I’m going to show you how to save $80,000 over your lifetime of playing blackjack. Don’t believe it’s possible to do this? Keep reading and I’ll show you how easy it is.

Let’s assume that two twin brothers, Jack and Joe, in their long lifetime of gambling, will each play 10,000 hands of blackjack per year, for 50 years (assuming 100 hands per hour, and 100 hours of blackjack per year). Their average bet will be a modest $10 per hand, playing a typical six-deck blackjack game where the dealer stands on soft 17, and double down after pair splitting is allowed. In all, they will each wager $5 million.

Jack never bothers to learn the basic playing strategy, so he plays by intuition. Over his lifetime, Jack is expected to lose about $100,000 at the blackjack tables, assuming a disadvantage of about 2%.

Jack’s twin brother, Joe, takes a different course of action. He spends a little time and learns the basic playing strategy. He also brings along a basic strategy card when he plays, so if he is not sure how to play a hand, he glances at his card for guidance. By playing basic strategy perfectly, Joe expects to lose about $20,000 over his lifetime, assuming a disadvantage of 0.4%. Compared to his twin brother, Jack, Joe saved $80,000.

If I paid you $80,000 to learn basic strategy, would you do it? Of course, you would. And that’s exactly my point; namely, memorizing the basic playing strategy has real value over your lifetime of playing of playing blackjack.

Many of you reading this article think that you know the basic strategy. Then tell me how you would play these hands. (Assume a six-deck game, dealer stands on soft 17, and doubling after pair splitting is allowed.)

1.

against

2.

  against

3,

against

4.

  against

5.

  against

6.

  against

Next question: Suppose the rules specify that the dealer must hit soft 17. Would you play any of the above hands differently? If so, which ones?

Here’s the correct way to play the above hands.

Answers

1. Hit

2. Hit

3. Hit

4. Stand

5. Split

6. Split

If the dealer hits soft 17, you should change your strategy on hand #2 (double down on 6-5 against Ace), and on hand #4 (double down on A-7 against 2).

So how did you do? If you missed a few hands, read the next section for some tips that will help you become a better blackjack player.

First, make the commitment to never play blackjack again until you learn the correct basic strategy for the game you are playing. Next, try these tips to help you master the basic strategy:

Of course, if you bet more that $10 per hand, or you don’t heed my advice and play really bad games, your lifetime losses will exceed $100,000 and, therefore, you can save even more money by learning the basic strategy.