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Blackjack: Variations On A Theme

Over the past few years, the casino industry has tried mightily to increase their edge on the game of Blackjack in an effort to keep more of the players' $$$ (the "Hold"). Usually, they change the basic rules of the game, such as having the dealer hit a soft 17 or increasing the number of decks used. For example, hitting soft 17 used to be a rule of the "downtown" casinos in Las Vegas, whereas the Strip casinos stood on soft 17. Well, that distinction is pretty much gone now, because most - though not all - casinos on the Strip have the dealer hit soft 17. For those of you who may not know, having the dealer hit A,6 adds about 0.20% to the casino's edge, which admittedly isn't huge, but it's still something we have to put up with. You're all undoubtedly familiar with 6- and 8-deck games, but there was a time when "multi-deck" meant four decks; there weren't even that many double-deck games around 10 or 12 years ago. It used to be that Blackjack was either a single-deck or four-deck game and darn few casinos had the dealer hit soft 17 in a 4-deck game. Believe it or not, Atlantic City was once all 4-deck games, but when the state Supreme Court there ruled that card counters could not be excluded from play, the casinos went to virtually all 8-deck games. Competition seems to be moderating that trend somewhat, but it'll be a long time before we see any 4-deckers in A.C., I'll wager.

But I'm not here to talk about rules variations because they will always be with us and they're easily calculated, plus they don't typically add a lot to the casino's edge, unless they're real draconian in style, like you can't split pairs. Most casinos aren't going to install such rules, because while the players may not know its percentage impact, they intuitively know it's a lousy deal and if they have a choice, they'll play elsewhere. Changing the rules of the venerable game of Blackjack is like trying to boil a frog. Toss it into a pan of boiling water and it'll hop right out. But, if you set it in a pan of cool water and gradually heat it up, it'll stay there until it's too late. Gradually is the way the casinos have to "cook" us when it comes to changing the game of Blackjack, but there's nothing to stop them from trying out new types of Blackjack-style games and that's what I'll cover. In case you're wondering, I'm also going to ignore the side bets like "Super Sevens" and so forth, because many of them have been covered in previous articles that you'll find archived on this page. If I haven't covered a sand so forth, because many of them have been covered in previous articles that you'll find archived on this page. If I haven't covered a side bet there, it's probably because the casino's edge is gigantic but I will show you a resource for finding the value of most side bets later on.

Okay, let's get started with some of the Blackjack variations you may find out there.

Super Fun 21

This is a trademarked single-deck game that was developed by a former card counter who long ago sold out to the other side. But that's neither here nor there. What's important is that SF21 has a casino edge of 0.94%, mainly because most 'naturals' ("blackjacks") pay even money, which more than offsets the favorable impact of such rules as double allowed on any number of cards, double after split, re-split and re-hit Aces, etc. That's the bad news. The good news is that the card count of a single-deck Blackjack game is very volatile; it goes up and down quickly. So, if you can operate with any kind of a decent bet spread, this game is beatable. A lot depends upon the penetration offered by the casino. It appears to be 50% at most Vegas casinos that have the game, which is marginal but if you can find a game that either deals deeper or where you can get a 1-20 bet spread, there are some $$$ to be made. A significant problem is that this game requires a special Basic Strategy and, because naturals pay even-money, the Hi/Lo count, which treats the Ace as a "high" card isn't very effective. If you're going to play SF21, the HiOpt-1 count that assigns a zero value to the Ace is a better choice. All-in-all, one would probably have to more or less specialize in this game in order to make any serious profits and how long do you think the average casino is going to let you extract $$$ on a consistent basis from what they feel is a "carnival" game? But, for those who want to try, begin by learning the proper Basic Strategy, which you can find here: http://wizardofodds.com/games/superfun21.html/

Spanish 21

I've written an article about this version of Blackjack and it's archived right here on this page. Entitled "Winning at Spanish 21", in it I outline a plan to beat this game, which in some casinos, is a better bet than their "regular" Blackjack game. I really have nothing to add to that other than give you this link, which is a list of casinos that offer good Spanish 21 games: http://www.spanish21.com/goodlocations.php

6:5 Single Deck Blackjack

Spreading like a computer virus, this version of Blackjack is a rip-off, plain and simple. For complete details, see my article, "Really Bad Blackjack", which is in the archives on this page.

Pontoon

This version of Blackjack definitely has an identity problem, so if it's available in a casino near you, be sure to check the rules so you'll know which version you've encountered. The first is really just a Spanish 21 "clone", in that the decks used have had the ten-spot cards removed (not the Jacks, Queens and Kings, just the 10s), so what I discussed in the Spanish 21 section above applies. The other version uses six or eight 52-card decks, just like "regular" Blackjack but with different rules. The biggest difference is probably that a "pontoon", which is an Ace and a 10, pays 2 to 1, as does any unbusted hand composed of five or more cards. And this includes pontoons made after splitting pairs! Two to one as a payout on those hands is great, but of course, the casinos aren't offering the game in order to lose $$$, so there's a compensating factor. The dealer wins all ties, but that's not too bad in light of the favorable rules. This version of the game is available online at casinos powered by Real Time Gaming software and it actually has a very low house edge if you use the proper Basic Strategy. That, too, is available at The Wizards of Odds site. Here's a link: http://wizardofodds.com/games/pontoon.html/

Blackjack Switch

Here we have a new version of Blackjack that is not only fun to play, but it also has a relatively low casino edge, which is probably why it's had very little success at brick-and-mortar casinos. However, it is available at online casinos, specifically those using Playtech software. Naturally, our friend, The Wizard of Odds, has developed a Basic Strategy for the game, which you can get here: http://wizardofodds.com/games/blackjack/bj_switch.html/ For a list of casinos that offer the game, go here: www.blackjackswitch.com/

Caribbean 21

Yet another game that's available only online (at least as this is being written in July, 2004), when played properly the casino's edge is downright miniscule; about that of a decent single-deck game. Casinos powered by Real Time Gaming software offer this game and, as you might suspect, The Wizard of Odds has developed a Basic Strategy, which you can get here: http://wizardofodds.com/games/caribbean/caribbean21.html/ Do not confuse this game with Caribbean Stud, which has a much larger casino edge.

Double Exposure

In this variation, which has been around for quite a few years, both of the dealer's are dealt face up. Naturally, knowing just what hand you're playing against is a huge advantage, which is offset by the casino winning all ties. You can easily see that there will be times you'll hit your 20 and hope to catch an Ace. It's a wild game, but counters can do well at it. It's available at many brick-and-mortar casinos, plus at one of our favorite online casinos, Global Player Casino. The Wiz has a Basic Strategy for the game here: http://wizardofodds.com/games/doubleexposure/doubleexposure.html/, plus it's covered in Stanford Wong's book, "Professional Blackjack".

Analysis of Side Bets

As I mentioned earlier, I've analyzed some of the Blackjack side bets (like O/U13, Super Sevens, etc.) where the skilled player can get an edge. Various other side bets pop up from time-to-time and most have a gigantic casino advantage. Before you play any of them, I suggest you check here first and if we don't have it, visit the Wizard of Odds at: http://wizardofodds.com/games/blackjack/bjapx8.html/

Finding the Games

The best listing of the Blackjack games and its major variations available at brick-and-mortar casinos here in the U.S. and Canada can be found in the monthly publication "Current Blackjack News", which is published by Stanford Wong. More information is available at his site, www.BJ21.com/

I'll see you here next time.

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