Blackjack Surrender Chart
Why Do You Need a Blackjack Strategy Chart?
If you have watched any of our how to play blackjack videos, then you will know that the game of blackjack has one of the lowest house edges in the casino.
Free Blackjack Surrender Reference Charts - Get Yours! The introduction of a new option alongside Hit, Stand, Double and Split means that, as you would probably expect. Difference between early surrender and late surrender is important. Improving your understanding of blackjack surrender rules means improving your overall game strategy. Some blackjack games allow players the option of giving up (or “surrendering”) their hands right after the initial deal is complete, for the cost of half of their ante bet.
However, this is only true if you are playing every blackjack hand correctly. You see, blackjack is a game of skill, as well as luck, meaning that if you know how to properly play your hands, you will achieve a better payback percentage (in the long run) than someone who sits there and guesses how to play their blackjack hands.
Actually, there is only one mathematically correct way to play your hand in any given situation and it is the blackjack strategy chart that will show you how to do that. The chart will tell you how to play your hand based on the total of the cards you are dealt and also, the dealer’s up card. Just find those two factors on the chart and it will show you how to play that hand. This means that there is no guesswork on your part and you have an easy way to play your hands in the mathematically correct manner!
Listed below is a link for blackjack strategy charts. You can print them out and take them with you to the casino so you know how to properly play your hand in any given situation. Good Luck!
Keep in mind that a casino’s mathematical advantage against you can change, depending on the number of decks they use and the rules of the game they offer. Playing a single-deck game would be best, while an eight-deck game would be worst. Plus, some rules are good for you (dealer stands on soft 17, doubling after splitting allowed), while some are bad (dealer hits soft 17, no doubling down allowed).
This also means that the correct strategy can change slightly based on the number of decks used and the rules enforced. Therefore, you will notice that there are six different FREE blackjack strategy charts that we offer you on our website. Be sure to check at the top of each chart to make sure you are using the proper chart for the game that you will be playing.
If you use your blackjack strategy charts correctly, you can easily lower the casino’s long-term advantage to less than 1%, which makes it one of the best games in the casino. Especially, compared to slot machines which have a casino edge of about 5% to 15%.
As a final word of caution, however, be sure that you only play blackjack games that pay you 3-to-2 if you are dealt a blackjack. Unfortunately, there are many casinos that now pay only 6-to-5, or even-money for dealt blackjacks, and they are usually found at the lower-limit tables.
If a casino only pays 6-to-5 for blackjacks, that raises the casino advantage by about 1.40%, more than doubling the casinos advantage! And, even worse, if they only pay even-money for blackjacks, that adds about an extra 2.30% to the casino’s edge over you, bringing it up to about 3.30%, making it more than triple the standard casino advantage of about 1%!
So, be sure to avoid any game that doesn’t pay you 3-to-2 for your blackjacks!
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Card counting is meant to achieve two objectives – to help the player assess when to raise his/her bet based on the count and to help him/her assess when to use certain variations to the basic strategy, again taking into consideration the count. To employ variations to the basic strategy at the proper moment of time will usually benefit the player.
Let us illustrate with an example. Imagine that you participate in a six-deck game with S17 and you hold 7-4, while the upcard of the dealer is an Ace. In case you conform to the basic strategy rules, you need to abstain from action in these conditions. At the same time, at your table there could be someone who decides to double down on that hand and has a success. Logically, you would blame yourself for not being decisive and courageous enough to double down on the same hand – you would have doubled your balance. However, professional blackjack players claim that your long-term win from hitting 7-4 represents 0.147 times the original bet you placed, while the long-term win from doubling down on the same hand represents 0.127 times that bet. Or, in case your original bet is $100, your average gain for that hand will be $14.7, while if you double down, you will gain $12.7 on average (13.61% less than what you would have scored as profit, in case you followed basic strategy guidelines).
If you happen to hold such a hand, you may double down, when your true count is +1 or higher! If you play this hand in such a manner, your expectation will move up to 0.148 from 0.147. Although the change may seem insignificant, you may play the hand in such a way by placing a larger bet. This is just one among the 18 basic strategy variations, which experts recommend. In case you play a six-deck game, all 18 variations could ensure you over 33% to the profit, which basic strategy alone grants you. These variations, which could add even more in a single-deck or a double-deck game, are famous for being the Illustrious 18. We shall dig deeper into them right after we discuss four variations to the basic strategy for games having the option to surrender. These four variations are known as the Fab Four.
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The Fab Four
While the Illustrious 18 are variations to the basic strategy for any blackjack game, the Fab Four are variations to help a player increase his/her profit in a game where the surrender option is offered. Don Schlesinger came up with the ”Fab Four” term, which refers to the top-four late-surrender plays based on the Hi-Lo system. You may play in such a manner, in case your true count is 0 or higher. Let us have a look at the Fab Four variations to the basic strategy, which are used in multi-deck games:
Running Count Keeping Hints
Learning to Keep a True Count
True Count Drills
Fab Four Basic Strategy Variation
The Illustrious 18
1. You need to surrender, if your hand is 15, the dealer's upcard is 9 and your true count is +3.
2. You need to surrender, if your hand is 15, the dealer's upcard is 10 and your true count is 0.
3. You need to surrender, if your hand is 15, the dealer's upcard is an Ace and your true count is +2 (in S17) or -1 (in H17).
4. You need to surrender, if your hand is 14, the dealer's upcard is 10 and your true count is +4.