Lesson III: Rules and Advantage

Just as stores prices will vary on the same item, casino's rules will be different. Some will offer single deck while others only offer shoes. In many locations throughout the United States you are limited by the number of casinos to chose from. But if you go to Las Vegas or Reno you might as well shop around for the best rules. Why play crappy rules when you can walk next door and have an advantage. Some places even give you a slight edge off the top.

Using a baseline of single deck, double down on first two cards only, one card of split aces, dealer stands on soft 17, no surrender which gives you a edge of -.02% (for every one hundred dollars you bet you will win $49.98 and lose $50.02 ), add the following rules to come up with your local house edge

So if your local casinos had a choice of single deck double on 10 or 11 only and dealer hits soft 17 or 6 deck double after split which should you choose?

Surprisingly the 6 deck is actually a slightly better game. Remember if you are counting penetration will also have an effect on your overall win rate so don't go by rules alone. This will be discussed on another page.

Some casinos in Las Vegas actually offer a game that is to your advantage off the top. Slots of Fun offers single deck with double after split giving the player a .11% edge off the top!

How do I find the best rules in town? Before each gambling trip I take I buy a copy of  Current Blackjack News This monthly newsletter lists every casino in the country and gives its current rules, table limits and penetration. It will save you many hours of walking around looking for the best rules. It can be e-mailed to you within a day or you can get it snail mailed to you at no extra cost. It's only $10 and well worth it.