Category Archives: Blackjack

A 22-year-old from India arrives in the US to pursue a masters in computer science. Bored in the tech world, he transforms himself into a professional blackjack player, parlays his gambling skills into a Wall Street job, and embarks on a 25-year odyssey into the unforgiving world of investment banks and hedge funds. That, in a nutshell, is how my American Dream unfolded.

Peering out of a rain-streaked window of a British Airways 747 as it touched down in New York on 15 August 1985, I was filled with anticipation. To someone who had grown up in India during the turbulent 1970s, America seemed like a mythical place where anything was possible. That reputation would turn out to be richly deserved in my case.

By the time I graduated from IIT Delhi, I knew that I wanted nothing further to do with electrical engineering. I had gained admission to IIM Ahmedabad but I couldnt imagine my headstrong personality being a fit for corporate India. Instead, I trod the well-worn path from IIT to the US, to attend graduate school in computer science. Unfortunately, soon after I finished my masters degree at the University of Wisconsin, I realized that I had no interest in computers either. I couldnt bear the thought of spending the rest of my life sitting in a cubicle and punching on a keyboard all day long.

Nevertheless, I bounced around in the computer industry for a handful of years while desperately searching for something to feel excited about. I even moonlighted as a waiter at a middle-eastern cafe in Minneapolis with an eye toward opening my own restaurant.

Simple and lifechanging

It was during a weekend ski trip to Lake Tahoe that I came across the game that would change my life: blackjack. The simplicity of the game get as close to21 as possible without going over fascinated me. I had always loved mathematics and blackjack was obviously a game of numbers. The fact that counting cards could turn the odds in the players favour made the game even more enticing for me. And when I learned that casinos not only barred skilled players but sometimes had them arrested and beaten, I was filled with outrage. I decided to turn myself into a professional blackjack player, if for no other reason than to teach the casinos a lesson.

Almost without exception, my declaration was met with laughter and ridicule. Everyone around me assumed that I was a gambling junkie who was using probability theory to justify his addiction. Many even believed that it would lead to my ruin, but I was not to be deterred. For the next two years, I lived, ate, and breathed blackjack. It was no surprise that several casinos banned me, some politely and some not so politely. Consequently, I was forced to indulge in a variety of deceptions just so I could continue playing. I began using fake names, a separate one for each casino and took on the persona of a wild-and-crazy plastics importer who loved to gamble. I acted drunk despite hardly drinking and even started stealing my own chips from the table (to make it appear that I was winning less than I was). After a while, I began to enjoy this cat-and-mousegame as well.

Into the world of high finance

The life of a professional gambler was exhilarating. It was an incredibly powerful feeling to know that I had an advantage over the casinos and that, given enough time and capital, I would come out ahead. Unlike most visitors to Las Vegas, the glitz and glamour of the Strip held no attraction for me. I was in town only to play a game and to play it to the best of my ability, a principle that I would adhere to throughout my Wall Street career as well.

By the fall of 1992, I had become convinced that the rest of my life would be spent travelling the world, and playing blackjack. I could never have imagined that my gambling skills would bring me to the world of high finance.

A spur-of-the-moment trip to Manhattan brought me face-to-face with several Wall Streeters who were friends of my friends. At a midtown nightclub, they listened with rapt attention as I recounted my experiences as a professional gambler. As the evening came to a close, one of them turned to me and said, You should work on Wall Street. I laughed the idea off but, back home in San Francisco, I couldnt get Wall Street out of my head. It was, after all, the largest casino in the world. I put together a resume, placing blackjack at the top of the page and computers near the bottom, and mailed it to a few investment banks.

Lehman Brothers agreed to interview me and I used my frequent flier miles to visit New York City one more time. The firms bond traders grilled me for hours about my gambling prowess, but I was able to handle them with ease. At the end of that exhausting day, however, the Lehman bosses insisted that I submit to a public test of my card counting abilities. They removed one card from a well-shuffled deck and gave me 18 seconds to identify it. I felt like kicking myself. Earlier in the day, I had claimed that I could count a deck in as little as 14 seconds, but that was in the quiet of my apartment.

This was my first time on a Wall Street trading floor and the atmosphere made me deeply uncomfortable. My unease notwithstanding, I knew that my job prospects hinged upon successfully performing this parlour trick. So I picked up the deck, gave a nod to the timekeeper, and raced through the 51 cards. With just two seconds left on the clock, I said out loud, Its a nine. To my great relief, the trader holding the missing card turned over the nine of clubs. Shortly thereafter, I was handed a job offer.

I didnt know the first thing about finance and yet, I decided to take a gamble on Wall Street and moved to New York.

Just like a dealer

I regretted it almost immediately. As a know-nothing, I was relegated to the most menial of tasks making copies, faxing reports, and fetching breakfast for the masters of the universe. My being a foreigner didn't help, nor did the fact that I was a vegetarian. I was forced to attend countless dinners at steakhouses where I grew tired of eating salad after salad. A fellow Indian would have to bite his tongue while being mocked at a fancy French restaurant, Grow some chest hair. Eat some meat.

Making matters worse, I gradually realized that my Wall Street job was akin to being a blackjack dealer. At Lehman Brothers, I was employed by the house, the very idea of which I would have found abhorrent in Las Vegas. However, I soldiered on because I was hell-bent on figuring out a way to beat the US mortgage market just like I had done with the casinos of Nevada.

Devising a strategy that would consistently beat the market was an extremely difficult undertaking, one that would take me years to accomplish. During that time, in a repeat of my blackjack years, I devoted every spare moment to understanding mortgages. I even stayed awake many nights, twiddling my thumbs, as I tried to decipher the latest piece of the puzzle. Seven long and painful years later, I was able to come up with an investment methodology that I believed would turn the odds in my favour.

The long game

A slim 1% advantage over the casino had been enough for me to make a living from blackjack. Likewise, an even smaller edge was enough to beat the mortgage market over and over again. The key in both games was sizing bets appropriately and staying in the game long enough for the true odds to be realized. My bets in Las Vegas had been designed to limit the probability of losing my entire bankroll to under 5%. I have followed the same path on Wall Street. In an industry where everyone tries to make the greatest amount of money in the shortest amount of time, I have consistently played the long game. To the great frustration of my hedge fund bosses, my trades have been sized to minimize my chance of ruin, and not to maximize my pay. While this approach of mine has almost certainly lowered my compensation, it has also given me something far more valuable in return: peace of mind.

Despite spending three decades first beating the casinos for a hundred dollars at a time and then managing hundreds of millions of dollars on Wall Street, I have never equated success with money. Instead, I have adopted Maya Angelous definition thatsuccess is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it. I discovered early on that the key to happiness lies in playing the game well during the day and sleeping well during the night. Money is merely a side effect of a game played well, and not its primary objective. My Wall Street accomplishments creating an exceptional long-term track record of managing money and playing a key role in raising eight billion dollars for the largest hedge fund launch in history are a direct result of this conviction.

When I look back upon the past 30-odd years, I realize that my story could only have happened in America. More than any other country in the world, America rewards risk-taking and risk-takers. Devoting myself to the pursuit of becoming a professional gambler was an extraordinary risk as was the path that I followed on Wall Street spurning conventional wisdom to create my own investment method. My success in both ventures is the result of having a system, being disciplined, and operating with a large enough bankroll. If you can turn the risk/reward equation in your favour then you are no longer gambling, you are investing in your future. This basic fact holds true not only in casinos and on Wall Street, but in every aspect of life.

After a stint spent as a professional blackjack player,the author spent20 years (1999-2019) managing money for some of the largest hedge funds in the world. During that time, he achieved the feat of 103 consecutive months of positive returns, quite possibly the finest long-term track record produced by an individual in hedge fund history. He has recently authored a book that chronicles his extraordinary journey, 'Play It Right' published by Bloomsbury India

See the rest here:

Chasing the American dream as an immigrant gambler - Deccan Herald

The summer is underway and there are lots of things you can do to make use of sunny days. You can enjoy them solo, or do so with your friends. Sure you can take the gaming route and be stuck at home while yelling on the microphone, or you can meet up and play some card games.

These are some of the oldest forms of entertainment and there are plenty of such games available. If youre looking for some suggestions then have a look at these games:

This isnt your typical card game as it involves characters and cards. But the cards are filled with NSFW humor and youll follow a random story with your character. Joking Hazard is an ideal game if youre looking to enjoy some good jokes. Alternatively, you can check out the other games on this list.

Blackjack is a card game just like any other. All you need is some players and some decks of cards. You can even go forblackjack onlineas there are lots of casino sites that offer not one, but more than one variant of it. Dont worry as you dont need to play for real money when visiting such as site as any blackjack variant you come across comes with a free-play version.

If youre looking for a fantasy card game then Magic the Gathering is right up your alley. It features all sorts of creatures, magicians, witches, planes, and more. There are 5 colors of magic which are black, white, red, green, and blue which represent various elements like chaos, intellect, nature, and more. In a way, these colors represent the elements mixed with human virtues.

Each color has specific creatures and planes. Youll need the planes to summon your creatures and beat your opponents. It comes with simple rules and the cards feature gorgeous artwork. Matches are played in a 1 vs 1 format and you can have a nice tournament with your friends.

This is another fantasy game that has been around for years. It features various cards and was popularized in a manga series. It was also adapted into a TV show with numerous seasons. Its called Duel Monsters in Japanese and that pretty much sums up the game. Youll get monster cards that can attack other monsters or your opponents life points.

Youll also get magic cards that influence your or your opponents monsters and trap cards that can help you beat your rival. To find out how a game would go you can watch 1 episode of the show. Another great thing about this game is that you can play it in either a 1vs1 format or a 2vs2 format. So, the matches will be pretty interesting.

These card games will keep you and your friends occupied all summer. They are a great way to rest your eyes after youve been gaming for some time and a nice way to entertain yourself while improving your analytical skills.

View post:

The Best Card Games To Enjoy With Friends This Summer - KHTS Radio

Minigames are a staple in all video games and are a well-welcomed and cool aspect in any game they appear. Some minigames are so good that they become the highlight of the game they originate from. They are a great way to set a break in the flow of a game where the player can enjoy a unique experience if they wish.

These minigames are usually quite simple and provide good replayability for the games they are in. But sometimes a minigame is s good and has so much depth it gets a standalone game adaptation. One of these is on our list so make sure to continue reading.

In the post-apocalyptic world of Fallout: New Vegas the blackjack minigame comes as a great break from all the intense shooting and surviving. It is featured in any of the six casinos in the Mojave Wasteland. Offers a great experience to the player that is very realistic and that can earn tons of bottle caps to help on their adventure. If the game leaves you craving more you can always play more blackjack here on netti-kasino.

In the world of Skyrim, the player can find tons of loot and visit many cities thanks to the games open-world design. With visitable houses and tons of chests full of loot, the lockpicking minigame comes in when any of those are locked. It features a realistic way of feeling around the inside of the lock and the risk of snapping your picks. With many difficulties depending on the lock it is a great skill-based minigame to play.

The card game first featured in Final Fantasy VIII has made a big return in Square-Enixs successful MMO Final Fantasy XIV. The minigame has an excellent collection system in which you play the game with NPCs to earn more and better cards. As well as getting card rewards from getting achievements and doing raids and dungeons. With a great bonus of PvP and tournaments, players can participate in it is a great Minigame to play as you explore Eorzea.

A unique dice game called Orlog was created especially for Assassins Creed Valhalla. For players who need to relax and get away from the Brotherhood and Templars drama, its the ideal leisure. The game is a little challenging, but after a few games, you can figure it out. The game is so popular that it may become a standalone game in the future.

Undoubtedly the most popular minigame in recent years is Gwent, coming from one of the best games ever made. It is a crucial part of The Witcher 3 and an experience no player should miss out on. Its popularity made it get its own game adaptation a few years after the release of Wild Hunt. And has reached the presence of one of the best card games currently available.

Here is the original post:

The most popular minigames in video games of all time - PlayStation Universe

Over the wide range of video games available to all gamers worldwide, a commonly overlooked but great feature is minigames. Some of the most popular are usually similar or just ports of in-person card games. But the genre offers a possibility of a twist and addition of an advanced and fantasy element to any classic card game.

The games manage to pull off many interesting concepts and still keep the charm of the classics. A big benefit of these minigames is that they offer a great break from the game and are always great fun. Additionally, some games on our list are so good that they have gotten standalone game adaptations.

The minigame which can be played is the expansion Banned Footage Vol. 2. A twisted take on blackjack in which you dont bet with chips but with your own fingers. It puts you against many opponents and adds interesting concepts and special cards. This perfectly fits the aesthetic and eerie feeling Resident Evil 7 brings to the table.

If this incarnation of blackjack does not suit your tastes and proves too scary. You can play the traditional version of blackjack here on netti-kasino.org.

The card game was a core component of the gameplay of Final Fantasy VIII and that made its way to Square Enixs MMO Final Fantasy XIV. The game features a unique board-based card game, with the goal of holding the most cards in the end. Additionally, it features a card collecting system as you beat NPCs. So a fun goal is to 100% your collection and become a triple triad master.

Fallout: New Vegas is considered one of the best games in the Fallout series despite its age. It is a timeless classic filled with amazing card minigames, but above all the games Caravan stands as the shining jewel. The games may seem daunting at first but players get a quick hang of it and see how good the game really is.

Rockstars western game series Red Dead Redemption features a lot of card games, fitting the western aesthetic. With Poker being the most prominent being Poker, holding to the roots of the game makes it a great adaptation. Additionally, in the first game, the player has the option to cheat to win. Getting caught cheating will lead to an old-fashioned duel against the opponent, giving cheating some stakes.

By far the most popular card minigame ever made is the main card game in the witcher universe. This game is Gwent, a game where you face off against other characters in a strategy card game where you win if you have the most strength. It is fairly easy to get lost in the game and play it for hours, completely forgetting the main storyline. These aspects led to the creation of the standalone card game of the same name.

Follow this link:

The five best minigames featuring cards in video games - PlayStation Universe

Where does one trace the origins of gaming on smartphones? The earliest known game on any mobile phone is thought to be a variant of the popular puzzle game Tetris, found on the MT-2000, an early phone developed by Hagenuk in 1994. Perhaps the best known early mobile game, and one familiar to anyone who owned a Nokia during their 90s heyday, was Snake. This deceptively simple action-puzzler captivated a generation of mobile gamers eager for gaming experiences on the go. Of course, weve come a long way from there now when the first iPhone launched in 2007, it completely revolutionized the way smartphones were designed and developed.

With full color displays, touch-screen inputs and the integration of sophisticated sensors like accelerometers, a new generation of mobile app games rose to prominence on these new slate devices. From Plants vs Zombies, to Angry Birds and Fruit Ninja, these titles offered a quality of gaming never-before-seen on mobile. Still, what all these titles shared in common was a focus on casual gaming. Nobody seriously considered that smartphones, themselves, could be a viable gaming platform, especially in the wake of previous failed attempts to create a competitor to the likes of the Gameboy or enduring classic, the PSP, in the form of Nokias N-gage. Yet slowly but surely, these devices would grow more powerful, resulting in the possibility of running full console games on them locally. Suddenly it seemed as if smartphones werent merely a contender in the portable gaming space, but the leading light.

In 2017, Razer launched the Razer phone, and in-so-doing kicked off a new epoch in smartphone gaming by announcing the arrival of the dedicated gaming phone. Now, ASUS ROG Phone, Lenovos Legion Duel, Nubias RedMagic and Xiaomis BlackShark phones all crowd this space, delivering HD screens, 2 day battery lives, external cooling fans and a range of add-on peripherals from game-pads to power-banks. What these devices all share in common is a commitment to being the best possible way to play games on mobile, with their ergonomic designs and low latency displays lending peak performance to any of the diverse gaming experiences that can be enjoyed on smartphones in 2022. From blackjack, one among a host of online variants of enduring classics, to ports of 7th generation console titles like Alien: Isolation.

While these devices are certainly impressive, its clear that theyre designed to target a specific sector of the market those hardcore fans who refuse to make any compromises when it comes to gaming performance on their smartphones. As such, they have increasingly become associated with the mobile esports community. Yet their impact is being felt across the wider market, and has led to a trickle-down effect into more affordable phones. By becoming an established product category, they have sent a strong message to the wider industry that gaming on mobile is no longer a side-show, but represents the main attraction to many consumers. This fact is especially pronounced in emerging markets from Sub-Saharan Africa, to Latin America and South East Asia, where DFC Intelligence reports gamers are 1.5x likelier to use their smartphones as their primary, or sole, gaming console.

So what about the games? As mentioned above, smartphones offer the unique ability to be able to access a range of titles through their browsers and various apps, with iGaming classics able to rub shoulders with some of the most popular console games of the past 20 years, such as Half-Life 2 and Minecraft on the platform. We even now find ourselves in the previously unimaginable position of witnessing crossplay releases between mobile devices and existing consoles. Titles such as Genshin Impact launched simultaneously on iOS and Android as well as consoles and PC, redefining how people thought about mobile gaming in the process. Popular F2P titles like Fortnite increasingly experience a growing percentage of their player-base tuning in from smartphones, leading to competitors like Call of Dutys Warzone announcing its imminent arrival on smart devices. All in all, the future looks bright for mobile gaming, and should cloud gaming platforms like Xbox Cloud Gaming and Google Stadia become the dominant means by which people access titles in the future, smartphones may end up being not only a major contender in the gaming hardware market, but the leader before long.

Follow this link:

The State of Smartphone Gaming in 2022 - PlayStation Universe

The origin of blackjack remains disputed, but it is generally accepted that it first appeared in France during the 1760s when it was referred to as Vingt-et-Un or Twenty-one. Modern blackjack features a number of changes that differentiate the card game from the original and online versions of blackjack have taken the innovations to a whole new level.

There is now a wide variety of blackjack variations available online and the innovations on offer to those who play online blackjack at Paddy Power, for example, include Buster Blackjack, Cashback Blackjack, Live Majority Rules Speed Blackjack, and Live Quantum Blackjack. It is important to understand the rules of these variations on the traditional card game, so lets take a look at the blackjack games in more detail.

Buster Blackjack gives players the opportunity to place a side bet and win if the dealer goes bust, meaning loses money per Webster. The traditional rules of blackjack apply, but the innovation is that if players place a side bet, they win at 2:1 if the dealer is bust with three or four cards. If the dealer goes bust with more than four cards, they win at odds of 4:1. The chance of a big payout of 2,000:1 arises if the player gets blackjack and the dealer is bust with eight or more cards.

Cashback Blackjack is an innovative game that combines blackjack with the TV game show Deal or No Deal. The variation on traditional blackjack is that there is the opportunity to place bonus bets. Players can bet on 21+3 and cash in if the first three cards dealt in the game create a ranked poker hand, for example, three of a kind. There is also a pair bet, which pays up to 25:1 if you are dealt two of the same cards. The real innovation is that when a player has received their cards, they have the option of selecting the cashback button and they will receive an offer of cashback.

In this blackjack variant, players join forces to decide whether to hit, stand or double based on a majority vote. Players have the opportunity to bet on one or two hands and when the time comes to make a decision, players simply make their choice and wait to see what the majority of players have decided is the best course of action.

Live Quantum Blackjack follows the traditional rules of blackjack, but the game includes an innovation in the form of multiplier cards. Before each round begins, between one and three multiplier cards are revealed on the top right of the screen. The multiplier cards can multiply your wins by 3X, 5X, or 10X. If the hand you are dealt features the same card as a multiplier card, your winnings are multiplied by the specified amount. If your winning hand matches more than a single multiplier card, your prize will be increased by multiplying both multiplier cards, for example, 3X10. If you have a winning hand and it matches all three multiplier cards, your payout will be boosted by 1,000X.

Hopefully, you now understand how some of the latest blackjack variations work and you have had a chance to decide which variant would be best for you. New blackjack innovations are appearing all the time as the highly competitive online casino industry continues to develop more products. But you can also be assured that the traditional objective of getting as close to 21 as possible without going bust, will always form the main part of the game.

Featured Photo by Drew Rae

Go here to see the original:

The Blackjack Variations Giving a New Lease of Life to the Popular Card Game - UrbanMatter

Breadcrumb Trail Links

Author of the article:

The Canadian Press

Mia Rabson

OTTAWA An operations supervisor at Casino Lac Leamy told an Ottawa courtroom Thursday that former Liberal MP Raj Grewal got so agitated playing blackjack four years ago, the incident was written up in a formal security report.

This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.

Grewal was charged by the RCMP in September 2020 with four counts of breach of trust and one of fraud over $5,000. His lawyer said in a written statement Thursday two of those charges were withdrawn by the Crown on Monday, the first day of Grewals trial.

Nader Hasan said a third charge was withdrawn before the trial began.

The prospect of a trial has hung over Mr. Grewals head for a long time, Hasan said. We will present a vigorous defence over the coming weeks, and we feel confident that Mr. Grewals complete innocence on these breach of trust charges will become clear for all to see.

The trial is being heard by a judge alone, and is expected to last until late July. Grewal, who lives in the Toronto area, was in the courtroom for the trial Thursday, sitting quietly behind his lawyers.

This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.

Grewal parted ways with the Liberals in the fall of 2018 just three years after first being elected. He sat as an Independent MP for a Brampton, Ont., riding until the 2019 election, in which he did not run.

Days after his split from the Liberals, Grewal issued a video statement in which he said he had a gambling addiction and had racked up millions of dollars in debt. He claimed the debts were all repaid, adding that nothing sinister had taken place.

The RCMP launched a criminal probe into Grewals gambling in 2017 after Canadas Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre, or Fintrac, sent the RCMP some suspicious transaction reports related to Grewal.

The charges laid in September 2020 stemmed from allegations he used his position as an MP to solicit millions of dollars in loans he did not disclose to the ethics commissioner, and misused his MP office budget.

This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.

The federal ethics commissioner launched an investigation into Grewals disclosures in early 2018 but that investigation was suspended when the criminal charges were laid and will not resume until the case is concluded.

Grewal, 36, said in 2018 that he started gambling recreationally after university, and that in 2016, shortly after being elected as an MP, he began to frequent the Casino Lac Leamy in Gatineau, Que., while he stayed at the attached hotel.

He said the recreational gambling morphed into an addiction for which he sought treatment in 2018.

At the trial Thursday, Jacques Bouchard, an operations supervisor at Casino Lac Leamy, said he had seen Grewal in the casino a few times, but that on May 30, 2018, at 11:30 a.m. he witnessed Grewal playing blackjack and becoming very agitated.

This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.

He filed a security investigation report as a result of the incident. The report included some of the comments Bouchard said he overheard from Grewal, including that Grewal felt he should be winning if he got to 19 or 20 points.

Come on, have an ace, the report quotes Grewal as having said that day. Take all my money.

The report also quotes Grewal as saying, Why didnt I left after the first 100K?

Under cross-examination, Hasan got Bouchard to acknowledge that the comments in quotations may not be perfectly accurate, noting a native English speaker would not have used the grammatically incorrect phrase Why didnt I left.

Bouchard said that could be the case, but added English is not his first language. He testified in court with the use of an interpreter.

The trial continues next week.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 9, 2022.

This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.

This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.

Sign up to receive the daily top stories from the National Post, a division of Postmedia Network Inc.

A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder.

The next issue of NP Posted will soon be in your inbox.

We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try again

Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion and encourage all readers to share their views on our articles. Comments may take up to an hour for moderation before appearing on the site. We ask you to keep your comments relevant and respectful. We have enabled email notificationsyou will now receive an email if you receive a reply to your comment, there is an update to a comment thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information and details on how to adjust your email settings.

See the rest here:

Casino supervisor tells court that former MP became agitated over blackjack losses - National Post

The first thing most casino gambling beginners learn is how real money blackjack can be played perfectly using basic strategy* charts. First developed way back in the 1950s, blackjacks basic strategy is based on the cold, ineffable logic of mathematical probability.

In essence, given your own total relative to the dealers up card, every possible scenario offers up one play that is more profitable over the long run than any alternative. Most students struggle to memorize the soft hands which include an Ace, or the paired hands which can be split, but I always had trouble with the basic hard totals.

Eventually, though, I found a way to break the hard hand components of basic strategy down into eight easily remembered tricks. They worked wonders for my game, so Im happy to share them with readers hoping to brush up on their blackjack skills.

*These basic strategy tips apply to standard Las Vegas blackjack tables where the following house rules are in place:

6 to 5 payouts on blackjack; dealer must hit on soft 17; 8-deck shoe; doubling down after splitting is allowed; re-splitting aces is allowed; surrendering is not allowed

Beginning with the bottom of the blackjack hand totem pole, lets look at the lowliest* of hard starting totals 5, 6, 7, and 8.

*You can start with a 2 (A-A), 3 (A-3), or 4 (2-2 & A-3), but these arent hard hands

When you see a couple of baby cards in the hole, you dont have to do a thing but tap the table for a hit. These low hard totals basically get a free shot at improving, because no card can come which will cause them to go bust.

In most cases, youre looking for an Ace to arrive in these spots. When it does, your hard starting hand suddenly evolves into a soft total which provides more playability and even opportunities to double down against the right dealer up card.

Face cards and 10s are also a welcome sight here, turning 7 into 17 and 8 into 18.

But no matter what you draw after hitting a hard low hand, youll simply proceed by using basic strategy based on your new total.

On the other end of the hand strength spectrum, hard totals of 17 and higher are automatic stands according to the basic strategy chart.

At this point, youve already been graced by the gambling gods with a winnable starting hand so why tempt fate and try to improve further by risking an unnecessary hit? Even in the most marginal of these spots, such as hard 17 against the dealers 10, hitting just isnt worth it when you know only 2s, 3s, and 4s can save you.

At that rate, with only 12 potential improvements in each 52-card deck, youll go bust more than 75 percent of the time.

When youve been handed a gift horse in the form of a high-hard starting total, its never a good idea to look it in the mouth. Take what the deck gave you and hope the odds hold up by delivering the dealer a loss.

One of the prettiest sights in the game, aside from a natural blackjack, is a hard 11 to start the hand.

With any of the hard 11 combos 2-9, 3-8, 4-7, 5-6 in the hole, youve earned a lucrative opportunity to punish the dealer by doubling down. It doesnt matter what the dealer is showing either, even a 10 or Ace up still makes doubling on hard 11 the best play.

The reasoning here is quite simple when you remember just how many 10-value cards are in each 52-deck crammed in the shoe. Between the 10s, Jacks, Queens, and Kings, the ratio of 10-value cards in a deck stands at 16/52. In other words, youll have slightly more than a 30 percent chance of drawing a 10 to complete an unbeatable 21.

And thanks to the extra bet you must pay for the privilege of doubling down, that 30 percent probability is worth twice the potential profit.

Some inexperienced players decline to double on hard 11 against a dealers 10, mistakenly believing that the removal of a precious 10 tilts the odds against them. This is erroneous, however, so please feel free to double whenever a hard 11 hits the felt.

If you cant start with a hard 11, a hard 10 is the next best thing

With these combos 2-8, 3-7, 4-6, and 5-5* you enjoy a prime double down spot against almost all dealer-up cards.

*5-5 is technically a paired hand, but basic strategy advises playing it exactly the same as any other hard 10

Unless the dealer is showing a 10 or Ace, doubling on a hard 10 is always the right move to make.

You dont want to double on a hard 10 against a 10 because, if you do manage to hit another 10 for 20, youre still looking at a push should the dealer flip over a 10 for themselves. And against a dealer Ace, you know that one of the four Aces (in every 52-card deck) you need to make 21 has already been claimed.

Other than those two bugaboos though, doubling on hard 10 is a great way to squeeze an additional bet into your chip stack.

The only other hard total which can be doubled down on prudently is the 9 (2-7, 3-6, 4-5).

With that said, you should only double on hard 9 when the dealer has a 3, 4, 5, or 6 up. Ive found this rule is easier to remember when you think about the math needed to add up to 9. Basically, 3 + 6 = 9, and so does 4 + 5 so these are the only four dealer cards that call for a double on hard 9.

This limit is in place for a few reasons, but first and foremost, you dont want to risk an extra bet doubling against strong dealer cards of 7 or higher. Assuming they turn over a 10 on those cards, theyll simply hit and mint a winner when you fail to hit a high card.

Conversely, with a hard 9 against high cards, you can safely take a hit in hopes of improving to 19 or 20, but youre not doomed if you dont. When a small card arrives after a hit here, you can simply hit again (or follow basic strategy for that specific total), which gives you more room to try and chase down the dealers high total.

Diving into the nitty-gritty of basic strategy, hard totals of 13, 14, 15, and 16 follow a very straightforward rule to decide between standing and hitting.

Essentially, a 6 as the dealers up card provides the threshold between those two decisions. When facing a 6 or lower, standing on hard 13-16 is the proper play because it allows the dealer to go bust hitting their own weak total. Assuming they flip over a 10-value card on their 2-6, the dealer will be highly likely to go bust on their next mandatory hit.

Flipping the script, you should hit on hard 13-16 when the dealer has a 7 or higher up.

In this situation, either at a casino table or on a live dealer online game, when the dealer turns over a 10, theyll stand and automatically beat you if you stood on 13-16. Thus, taking a chance and trying to spike a small or medium card to improve your low starting total is the least bad option.

Last but not least, the most vexing of blackjack hands is a hard 12 for several reasons.

If you choose to hit, youll have a high likelihood of going bust on any 10-value card. Stand, however, and youre bringing a knife to a gunfight with a very low 12 total.

When you hold a hard 12, standing is only the right play against the dealers 4, 5, or 6. Once again, these middling-up cards make 14, 15, and 16 distinct possibilities for the dealer, and those are quick tickets to bust town when theyre forced to hit.

With hard 12 against any other dealer card, hitting and hoping for the best is the best way to dig out of the hole the deck has dug for you.

If youre attempting to learn blackjacks basic strategy, the sight of those color-coded charts divided into hard, soft, and paired hands can be daunting, to say the least. It was for me anyway, what with 340 distinct player total vs. dealer-up card scenarios in play.

For that reason, Ive always taught ambitious blackjack students to use the age-old divide and conquer approach. First, break down the chart into hard, soft, and paired hands. Next, break each of those components down into logical rules as shown above. Before you know it, youll be instantly recalling the correct play the moment your cards hit the baize.

Read more:

Hard Hand in Blackjack? 8 Simple Strategies to Deal With Them - BestUSCasinos.org

ST JOHNS, Antigua--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Whoaaa, were halfway there. Six months into the year and Juicy Stakes Casino are still delivering the biggest and best offers. This month is no different.

First and foremost, a sensational slots tournament with a $2,000 prize pool to be shared. Between now and June 13th, players can leap up the leaderboard by playing four of the finest games going.

Primal Wilderness, Lost: Mystery Chests, Triple Juicy Drops and Kensei Blades make up the foursome of favourites simply play away and pick up points with every spin. The top 16 when it all ends will cash in, with a fab $400 prize going to whoever ends up top of the slots!

Next up? Free Spins. Another bunch of brilliant slots and 270 Free Spins with your name on them. To claim, just deposit alongside the specially selected bonus codes and away you go. Once again, youve got til June 13th.

Deposit $25, use the code WATCH30 and get 30 Free Spins for Dragon Watch. Double that deposit and get double the Free Spins by using NILE60 on Sands of Egypt. To reel in 80 Free Spins for Catch and Release, deposit $75 with LINE80, and finally use GUMMY100 and a $100 deposit for a yummy 100 Free Spins on Sweet Treats 2.

And of course, whats a week without a blackjack offer? Join the Blackjack Quest this week and earn an extra $50 while you play. Hit all five in-game events and you can cash in. A natural blackjack, a colored blackjack, a club-suited blackjack and two or more blackjacks in the same sitting. Deal?

John Murphy, manager of Juicy Stakes Casino, said: Who will come out on top of our lucky leaderboard? Four great games and some great prizes for our top players.

Were proud of our casino collection here at Juicy Stakes, and its great to be able to show off our great games with events like these. Good luck to all our players lets see some big wins!

ENDS

Editors notes:

About Juicy Stakes Casino:

Juicy Stakes offers online poker and online casino games to players all over the world. Known for its generous player rewards program, the online poker room is one of the most popular sites on the Horizon Poker Network and the online casino features games from WorldMatch, Betsoft and Lucktap.

Read the original:

Climb the Juicy Stakes leaderboard to $2000 cash! - Business Wire

Gerald C. Kenny

Mesquite, NV - Gerald (Jerry) C. Kenny, 65, peacefully passed away Monday, June 6, 2022 surrounded by his children and with the love of his family in his heart.

Preceded in death by his parents, John and Jeanne Glaser Kenny, Jerry was born and raised in Rochester, NY where he worked as a construction estimator before taking early retirement. His love for the Nevada "dry" heat and Blackjack led him to Las Vegas and then eventually to Mesquite, NV around 2015.

With his love for anything motorized that could be modified to be "faster" or "better," Jerry found an incredible group of friends within the Side by Side/ UTV community. Jerry's passion for adventure by land or water led him to live out his final months traveling in his motorcoach and enjoying time on his boat with his children, sister, brother-in-law and granddaughter. Jerry's kind and generous nature will live on in the hearts of many.

Jerry is survived by his children Scott and Laurie Kenny, Granddaughter Sarah Kenny, siblings Mary Jeanne Kenny, Mike (Deborah) Kenny, Bill Kenny, Joe (Terri) Kenny, Margie (Jim) Hastings, several nieces, nephews, cousins, dear friends: Raven (Michelle) and Belle Poe, Nick Beimfohr, and Sheryl (Beau) Mosdell.

Funeral services and a celebration of life are being arranged by family at this time and will be announced at a later date.

Posted online on June 10, 2022

Published in Desert Valley Times

The rest is here:

Gerald C. Kenny Obituary - The Spectrum and Daily News - The Spectrum