Well done on working your way through our comprehensive guide to playing blackjack. We hope that you have learned the relevant skills to become a successful player. There is of course no guaranteed method to win at blackjack, but by understanding the strategies, charts and tips contained within this guide, you have given yourself the best possible chance of succeeding at blackjack.
By completing our guide, you should have developed from a beginner, or casual player, through the various stages to completing how to become a blackjack player on the tables. In this final chapter, we have collated the stages of that journey that readers of the guide will hopefully have taken.
Thank you for taking the time and effort to read our guide, and we wish you the greatest of experiences at blackjack tables in the future!
STAGE 1
At this early stage there are two levels of players. Most are beginners who have not played the game much before, and the remainder are experienced players that have not mastered strategies but depend on fortune and intuition instead. Such players only know the rules, and little more. In fact, some even know the basic strategy, but do not do due diligence and seek tables with the best rules, such as a 3/2 pay out. Casinos can expect a house edge of 1.5-2% over Stage 1 players. That would equate to a £15-£20 loss for players staking £10 per hand, over the course of 100 hands.
STAGE 2
At this stage, players have started to get to grips with the basic strategy, but have not yet mastered it. Therefore they will not always make the right play as they will still rely on intuition for many hands rather than what the basic strategy suggests. Often players will make these plays on intuition even though they know the basic strategy suggests not to do so.
Let us look at an example. Stage two players may decide against splitting 8s against a dealer ace or 10 and also not hit 12 against the dealer’s 2 or 3 nor hit a soft 18 against the dealers 9, 10 or Ace up card. This is not the case, as discussed elsewhere in this guide. However, players should by this stage know not to play 6/5 games, thus facing a house edge of about 1%. So for every 100 hands with a £10 stake, they can expect to lose about £10.
STAGE 3
For those players who wish to learn how to become a blackjack player, reaching at least stage three is essential. It is at this stage that players begin to master the basic strategy for blackjack. They will only play games in which the rules suit them and the strategy. By doing so, this means they should reduce the house edge to a very small 0.3 to 0.5%, though this is still dependent on the rules at the table. So for every 100 hands played with a £10 stake, players can expect to lose £3-£5. Nevertheless, many players still insist on using a progressive betting system at this stage, to no advantage.
BOTTOM LINE
This final chapter shows the journey you have hopefully made from a novice player to mastering how to become a skillful blackjack player. Try your luck and play blackjack as one of our staple in live casino niche!
