Blackjack is the best game in almost every casino, but only when you play at the tables with good rules and use strategy. If you play at a table with poor rules or don’t use strategy, blackjack can be worse than several other gambling activities.
Blackjack uses a simple game mechanic that has many different variations. These variations can lead to mistakes, and when you commit them while playing blackjack, it leads to higher losses. So, you need to learn how to avoid making blackjack mistakes.
Here are six mistakes that most blackjack players make. Avoid these blackjack mistakes or pay the price.
1 – You Aren’t Finding the Best Blackjack Games
When I look for the best gambling games to play, the first thing I look at is the return to player percentage. The best gambling games tend to be the games that have the highest return numbers. Blackjack can have a higher return than any gambling activity.
The first key to playing real money blackjack with a high return is finding the right blackjack games or tables. The main difference between one blackjack table and another is the rules. This means that you have to find the blackjack tables that have the best rules.
How do you know if a blackjack game offers a high rate of return?
The first step is to learn what the rules variations are, then learn how each rule variation changes the return. Once you learn these things, you can quickly recognize a good blackjack table when you see it.
The most important rule is the payment for a natural 21. If the table pays 6:5, you can skip it. If the table pays 3:2, you need to look at the other rules.
2 – Not Getting Enough Comps
Now that you know the importance of finding blackjack games that offer the best rules, you’re going to be playing with a high return. Everything else you do needs to focus on making this return even higher. This is why getting comps when you play blackjack is important.
Overall, comps represent only a small return of the money you risk playing blackjack. The common belief is that casinos return such a small amount that it only changes the return by .1% or so. This is a small number, but the important thing to remember is that every little bit, even if it’s small, helps.
If you’re able to play with a return of 99.6%, a .1% change pushes it to 99.7%. Over the long run, this makes a big difference, even if it’s almost unnoticeable in the short run.
Every time you play blackjack in a live casino, you need to be signed up for the comps scheme and make sure that your play is being comped. Present your player’s card before you play blackjack every time you sit down at a blackjack table.
3 – Ignoring Blackjack Bonus Offers
Unless you’re an advantage blackjack player, there are only so many things that you can do to help you play with a higher return to player percentage. By the end of this article, you’re going to know everything that you can do, and you’re going to learn what you need to do to be an advantage blackjack player.
As an advantage blackjack gambler, you have to play live blackjack games. But until you start counting, you should consider playing online and mobile blackjack. The main reason for this is because you can get bonuses at some casinos.
You’re going to learn more about the importance of using a bankroll when you play blackjack in another section in this article. Online and mobile blackjack bonuses are some of the best ways to play with a bigger bankroll.
Here’s how a common type of blackjack bonus works. You make a deposit and the casino gives you a matching amount to gamble with. If you deposit $400, the casino gives you another $400.
Look for blackjack bonus offers before you play. Find the best ones, read the terms, and play with a bigger bankroll when you gamble online or in mobile casinos.
4 – Not Practicing Your Strategy
You only need to get good at three things if you want to be a winning blackjack gambler. The first thing is what you learned in the first section of this article; finding good games. The third thing you need to master is counting, which is covered in the last section in this article.
The Second Thing You Need to Do Is Just as Important as the Other Two Things
You have to learn how to become a blackjack strategy master. The good news for you is that becoming a blackjack strategy master isn’t hard. You just need to learn what to do and put in enough practice.
Blackjack strategy isn’t a hidden secret or mystery. It’s readily available in books, on the internet, and even on cards that are available in casino gift shops. If you don’t have a strategy chart for blackjack, you should get one right now.
If you have a blackjack strategy chart, it’s time to start practicing using the strategy. You can use your chart when you play for real money, but I recommend signing up for a free account in an online or mobile casino.
When you have an account, start playing at the free blackjack tables and using strategy. This is the fastest and cheapest way to learn blackjack strategy.
5 – Using a Blackjack Bankroll
Blackjack gamblers aren’t the only people who have a problem with this. But if you don’t use a bankroll when you play blackjack, you’re handicapping your chance to win. Most gamblers don’t ever think about one of the main reasons why using a bankroll is important.
A blackjack bankroll doesn’t need to be complicated. All you need to do is keep an amount of money that you use to play blackjack separate from the rest of your money.
Until you learn how to win as a blackjack player, you’re going to need to add money to your bankroll from another source from time to time. This might make it seem like you can skip using a blackjack bankroll.
The main purpose of using a blackjack bankroll is to track your results. When you pull some cash out of your pocket to play, it’s easy to lose track of how much you win or lose. But when you use a bankroll, you can quickly see how much you lose or win.
Another valuable thing a blackjack bankroll can do for you is help you decide what the best wager size is. Using a percentage of your bankroll as a wager size helps you avoid over betting.
6 – You Think Counting Is Too Hard
You need to be honest with yourself if you want to avoid the worst blackjack mistake that you can make. What do you really know about counting cards? And what do you think about counting cards?
The problem that most blackjack players have that keeps them from winning is that they think counting is too hard for them to learn. Is this keeping you from learning how to count?
Another issue is that blackjack players make a judgment about how hard counting is without all of the facts. And the fact is that learning how to count is easier than most gamblers believe.
I urge you to learn more about how to count cards. Don’t make a judgment about card counting without all of the facts. The fact is that you can learn how to count and you can do it good enough to erase the edge the casino has over most blackjack players.
Don’t get caught up worrying about what counting system that you’re going to use. Plenty of good systems are out there. And in the end, most of them work about the same. Start with learning how counting works and practice the basics.
Grab a deck of cards and start counting. You’re going to make mistakes at first, but with practice, you’re going to get better.
Conclusion
Blackjack is the first game I recommend to gamblers because you can follow a few fairly simple steps and gamble with a high rate of return. But you can’t just start playing without preparation because it leads to too many mistakes.
Learn how to find good blackjack tables and how to play using solid strategy. Use online and mobile blackjack bonuses and comps to help make the return better. And most importantly, learn how to count. This is one of the few ways that you can win when you gamble in the long run. And counting isn’t as hard as you probably think.
Michael Stevens
Michael Stevens has been researching and writing topics involving the gambling industry for well over a decade now and is considered an expert on all things casino and sports betting. Michael has been writing for GamblingSites.org since early 2016. …