 
Best
Blackjack Games in Usa
by Henry Tamburin,
published on Wednesday, January
2 2002
This article contains a year-end
summary of where you will find the
best blackjack games in different
regions of the USA. “Best game”
is defined as those games that have
the lowest house edge against the
basic strategy player. The house
edge for different blackjack games
is a function of the number of decks
of cards being used and the playing
rules. I have not factored the variables
that make a game “best”
for the advantage player (i.e. card
counter).
Some of the ratings
come from my personal playing experience;
the rest from the experts who report
playing conditions in our Blackjack
Insider Newsletter, information
I gleaned from blackjack players
who post on the Internet, and summaries
of playing conditions that appear
in different publications and on
the internet (in particular www.bj21.com
and www.rge21.com). I have not included
any games that are dealt with a
continuous shuffle machine. These
should be avoided because even though
they offer a slightly lower casino
edge compared to an equivalent hand
shuffled game, the speed of the
game (ca. 20% more hands dealt per
hour) results in a higher loss potential
per hour for the average basic strategy
player. Also, side bets that may
be available in these games should
be avoided since for the most part
they carry a much higher casino
edge.
If you stick to
playing blackjack in the casinos
receommended in this review, you’ll
be facing a casino’s edge of
less than 0.4%. In many casinos
the casino’s edge is about
0.3% (or less) which translates
to a theoretical long term loss
of about 30 cents per $100 wagered.
By taking advantage of comps when
you play, it’s possible by
playing the games listed below to
overall break even or have a slight
monetary advantage over the casino.
The information
is accurate as of December 2001,
however be aware that game conditions
can change at any time.
Las Vegas Area
Now that I have
recently purchased a home in nearby
Henderson, NV I am able to play
a lot more blackjack in the Las
Vegas area. Based on my playing
experiences here is where you will
find the better games.
Single deck
There are several
casinos that offer very good single
deck games but my personal favorite
is the Horseshoe (downtown) simple
because they offer the most single
deck games in town (often 25 or
more tables). At the Horseshoe the
dealer hits soft 17 (h17), you can
resplit aces (rsa), and you’ll
always find $5 minimum(and sometimes
lower) games. The casino’s
edge is only 0.15%. The following
casinos also offer single deck games
but without rsa (CA = 0.18%): Sam’s
Town, El Cortez (downtown), Lady
Luck (downtown) and the new Green
Valley Ranch in Henderson. The Slots
A Fun and Silverton casinos offer
a few single deck games with even
better rules. Slots A Fun, which
is located on the strip next to
Circus Circus, usually has one table
with s17, das, and players can double
on 8 or more including soft hands.
The casino edge against the basic
strategy player is 0 (break even
game). The Silverton casino, located
at the south end of the Strip, offer
a few single deck games with h17
and das resulting in a very tiny
casino edge of 0.06%. Stay away
from other single deck games especially
in the large Strip casinos that
you see advertised as Super Fun
21 because the rules are not as
favorable and casino’s edge
is higher.
Two Deck Games
The hands down winner
for low rollers is the double deck
game at Texas Station (local’s
casino) located on the north side
of Las Vegas (rules are h17, das,
ls, rsa = casino edge of 0.28%)
and the double deck games at the
Frontier and Stardust on the Strip
(s17, das, CA = 0.19%). You can
also find good double deck games
for higher stakes at these casinos:
Bellagio, Caesar’s , Las Vegas
Hilton, Luxor, Mandalay Bay, MGM
Grand, Mirage, Monte Carlo, New
York New York, Riviera, Stardust,
Treasure Island, and Venetian. My
personal favorite is the $25-$50
minimum, double deck game located
in the high roller pit at Treasure
Island (s17 and das).
Multiple Deck Games
The casinos that
offer the best multiple deck games
have these rules: s17, das, ls,
rsa (CA = 0.26% for 6 deck games).
Casinos that offer this game include
the Aladdin, Bellagio, Caesar’s
Palace, Golden Nugget (high roller
area), Hard Rock (high roller),
Luxor, Mandalay Bay, Mirage, New
York New York, Rio, Treasure Island
(high rollers), and Venetian.
Be careful when
looking for multiple deck games
in the above casinos. Many offer
a mix of multiple deck games, some
with s17 and others with h17. Only
play where the rules specify that
dealer must stand on soft 17 (ie.s17).
Atlantic City
The rules are pretty
much standard from one casino to
another. Casinos offer 6 or 8 deck
games with s17, das, and pairs can
be resplit to 3 hands (not aces).
The casino’s edge is 0.42%
for 6-deck game and 0.44% for 8-deck
game. The Claridge offers a $100
minimum 4 deck game with s17, das
(CA = 0.35%) and the Sands also
offers a few $10 minimum 4 deck
game (s17, das and resplit pairs
3 time, CA = 0.36%).
Connecticut
A toss up between
Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun. Best game
at both casinos is the 6 deck game
with s17, das, and ls (CA = 0.33%).
Gulf Coast, Mississippi
The best game on
the coast is the 2 deck games at
Casino Magic, Copa, Grand, Palace,
and Treasure Bay casinos (s17, das,
rsa, CA = 0.14%). The Palace casino
is my personal favorite because
they offer the most 2-deck games
in town (often 17 or more tables).
Tunica, Mississippi
You’ll find
good single deck games at these
casinos - Gold Strike, Grand, Hollywood,
Horseshoe, and Sheraton. They all
have these rules: h17, rsa, CA =
0.15%). The Isle of Capri also offers
a very good 2 deck game with s17
and das (CA = 0.14%). Low rollers
should stick to the single deck
games at Hollywood ($5 minimum).
My personal favorite is the $25
minimum game at Gold Strike or $10
minimum game at Horseshoe casinos.
Indiana, Illinois
area
You’ll find
mostly 6 and 8 deck games in this
area. The best games have these
rules: s17, das, and rsa, CA = 0.34%).
You’ll find this game at the
Empress and Harrah’s casinos
in Joliet and Aztar casinos in Evansville,
Indiana. Other good games can be
found at Trumps in Gary, Indiana
(6 deck with s17, das, and ls, CA
= 0.35%), 2-deck game at Grand Victoria
in Indiana (s17 and das, CA = 0.19%),
Caesars in Louisville (2 deck with
s17 and das, CA = 0.19%), and the
Belterra in Indiana (single deck
with s17 and das, CA = -0.13% and
2 deck with s17 and das, CA = 0.19%).
Note that the basic strategy player
actually has the advantage over
the casino at the 1-deck game at
Belterra without card counting.
This game is currently the best
blackjack game in the USA.
If you spot a good
blackjack game, let us know at www.blackjack.casino.com
and we’ll publish it to the
blackjack community in our Blackjack
Insider.
|
