The most common question everyone asks when starting to play casino games is how to become a winning blackjack player.

One of the advantages to working for an online casino is the access we have to raw data. Every online casino keeps track of every detail of game played on their servers. While this data is kept primarily to ensure quality control it can also give us an interesting insight into the habit of winning and losing blackjack players.

We took a sample of our top 100 most winning players and compared their playing stats and details to the top 100 most losing players on the site. By taking a close look at the data we can begin to see where the losers are losing and most importantly: how the losers are able to become winners.

Play Blackjack: Just Blackjack

Just about every online casino offers Blackjack and Blackjack variations. These can include games like: Perfect Pairs, Super 21, Pontoon, European Blackjack and Face-Up 21. While all this variety can be appealing, you need to ask yourself why you would opt out of playing the original game, with the best odds.

Just about every other variation of Blackjack will reduce your odds, reducing the amount of money you can win in the long run.

Win vs. Loss vs. Push Rate*

* Figures taken from thousands of actual real-money hands

When comparing the game selection of winners to losers we see that losing players play these other variations of Blackjack for a bit over 20% of all games played. The percentage of winning players playing other games comes in a full 6 points lower.

The winners are sticking to the standard version of the game, so should you.

Perfect Pairs are for Suckers

A big part of becoming a winning Blackjack player is staying far away from any sucker bets, Perfect Pair type bets being the most common.

Now I’m sure my bosses won’t be too happy about this section, but I just can’t help myself. Betting on the Perfect Pair bets (or the same bet by any other name) is one of the worst bets you can take. In fact only 7% of all Perfect Pair bets collect any money.

The winning players are clearly aware of this, with only 11% of all winning players playing the perfect pair tables opting to make the bet. Contrast this to the losers, with a whopping 57% opt-in rate, and you can start to see just how much of a leak this is.

Insurance is for Suckers

According to our statistics, when the dealer is showing an ace they will have blackjack around 31% of the time. Since that means 69% of the time they will have anything else, insurance is a waste of your money.

Don’t believe me? Let’s just do some math. To make it easy we’ll say we’re betting $10 a hand and paying max insurance of $5.

So out of 100 hands 69 times the dealer doesn’t have Blackjack. We keep our bet (in play) and lose the insurance ($5 x 69 = -$345).

The other 31 hands are a wash. Each hand we lose our bet ($10) but get 2 to 1 on the Insurance, grossing $10.

We’ve lost $345 strictly on insurance when up against an ace.

Now if we never bought insurance we pay $10 every hand. On 69 of those hands we’re ok, on 31 we’re not and we lose our bet ($10 x 31 = -$310).

By not paying for insurance we’ve lost $310.

In other words: not buying insurance saved me a total of $35.

Double Down… a Lot

Blackjack is a game with nearly 50/50 odds. If you want to make money you need to get as many bets in as possible when you have the edge. The easiest way to do this is to double down every time you’re ahead in the numbers.

If you have less than 12 and the dealer is showing a 6 or less, chances are you want to double. Most people will tell you to double down every time you have 11, regardless of what the dealer is showing.

Rather have some stats instead of advice? No problem

As you can see the winners are doubling down significantly more often than the losers. You’ll also notice the winners win rate is more than a full percentage higher than losers. This implies the losing players are occasionally doubling down in a poor situation, such as doubling down A8 against a dealer showing a 9.

When we narrow down the double down range to doubling down while you hold less than 12 against a dealer showing a 6 or less the winner’s win rate climbs up to a massive 59.6%

When it comes to doubling down on 11 (regardless of what the dealer is holding) the winning players are doing this more than 71% of the time (compared to the 59% of losers). The win rate for both losers and winners on this is right around 60%.

When looking at the numbers for players who hit on 11 (instead of doubling down) with the dealer showing anything but a 10 we see the players win rate drop as low as 26%.

So double down, a lot.

You Heard me, SPLIT! (You Damn Dirty Eights)

As previously mentioned, the goal in blackjack is to get as many bets in play as possible when you have the edge. Aside from doubling down the only other way to change your bet mid-hand is to split.

To be a successful player you need to know when and how to split. Some rules to live by: Never, under any circumstance, split two 10-point cards. A 20 is nearly a guaranteed win, take it.

One of the most important splitting hands is when you’re dealt a couple of 8’s. If the dealer is showing anything less than a 9 you should be splitting. You have 16; neither hitting nor staying at this value is a particularly good idea.

You’re more likely to be dealt a 10 point card than any other card in the deck. This makes two hands worth 18 the most likely outcome from splitting. If 18 is likely good enough to push or win (dealer showing 8 or less) then you should be splitting.

What if the dealer’s showing a 6?

If the dealer has a 6 (or a 5) and you have anything you can split (other than two 10’s) you should be splitting. When the dealer is showing a 6 you want to get as much money onto the table as possible. If you can, split and then double down on any hand worth less than 12.

There are two major components of black jack strategy – basic strategy and card counting. The basic blackjack strategy is an attempt to make the right choices in order to minimize the house advantage in the games. Learning a basic blackjack strategy will tell which moves to make when, but there is a significant amount of memorization required to make this strategy work.

Card counting blackjack strategy is much more complicated than the basic strategy, and much like a house needs a foundation, the more complex blackjack strategy needs the basics in place through a simple understanding of the house advantage and how to minimize that before the more complex strategies can be used. Through blackjack strategy, the player will need to consider the rules of the game they are playing as the rules can vary with different forms of the game.

The player will need to also plan for making moves based on the score of his hand as well as the dealer’s up card. Learning how to split or double is important as well for players who are learning to maximize the basic blackjack strategy. The simplest blackjack strategies include methods like:

– Doubling down on a 10 or 11 and the dealer’s card is worth less than your hand.
– Hit on all hands of 11 or less.
– Stand with hands that are between 17 and 21.
– With soft hands lower than 15, always hit.

There are countless more rules and tricks to learn as you master the blackjack strategy and use it to your favor in traditional or online casinos.

Basic Blackjack Strategy
The most basic strategy of blackjack is to prevent the house from gaining the edge during play. Since there are countless possible combinations of cards during a round of play, it’s very important for players to know the rules of the game they are playing. Some forms of online blackjack for real money require you play against a dealer who must hold at seventeen. Other games let you play against other players who may have the option to hit at seventeen. The outcome of the two can be very different as should your strategy for winning a game regardless of how it is structured.

Some general rules in a very oversimplified blackjack strategy are intended to tip the odds of the game in the favor of the player. In general, however, the house will almost always have an advantage in the long-term, but the better your skill, the better your odds of winning.

– Always hit if your hand is less than 11.
– Always stand if you have a hard hand of 17 to 21.
– With a hard hand of 12 to 16, stand if the dealer is showing a 6 or lower. If the dealer is showing a 7 or higher, however, hit.
– Never split fours, fives or tens.
– Always split eights or aces.

I think Blackjack is mostly a game of skill. The reason I make such a claim is, that when a player learns the strategy to play Blackjack, the casino has a very small (to non existent) edge on the player. If you dedicate yourself to learn Blackjack strategy, the casino you are playing at only has a 0.5% edge over you, which is much less than most other casino games.

The Blackjack strategy is based on mathematics and it takes a lot of skill from the player to be able to master it. This means that regardless of luck and the cards that may be dealt during the game, the final result could be completely controlled by the player if a strategic approach to the game is used.

Some players prefer Blackjack to be a game of luck because they play it just for fun and find more excitement in not knowing what the results will be. However, I am sure that many players would like to turn their favorite hobby into something profitable, and they should be aware that this is possible and as simple as learning a few rules to the game.

Others argue that any card game is a game of luck because you cannot predict the cards that will be dealt, nor what the next card will be, and I will say that I completely disagree because odds are a wonderful thing that allow gamblers to make predictions on what the next card will be. Thanks to odds and strategy, most online casino games can be enjoyed by players at the same time as they bring a few extra bucks in.

Some online casinos do offer French Roulette but as a single game and this has a lot to do with the house edge and the average return of the game. The three variants of roulette offer very different returns. For those who are not familiar with the term house edge, the simplest definition is that it is the percent of each wager that the casino expects to get as winnings. From this concept you can understand that the higher the house edge, the more the casino profits.

Whereas American and European roulette offer a 5.26% and 2.70% house edge, respectively, French roulette only offers a 1.35% house return on even money bets and a 2.70% on all other bets. However, if we think about it, some casinos offer some variants of Blackjack and Video Poker with house edges of less than 1%.

The difference is that Roulette is a game purely based on luck and so, in the long run, the house will always get its return. In blackjack and video poker there is a skill factor and the issue is that even though the house edge is only 0.5%, this involves that the player uses perfect strategy and that is rarely the case. As a result, the house can expect returns of almost 10%.

There lies the issue why French Roulette poses the least attractive option for casino owners and they prefer to keep it away from the players as much as they can. However, I encourage you t try the game as it is a lot of fun. I will try to post more information on it later on the week. Happy grinding!

First of all, it is important that you remember that most online casino games are games of chance. Sometimes it does not matter how well you know the strategy and follow the rules, because luck will not be on your side so keep this in mind to avoid frustration.

An irreplaceable way to polish your gaming skills is to download the games and play for fun money. Keep in mind that this can backfire because sometimes players do not take this type of gaming seriously as they know there is nothing at stake. We encourage you to play the games for play money and take them seriously, especially if you are trying to get better at Blackjack or other strategy games.

Another practice we suggest is to be a railbird. Watch a game and pay attention to the moves of the players and the results they get from them. You could see a reflection of the mistakes you make or learn some new move that you had not discovered before. You can also learn about games if you know a friend who has been getting good returns at online casinos and ask them to let you watch them play, and if they are kind enough, ask them to even explain what they are doing.

Remeber, practice makes perfect and unless you realize what your common mistakes are and find a way out of them, there is nothing that can help you.

• Bust: In Blackjack, to go over 21.
• Carousel: a group of slot machines that are setup in a circle in order to enable a change person to stand in the middle.
• Cold: a slot machine that is not paying out or a player on a losing streak.
• Dime Bet: a $1000 wager.
• First Base: In a Blackjack table, the position on the far left of the dealer.
• High Roller: a player who wages large amounts of money.
• Jackpot: A big win on a slot machine.
• Limit: any game with a limit has a fixed amount as to how much can be wagered and/or raised.
• Load Up: to play the maximum number of coins allowed in a slot machine.
• Natural: In Blackjack, a two-card hand of 21 points.
• Odds: Probabilities.
• Payoff: payback, money you receive as winnings.
• Payout Percentage: the percentage of each dollar wagered that a player will get back. To calculate this casinos use 100% minus the house edge percentage.
• Progressive: a slot machine with a jackpot that increases with every extra coin that is wagered.
• Shoe: a box in which multiple decks of cards are kept for dealing. Sometimes they shuffle the cards automatically.
• Stand: In Blackjack, to restrain from taking another card.
• Surrender: In Blackjack, to give up half of your bet to avoid playing a hand.

I hope you found those terms useful and please keep posting the topics you would like to have covered on The Online Gambler’s Guide.

1. American Roulette. This game has terrible odds because, unlike European Roulette, it comes with two zeros. This limits your chances of winning as it is less likely that you will hit any particular number and it makes the house edge a high 5.26%.
2. Progressive Jackpots. The house edge for progressive jackpots varies according to the rules of each casino, but most of the time the house edge is very high. The payout percentages for progressives are even lower than the non-jackpot equivalents.
3. Keno. Keno is probably the worst games for players who seek a return for their money. The house edge in keno is between 25% and 35%. If you play keno, be aware that this should be done purely for fun.
4. Scratch Cards. The functionality of scratch cards are pretty similar to that of a progressive jackpot. You could hit the big the big prize in one game and make lots of money, but the chances of this happening are terribly slim. Even though there is no entirely accurate way to compute the house edge for scratch cards, empiric testing has proven that there is not a lot of money in this game.
5. Side Bets. In Blackjack there is the possibility to opt for side bets. My recommendation is that you stay away from those ALL THE TIME. As I said in the last post, Blackjack is a game with great odds but the side bets have terrible odds and will almost never bring any returns of your money.

These are the five games that gamblers who want to look after their bankroll should stay away from as they do not offer great returns. I hope this helped clarify the topic a bit and please start suggesting topics for next week right now!

Just to be a little clearer, the house edge refers to the advantage that the house (i.e. the casino) has in a game. This means that if the house edge is 1%, there is a chance that you will lose $1 for every $100 bet.

The games that I recommend to players who want to increase their bankroll and make more money are the following:

1. Blackjack: This game has the lowest house edge of all casino games and it is 0.5%. The key to Blackjack is knowing the basic strategy upside down.
2. European Roulette: Unlike American Roulette, European Roulette only comes with one zero, reducing the house edge to a 2.7%.
3. Craps: This game also has one of the lowest house edges and it is 1.41%. Craps is actually a lot easier to play than what it looks and if you want to make money you might want to try it.
4. Baccarat. This is a very popular game as the house edge is only 1.63% and it offers great returns.
5. Pai Gow: Some players avoid Pai Gow as it can seem rather complicated but it is a goldmine with a house edge of 2.73% if you are the player and 0.20% if you are the banker. Combined, the house edge is 1.46%.

Those are the games that I recommend you start playing if you want to make some decent money at your favorite casino. Sometimes online casinos offer variations of these games with different odds, so you should be attemptive and make sure you are playing the original version of them.

If you want to know which games you should stay away from, come back tomorrow as I will be writing on the negative side of house edge.

It is common that at even money online blackjack players have been given a significant advantage in other aspects of the game. Sometimes the online casinos twist the standard rules in order to give the players other outs in the game.

Even money blackjack is offered at most online casinos. The industry leading software providers have come up with different versions of the game. The software provider behind Silver Oak Casino is Real Time Gaming (RTG) and their version of the game is one of the most exciting ones available. You have probably seen it around at the casino, it is called ‘Face Up Blackjack’.

The payout is reduced because both the dealer’s cards are dealt face up so the player can see the dealer’s total from the start. This form of playing blackjack is unusual and that is what makes it particularly exciting. I recommend that, even though the payout percentage is lower, you try out this game for the thrill of it and for a new gaming experience.

Even if you do not feel like spending money, RTG offers a play money version of the game so that you can decide if you want to check it out.

Tomorrow I will continue with ‘The Online Gambler’s Guide’ topics and the one that was requested by our user ‘Richard’ was the different house edges on online casino games as he wants to learn how to make better decision regarding his bankroll management. Come back to the blog tomorrow if you are interested in learning about the same thing and please suggest more topics for next week.

Even the most seasoned players sometimes run into terms that they never fully understand and they just play along with them. In this post I will try to explain a some of the most common terms that players should know in order to be able able to gamble at online casinos.

• Action: to place a bet or a specific player’s time to make a decision while playing a game. ‘The action’s on you, Sir.’ ‘It is your time to act.’
• Aggregate Limit: this refers to the total payout liability of a casino during a certain game.
• Ante: a bet, or amount of money, that must be put into the pot before the cards are dealt.
• Banker/Croupier/Dealer: the one who deals the cards at a card game.
• Bankroll: a players’ amount of money available to be gambled.
• Face Cards: Jacks, Queens and Kings of any suit.
• Fish: a bad player, loses a lot of money, easy to defeat.
• Hole cards: also called pocket cards, are the cards that are dealt to the player downwards and that only he can see.
• House: the casino.
• House edge: the percentage advantage that the casino has over the players. So, in blackjack there is a 0.05% house edge, meaning that the casino has a 0.05% higher chance of winning in the game.
• Insurance: in Blackjack, when the dealer’s upcard is an Ace players are offered to take a side bet called insurance. The bet is that the dealer has a natural (21) and if this is true the insurance bet wins double, but also loses double if the dealer does not have it.

Those were only a few terms, come back tomorrow for some more. And please, post comments and tell me what you would like me to write about!

NASCAR driver Kyle Busch and a friend in Vegas

If you’re here, chances are pretty good you love to gamble. So if you happen to be someone who also likes NASCAR, you better book your trip to Las Vegas ASAP. It was just announced that NASCAR will be racing down the Las Vegas Strip. Okay, maybe it won’t be an official “race”…but the ten top drivers on the circuit will be doing a nice fast cruise down the boulevard as part of the festivities around their annual dinner and awards ceremony.

The event will be happening on December 5th. I’m telling you about it now to give you lots of advance notice so you can book your trip early…or so you can be absolutely sure you don’t go anywhere near the place on that weekend. Hey, not everybody loves the stink and speed of cars driving really fast. Some people would prefer their visit to Vegas to be heavy on the cocktails and slot machines, and easy on the auto racing.

Oh and speaking of both racing and slots, did you know that we have an online slot machine that features both fast cars AND one of the coolest bonus features around? It’s called Green Light and you can play it right now in our online casino. That is, you can play it if you’re already a member at Silver Oak. If you’re not, it only takes a second to download our free software and get started. Just hit the blue button and that Green Light will only be moments away.