• Adventure
  • Auto
  • Culture
  • Entertainment
  • Home & Garden
  • Money
  • Science
  • Tech
  • Video
  • Shows
  • Blogs
  • Quizzes
  • Games
  • Random Article
  • HSW Shows
  • Arts
  • Leisure
  • Movies
  • Music
  • Sports
  • Toys
  • Home > 
  • Entertainment > 
  • Leisure > 
  • Casino Game Tutorials

by Ed Grabianowski

Print
Cite This!
Close 
Please copy/paste the following text to properly cite this HowStuffWorks article:

Grabianowski, Ed.  "How Blackjack Works"  24 June 2004.  HowStuffWorks.com. <http://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/blackjack.htm>  10 February 2012.
Cite
Feedback

Travel the World

Coolest Stuff on the Planet Videos »
Coolest Stuff on the Planet Videos »
Inside this Article
  1. Introduction to How Blackjack Works
  2. Blackjack History
  3. Blackjack Basics
  1. Blackjack Play
  2. Blackjack Options
  3. Table Etiquette
  4. See more »
    1. Basic Strategy
    2. Card Counting
    3. Casinos vs. Counters
    4. Cheating
    5. Lots More Information
    6. See all Casino Game Tutorials articles

Lots More Information

Related HowStuffWorks Articles

  • Casino Games Quiz
  • How Poker Works
  • How Slot Machines Work
  • How Lotteries Work
  • 13 National Parks Near Las Vegas

More Great Links

  • Online Blackjack Resources
  • The World Series of Blackjack
  • Basic Blackjack Strategy
  • Wired.com: Hacking Las Vegas - September 2002

Sources

  • The World's Greatest Blackjack Book, by Lance Humble, Ph.D, and Carl Cooper, Ph.D
  • Beat the Odds Blackjack: Playing Percentages Without Counting, by G. Phillip Cline
  • Blackjack: The Real Deal, by J. Phillip Vogel
  • The Basics of Winning Blackjack, by J. Edward Allen
  • Hit and Run!, by Arnold Bruce Levy
  • Winning Casino Blackjack for the Non-Counter, by Avery Cardoza Avery
  • Blackjack Strategy: Tips and Techniques for Beating the Odds, by Michael Benson
Previous Page

Top Entertainment Articles

Which athletes live the longest?
Which athletes live the longest?
Top 10 Most Valuable Records
Top 10 Most Valuable Records
Gridiron Games
Gridiron Games
Top 10 Movies About Time Travel
Top 10 Movies About Time Travel
Are you wise about wands and wizards?
Are you wise about wands and wizards?
Watch martial arts videos »

You Might Also Like

3D Puzzle Quiz

A good puzzle is part problem-solving and part magic. In the following quiz, we test your knowledge of some of the world's most mystifying 3D puzzles. Are you ready to get stumped?

Top 10 Tips for Solving Crossword Puzzles

Sometimes a newspaper reader's worst nightmare isn't a pesky ad or a poorly written opinion piece -- it can be as short as the four-letter answer for 53 down. We have 10 tips that can get you one step closer to finishing your crossword puzzles.

Popular Articles

  • How to Play 500 Rum
  • How to Play Keno
  • How to Play I Doubt It
Inside this Article
  1. Introduction to How Blackjack Works
  2. Blackjack History
  3. Blackjack Basics
  4. Blackjack Play
  5. Blackjack Options
  6. Table Etiquette
  1. Basic Strategy
  2. Card Counting
  3. Casinos vs. Counters
  4. Cheating
  5. Lots More Information
  6. See all Casino Game Tutorials articles
Previous Page

Video Favorites

FPO
  • How It's Made: Sports Gear Videos
  • How It's Made: Music Videos
  • Popular Films Videos
  • Toy Manufacturing Videos

New HSW Games

FPO
  • Color Match
  • Storm Tracker
  • Memory Matrix
  • Crab Fishing Game
  • Raindrops
  • Bike Build Game
  • Cannon Challenge

Related Content

Prices: Books

  • Risk and Reward: The Science of Casino Blackjack
    Risk and Reward: The Science of Casino Blackjack

    For decades, casino gaming has been steadily increasing in popularity worldwide. Blackjack is among the most popular of the casino table games, one where astute choices of playing strategy can create an advantage for the player. RISK AND REWARD analyzes the game in depth, pinpointing not just its optimal strategies but also its financial performance, in terms of both expected cash flow and associated risk. The book begins by describing the strategies and their performance in a clear, straightforward style. The presentation is self-contained, non-mathematical, and accessible to readers at all levels of playing skill, from the novice to the blackjack expert. Careful attention is also given to simplified, but still nearly optimal strategies that are easier to use in a casino. Unlike other books in the literature the author then derives each aspect of the strategy mathematically, to justify its claim to optimality. The derivations mostly use algebra and calculus, although some require more advanced analysis detailed in supporting appendices. For easy comprehension, formulae are translated into tables and graphs through extensive computation. This book will appeal to everyone interested in blackjack: those with mathematical training intrigued by its application to this popular game as well as all players seeking to improve their performance.

    $43.08

  • Ada Blackjack: A True Story of Survival in the Arctic
    Ada Blackjack: A True Story of Survival in the Arctic

    From the author of The Ice Master comes the remarkable true story of a young Inuit woman who survived six months alone on a desolate, uninhabited Arctic island n September 1921, four young men and Ada Blackjack, a diminutive 25-year-old Eskimo woman, ventured deep into the Arctic in a secret attempt to colonize desolate Wrangel Island for Great Britain. Two years later, Ada Blackjack emerged as the sole survivor of this ambitious polar expedition. This young, unskilled woman-who had headed to the Arctic in search of money and a husband-conquered the seemingly unconquerable north and survived all alone after her male companions had perished. Following her triumphant return to civilization, the international press proclaimed her the female Robinson Crusoe. But whatever stories the press turned out came from the imaginations of reporters: Ada Blackjack refused to speak to anyone about her horrific two years in the Arctic. Only on one occasion-after charges were published falsely accusing her of causing the death of one her companions-did she speak up for herself. Jennifer Niven has created an absorbing, compelling history of this remarkable woman, taking full advantage of the wealth of first-hand resources about Ada that exist, including her never-before-seen diaries, the unpublished diaries from other primary characters, and interviews with Ada's surviving son. Ada Blackjack is more than a rugged tale of a woman battling the elements to survive in the frozen north-it is the story of a hero.

    $27.43

  • Blackjack Basic (Playing) Strategy, 1 Deck
    Blackjack Basic (Playing) Strategy, 1 Deck

    This new Blackjack Basic (Playing) Strategy card for 1 Deck is a blackjack player's dream come true. The laminated, six-panel, tri-fold card with rounded corners devotes four panel sides to covering the possible rule combinations of allowing or not allowing doubling down after a split, and the dealer hitting or standing on soft 17. Thus the card contains four playing strategies to allow you to choose the correct playing strategy for the rules that are in effect where you play. The strategies display color-coded decision cells in addition to showing the text of the decision so you can choose which way you learn best. Also, each strategy panel is section-coded to facilitate learning the most important decisions first. Surrender is included among the decisions, and footnotes provide alternatives when decisions are not allowed. The 3.5" x 5" panel size makes possible larger text than on other strategy cards and three-letter (not confusing one-letter) decision abbreviations, yet the card still fits in your pocket. End panels, which contain slits, are designed to fold in both directions and to lay flat to make it easy for you to quickly refer to the strategy you wish to use. One panel contains a pithy, insightful discussion of the playing decisions to help new players learn how to play the game; another panel provides a table which shows the House Edge for each of four rule combinations. About 99% of blackjack players do not use the correct Basic Strategy. By using this Blackjack 6·7·8 strategy card, players will now be able to play almost even with the house. Blackjack 6-7-8 strategy cards are also available for 2 Decks, 4-8 Decks, and Counter (as in "Card Counter") Basic, 4-8 Decks. In addition, the titles of the four different cards are color-coded (red, purple, blue, and green) so you can easily and quickly distinguish one card from another.

    $66.49

HOWSTUFFWORKS
  • Adventure
  • Auto
  • Culture
  • Entertainment
  • Health
  • Home & Garden
  • Lifestyle
  • Money
  • Science
  • Tech
MORE STUFF
  • Blogs
  • Games
  • HSW Tools
  • RSS
  • Maps
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Newsletters
  • Video
OUR WEBSITES
  • Animal Planet
  • Consumer Guide Auto
  • Consumer Guide Products
  • Discovery Channel
  • Discovery Fit & Health
  • HSW Brazil
  • HSW China HowStuffWorks China
  • Investigation Discovery
  • Oprah Winfrey Network
  • Planet Green
  • Science Channel
  • TLC
  • Discovery Education
  • Store
CUSTOMER SERVICE
  • Advertising
  • Contact Us
  • Help
CORPORATE
  • About Us
  • Careers @ Discovery
  • Privacy Policy
  • Visitor Agreement
TAKE US WITH YOU
FOLLOW US
© 1998-2012 HowStuffWorks, Inc