critters sweat any bet over 20 bucks, run - don't walk - to that casino.

Sadly, those situations are rare, but you might run across a special promo on suited naturals, so it's useful to know how to assess their value. First, there are 64 different naturals which can be made: 4 different suits of Aces when combined with 4 different suits of 4 other cards (10, J, Q, K) equals 64 different possibilities. One quarter of those will be suited, such as the Ace of spades matched with the 10, J, Q or K of spades. So, if a suited Blackjack pays 2:1, the value is one quarter of 2.3% or .58%. That would wipe out the average casino's edge, so the basic strategy player would be playing an even game and the counter would be in really good shape.

Here's another example: Some casinos run Valentine's Day promos with naturals in hearts; let's use a natural in hearts with either a King or Queen that pays 2 to 1. Of the 64 possible naturals, 2 pay a bonus. That's one-thirty second of all possible naturals, so just divide 2.3% by 32 and you can see that's .07% which will take a house edge of .50% to .43%, hardly a big deal. Take your Significant Other out to dinner instead.

Another possible promo is where your natural beats a dealer's. In other words, instead of a 'push', your natural pays 3:2. What we need to figure here is how often we can expect to get a natural, then how often we can expect the dealer to tie us. In a 6-deck game, the probability of a natural is 4.5323%. (It may seem high, but it's true you can expect a natural once every 22 hands or so.) A dealer has, of course, the same probability, but the probability of him getting one when you have one is just .2%. If your tied natural pays 3:2, that rule subtracts .3% from the casino's advantage, which would reduce a casino's edge from .5% to .2%.

Those are some of the common 'bonus' payoffs on naturals which casinos offer. In future articles, I'll cover bonuses for suited 6,7,8 and other such hands, as well as the value of coupons, match-play chips, etc. If you are aware of a specific promo and would like to know its value to you, please e-mail me.

See you here next time.

  

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