Blackjack Csm Basic Strategy

A card counter executing their count perfectly as well as playing with perfect basic blackjack strategy is estimated to have a 1% to 2% advantage over the house at most tables. Even with perfect play, it takes a large bankroll and sometimes many hours of play to see a significant profit from card counting. The CSM was invented primarily to discourage card counting at blackjack. But it also has a negative effect over average players as you will soon see. A CSM is a combination automatic shuffler and dealing shoe. Casinos usually place 5 decks of cards into the CSM.

• The reality is that the average blackjack player does have cause to worry about CSM’s but not for the reason they believe. CSM’s do not increase the house edge. In fact, if you play perfect basic strategy CSM’s actually lower the house advantage by a tiny bit.
• Basic Blackjack Strategy Chart Here are the charts outlining basic strategy. They tell you what to do given the value of your hand (left column) and the card the dealer is showing (right two columns).This means that if you have a 10 and the dealer is showing 9 or less, you should double.
• Blackjack Basic Strategy Quiz. Think you know your basic blackjack strategy like the back of your hand? We’ve created a simple quiz here so you can put your knowledge to the test and determine whether you truly know perfect basic strategy. For the purpose of this test, we are going to use common rules which are: 6 Decks; Dealer stands on soft 17.

The essential steps to becoming an expert player

By Henry Tamburin

Blackjack Csm Basic Strategy Builder

If you’re a recreational blackjack player, you don’t need a Ph.D. to take your game to an expert level. You just need to know which games to play, and how to play them. Here’s a roadmap that will show you how to become a better player.

Game Selection

Nowadays, sitting at the first empty seat you spot at a blackjack table isn’t a smart thing to do. The reason is that not all blackjack games are the same any more. Here are a few guidelines to help you pick the best game.

1) Do NOT play at any table where a blackjack is paid at 6-5 (or worse, even money). You should only play a game where a blackjack is paid at 3-2. (Usually the playing rules, including the blackjack payoff, are posted somewhere on the table, or the payoff for a blackjack will be imprinted on the cloth layout. If you aren’t sure, ask the dealer.)

2) Do NOT play on any table that uses a continuous shuffling machine (known as CSM). You’ll know if the automatic shuffling device is a CSM if the dealer places the discards from every round back into the CSM (another hint is the table usually doesn’t have a discard tray). Play blackjack on tables where the dealer manually shuffles the cards or the table has a traditional automatic shuffler.

3) All else being equal, a blackjack game that uses a single deck or two decks of cards is better than one that uses six or eight decks. However, that is not always the case. You must check the mix of playing rules. Player-favorable rules include dealer standing on soft 17, double on any two cards and after pair splitting, surrender, resplit aces, and, of course, getting paid 3-2 for a blackjack. Rules that increase the house edge include using multiple decks of cards, dealer hitting soft 17, restrictions on what hands you can double down, and paying only 6-5 or even money for a blackjack. The house edge should be about 0.5% or lower for any game that you play. (If you are unsure what the house edge is, use the Blackjack House Edge Calculator located on the blackjack page at www.wizardofodds.com to compute the house edge for any game. Just key in the number of decks of cards and the playing rules and the calculator will compute the house edge).

Playing Strategy

If you want to become a better blackjack player, you must learn the basic playing strategy. This is essential.

Blackjack Csm Basic Strategy Examples

The basic playing strategy tells you the correct way to play all of the 550 different possible hands that will arise when playing blackjack. You must memorize the basic strategy and be able to make the correct play with speed and accuracy. The basic playing strategy will vary slightly based on the rules and the number of decks of cards. You can get an accurate basic strategy for any game by using the Basic Strategy Calculator located on the blackjack page at www.wizardofodds.com. You simply key in the number of decks and the playing rules, and the computer prepares an accurate basic playing strategy.

An easy way to learn the basic strategy is to practice with the Blackjack Mentor software program, which is available for iPhone, Microsoft Windows, Palm OS, and Pocket PC (for details go to www.handheldblackjack.com). Playing mistakes will cost you money. To ensure that you always make the correct playing decision, bring a hand-held strategy card with you when you play (they are casino legal).

Using the basic playing strategy accurately when you play will make you a better player. However, if you do nothing else to enhance your skills, at the end of your playing career, you will lose more money than win. If you want to be a better blackjack player, you must take the next step and learn when to bet more.

When to Bet More

Many players use progressive betting systems when they play blackjack. However, as I explained in detail in my column in the August 2009 issue of Casino Player magazine, progressive betting systems don’t work and won’t make you a better, or more successful, player. To accomplish that, you’ll have to discipline yourself to increase your bets only when you have the edge on the next hand (rather than increase your bets based on whether you won or lost the previous hand). Here are some ways to do this.

1. Learn to scan the cards

You can use this technique in single- and double-deck games. After a shuffle, there is a balance (or equal number)) of small cards (2s though 6s) and large cards (10s, picture cards, and aces) in the deck(s) of cards. This balance can change depending upon the mix of cards dealt from one round to the next. By scanning all the cards that have been played on each round, you will be able to get some idea whether there were a greater number of small cards compared to high cards played in previous rounds. If your scanning indicates that more small cards have been dealt out compared to high cards, then the remaining unplayed cards must be richer in high cards (inverse relationship). When the latter occurs, the edge shifts to the player and you should bet more. Scanning is not an exact science and it takes a little practice; however, if you only increase your bets when the unplayed cards are richer in high cards, you will be taking a big step toward becoming a better player.

2. Use a simple card counting system

There are some very simple card counting systems for recreational players that are easy to learn and use, and allow a basic strategy player to play a break-even game or have a slight edge over the house. They include the Ace/10 Front Count (Blackjack Bluebook II by Fred Renzey), the Ace/Five Count (Appendix 17 on the blackjack page on www.wizardofodds.com), Rookie Knock-Out System (Knock-Out Blackjack by Olaf Vancura and Ken Fuchs), and Speed Count (Beat Blackjack Now! by Frank Scoblete). Any of these simple systems will help you be a better blackjack player.

I hope you will discipline yourself to incorporate some or all of the above tips when you play blackjack. You have the information… the ball is now in your court. Are you going to continue dribbling in circles, or score a basket?

Henry Tamburin is the editor of Blackjack Insider Newsletter (www.bjinsider.com), Lead Instructor for the Golden Touch Blackjack Course (www.goldentouchblackjack.com), and host of www.smartgaming.com. For a free three-month subscription to his blackjack newsletter, go to www.bjinsider.com/freetrial.com. To receive his free Casino Gambling Catalog, call 1-888-353-3234 or visit www.smartgaming.com.

Continuous shuffling machines are a mainstay in the casino game of Blackjack. The game’s basic components contributing to your outcome is luck of the draw. Shuffling of cards automatically can affect both the odds of the players to win and the house advantage.

Whilst this factor used to vary quite significantly depending on the shuffler of a game, with the advancements in technology new methods to shuffle cards have emerged, enabling a fairer game wherever played. Most casinos will not manually shuffle cards. Rather they will use machines which are called ‘continuous shuffling machines.’

Understanding the Shuffling Machine

Shuffling machines are used across the casino industry to create more efficient randomisation of cards for any game in comparison to shuffling manually. Since their invention, different variations of card shuffling machines have emerged, such as automatic shufflers and the continuous shuffling machine (CSM).

The continuous shuffling machine facilitates a type of automated shuffling used by most, if not all, casinos in an attempt to stop card counting in games. Continuous shuffling machines work by randomising the deck of cards, thereby allowing the game to be played at a quicker rate, (not having to wait for the dealer to shuffle and deal), whilst providing a fairer game through a more thorough, entirely objective shuffling system.

How Continuous Shuffling Machines Work

Typically, five decks of cards are placed into a CSM, with the machine throwing out and putting back in cards from each deck at random. The shuffling, as the name suggests, is going on continuously, with cards already used in the game having the chance to show up in subsequent hands. This makes attempts of card counting less likely to be successful than games with a traditionally shuffled deck of cards.

The original continuous shuffling machine uses an elevator-type system in which a shuffler will insert cards into the device’s shelves at random as the machine moves up and down. The Shuffle Master then randomly picks a deck for the game and places it into the dealing shoe. There are numerous different types of CSM, all providing a casino game with an effective, thoroughly random shuffle.

How Continuous Shuffling Machines Affect Player Strategies

Whilst playing a game of Blackjack that involves a CSM, there are a few things to consider in order to develop an effective gaming strategy, and to further yield the best possible outcome:

• Cards that have been used are placed back in the deck at random throughout the game. Therefore, counting cards throughout a game with a CSM will be less likely to work, if not impossible altogether
• Apart from card counting, games involving CSM will not change other basic Blackjack strategies, as these are almost always concerning elements of the game outside the shuffling of a deck
• Shuffle tracking could possibly be done if the CSM is integrating cards already used in the game back into the dealing shoe. Through this, players may be able to predict what cards are likely to be grouped together
• In a game of Blackjack with a CSM, the distribution of cards used is weighted in favour of the larger cards
• The fewer the decks of cards a CSM is set up for, the better the advantage for the player

Consideration of the above factors can help a player significantly whilst working out how to get the best possible outcome during a Blackjack game that uses a continuous shuffling machine.

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Can Continuous Shuffling Machines be Beaten in Casinos?

It has been claimed that Blackjack is the only game players can learn to beat regularly. Those that learn basic strategy techniques are much more likely to win a game, and with experience under their belt, move on to card counting to further increase their chances of winning.

The implementation of continuous shuffling machines within most casinos has drastically restricted the lengths to which card counters can go to. There are still various things that can be done to put an advanced player’s skill set to good use!

There are many different types and models of continuous shuffle machines, one of which is made by leading manufacturer Shuffle Master and is the One 2 Six Machine.

The One 2 Six types of the shuffler, similar to most of the basic layouts of continuous shuffling machines, have cards inserted into it at random and throughout the duration of the game, and then presents a predetermined, thoroughly shuffled, number of cards into the dealing shoe for use in the game.

Although players cannot know the exact cards distributed, what can be determined is that the cards in the game will not be dealt for a few hands. Therefore, this provides players with a move accurate guess as to what will be in this new pack of cards by filtering through what is least likely to be in it.

However, each type of continuous shuffling machine will slightly vary in its techniques, being able to hold different amounts of decks within the shuffling process. The higher the amount of decks involved in the shuffling machine, the harder it is to estimate what is in the deck and therefore the lower the advantage for the player.

Shuffling When Playing at Online Casinos

When playing Blackjack at a live online casino, determining what shuffling technique is being used is a bit more difficult as simulations and algorithms are used for the most part.

Therefore, to help guess what type of shuffling technique is used and adapt player strategy accordingly, here’s what to bear in mind with online casinos:

• They often use a random simulation program in its shuffling technique to avoid bias
• Shuffling is typically done after every hand
• If you see the same card twice in a game, the casino is not using traditional methods, and rather is much more likely to be using CSM-styled shuffling

While continuous shuffling machines have made it harder for the more experienced Blackjack player to win, they level the playing field. Adapting your strategy towards beating the shuffler through a good knowledge of how your shuffling is done, and what this means for the hands dealt in a game.