Category Archives: General

General

A Brief History of Blackjack

May 12, 2014 – 10:27 pm

Blackjack has become one of the most popular games played in online casinos over the last decade or so, but when and where did the game actually originate? Read on for a brief history of blackjack and an introduction of this fascinating and enthralling game. Then choose from any of our recommended online casinos to play USA online blackjack.

The origins of the game of blackjack that we know and love today are steeped in mystery and folklore, but research has suggested that it is an adaption from the game of “21” which came from France and spread to Spain and other parts of Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries. This game in turn appears to have grown out of others which pre-dated it, notably “quinze” (meaning “15” in French) which was also known as Ace-low and was popular in France in the 17th century.

The oldest game to which blackjack bears a remarkable resemblance, however, is the Spanish game “trente-un” (meaning “31”), which was referenced by a priest way back in the year 1440 and – more famously – by Miguel de Cervantes in 1570. Either way, all these games were similar in that they involved players using the value of their cards to get as close as possible to a specified total.

As many Europeans emigrated from Europe to America, they brought the game of 21 with them, and it soon gained new rules which made it more interesting and – crucially – more winnable. Notably, players were now able to see the dealer’s first card before deciding what to do with their own hand, something that wasn’t allowed in the European versions of the game.

Another innovation when the game came to America, that was introduced around the time of the First World War, was the addition of bonuses for hitting certain combinations of cards, such as when being dealt an ace of spades and either a jack of spades or a jack of clubs (which is where the name blackjack comes from).

Since then, there have been all sorts of additional rules and variations on the game that sometimes work in the players’ favor and sometimes help the dealers. One thing is for sure, though: you certainly have more of a choice than they did in 17th century France, and with many of the online casinos featured on this site offering excellent welcoming bonuses for blackjack players, we suspect you also have a much better chance of making a big profit too.

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General

Is Insurance the Right Bet?

November 4, 2013 – 10:11 pm

This could be a really short feature and I won’t mess around, the short and deliciously simple answer is… no. You should never, ever take insurance when playing blackjack, be that online, in Vegas or anywhere else.

The logic and reasoning is down to very simple math and the fact is that by taking insurance you give the house a huge edge of around 6% depending on what variant of the game you are playing.

With the dealer needing a card worth 10 to make blackjack there are just four cards that can hurt you, a 10, jack, queen or king, while there are nine cards that will leave the dealer still playing. Given insurance pays out at 2/1 it is plain and simple a bad bet based on the probabilities of the cards.

Unless you are a professional card counter and know the deck is stacked with 10s you should never take insurance if you want to win at online blackjack. This applies to the same degree whether you are holding 17, 12 or 20. In fact, ironically, taking insurance on a hand with one or (especially) two 10-value cards is the worst value bet of all. Without the need for card counting, you know that there are one or two 10s the dealer has no chance of hitting – the ones in front of you!

Another thing you should never do is take even money if you are already holding blackjack. Many players favour the certainty of an even money payout but over time this will cost you money. Again, it’s simple math and will lose you around 4% of the value of your hand (bet) in the long-term.

These are very simple things to remember and if you can’t be bothered to learn perfect basic strategy or – easy if you are playing online blackjack, keep a blackjack strategy chart handy – then just remembering these things will help you out.

Another very simple strategy to follow is always hit on less than 17 if the dealer is showing a seven or above. That is probably the simplest basic principle of blackjack but it’s amazing how often you see players standing on 16.

Blackjack is a great game to play at an online casino and with amazing free bets, bonuses and promotions, if you’re prepared to learn a few basic rules you have a great chance of profiting as well as having fun.

See our recommended USA online blackjack casinos and claim a great bonus.

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General

Playing to Win at Online Blackjack

September 5, 2013 – 11:40 pm

Online blackjack has increased in popularity in recent years thanks to the ease with which the games can be played and understood. But the vast majority of players around the world appear to neither understand the game nor play it sensibly, that is to give themselves the best chance of actually winning. While some high-rolling superstars might not care one way or the other whether they win or lose, for most of us the very point of playing is to go after a profit. So read on to find out how to increase your chances of winning when playing USA online blackjack.

One of the main appeals of the game of blackjack is that players have the power to decide what they do, in terms of whether they hit, stand, split or double. Knowing when to do each of these things to optimize your chances of beating the dealer is complicated as the rules vary between online casinos and indeed between the various versions of blackjack many of them offer. The number of decks used, whether the dealer must stand or hit on a soft 17, whether doubling up is allowed after splitting cards and other factors affect what your optimum strategy should be.

If all this sounds like far too much hassle to calculate, fear not: the Blackjack Basic Strategy is there to help you cut through the probabilities and permutations and give you the answers you seek. This strategy will minimize the house edge the casino gets from online blackjack, giving you the best mathematical chance of success. The casino will almost always retain an edge, meaning they will always win over the long term, but you can give yourself the best chance of short term gains this way.

Following the Basic Strategy, for instance, when two packs are used, the dealer stands on a soft 17, doubling after splits is allowed and surrenders are not, you would always stand on hard 17 and above, and would also stand after hitting as low as a hard 12 if the dealer card is a four, five or six. You would also hit on a soft 18 (against the instinct of many players) if the dealer’s card is a nine, 10 (including picture cards) or ace.

There are tables published on many casino sites for literally thousands of variation of rules, so the key to following the Basic Blackjack Strategy effectively is to know the rules of the particular online blackjack game you are playing. Oh, and be sure to make use of the all the bonuses and promotions you can get your hands on.

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General

What Not to do Playing Blackjack

August 8, 2013 – 8:30 pm

Blackjack is one of the best games to play in an online casino because it is easy to understand, great fun and (best of all) has a very low house edge (the casino’s profit margin on the game). Depending on the exact rules of the variant of blackjack you are playing the house edge can be as little as 0.5%, or even less, meaning that if you played 100 hands at $10 a hand you would expect, on average, to be just $5 down. Obviously with a little luck or a generous casino bonus you could be up, but that would be the average expectation, blackjack bonuses aside.

However, to achieve that sort of result you need to be playing according to the mathematically proven rules of basic strategy. In any given situation there is a correct call, whether it is to hit, split, stand, double down or whatever. These “rules” are fairly easy but memorizing every call can be quite tricky. Obviously playing blackjack online there is no need to memorize it, you can easily have a basic strategy guide on hand but even so, many players prefer to use their own simpler strategies. Use our blackjack strategy chart to know when to hit, stand, split etc. to make sure you are playing with the best odds in your favor.

One such method of playing blackjack, which is very, easy is to simply follow the dealer. That is to say, always hit on 16 or lower and always stand on 17 (including soft 17) and higher, without ever doubling or splitting. While this is a simple way of playing and won’t require any charts or guides, it also has a fairly catastrophic impact on the casino’s house edge (from the player’s point of view). Playing this way puts the house edge up to around 5.5% – more than 10 times higher than playing basic strategy.

Another option that some players favour for its simplicity is to make sure they never bust and so always have a chance of winning. This means standing on any “hard” hand of 12 or higher and fares marginally better (assuming other calls employ basic strategy) but the casino’s advantage still rises significantly to around 4%.

The message is clear though – if you’re going to play blackjack online, make sure you play at a casino with a generous bonus, good loyalty scheme and, most of all make sure you play the optimum strategy and follow the strategy chart. The Diamond VIP and Grand Parker Casinos have great blackjack bonuses and both allow USA players for USA online blackjack. See our Diamond VIP review and claim up to $10,000 in bonuses for blackjack.

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General

Playing Online Blackjack from the USA

June 27, 2013 – 7:04 pm

Playing blackjack online is one of the most popular casino options for many people. It’s not quite as glamorous as actually being in Vegas itself but it’s not far away! It’s still a lot of fun, with masses of excitement and a great chance of making a profit. Best of all, you don’t even need to leave the house and you can take advantage of huge bonuses that you won’t get in Vegas or at any land-based casino.

For the best USA online blackjack we recommend picking a casino that matches your needs. Some, such as Grand Parker, are good all-rounders, with huge sign-up bonuses, great deposit options for US players, a dedicated Mac version and nice game play. Others may be better for smaller stakes players, whilst some, such as BetOnline are great for people who like to play online blackjack but still like a real, live dealer.

The two most important things about the online casinos that we feature here is that they all welcome players from the USA and they are all great places to play online blackjack. These are the casinos we use ourselves because they are simply the best places to play online blackjack in the USA.

If you’ve never played online blackjack before then why not sign up today and give it a try? Of all the casino games you can play, blackjack has one of the smallest house edges going. Depending on the exact rules of whichever version of blackjack you opt for – and the different casinos offer a huge variety of slightly different blackjack variations – the house edge can be less than 0.5%. In real terms that means that if you played 1,000 hands at a $1 a pop you would “expect” to be down by just $5.

The house edge is effectively the casino’s profit margin and if you play to the correct strategy, called basic strategy and mathematically the best way to play, you minimise your chances of losing.

Of course, in the short term you would have a great chance of actually winning, and even more so when you factor in the amazing bonuses (up to $5,000) and promotions offered by the best online blackjack casinos in the USA. Throw in loyalty schemes and good old lady luck and not only could you have great fun, you could also make a nice little profit and hey, maybe even earn enough for a trip to Vegas!

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General

Blackjack Strategy and Poker

February 5, 2013 – 3:00 pm

Any good blackjack player knows the importance of using a solid strategy when playing blackjack either online or at a traditional casino. Strategy can make all the difference between having an OK or losing day to winning a great deal of money. Blackjack and poker have some things in common with the biggest commonality being math. Math plays an important part in both games.

Math is of of the “trues’ in the crazy world we live in. Right is right and wrong is wrong. This is no gray area and math does not change or lie. When you are playing Blackjack or poker it is a game of probabilities. In either game you can simulate hundreds upon hundreds of hands and determine what the odds of a particular card or cards will be next and we have done a simulation which shows this.

We have put together a blackjack strategy chart that tells you what the odd are for playing a particular hand. Check it out as it is an easy reference to determine when to hit, stand, double or split. We do not believe in surrender and have not included that option on the chart. There is also a printable version of the chart available so that you can keep in your wallet or purse and reference it while you are even playing at a land based casino.

While math also plays an important part in poker, it is less relevant than in blackjack. It is important to know pot odds and implied odds when playing poker, but skill is a very important part of poker. Being able to “read” your opponent and make moves whether it is slow rolling, betting aggressively or entirely bluffing is a huge part of poker. Unlike Blackjack it takes some time to truly learn how play solid poker. If you are new to the game play at low limit tables and small buy-in tournaments to start. Do not play for free as the game is entirely different than real money play.

Check out our Blackjack strategy chart mentioned above and play USA online blackjack. It is a great reference and you will see your winning streaks become longer and losing streaks become shorter. While your in the strategy section of our website there is also an article regarding progressive betting. It is worth checking out to maximize you winning streaks.

After you have mastered blackjack try online poker and test your skills. If you entirely new to the game be sure to start small. As you gain some experience and sharper your skills you can move on to higher stakes tables. If you live in United States there is a great listing of USA online poker sites on our sister site Play USA Online Poker. On that site you will also find a huge amount of information to sharpen your poker skills.

As we post more strategy articles we post them here in our news section first so check back often.

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General

Betting on Sports

January 22, 2013 – 1:40 pm

This is a great time of year for sports betting. We have the Super Bowl coming up in less than 2 weeks, the NHL season is finally under way after the lock out and the NBA and NCAA basketball season is in full swing. Betting on sports is not only an adrenaline rush while you are watching the game, but you can be a successful bettor and make money over the long term if you have the proper information. Anyone can have a good weekend, but to win consistently over a long period of time, information is the key.

Any successful sports bettor will tell you it is hard work to pick winners on a consistent basis. The amount of information available through the Internet is a huge advantage these days and must be taken advantage of. Researching and examining the information can be a full time job and if you work a regular 9-5er chances are you do have the time it requires to do so. To fully examine and handicap a full slate of games can take hours upon hours.

Luckily there are programs and tout services out there that do scour the Internet and have contacts in the front office that do pick winners for a living. If you are even a weekend warrior these services have a wealth of information available to them and are most likely much more informed than you are. They take sports betting seriously and treat it as a full time job.

The best of these services are not free by any means and the good ones can be quite expensive but if you are betting several hundred dollars over a weekend they can quickly pay for themselves. Remember the old adage you get what you pay for. Stay away from 1.800 services because you want an actual human being tell you who to pick. Many services will have dedicated account managers and they will be the only rep you speak to when they are offering their picks. Some services will give you free picks to start so you can see what they are capable of.

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General

Playing Blackjack in the United States

January 17, 2013 – 5:27 pm

Many believe that playing online Blackjack from the United States is illegal but that is just not the case. While the United States government did pass laws inhibiting online gambling from Americans, they did not actually make playing at an nline casino illegal – at least to the best of our knowledge.

The US government passed the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) back in 2006 but this did not make online gambling illegal. Rather it made it illegal for US banking institutions and offshore gambling outfits to knowingly process money transactions for gambling purposes. This was their attempt to stop untaxed money flowing overseas and generating revenue which they could not tax.

In response to the UIGEA some online casinos, poker room and sportsbooks decided to no longer allow USA players. The main reason for this was that the ones who did decide to stop allowing US players were publicly traded companies and many of them were traded on the London Stock Exchange. Because they were a public company they knew that the consequences could be bad especially in the eyes of the public and shareholders they dedcided to disallow US players.

Other casinos, poker rooms and sportsbooks which were privately owned decided to continue to allow existing players and accept new USA players as well. Because they were incorporated and licensed in countries outside the United States they feel they do not need to abide by US laws. After all do US companies abide by foreign laws?

The banking institutions in the United States also tried and continue to identify if a transaction is gambling related. If it is and they know it is most likely they will not honor it. This is the reason why your credit card is declined many times. But because the banks cannot look at every transaction and some casinos have processors that also feel they do not need to abide by US law, some casinos do a great job getting credit card deposits approved. For this reason you can still get deposits approved and play Blackjack online.

So if you want to play online blackjack from the United States you just need to find a USA friendly casino. If the casino accepts USA players chances are they get your credit card deposit approved or offer other methods to fund your account.

Again playing Blackjack online is not illegal to the best of our knowledge. We are not lawyers but all the research we have done suggests that playing online blackjack is not illegal. The onus is on the banking institutions and the actual online casinos are they are the only ones that could get into any trouble by allowing USA residents to play.

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General

Play Smart Blackjack

January 16, 2013 – 10:09 pm

Blackjack is the most popular casino game not only at land based traditional casinos but at online casinos as well. The reason for its popularity is that it is a fairly easy game to learn and play. Be careful though because there is some strategy that should be used when playing blackjack. It is not as easy as hitting to 21 or simply beating the dealer. There are odds involved and if played properly the casino edge can be reduced to make blackjack one of the more profitable games in the casino.

The main point to playing blackjack is that it does not matter what cards you have. The most important card on the table is the dealers up card. When playing blackjack you should assume the dealer has a 10 as his hole card (card facing down). If the dealer has a 10 up you assume he has 20. If he has a 6 up you assume he has 16. Always figure that the dealer has a 10 as his hole card. It is amazing how many players do not grasp this concept. How you play your cards is dependant 100% on what the dealers up card is.

If the dealers up card is a 6 or lower you know he has to hit and your strategy should be to let him bust (go over 21). Looking at your cards if there is anyway you can bust by hitting you should stand. This is hard for some people to understand, but if you have 13 and the dealer has to hit, your best bet is to stand and let him bust. If the dealer has a 6 up and you assume he has a 10 underneath, anything over a 5 and he busts and you win with your 13!

The main take away from this is that you do not need to beat the dealer if he has to hit. The best bet is to let the dealer hit and break (go over 21). With you sitting at 13 you actually have two chances to lose instead of one. The first chance being that you go over 21 and the second that the dealer beats you with a higher number combination.

This is just one quick lesson in simple blackjack strategy. For an easier demonstration of this you can always reference a blackjack strategy chart which will show you when to hit, stand, double and split. There are many other blackjack strategy techniques you can use. To see more techniques see the blackjack strategy section and start making blackjack a more profitable game.

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Find the Best in Online Poker

December 23, 2012 – 2:15 pm

Playing proper blackjack gives one of the best advantages to making money at the casino. Properly played blackjack has on of the smallest house edges available but the game  is built for the casino to win in the long run. While you can have long winning streaks and win a substantial amount of money playing blackjack, if you play long enough at the same betting limits you will eventually lose.

Poker on the other hand is a game a skill and over the long term you can make a profit playing poker. Many people from the around world are professional poker players and do so for a living. One of the best online poker sites to play at is Winner Poker. Unfortunately after the passing of the UIGEA USA residents can no longer play at Winner, but if you live outside the United States it is one of the most popular online poker rooms available.

Sign up as a new player at Winner and receive a 250% match bonus on your first deposit up to $2000. You will also be eligible for new player freerolls and earn cash back through their rake back program. Winner runs on the popular iPoker network which is one of the largest European networks on the Internet. You can always find the game you are looking for at Winner regardless of the stakes level. Even during off peak hours there are plenty of players at the tables.

Winner also has a great variety of sin ‘n go and multi-table tournaments. Find Hold’em, Omaha, Razz and Stud Poker tournaments. For more information on the Winner Poker room click here and you will all the relevant information on Winner as well as the best bonus code to claim the largest bonus available. If you want to play online poker Winner is highly recommended.

 

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