How to Count Cards in Blackjack?

In the world of casino, Blackjack players are always looking for ways to reduce the house edge and gain a crucial advantage over the casino. One way by which players can get an edge in a game of Blackjack is to count cards in blackjack.

Did I hear you say what? Yes, players can adopt the playing strategy of counting cards when they play a game of Blackjack. This gaming strategy allows players to be aware of and take full advantage of any possible shift in momentum. Blackjack players using a card counting strategy will raise their wager when the momentum shifts to their benefit.

However, if the momentum sways to the side of the live dealer, a Blackjack player or card counter will either place a smaller wager or simply back out from placing a bet. To count cards in blackjack gives players a playing edge against the house (casino) as they can alter their wager to suit the moment.

What Is The “Trick” Behind Card Counting?

First of all, you should know that there are basically three groups of cards in a Blackjack game. The first group are high-value cards and include; Face Cards (Queens, Jacks and Kings), Aces and 10s. The second group of cards are low-value cards that include; 2s, 3s, 4s, 5s and 6s.

The third group of cards are seen as neutral cards and these include; 7s, 8s and 9s. Now it has been proven mathematically that the high-value cards are of more benefit to the player (counter) than the live dealer. On the other hand, the low-value cards profit the live dealer better than the player while neutral cards on average are not that useful to either the live dealer or player.

So players will count cards in blackjack and place larger bets for a subsequent round when during the earlier gaming rounds more low-value cards were dealt compared to high-value cards. This is because for the next round there will be more high-value cards that would be dealt as against the low-value cards. Players place higher bets at this stage as they believe there is a greater opportunity for them to land a Blackjack (that is where their card values add up to 21). With a Blackjack, players would earn a double down and gain a payout ratio of 3:2.

Hi-Lo Card Counting Mechanism

In order to be aware of when the playing cards yet to be dealt have more high-value cards, a player should tag each card. There is a classic way to count cards in blackjack known as the Hi-Lo card counting mechanism. In the Hi-Lo system the tags assigned to playing cards are as follows;

• For the low-value cards of (2s, 3s, 4s, 5s and 6s) the tag is (+1).
• In the case of neutral cards (7s, 8s and 9s) the tag assigned is (0).
• For high-value cards (Aces, 10s, Queens, Kings and Jacks) the tag is (-1).

As cards are played the card counter will proceed to arithmetically assign tags to the cards. Note that the count will always begin from zero (0) once a card shuffle is made.

How To Count Cards In Blackjack?

To count cards in blackjack, a player needs to use the (+1) tag for 2s, 3s, 4s, 5s and 6s low-value cards. The card counter should also apply the (-1) tag for Aces, 10s, Queens, Kings and Jacks high-value cards. Players should begin their count once a shuffle is done and then assign your tags you every playing card taken from the playing deck of cards.

Players should raise their respective bets when the advantage shifts to their benefit (that is where there are more high-value cards yet to be dealt). Alternatively, players should lower their respective bets when more low-value cards are yet to be dealt with.

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