Blackjack and video poker are the two main games of skill here at Jackpot Capital. Online blackjack play has several advantages over the game as played at land-based casinos. Let’s look into the benefits of playing blackjack online.
Jackpot Capital Offers Many Variations of Blackjack
The first advantage Jackpot Capital and most online casinos have over their land-based counterparts is that online casinos have no physical walls. That means that we can offer many variations of blackjack (and video poker as well).
Blackjack tables at a land-based casino take up a lot of space and land-based casinos prefer to use their floor space for slots as much as possible. Slots generate more revenue for land-based casinos than does blackjack.
What is the Minimum Bet at the Table?
A land-based casino may have one blackjack table and the minimum bet might be $5. So, the player who wants to play at the $2 table has no option at this casino. This is a common occurrence at land-based casinos as they need to generate revenue as we stated above. A $5 blackjack table will generate a lot more revenue than a $2 table.
How Much is a Blackjack Worth?
Many land-based casinos now pay only 6-5 for a blackjack. We pay 3-2 as we should. With best strategy, the return to player rate in blackjack at Jackpot Capital is about 99.5%. With 6-5 for a blackjack, the return to player rate at those land-based casinos that pay only 6-5 is quite a few percentage points less.
How Can a Gamer Game Blackjack?
Once we get past the attraction of land-based casinos and play blackjack online only, the next step is to fully realize that the player goes first. If the player busts, he or she loses the hand immediately. Blackjack strategy is all about maximizing the possibility of winning the hand while minimizing the possibility of busting.
We will see that on many hands the player has to hit even though he or she could bust with a high card. Hitting in these situations maximizes the possibility of winning to a greater degree than it also adds to the possibility of busting.
If the return to player rate is about 99.5% with correct strategy, then a gamer can expect to average one win and one loss for every two hands. If the best strategy is to hit with 12 or more points and the player does not do so, he or she is lowering their expected value for the session as a whole.
Blackjack is a Game against the Dealer
The dealer deals the cards and represents the house. The dealer has to follow the house rules for that game. He or she makes no decisions at all. The dealer might have to stand with a soft 17 or he might have to hit with a soft 17. This is not a decision the dealer makes; it is embedded in the rules for that game.
At a land-based casino, there could be seven players at the table. They are paying against the dealer, not against each other.
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How Does the Player Decide What to Do?
The first thing is to look at their own cards and then look at the dealer’s up card. In many instances, the player will do one thing if the dealer’s up card is good for the player and will do something else if the dealer’s up card is not fortuitous for the player.
The most common example is when the player has 12 points. A ten-point card will lose immediately for the player so he is naturally hesitant to hit with 12 points. However, if the dealer has a 7 through an ace, there are so many ways the dealer can win against 12 points that correct strategy is to hit with 12 points in that case.
The same can hold true if the player has 13 or 14 points.
Land-based Blackjack Players Often Stand with 12 Points
It is a cliché of sorts but a majority (so it seems) of blackjack players at a land-based casino will stand with 12 points no matter what the dealer is showing. In fact, it often happens that a player who does hit with 12 points will be blamed for the other players’ losses even though the first player made the statistically correct decision.
This is yet another reason why online blackjack is better than blackjack at a land-based casino.
Follow the Strategy Chart for the Blackjack Variation You are Playing
There are strategy charts for every variation of blackjack. At first, these charts are a bit difficult to read. So, print one and study it before you play blackjack the next time. Once you have gone through all of the general permutations, you will be able to use the strategy chart to your advantage.
A blackjack strategy card has elements of the multiplication tables we learned in second grade. At the top are the possible up cards for the dealer. To the left are soft hands, hard hands, and pairs. The player’s possible hands are all listed in the chart.
The strategy as shown in the strategy charts will become quite obvious as you go along. The correct strategy may seem odd in a few cases. In these cases, the difference between the recommended play and the more “obvious” play may be a very small fraction of a percent but the recommended play is still the statistically stronger play.
More Advantages of Playing Blackjack Online
There are other advantages to online blackjack play that are ancillary to game play strategy. Here are a few such advantages:
- No alcohol during the game. At a land-based casino the alcohol, if offered, is free. The casino knows that even a single drink will lower gamers’ cognitive ability which translates into more poor decisions on the gamer’s part.
- No distractions. At a land-based casino, there are many distractions going on all the time from the noise emanating from the roulette and craps tables to the hectoring a player makes when another player plays correctly to people in sexy clothes showing themselves off.
- Online casinos are available all the time. This means that a big fan of blackjack can play every day. They don’t feel the need to play on and on as many players at land-based casinos do feel.
- Short sessions are more satisfying than marathon sessions. This is a corollary of the point made above.
- Online gamers never have to tip the dealer.
Graphics and Animation in Blackjack
While the graphics and animation in slots rule the roost, most gamers think of graphics and animation in online blackjack as of little importance. That is a mistaken belief!
The graphics and animation in blackjack make the game more attractive. That means that a player will enjoy a 30-60 minute session in blackjack a lot more than he or she would enjoy the session if the graphics and animation were poor.
Enjoy Gaming at Jackpot Capital
Jackpot Capital has great games, great promotions, top bonuses, and these articles that we write with you, our gamers present and future, in mind.
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