I gave a blackjack seminar to an audience of approximately a hundred people several years ago. At the beginning of the seminar, I presented the following question to the audience – How does the casino get its edge in blackjack?
It's a fair question, and players have a right to know how the numbers add up.
Several audience members raised their hands and indicated that the casino edge came from poor decisions by blackjack players. Truthfully, that's not how the casino gets its initial advantage over players. It's primarily thanks to the double-bust blackjack rule that the the house gets its edge over players. Once I told the audience this slice of trivia, I noticed looks of bewilderment from the attendees. Finally, one of them yelled at me – What did you say?
I was stunned that nobody in the audience knew how the casino generated its edge over players. Regardless, I continued with my discussion and explanation. The double bust rule is central to the casino edge in blackjack, and this is how I explained it.
A blackjack player automatically loses their hand once 21 is exceeded. This is true, even if the dealer's hand exceeds 21 during the same round of play. Why? Because once the player busts, the player loses. The double bust rule creates the initial edge for the house over players.
Perhaps this rule is best explained differently. First, I approached the audience and presented them with the following scenario: What happens when you have a hand value of 17 and the blackjack dealer has a hand value of 17? A near-unanimous reaction erupted from the audience – it is a push. Next, I quizzed the audience about what occurs if a player has a hand value of 22 and the blackjack dealer has a hand value of 22. Is it still a push?
Of course, the answer is no. If the player exceeds a total of 21, the player loses. It was finally dawning on them. The audience began to understand precisely how the double bust works against blackjack players.
If you are wondering about the value of a double bust for the casino in blackjack, read on. Truthfully, it's easy to ascertain. On average, the dealer will bust 28% of the time. A player who plays exactly like the dealer, by hitting on 16 or less and standing on 17 and above, will also bust 28% of the time. Based on this, we can deduce that the probability of a double bust occurs approximately 8% of the time.
How do we calculate this figure? You multiply the blackjack player's probability of busting (28% ) X the dealer's probability of busting (28%). That's 8%! That's the casino's initial edge over blackjack players, ceteris paribus. But as we know, things can't possibly be equal between the player and the casino because that would eliminate the house edge. We can chip away at the house edge by using the blackjack rules to our advantage.
Blackjack Historical Reference
Blackjack was introduced into the casino scene during the 1930s & 1940s. At the time, casino owners thought that players could not beat blackjack. They understood their advantage – the double bust. But, the casino realized that the house edge was too strong, and if players consistently lost, they would stop playing blackjack. As a consolation, casino bosses decided upon a casino bonus payout. This was made on untied blackjack hands. Extra player benefits were introduced in the form of options available only to blackjack players and not to the dealers.
These new blackjack rules could significantly reduce the house edge to levels that would entice players to play. As a result, an uneven balance between dealers and players took root. In the table below, you will see a summary of the key differences faced by players and the blackjack dealer. It also indicates who has the advantage. The data is provided by Blackjack Bluebook II, courtesy of its author Fred Renzey.
Take a careful look at the table. You'll notice that most rules favour the player over the dealer, except for acting first. What does this mean for you? An intelligent player who knows how to take advantage of blackjack rules can exploit this framework and significantly reduce the initial 8% disadvantage to lower than 1%. This is how it works.
If you peruse the table, you'll see that except for acting first, all the other rules give an edge to the player over the dealer. This means a smart player who knows how to take advantage of these rules can significantly reduce that initial 8% disadvantage to less than one percent. Here's how this is done.
WHO HAS THE EDGE?
| THE PLAYER | THE DEALER | EDGE |
| Acts first | Acts last | Dealer |
| 3-to-2 blackjack payout | Even money | Player |
| Hit/stand at will | Must hit 16/stand 17 | Player |
| May double down | No Doubling | Player |
| May split pairs | No Splitting | Player |
| May surrender (if allowed) | No Surrender | Player |
Benefit #1 for blackjack players – all player blackjacks are paid at 3:2, while the blackjack dealer only wins even money with a blackjack. This perk offers a tremendous advantage to players and is worth approximately 2.25% in a 6-deck blackjack. Furthermore, once players know when to draw and when not to draw, the player gains an additional 3.25% advantage.
Now, consider the dealer with no playing options – the dealer must subscribe to the rules in effect. But that's not all – the player can also maximize betting options to double down & split pairs. This gives an additional 1.50% advantage for the double down and 0.5% for splitting pairs.
The surrender option gives the player an additional 0.07% advantage when allowed. If the dealer checks for blackjack, assume surrender is available. Suppose we sum all the player advantages and subtract them from the initial 8% player disadvantage. In that case, we get a low player disadvantage of 0.5% when the surrender option is unavailable. The player disadvantage is approximately 0.4% if we include the surrender option. The precise percentages depend upon the number of decks in play and the combinations of playing rules in effect.
Readers, blackjack pros, and casino fans – that's probably one of the lowest house edges you will find in any casino, anywhere in the world.
The trick to reducing the house edge in blackjack is to maximize your advantage of all the playing rules. Start by learning basic blackjack strategy. This includes a combination of rules players should follow for knowing when to hit, stand, double down, pair split, surrender, or take insurance. Basic blackjack strategy is not based on gut feeling or opinion but on statistical analysis and strategy.
The empirical data is backed up by computer-generated testing. The mathematically-derived framework clarifies how to play hands based on what cards you're holding and the dealer's upcard. Cards held by other players and previously played cards are irrelevant. The only way to play blackjack is by using a basic blackjack strategy.
If you are curious about basic blackjack strategy for any set of blackjack rules, you're welcome to take a look at Chapter 3 of my Ultimate Blackjack Strategy Guide.
