Is Card Counting Legal in Blackjack? Card counting-keeping track of the cards that have been played-is not illegal, but if you become a good card counter who wins at blackjack regularly, then you could be banned from casinos.

Strategies for Improving Your Blackjack Game with Card Counting

Why do people count cards? People count cards to give them an idea of what cards are remaining in the deck. The basic blackjack strategy is based on the dealer’s face-down card being a ten-value card.

If a lot of high cards have been played, that is, if the deck has a large number of low cards, it’s more likely the dealer’s face-down card won’t be a ten-value card, so the basic blackjack strategy will be less useful.

It’s to the player’s advantage if a greater number of ten-value cards (tens plus all face cards and aces) remain in the deck. It’s bad for the players when there are a large number of low- value cards (2, 3, 4, 5, and 6) remaining in the deck, because the dealer has a better chance of making a bad hand good.

By counting cards, you can vary your bets according to what’s remaining in the deck (including any cards currently face down on the table). Bet more when there are more ten-value cards remaining and bet less when there are more low-value cards remaining.

Why assume the dealer’s hole card is a ten? Look at all the cards in a deck. Each standard fifty-two-card deck is composed of four suits (clubs, diamonds, hearts, and spades) with thirteen cards per suit.

In each suit you have one of each of the following cards: ace, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, jack, queen, and king. Four of those thirteen cards have a value of ten.

Therefore, in a fifty-two-card deck sixteen cards have a value of ten (four in each of the four suits). So in a standard fifty-two-card deck, just over 30 percent of the cards are ten-value cards.

That’s a large percentage of ten-value cards, so the inventors of the basic blackjack strategy assumed the dealer’s hole card to be a ten. This is a principle you should remember in order to become a good blackjack player.

How to Improve Your Blackjack Strategy Before Attempting Card Counting

Counting cards is a very difficult task and not to be recommended for beginners, especially in a casino where the game moves pretty quickly and where there are a number of distractions.

Beginners should play at a low-limit table and get comfortable playing basic blackjack strategy. Try to get to the point of playing like a robot where your play is automatically determined by the dealer’s up card and by the total of your hand.

To get to that point you’ll need to spend a good deal of time playing at a casino blackjack table. Only after you get comfortable playing basic blackjack strategy should you begin to learn to count cards.

It’s good for the players when the deck has more tens remaining than low-value cards. So how do you know what cards remain in the unplayed deck? To figure that out, count the cards that have been played.

For every low-value card (2, 3, 4, 5, and 6) that’s been played, count plus one (+1). For every ten-value card (ten, jack, queen, king, and ace) that’s been played, count minus one (-1). Don’t worry about the mid-value cards (7,8, and 9).

The Significance of Card Counting in Estimating Remaining Deck Cards

To correctly estimate what cards have not been played, apply this counting method not only to your own hand, but to all the other players’ cards including the dealer’s.

Let’s take an example, starting with the first hand dealt from the deck. If you’re holding 6, 5, and 8, that would be a total of plus two (one for the 6 and for the 5). If the dealer has a king and ten, that would mean minus two.

The count would then be zero: plus two for your hand and minus two for the dealer’s hand. This example assumes you’re the only player at the table. If there are other players, then count their cards as well. Continue to count the cards in subsequent games.

The more games played from the deck before the dealer shuffles again, the more accurately you can assume what values remain to be played. That’s all there is to counting cards. It sounds simple because the math is simple, but in reality it’s very difficult.

This is because it’s hard to keep track of several people’s hands and concentrate on the game at the same time. If you become a good card counter who applies perfect basic blackjack strategy, then you can vary your bets according to the count remaining in the deck.

If you get a positive count, meaning that more low cards than ten-value cards have been played, you want to increase the size of your wager. If you get a negative count, then there are fewer ten- value cards remaining in the deck so you want to decrease the size of your wager.

Here’s a good rule of thumb. If the count gets to plus five, then increase the size of your bet one unit. For every count above five, increase your bet an extra unit. If the count gets to minus five, then decrease your bet one unit.

For every unit below minus five, decrease your bet another unit. If the count goes too far into the negative, get up from the table and wait for another shuffle. Winning isn’t likely in the cards at that point. All of this is based on three basic facts.

Counting cards yields a better idea of the values of the cards remaining in the deck. By having a better idea of what’s remaining, you can increase or decrease your bets. By having certain points at which to increase or decrease your bets, you can maximize your profits or minimize your losses.

When you’re using basic blackjack strategy, you are assuming the dealer’s face-down card is a ten-value card. When the count gets to plus five or higher, your chances of this being true are greater.

When the count gets into the negative, the chances of the dealer’s face-down card being a ten-value card are lower, making the assumptions underlying basic blackjack strategy less valid. That’s why you want to lower your bets when the count is negative and increase your bets when it’s positive.

Those are the basics of blackjack, along with a little bit of advanced schooling on the strategy. If you know these basics and apply the strategy, you can have a good time at a casino playing blackjack without spending too much money.