旼컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴� � � � BLACKJACK! � � � � Your Key To Winning Casino Play � � � 읕컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴� Donald L. Granger Glencoe Computing 旼컴컴컴컴� 旼컴컴좔컴� � 컴� 쿽 냐컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴� � 旼컴컴죗컴� � Association of � � 냐� Shareware 읕컴� o � Professionals 컴컴컴� � 냐컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴� 읕컴켕컴컴� MEMBER Copyright 1988 Donald L. Granger, Glencoe Computing ASP All rights reserved T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S BLACKJACK! License Provisions................. 3 Acknowledgments............................... 3 The ShareWare Concept......................... 4 System Requirements........................... 4 Quick Start................................... 4 Introduction.................................. 5 Start-Up...................................... 6 Backing Up BLACKJACK!..................... 6 Installation.............................. 6 Running BLACKJACK!........................ 7 Blackjack Basics.............................. 7 General Information........................... 8 Press & Enter............................. 8 Prompt Lines.............................. 9 The BLACKJACK! Main Menu...................... 9 At The Casino.................................10 Casino Table Set-Up.......................10 The Status Box............................10 Placing Bets..............................10 Playing The Hand..........................11 Borrowing Funds...........................11 Help......................................11 The User Definable Casino.....................12 Editing The User Casino...................12 Card Counting Practice........................12 Counting Basics...........................13 Basic Strategy Practice.......................14 Strategy Tables...............................15 Betting & Money Management....................19 The Casinos...................................21 Problems......................................21 Registration Form.............................22 BLACKJACK! 3 BLACKJACK! License Provisions BLACKJACK! IS NOT PUBLIC DOMAIN SOFTWARE 컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴 BLACKJACK! is the copyrighted property of Donald L. Granger, Glencoe Computing. You are granted a limited license to use BLACKJACK!, to copy and distribute it, provided the following conditions are met: 1. No fee may be charged for such copying and distribution other than actual costs incurred. 2. BLACKJACK! may ONLY be distributed in its original, unmodified state, complete with data files and this documentation. 3. BLACKJACK! may not be distributed as part of a package or group of programs. 4. The paid registered version may NOT be distributed. GLENCOE COMPUTING DONALD L. GRANGER 1100 HIGHWAY C GLENCOE, MISSOURI 63038-1404 NOTICE ------ If you paid a "public domain" vendor for this program, you paid for the service of copying and distributing the program, and not for the program itself. Rest assured that nothing ever gets to the originators of this product from such a sale. You may evaluate this product, but if you make use of it, you should register your copy. The benifits of registration include the latest version of BLACKJACK!, the ability to use a custom defined card counting system, full product support, printer formatted documentation, and an overall good feeling. Acknowledgments My special thanks to the following: Bally's Park Place Hotel & Casino, Atlantic City, NJ The Peppermill Hotel & Casino, Reno, NV Caesar's Palace Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, NV Stu Johnston for his help, and for just being Stu. Leslie Granger, A very special and very patient person who will never know just how much I appreciate and need her love and support. BLACKJACK! 4 The ShareWare Concept The ShareWare concept is an attempt to provide software at low cost. The cost of offering a new product by conventional chan- nels is staggering, and hence dissuades many independent au- thors and small companies from developing and promoting their ideas. ShareWare is an attempt to develop a marketing channel where products can be introduced at low cost. If the ShareWare concept works, then everyone benefits. The user will benefit by receiving quality products at low cost, and by being able to "test drive" software before purchasing it. The author benefits by being able to enter the commercial software arena without first needing large sources of venture capital. But it can only work with your support. We're not just talking about BLACKJACK! here, but about all user sup- ported software. If you find that you are still using a pro- gram after a couple of weeks, then pretty obviously it is worth something to you, and you should register. System Requirements Due to BLACKJACK!'s very high resolution graphics, an EGA, VGA or Hercules compatible graphics adapter or equivalent is re- quired. BLACKJACK! will NOT run with the CGA or MDA display adapters. A minimum of 256K display memory is required on EGA type adapters. BLACKJACK! requires 256K of available system memory. BLACKJACK! will run on any floppy based system as well as fixed disk systems. BLACKJACK! is written in C and Assembler. Quick Start If you are like me you are impatient and figure you know enough about computers and software to figure just about any old pro- gram out without reading the docs. Well you are probably right. BLACKJACK! was designed to be easy to use and all but impossible to damage... so have at it if you must! But please find the time to read these few pages, they contain quite a bit of valuable information about the game of Blackjack that could make your next sojourn to the tables much more enjoyable. OK, here goes. . . MAKE BACKUPS! Be sure program and data files are on the same diskette, or in the same fixed disk directory. Type BJ from the DOS prompt, read the menus and prompts and have at it! BLACKJACK! 5 Introduction The most popular casino game today, both for players and casino owners, is unquestionably Blackjack. For the player the at- traction is the simplicity of the rules (just about everyone knows how to play "21") and the friendly atmosphere of the table. For the owners the popularity is due to the fact that the Blackjack tables have become the most profitable real estate in the casino.** The purpose of BLACKJACK! is to do something about the latter! First off, let's make sure that the object of the game is clear. We are not out to see who can get closest to 21 without going over... we are out to BEAT THE DEALER! This is an impor- tant concept overlooked by many novice players, and it leads to fatter wallets for the casino bosses. Although getting close to 21 is often the best strategy, it is just as important to know when to sit back and let the dealer beat himself. With Blackjack, as played in casinos, we always know exactly how the dealer is going to play his hand. This is the key fea- ture that has allowed the development of Basic Strategy Tables, the most important tool at our disposal when at the tables. The importance of learning the Basic Strategy Tables cannot be over stressed. This is your key to winning! By utilizing these strategies you can lower the house percentage (vigorish) from around 6% to close to 0%! Often in a session the money is made on the secondary bets (splitting and doubling down) while the regular play ends up in a push. With a firm knowledge of the basic strategy you will know when to make these bets. You cannot play blackjack by the seat of your pants and expect to win. The basic strategy tables are found under the Basic Strategy Practice heading of this manual. I recommend that you print these tables for use as a reference while using BLACKJACK!. Card counting is the most talked about facet of Blackjack and when properly utilized can actually give the player up to a 1.5% edge over the house. The biggest problem with most count- ing strategies that they are quite complex and far too diffi- cult for the casual player to master. Casinos also frown heav- ily on card counters and with certainty will ask a player sus- pected of counting to leave the tables (and maybe the casino). ____________________ * Actually the slot machines are likely to account for more revenue per square foot. BLACKJACK! 6 In the early seventies card counting became quite a popular subject, with many feature stories appearing on television and in magazines. System sellers were quick to exploit this new awareness and a plethora of 'sure win' systems were touted and sold. Curiously during this period the casino profits began to rise at a disproportional rate to the increase in table activ- ity. Hmmmm, how could this be? The answer is simple, too many casual players armed with too small bankrolls were attempting to apply extremely complex systems without the necessary long hours of preparation. The only sure winners were the system sellers themselves and, of course, the casinos! Of the multitude of counting systems being touted and sold the simple "Plus / Minus" (+-) system is one of best choices for the average player. BLACKJACK! will only employ the +- system of counting in this discussion. Essentially this is the way it works. The deck is divided into 3 parts, the low cards, the middle cards, and the high cards. We will only concern our- selves with the low and high cards in the deck (this makes the job a little easier). The +- system is discussed under the Card Counting Practice heading of this manual. In spite of its simplicity, you should not even consider employing a counting system until you know the basic strategy tables inside out, be- ing able to make the correct decision on 100 out of 100 hands. I hope that you find BLACKJACK! a useful and fun to use tool, and that the next time you return from the tables it will take a truck to carry home your winnings. Start-Up Backing Up BLACKJACK! It is strongly suggested that you make a backup copy of your BLACKJACK! files. Do this by inserting your original BLACKJACK! diskette in drive A: and a blank formatted diskette in drive B: (for single floppy systems refer to the DOS manual for the correct procedure to make backups). Enter the DOS command COPY A:*.* B: [enter] or DISKCOPY A: B: [enter] Store your original BLACKJACK! diskette in a safe place (just in case). Installation BLACKJACK! does not require any special installation pro- cedures prior to use. If you are using a floppy disk based system all files must be on the same diskette and the program must be started from the default drive. If you have a fixed disk you can copy the program and data files onto the disk and run the program without the use of floppies. The following is an example for setting up the program on a fixed disk (assume drive C:): C>CD / (switch to root directory) C>MD BJ (create directory named BJ) C>CD /BJ (switch to BJ directory) C>Copy A:*.* C: (copy all files) BLACKJACK! 7 It is important that all files be in the same directory and that directory be selected as the default. For more information on fixed disks and directories please see your DOS reference manual. Running BLACKJACK! From the DOS prompt simply type BJ and press [Enter] Blackjack Basics In Blackjack each player wagers against the dealer's hand. The object of the game for the player is to have a total point value of cards dealt to you that exceeds the total point value of the dealer's cards without going over 21. The object of the game for the dealer is essentially the same. You win by either having the total point value closest to 21 or by having the dealer exceed 21 (bust). Cards count face value with the King, Queen, and Jack valued as 10. The Ace can count as 1 or 11. Each player is dealt 2 cards, one at a time starting with the player to the dealer's left. Each player card is dealt face up. The dealer is dealt one card up and one card face down. Each player, from dealer left to right, is given the chance to "stand" (draw no more cards), "hit" (draw additional cards in hopes of getting closer to 21), or take one of the other op- tions described later. You may hit until you have reached 21 or gone over. If you "bust" you lose regardless of the outcome of the dealer's hand. The dealer must play his hand according to strict rules. He must always hit on a point total of 16 or less and must stand on a score of 17. Some casinos allow the dealer to hit a "soft 17" (a score of 17 that includes an Ace valued at 11, for exam- ple Ace - 6). This is not a common practice and seems limited to the Reno - Tahoe area of Nevada. If the player is dealt blackjack (a 2 card score of 21) and the dealer does not also have blackjack you are an automatic winner and are paid at odds of 3:2. If both dealer and player have blackjack it is a "push" (tie) and no chips change hands. If the dealer has blackjack and the player has a total of 21 but with more than 2 cards the dealer wins the hand. This last situation can occur when, for security reasons, the casino only allows the dealer to check his hand for blackjack when his up card is an Ace. In these cases when the dealer does have blackjack only the player's original bets are lost. Double down and split bets are not taken. BLACKJACK! 8 OTHER OPTIONS: other options available during the game SPLITTING PAIRS: If your first two cards have the same value you can split them into separate hands. Note that any two cards with a 10 value may be split. If you elect to split a pair you must place an additional bet equal to your original bet on the second hand. Play is completed on the first hand before any cards are dealt to the second hand. If a pair of Aces are split most casinos do not allow additional cards to be drawn. Note that 2 card totals of 21 on split hands ARE NOT treated as a blackjack and pay only even money. Some casinos allow for resplitting if the original split results in another pair. BLACKJACK! allows a maximum of one resplit. DOUBLING DOWN: After you are dealt your first 2 cards you may elect to "double down" by making an additional wager up to the amount of your original wager and drawing only one additional card. Note that BLACKJACK! only allows making the maximum wager on double downs. Most all houses allow doubling down on split hands. Rules vary among casinos on what point totals you may double down on, but the most common rule is any two cards. INSURANCE: If the dealer's face card is an Ace you will be of- fered the opportunity to take insurance. To do this you make an additional wager of 1/2 your original bet. If the dealer has blackjack your insurance bet is paid at 2:1, but your orig- inal bet is lost (unless of course you have blackjack). If the dealer has any score other than blackjack the insurance bet is collected and play continues. SURRENDER: Some casinos will allow the player to drop out of the hand by giving up (surrendering) 1/2 their original bet. This can be an advantageous move when you hold what amounts to a hopeless hand. For example, the dealer is showing an Ace and your hand count is 16. You must indicate your desire to sur- render prior to drawing any cards. Very few casinos still of- fer this option, but at the ones that do it is an important part of the basic strategy. "CUTE" RULES: Some casinos may offer special payoffs for situa- tions such as having 6 cards under 21 or 3 sevens. These are rare and are not addressed in BLACKJACK!. General Information Press & Enter Throughout this documentation, and while playing BLACKJACK! 'Press' and 'Enter' have the following meanings: PRESS - just press the key corresponding to your response. ENTER - press the key(s) corresponding to your response and then press the [enter] key. BLACKJACK! 9 Prompt Lines When BLACKJACK! is waiting for an input you will be prompted (usually across the bottom of the screen) for your response. The available choices will be listed with the key letter enclosed in square braces []. You make your selection by pressing the corresponding key. Selections that require pressing a function key will have the key represented as the letter F plus the key number. Example prompt lines: [H]it [S]tand spli[T] F1 Help F2 Statistics To select SPLIT you would press T. To get help you would press function key F1 The BLACKJACK! Main Menu +---------------------------------+ | CASINOS | | 1 - User Casino | | 2 - Bally's Park Place | | 3 - Caesar's Palace | | 4 - Peppermill Casino | | Other Options | | 5 - View Casino Definitions | | 6 - Edit User Casino | | 7 - Card Counting Drill | | 8 - Basic Strategy Drill | | 9 - Registration Form | +---------------------------------+ Load A Casino: The top 4 menu choices represent the different casinos that BLACKJACK! is programmed to simulate. To select a casino for play press the corresponding number. View Casino Data: This option is selected by either pressing [5] or [V]. A screen showing the name and house rules of the available casinos will appear. To scroll the different descriptions press the arrow keys. To play at the displayed casino press [Enter], to return to the main menu press [Esc]. Edit User Casino: This option allows you to edit the configuration of the user defined casino (number 1 on the main menu). Select this option by either pressing [6] or [E]. Card Counting Practice: You can sharpen your card counting skills by pressing [7] or [C]. Basic Strategy Practice: For practice drills on the Basic Strategy Tables press [8] or [B]. Program Exit: To exit BLACKJACK! and return to DOS press [Q] from the Main Menu. BLACKJACK! 10 At The Casino BLACKJACK! allows for multiple players. Although most likely you will be playing alone, it is possible to play more than one hand giving you the opportunity to try out different betting strategies at the same sitting. Multiple players also offers a more realistic setting for practicing your card counting skills. Casino Table Set-Up After selecting a casino you will need to provide the fol- lowing information for the table. An input form will be displayed and you will be prompted for the following data. Number of players: Enter the number of players at the table. Default: 1. Minimum Bet: Enter the minimum bet allowed for each hand. Default: $5 Table Limit: Enter the maximum bet allowed for each hand. Default: 100 times minimum bet Player's Stake: Enter the amount of money each player has. Default: 1/2 the table limit Show Burn Card: Press [Y]es to show the burn card, [N]o not to. Default: NO Status Box: Press [Y]es or [N]o for the Status Box display. Default: YES The Status Box The game Status Box is located in the upper left corner of the screen. It contains pertinent information to the game in progress. Included in the Status Box are casino bank balance (in case you have designs on breaking the bank), number of hands played, number of cards played from the current deck or shoe, the size of the shoe in decks, and the current plus - minus card count value. You can toggle the display of the Status Box at any time by pressing the [F2] key. Placing Bets The Wager Box: The Wager Box shows the amount of funds in your bankroll and an input field for your wager. The default value on the opening hand is always the minimum table bet. On subsequent hands the default is your previous wager or the remaining balance of your funds...which ever is lower. You can enter any amount (provided you have the funds available) between the table limit and the minimum wager. BLACKJACK! 11 Playing The Hand After all players have placed their bets the hands are dealt, one card at a time from the dealer's left to right. After all players have received their cards the hands are played in the same order. The following are the possible actions available to the player: [H]it Draw another card. [S]tand Stand on the cards you have. [D]ouble down Double your bet and draw one additional card. Spli[T] Split a pair into two separate hands. This requires an additional wager that is equal to the original. Sur[R]ender Drop out of the hand by yielding 1/2 your original bet. [I]insurance If the dealer's up card is an Ace, each player will be offered the chance to make an insurance bet. If the dealer does have blackjack the insurance is paid and the original bets are collected (effectively amounting to a "push"). Otherwise the insurance bets are collected and play continues. After all players have finished the dealer plays his hand and the bets are settled. Borrowing Funds Players automatically have a line of credit established for them at 1/2 their original stake. For example, if you begin a session with a stake of $500, you will have $250 available for borrowing. Players are not allowed to borrow past this amount. If a player has exhausted both his original stake and his line of credit they will be asked to leave the table. At the beginning of each hand you are given the op- portunity to borrow money from the house, to obtain a loan press the [F3] prior to placing you bet. A window will open showing the amount of money you have available for borrowing and you will be prompted to enter the amount you desire. The default response is the maximum loan. If at any time your current funds fall below the minimum bet the loan window will open automatically. Advances are not allowed during play so plan ahead to have enough funds for splits and double downs. Help Help is available by pressing the [F1] key. When playing a hand you will be advised on the correct ac- tion to take based on Basic Strategy Table for the casino rules under which you are playing. When making a wager you are advised on the type of bet to make based on the current +- card count. BLACKJACK! 12 The User Definable Casino The first casino listed on the Main Menu is the User Definable Casino. The purpose of which is to allow you to set up a playing environment similar to any casino you like. It is predefined as the Glencoe's Golden Palace. Editing The User Casino After selecting "Edit User Casino" from the Main Menu you will see an editing window. You will be allowed to define the name, location, and house rules for the casino as you wish. Answer each prompt with the indicated type of response. To retain the current value of an item simply press [Enter]. Here are a couple of examples: Number of decks Surrender allowed? For "Number of decks" you press a number between 1-8. For "Surrender allowed?" you press either [Y] or [N]. Card Counting Practice To sharpen your card counting ability select Card Counting Drills from the main menu by either pressing [C] or [8]. You will be asked how many decks you want to use. The drill will involve all the cards in the shoe being displayed for a short period of time. You should keep a running total of the count. To increase the speed of the drill press the [+] key, to slow the drill press the [-] key. A "speed bar" shows the relative drill speed. The speed indicator will turn green (color) or black (monochrome) when you have selected a rate of approxi- mately 30 seconds per deck or faster. Options: The following options act as toggles when their key is pressed. [H]elp: As an aid you can have the count value of the current card displayed. [S]tatus box: An optional status box showing the current count and number of cards that have been displayed. [P]ause: The drill can be paused at any time. The Status Box will be displayed during the pause. [Q]uit: Terminates the drill. Note that the card count at the end of the shoe will always be 0 since the 20 high cards cancel out the 20 low cards. BLACKJACK! 13 Counting Basics Why Count? Accurate card counting allows you to have a picture of what cards remain in the deck, and therefor an idea of the likeli- hood of the occurrence of certain hands. Note that I said likelihood, it will NOT allow you to predict actual hands, only the probability of hands. What good is this? If it is known the remaining cards in the shoe are rich in tens and Aces we know that more blackjacks and good standing hands such as 19 or 20 will be dealt. Of course this holds true for the dealer, but the dealer is not paid 3:2 for blackjack, he cannot split pairs, and he must always hit his "stiff" hands (12-16) with an increased probability of breaking. We will use the tried and true High/Low counting system first developed by Harvey Dubner in 1963 and published in Dr. Edward Thorp's book "Beat The Dealer". This system is easy to learn and one of the most effective of all counting methods. Each card in the deck is given one of 3 count values; either - 1, 0, or 1. Count values are assigned as follows: Low Cards 2,3,4,5,6 +1 Middle Cards 7,8,9 0 High Cards 10,J,Q,K,Ace -1 Since the middle cards are valued 0, we only need concern our- selves with the low and high ends of the deck. As each card is played you add the count value to the running total for that deck. When the count total is high it means that more low cards have been played than high. Note that for counting to be effective you must be near the end of the deck. In a 6 deck shoe a high count total after only 30 of 312 cards have been played is not a good indicator since there are still too many cards remaining for accurate prediction. You want to deploy your card count betting strategy late in the shoe. Simply put, the higher the card count, the bolder your betting should be. This is also a time when bending the basic strategy rules is allowed. For example, the card count is 10 late in the shoe and you are dealt a pair of Jacks. Basic strategy dictates always standing on 20, but since we know there are many 10s and Aces remaining it becomes our advantage to split this pair. Finally, don't even consider using card counting until you can perfectly complete the Card Counting Drill at a rate of about 30 seconds per 52 card deck. BLACKJACK! 14 Basic Strategy Practice This is the biggie! You should know the following tables inside - out before ever considering sitting down to play in a casino. Select the Basic Strategy Drill by either pressing [7] or [B] from the main menu. The drill works much the same way as ac- tual Blackjack play. You and the dealer will be dealt hands. Press the key corresponding to the action you believe should be taken. If you make a wrong play the correct action will be displayed above your hand. There is a casino definition box displayed in the upper right side of the screen. You can change the configuration (and therefor the basic strategy needed) by pressing the indicated function keys. For example, pressing [F1] will toggle between single & multi deck play. Pressing [P] will toggle the Performance Box display which shows the number of hands dealt, the number of correct plays made, and your accuracy as a percentage. These totals can be reset by pressing [F5]. BLACKJACK! 15 Strategy Tables TABLE ONE Multi-Deck, Double After Split, Double On Any Two Cards Player's Hand Strategy For Dealer Up-Card Simple Hands 5 -> 8 Always Hit 9 Double on 3 - 6, Otherwise Hit 10 Double on 2 - 9, Otherwise Hit 11 Double on 2 -10, Otherwise Hit 12 Stand on 4 - 6, Otherwise Hit 13, 14, 15, 16 Stand on 2 - 6, Otherwise Hit 17 -> 21 Always Stand Ace Combinations A-2, A-3 Double on 5 - 6, Otherwise Hit A-4, A-5 Double on 4 - 6, Otherwise Hit A-6 Double on 3 - 6, Otherwise Hit A-7 Double on 3 - 6, Hit 9, 10, Ace Stand 2, 7, 8 A-8, A-9, A-10 Always Stand Pairs A-A Always Split 2-2, 3-3 Split on 2 - 7, Otherwise Hit 4-4 Split on 5 - 6, Otherwise Hit 5-5 Double on 2 - 9, Otherwise Hit 6-6 Split on 2 - 6, Otherwise HIt 7-7 Split on 2 - 7, Otherwise Hit 8-8 Always Split 9-9 Split on 2-6,8,9 Stand on 7,10,Ace 10-10 Always Stand BLACKJACK! 16 TABLE TWO Single-Deck, Double On 10 Or 11 Only Player's Hand Strategy For Dealer Up-Card Simple Hands 5 -> 9 Always Hit 10 Double on 2 - 9, Otherwise Hit 11 Always Double 12 Stand on 4 - 6, Otherwise Hit 13, 14, 15, 16 Stand on 2 - 6, Otherwise Hit 17 -> 21 Always Stand Ace Combinations A-2. . .A-6 Always Hit A-7 Stand on 2 - 8, Otherwise Hit A-8, A-9, A-10 Always Stand Pairs A-A Always Split 2-2 Split on 3 - 7, Otherwise Hit 3-3 Split on 4 - 7, Otherwise Hit 4-4 Always Hit 5-5 Double on 2 - 9, Otherwise Hit 6-6 Split on 2 - 6, Otherwise HIt 7-7 Split on 2 - 7, Otherwise Hit 8-8 Always Split 9-9 Split on 2-6,8,9 Stand on 7,10,Ace 10-10 Always Stand BLACKJACK! 17 TABLE THREE Single-Deck, Double After Split, Double On Any Two Cards Player's Hand Strategy For Dealer Up-Card Simple Hands 5 -> 8(6-2) Always Hit 8 Double on 5 - 6, Otherwise Hit 9 Double on 2 - 6, Otherwise Hit 10 Double on 2 - 9, Otherwise Hit 11 Always Double 12 Stand on 4 - 6, Otherwise Hit 13, 14, 15, 16 Stand on 2 - 6, Otherwise Hit 17 -> 21 Always Stand Ace Combinations A-2. . . A-5 Double on 4 - 6, Otherwise Hit A-6 Double on 2 - 6, Otherwise Hit A-7 Double on 3 - 6, Hit 9, 10 Stand 2, 7, 8, Ace A-8, A-9, A-10 Always Stand Pairs A-A Always Split 2-2 Split on 3 - 7, Otherwise Hit 3-3 Split on 4 - 7, Otherwise Hit 4-4 Double on 5 - 6, Otherwise Hit 5-5 Double on 2 - 9, Otherwise Hit 6-6 Split on 2 - 6, Otherwise HIt 7-7 Split on 2 - 7, Otherwise Hit 8-8 Always Split 9-9 Split on 2-6,8,9 Stand on 7,10,Ace 10-10 Always Stand BLACKJACK! 18 TABLE FOUR General Purpose Basic Strategy Table A 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 5, 6, 7, 8 H H H H H H H H H H --------------------------------------------------- 8(5-3) H H H B B H H H H H --------------------------------------------------- S 9 H H D D D D H H H H I --------------------------------------------------- M 10 H D D D D D D D D H P --------------------------------------------------- L 11 B D D D D D D D D D E --------------------------------------------------- 12 H H H S S S H H H H H --------------------------------------------------- A 13, 14 H S S S S S H H H H N --------------------------------------------------- D 15 H S S S S S H H H R S --------------------------------------------------- 16 R S S S S S H H H R --------------------------------------------------- 17 & up S S S S S S S S S S A 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 A-2 H H H B D D H H H H A --------------------------------------------------- C A-3 H H H B D D H H H H E --------------------------------------------------- A-4, A-5 H H H D D D H H H H C --------------------------------------------------- O A-6 H B D D D D H H H H M --------------------------------------------------- B A-7 H S D D D D S S H H O --------------------------------------------------- S A-8 S S S S S B S S S S --------------------------------------------------- A-9, A-10 S S S S S S S S S S A 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 A-A, 8-8 T T T T T T T T T T --------------------------------------------------- 2-2, 3-3 H P P T T T T H H H --------------------------------------------------- 4-4 H H H H L L H H H H P --------------------------------------------------- A 5-5 H D D D D D D D D H I --------------------------------------------------- R 6-6 H T T T T T H H H H S --------------------------------------------------- 7-7 H T T T T T T H H R --------------------------------------------------- 9-9 S T T T T T S T T S --------------------------------------------------- 10-10 S S S S S S S S S S BLACKJACK! 19 Matrix Codes: H Hit S Stand D Double if allowed, otherwise hit B Double if allowed & single deck, otherwise hit R Surrender if allowed, otherwise hit T Split P Split if DD after split is allowed, otherwise hit L Split if DD after split, double if single deck, otherwise hit OK, admittedly this last table is a bit complex, but it will cover just about any set of house rules that you may encounter. With this data you can construct your own Basic Strategy Table for your favorite form of the game. Betting & Money Management Along with mastering the strategies of Blackjack you also need to have a money management plan. Nothing is worse than losing your entire bankroll on the first day of a three day junket. Your money management program should contain the following important considerations. Only play with money that you can afford to lose. Losses should be considered a cost of entertainment. Allocate a portion of your total stake for each day of your stay. Do not borrow from tomorrow's funds and do not add todays winnings or surpluses to tomorrow's stake. Establish a minimum and maximum bet size designed to stretch your bankroll over the length of each playing session. There are many different betting strategies and schemes, the method that will be covered here is my own personal favorite. This is by no means the only system available. It is based on a system know as Anti-Martingale and is designed to take advantage of "hot" streaks and minimize losses when faced with an unfriendly deck. It can be considered quite con- servative. This first decision that needs to be made is how much risk cap- ital you want to put into play for a particular session at a table. Once an amount has been decided upon DO NOT make any increases. This amount will be referred to as your "opening stake". Your opening stake will influence your table selection at the casino. The minimum bet allowed will vary from table to table, if you have decided on an opening stake of $100 you should seek out a table with a low minimum bet such as $2 or $5. The obvious reason being that you will be able to stay in the game longer than at a $25 table. BLACKJACK! 20 For the sake of this discussion we will use the term "betting unit" to refer to the minimum amount you will wager. Each session will begin by wagering one betting unit. If that hand wins the bet remains at one unit. After a second consecutive win increase to two betting units. This is the only time that the bet will be doubled. All subse- quent increases will be in an amount equal to 1/2 the amount just won. In cases where a fraction of a betting unit would be involved you should round down to the nearest whole unit. As soon as a bet is lost return to betting one unit. Here is an example session showing six consecutive winning hands and the amount of winnings withheld from the previous hand. Hand Bet Withheld 1 1 0 2 1 1 3 2 0 4 4 1 5 6 2 6 9 3 7 13 5 A loss at the seventh hand results in a net gain of 12 betting units. Amounts won as a result of splits or doubles should NOT be included in the increased bet. If you reach your personal maximum bet, stop there and continue play at that level until a loss. There are many variations that can be derived from this system. For example you can increase each bet by a fixed amount rather than a percentage of the winnings. Finally, you should only keep an amount equal to your original stake on the table. In the above example, any funds above $100 should be taken out of play. Any time that the original stake has been lost play should be discontinued... No matter how much of the casino's money you have won. Disciplined play is a secret to success. BLACKJACK! 21 The Casinos The following table outlines the rules for the casinos used in BLACKJACK!. CASINO User Bally's Peppermill Caesar's Number of Decks 6 6 1 2 Splitting Rules Resplitting Allowed YES NO NO YES Double Down on Splits YES YES YES YES Hit Split Aces NO NO NO NO Double Down Rules Double Down On... ANY 2 ANY 2 10/11 ONLY ANY 2 Double Down on more Than 2 Cards NO NO NO NO Miscelaneous Rules Insurance Offered YES YES YES YES Surrender Allowed YES NO NO NO Dealer Hits Soft 17 NO NO YES NO Problems Every attempt has been made to eliminate programming errors (bugs), and to assure that the information presented is accurate and correct. Still, it is impossible to test an application on every possible hardware configuration available. If you encounter ANY problems or inaccuracies please contact Glencoe Computing and provide the following information: Computer make and model: Video adapter and monitor: Ram-resident programs (TSRs) loaded: Thorough description of the problem: My goal is your satisfaction. = GOOD LUCK! = Commercial Also available from Glencoe Computing: GET LUCKY! = The Adult Entertainment Package = Trivia & Poker presented with a risque' flavor, plus The Poker Machine, a Las Vegas style poker machine simulation. 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