Blackjack Strategy

It was a beautiful evening in Las Vegas for the 22nd Blackjack Ball, co-hosted this year by Max Rubin and Richard Munchkin. The gala was held at a secret location and security was tight.

What follows is the correct way to play any blackjack hand dealt to you when the dealer’s upcard is a 4.

Blackjack is a dynamic game. It is a game shifting percentages, where each card that is played either adds too or, takes away from the initial advantage the casino has over the player. It is also the most mathematical orientated game offered by gaming companies, but it's also a great experience for online players.

Once, when I was booked for a “fun casino” the other person due to work dropped out at the last minute, leaving the job a dealer short. A “fun casino” if you haven’t come across one, is a casino at a private event – usually a Christmas party – where the “customers” come to the table with fun money.

I was living in New Jersey in the late 1970s, when casino gambling became legalized in Atlantic City. The casinos that began opening there were clamoring for casino dealers. Soon, casino gambling schools began opening that taught students the skills necessary to become a casino dealer.

When you are dealt a pair of 6s in the game of blackjack you have two viable playing options:

Previous articles covered how I got started with blackjack, how I learned the basic playing strategy and card counting, my playing experience in Atlantic City after the first casino opened, and my first barring.

I usually get an email or phone call a few times each month from a blackjack player who asks me the following question: “Your article said to stand on (a specific hand). I’ve read in a book (or on the Internet) that you should hit that hand.