A Blackjack Card Counting Aid Application Worries Casinos

Casinos are now worried of i-Phone application that said to make card counting more accessible to the average blackjack players. Because of this Nevada’s Gaming Control Board has released a warning to counterfeit the situation.

Based on the release, the Northern California Tribal Casino originally caught the wind of the program known as” A Blackjack Card Counter”. The card-counter application was said to be down-loadable and in i-Pod Touch.

Released on Jan. 15, the application gives users a choice of four card-counting strategies and calculates “significantly more accurate” according to the Gaming Control Board.

One of the board member, Randall Sayre of the Nevada Gaming Control Board with the memorandum that circulated to casinos, sounded an alarm about this Blackjack Card Counter. The i-Phone application sells for $1.99 on Apple Inc.’s App Store.

This program can be utilized by either the Apple i-Phone or the Apple i-Pod Touch portable music player. Once this is installed this will make card counting so easy. It’s currently being advertised with an “As Seen on CNN” stamp for $1.99.

Among the application’s features is a “Stealth Mode,” which shuts off the i-Phone screen - making the phone appear to be turned off. However, the user can still continue to track cards by pressing the screen at the spots where the keys would normally show.

“Computer world” reports that Blackjack Card Counter is not the only app for card counting on the App Store. The rival “Card Counter,” a “card-counting practice program”, sells for $2.99. Card Counter is more popular than Blackjack Card Counter; the former is currently No. 30 on the App Store’s list of best-selling games.

Counting cards with a device is a felony under Nevada law and is punishable by prison terms of between one and six years, or a fine of no more than $10,000, for the first offense.The use of this device with the intent in gaming establishment, is a violation.

Options for a Blackjack Game

Taking insurance
Insurance gives you the possibility to protect yourself when you think that the dealer might have a Blackjack. You place half of your initial bet by pressing the ‘Insurance’ Button. If the has got a Blackjack, you are paid 2 to 1 on your insurance bet. If the dealer does not have a Blackjack, the insurance bet is lost.

Splitting
If your opening cards have the same point value, you may split them into two separate hands by placing a second bet of the same size as the original bet. You then proceed to draw cards a usual. You can draw as many cards as you like on each of the two hands, unless you split two aces. In these cases you receive only one additional card for each ace. If you split two aces and one of your hands totals 21, it is counted as 21 and not a Blackjack. Any two ten value cards can be split, for example a jack and a king. In general the casino will also allow you to re-split after the original split. For example, if you split two sevens and get another seven as the second card of one of those two hands you can split this hand again play on with three hands. Keep in mind that some casinos have limits on re-splitting aces.

Doubling/Doubling down
When you are dealt two cards, and think that one more card will be enough to beat the dealer, you can increase your bet by an amount up to your original bet or double your bet. This play is called doubling or doubling down. Once you decide to double you must hit once more; you can’t stand and you are not allowed to take more than one more card. For example, you may be dealt a 6 and a 5 for a total of 11. You can now choose to double down, hoping to get a 10 value card (the most frequent value card in a fresh deck). The casino house rules for doubling down vary. In some casinos you’re only allowed to double down on 10 and 11 totals while others allow doubling down on any two-card total. Some casinos allow it only on original hands and not split hands, while others allow doubling down after splitting as well.

Winning payouts in Blackjack
• A winning hand pays 1 to 1      
• Insurance pays 2 to 1      
• Blackjack pays 3 to 2

The Online Blackjack Strategy Card

The online blackjack game begins with the player being dealt two cards and the dealer being dealt one card face up. The player can see both his cards and one of the dealer’s cards. The player then has to make his moves. The most common of them are whether to stand (not take another card) or hit (take another card). However, there are other moves like split, double down, surrender and insurance. If the player makes the correct moves then he can achieve an average payout ratio of very close to 100%. With wrong moves the average payout ratio falls drastically.

Therefore it is essential that blackjack players are aware of the correct strategy. Unfortunately correct blackjack strategy cannot be figured out on the spot. It has been developed by simulating a very large number of blackjack hands on the computer. The strategy therefore has to be known. There are two major factors that govern the blackjack strategy. One is the value of the dealer’s open card. The other is the current hand value of the player’s cards. This has resulted in an easy way of representing the blackjack strategy in a matrix form. The columns of the matrix represent the value of the dealer’s open card. The rows of the matrix represent the player’s current hand value. Therefore each cell in the matrix represents a combination of the two major factors that govern blackjack strategy. Each cell instructs the player what move he should make given the situation represented by that cell. This matrix is known as the blackjack strategy card.

The blackjack strategy card is very easy to read. For example the dealer’s open card is a four and the player holds a seven and a six giving a hand value of 13. The corresponding cell on the strategy card will say “stand”. This means that the optimum move for the player is to refuse another card. Usually the blackjack strategy card is coded. It does not carry the complete instruction. It would probably use the letter S for “stand” and the letter H for “hit” and so on. The strategy card is color coded as well. The cell may have a yellow background for “stand” and a red background for “hit” and so on. While playing at land casinos players cannot take the strategy card with them. But while playing blackjack at online casinos players can keep a strategy card in front of them and make moves accordingly. There are several online blackjack sites that offer strategy cards in downloadable formats.

It must be stated that though the dealer’s open card and the player’s current hand value are by far the most important determinants of blackjack strategy, they are not the only factors. Several minor factors also come into play. Some of these are the number of decks used in the game and whether or not the dealer is allowed to hit on a total of soft 17. It is impossible to include all these factors in the blackjack strategy card. Therefore separate cards have been developed for separate rules and players should use the appropriate cards to the extent possible. It must also be stated that variations in the minor factors would affect only a few of the cells of the blackjack strategy card and therefore not much will be lost if the exact strategy card is not available.

A Background of a Blackjack Tournament

The world of the blackjack tournament is certainly and exciting one, and as the popularity of poker tournaments has taken off, blackjack tournaments have followed suit. Particularly in the past five years, the blackjack tournament has grown and evolved, and these blackjack tournaments are especially popular with many younger players.
Part of the fun of a tournament is that the players get to compete with one another, and for many players the bragging rights of winning a big name tournament is nearly as important as the big cash jackpot.
There are many reasons why blackjack tournaments are so exciting, for players and spectators alike. For one thing, the typical blackjack tournament features either a time limit or a fixed number of hands to be played. In addition, there is typically a restriction on the amount of money to be used in play.
The players are generally eliminated from the blackjack tournament after they have lost the original amount with which they started. Participants in the blackjack tournament are not permitted to replenish their losses with additional money, and after the initial bankroll has been lost they are out of the tournament.

The time limit for the blackjack tournament is usually two hours per playing session. Since it is very difficult to put together a true strategy in this limited amount of time, especially when playing against some of the best players in the world of blackjack, luck and timing have a big role to play.
The object of the tournament is to beat the dealer, and to beat the other players at the table. There is one winner per table, and the player who wins the first round will advance to the next round and so one. The players who lose the first round are about of the game.
In order to keep the game fair and keep everyone honest, all players are required to keep their chips visible to other players, and at the end of each round, each player gets to keep the chips that are in front of him or her. This means that even if the player loses the rounds and must leave the tournament, he or she may still be ahead in terms of cash.
At the end of the third round, the players who are left compete in the championship playoff and they are eligible to win the biggest prizes. The winner of that championship playoff wins a great deal of cash, a lovely trophy and of course bragging rights

Blackjack Etiquette

Every pastime has its own rules of etiquette, and blackjack and other casino games are certainly no exception. Many would be blackjack players are intimidated by nonstop action of the blackjack table, and fearful of making an embarrassing mistake. This article focuses on some basic rules of blackjack etiquette.
The cards will be dealt by the dealer, and the rules for who can touch the cards will vary. In some casinos, the cards are all dealt face up, and only the dealer may touch the cards. In other casinos, the cards will be dealt face down, and the players may examine the cards. If the players can examine the cards, however, they must never leave the sight of the dealer.
After the cards have all been dealt, the dealer will act on each hand. The dealer will point to each player when it is their turn to act. If you want another card, this is indicated by scratching the table with your hand. The hand signal must be given, since the security cameras must be able to record the game.
If you do not want another card, this is indicated by waving your hand with the palm down. This signal is also an indication that you have decided to stop accepting more cards.
In games where the players hold their cards, scraping the table with the edge of the cards is the way to indicate you want another card. When you are satisfied with your hand, you should slide the cards under the chips in the betting circle.
If the total of your hand exceeds 21, you lose automatically, and the dealer will remove your cards and your chips. When playing the hand held game, the cards should be turned over right away if the player has gone over 21.
At the end of the hand, the totals of the cards will be compared, and the player who is closest to 21 wins. If the dealer’s hand is closer to 21 than yours, you lose. If there is a tie, known as a push, no one wins or loses. If the dealer has not busted, he or she will pay the winners and remove the losers’ chips.

Blackjack Betting Strategies

Learning blackjack betting is an extremely important task if you want to become a serious blackjack player. There is much more to blackjack betting than sticking your chips out on the table. There are lots of different blackjack betting systems and strategies you might be interested in using. We recommend to understand blackjack betting you start by learning about blackjack betting systems.

Blackjack betting systems are designed to help your blackjack game by using betting as a strategy. The best betting system available in blackjack is to use card counting and fluctuate your bets according to the count. However, many other betting systems exist. The following links describe, in detail, several different types of blackjack betting systems:

• Paroli Betting System

The Paroli betting system is a positive progression system and is considered to be the opposite of the Martingale system. In the Paroli betting system, you start with betting one unit. If you win the first bet you increase your next bet, instead of decreasing your next bet.

• Parlay Betting System

This system is based on pyramiding your profit. Pyramiding is a wager where your original bet plus your original winnings are used for your future bets. To use this system, you simply start by making a bet of any size. If you win with this initial bet, you use the original bet and profit (or some of it), to place your next bet with.

• 1-3-2-6 Betting System

The name of this system, the 1-3-2-6 betting system, really explains it all. It’s a system based on the betting pattern 1 unit, then 3 units, then 2 units, then 6 units. This type of blackjack betting system is based on the Paroli system and it’s based on the premise that you can win 4 times in a row.
This system is a positive progression betting system which means you increase the betting amount when you win.

• Martingale Betting System

Using the Martingale system, you start by betting 1 unit. Every time you win a bet, you start all over again with 1 unit. If you lose the bet, you double the betting amount. You continue to double each bet you lose until you finally win a bet. After finally winning a bet, you start back over with the original betting amount of 1 unit.
By using this system, you are guaranteed a profit of one betting unit when you finally win a bet. This system will always turn a small profit unless you lose an infinite number of times.

• Labouchere Betting System

This blackjack betting system is considered to be a negative progression system. There are many different variations of the Labouchere betting strategy but we will look at it in simplest form.
You begin by writing down a series or set of numbers such as 1 2 3 4 5 6. This string of numbers doesn’t have to be sequential and can short or long. For example, the set of numbers 1 1 1 3 2 5 8 would also work fine. The choice of the series of numbers you choose varies depending on what game you are playing and what odds you are getting.
Each number in the betting series that you create represents the amount in units or chips that you are going to bet. You add up the first and last numbers in the series and that is the amount of units you will bet.
If you win the bet, you cross out these numbers and move along to the new first and last numbers in the series. Once you have rotated through your entire series of numbers by winning each bet, you have completed one full cycle and you then start over from the beginning.
If you lose the bet, you write the number you were betting (the first and last numbers added together) at the end of the series of numbers. You are tacking on a new number to your betting series for every bet you lose.

Blackjack Can Still be Beaten

All businesses need to make a profit to stay in business, and the bigger that business is, the more pressure there is to increase profits year in and year out. If you have stockholders the pressure to increase profits becomes monumental.

Casinos are big business - they are some of the biggest businesses in the world today. And they want to make as much profit as they can. Many casino companies have shareholders and these companies have to keep increasing their profit year after year. And little increases are not all that welcomed. Hungry shareholders want more and more.
That means each and every game must make the casino money and every year the casinos expect them to make more money than the year before. And, thankfully for them, each and every game does make them money, although not each and every game comes through each and every year with increased profits. We are now seeing some interesting changes in the gaming landscape - one very good and one very bad. Vegas is heralding these changes but you will soon see them in Atlantic City, Tunica, Biloxi and the Midwest.
Blackjack is a wonderful example of a game that started off in the 1940s and 1950s a far distant second behind the lion-king of craps, but with the publication in the 1960s and 1970s of card counting systems intended to beat the game, blackjack zoomed into the stratosphere. While hundreds of thousands of players now knew that blackjack was beatable and flocked to the tables, only a few hundred had the savvy, discipline, knowledge and bankroll to actually gain the edge over the house. It wasn’t smooth, however, because the casinos panicked.

When it first came to light that blackjack could be beaten, the casino executives immediately changed the rules of the game and added multiple-deck games. That panicked reaction first resulted in decreased play as blackjack players could see that they were losing more playing the same way as they had before. The new rules were rotten, the multiple-deck games torturous. If a player loses more, the tendency on many players’ parts is to stop playing. So the casinos put back all the old rules, although they did keep the multiple-deck games in their inventory, and blackjack profits then soared into the blackjack-o-sphere.

Today blackjack has five times as many players as does craps. Only those infernal slot machines have surpassed blackjack in the moneymaking category but that’s another story. Blackjack is the king of the table games.

Rules in Playing Las Vegas BlackJack

Blackjack is a real emotional gambling game, which is played almost in all casinos all around the world. Black jack is a real game for real people who love real money. You should know that while playing this unpredictable game your emotions are very hot, adrenaline runs through your vain from rate to rate, from distribution to distribution, from a victory to a loss. That’s why only hot-tempered people play this exciting game. The most important place of gambling games: blackjack and others are is Las Vegas. You can join Las Vegas Blackjack tournaments to have a lot of fun. They say that Las Vegas is a holy place of hazardous players and its God is Fortune. Almost all blackjack players believe in fortune and pray for it because it helps people to win and to have a great rich future! If you want to take part in Las Vegas Blackjack tournaments you have to study hard and to learn all blackjack rules and strategies.The process of winning at blackjack is long, but exciting. To know how to win at blackjack you have to know its basic principles and rules. So, blackjack is played with 312 cards. You can play doubling, splitting, surrender or insurance. Now we want you to learn information on rates and ways to make them correctly. This information will be very useful for people who dream of playing at gambling tournaments. So, it isn`t permissible to put in a box more than three rates from different players, but the total sum of rates must not exceed the maximum, which is established for a present table. In a case if some payers play on the one box (score-table), a dealer discerns only their general rate and plays only with that player (one), whom the rest of players can trust the game to. It is forbidden to change the rates or take them by hands after the first card has appeared. The minimum quantity of playing boxes on the table is 1, and the maximum depends on the quantity of the signed boxes on the table. One player can play on some boxes (this rule can be variable for some casinos). Every owner of a box chooses the quantity of cards and a type of the game continuing by himself. In no circumstances he can have a great influence of other players. you have to have a great and rich experience. Annual tournaments take part every gamble season. Black jack tournaments collect a lot of people all over the world who want to look at such an exciting show. Tournaments consist of series of games with different level of rates, because someone can make a rate of 200 Euro and someone can gamble his 10 000 Euro. Every blackjack tournament has its special peculiarities. Every tournament is held in some of Las Vegas casinos and excites everything around it. Winners win great prizes, great amounts of money and get great unforgettable feelings and emotions.