MAIN Recreation Blackjack - 21

Blackjack is a card game that is also known as twenty-one — Pontoon to Aussies. The rules are simple, but winning the game is complex.

The card game was originally played as vingt-et-un ("twenty-one") in French casinos around 1700. It is believed that it evolved from the same roots as Baccarat, and seven and a half.

The idea is to collect cards that add up to 21 without going over. Each card is worth the face value with picture face cards worth 10. Aces can be either a 1 or an 11. That means a face card plus an ace adds up to 21. That's a winner.

Each player gets two cards and then decides to take another (hit) or keep the cards as is (stand). There may be other casino based options such as split, double or take insurance.

When the game was first introduced in the USA, the casinos offered a 10:1 payout if a player drew a black jack with an ace of spades...and the name Blackjack was born. By 1931, Blackjack was the third most popular casino game in Nevada—only Roulette and Craps drew more players.

In 1957, "The Four Horsemen" — Roger Baldwin, Wilbert Cantey, Herbert Maisel, and James McDermott — published Playing Blackjack to Win, a book of mathematical calculations for winning Blackjack strategies that was a best seller. By the 1970s computer programs were running the odds and improving payouts.

The casinos added more decks to the game to make counting harder and some play with up to eight decks in a shoe...the device that holds the cards. Many places use devices that constantly shuffle the cards to avoid card counting. Some casinos go as far as banning card counters and other big winners who seem to be using a "system" to beat the odds.

Winning at blackjack may seem to just rely on luck, but top players have devised strategies for counting the cards as they are played. Knowing which cards are out lets you figure the odds of getting a face card or a two on the next draw. Knowing that many small cards have been played—or are still waiting in the shoe, can help you guess whether to take another card...or not. This is not a fool proof way to win, but those who get really good at it do win often enough to get banned from many of the big casinos.

There are a few more rules involved with playing Blackjack...some play that draws go to the dealer [push], there may be higher payouts for reaching 21 with five or more cards and not going over [5 card Charlie], splitting the two cards you were dealt into two hands, doubling, passing the deal and others. Some rules are strictly professional Las Vegas casino, Atlantic City or Monaco rules while others are used even in friendly kitchen games.

Blackjack, or 21, is a good card game for youngsters to play on a rainy day - without the gambling, of course. It teaches addition and logical thinking and is simple enough for any one old enough to add numbers up to 21. Most children enjoy the sport and the challenge. They never realize that they are learning statistics and probability.

More about blackjack around the Web:

If you want to learn blackjack or improve your odds the next time you play, the following guides, tutorials, strategy tips and trainers will do the trick. You won't find any online casinos in this list. In Blackjack, the odds always favor the dealer and it is easy to gamble more than you can afford to lose. If you live in an area where gambling is legal, there are recommendations for places where real money can be won, or lost ...

Blackjack Info - Offering a free java trainer that lets you play with imaginary money and gives you tips on correct strategies. Lots of other nifty tools and tutorials - stay out of the online casinos advertised here and you can spend some time building skills and learning about tournament play at no cost.

How to Play Blackjack - Blackjack Strategy & Odds - An expert player shares insight into the game with tables and explanations. The card counting section is one of the best you'll find. Not an easy place for a beginner, but rich with good information.

The Novice Corner - BJ Math - The expert sections of this site cover blackjack math, yes, MATH...that will make a newbies head spin faster than a roulette wheel. Start with the novice corner for good discussions of the math of blackjack that anyone can follow and play some demo no-cost games until you work up to speed.

Once you get a good background in odds, basic card counting and other blackjack strategies, you'll find that coupled with blackjack - math is not so mysterious. You'll want to move on to the tougher concepts to improve your play.

Frequently Asked Questions about Blackjack - This is the page that holds the archives of the newsgroup rec.gambling.blackjack. If you don't know what a newsgroup is, it doesn't matter. The page hasn't been updated since 1995, but the information is ageless.

Blackjack - A simple game with no trainer, but you can bet lots of imaginary money and if you lose, still pay the rent. Don't open to full screen mode unless you want to accept an ActiveX download from the site...probably safe, but never recommended.

Wikipedia - Blackjack - A history of the game along with casino rules and plenty of variations, insurance betting, strategies including card counting, links to other sites and good references for reading about blackjack offline.

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also see -> WSOP World Series of Poker