Favorite spot for blackjack / 3-card poker

[Bababooey323]

Close-ish, probably takes about 30mins to get there

cool, my good mate lives out there.

got a friend in essex, too.

i need to go there...then hop on a train to amsterdam, too.

[Bababooey323]

More like i'm an idiot

Option B is preferred, although I can't control my urges. At the boats here at home I play $25 min just because it's pretty much all we have. In fact, I lost handily Monday night at $25 min.

damn lol... you shouldn't gamble there in this weather. takes u off your game lol

are there any casinos in joliet?

[tschwicht]

damn lol... you shouldn't gamble there in this weather. takes u off your game lol

are there any casinos in joliet?

Not sure, I play in Elgin. Joliet is kind of far from me. There is also one in Aurora and Harrahs in Hammond (Indiana).

[JavaMan]

I swore off Blackjack after my beatdown @ Planet Hollywood in the pleasure pit... but at least my $300 dollar beer tasted good and the view of the lovely dealers was nice.

Anyhow for newbie's out there there are a couple of things you want to look for when trying to find a table:

Generally the less number of decks the better. Single deck blackjack has the lowest house edge, but often costs the most to play ($100min). Choosing 6 over 8 decks will give you a slight advantage.

Dealer stays on soft 17 (i.e. the dealer has an Ace and 6, or an Ace, 4, and 2, etc). He/She will not be allowed to hit

Double allowed after splitting

Player can double on any two cards (as opposed to just 10-11, or 9-11)

Player can resplit up to 4 hands

Player can resplit Aces

Player can hit split Aces

Blackjack pays 3:2 -And if you can only remember one of these rules -remember this one because 6:5 BJ increase the house edge by 1.40% which may not seem like a lot but it is compared to a rule like a player can only double on 10-11 which increases house edge by 0.09%

Also, ther's the Surrender rule, which means that if you have a very bad hand, you can give up half-your bet and withdraw from the hand.

For example, if you have a 16 on your hand, and the dealer is showing an Ace, your best mathematical move is to Surrender instead of hitting, only losing half your bet.

As far as I can remember, the Palms had Surrender, double after split, re-split aces, double on any two cards... which makes for a house advantage of around 0.5%, which is very good.

And getting a little bit more technical (and wise-ass), playing on a shoe game instead of with the automatic shufflers is also better for your wallet... the mathematical reason being that you play fewer hands in the same amount of time. And since the casino always has the odds in their favor, it's better for the player to play less hands, thereby losing less money (all in theory). While you may think it is boring waiting for the dealer to shuffle, that time is easily passed by on a crowded table.

[tschwicht]

These are all good points, but I might add that there isn't only $100 minimum for one deck out there. O'sheas usually has a single deck table or two for $5 minimum.

[kimball]

I started this thread and said I liked to play at those Toby Keith tables at harrahs... F-that. Was there last weekend... all the blackjacks pay 6-5. It was not like that last May.

[masterdeviance]

I started this thread and said I liked to play at those Toby Keith tables at harrahs... F-that. Was there last weekend... all the blackjacks pay 6-5. It was not like that last May.

This 6:5 blackjack is bullshit, totally kills the game. But there must be so many casual tourists who don't know any better...only helps to line the casinos' pockets.

[kimball]

This 6:5 blackjack is bullshit, totally kills the game. But there must be so many casual tourists who don't know any better...only helps to line the casinos' pockets.

I only noticed it there last weekend... but I agree with you.

[air1ck]

I have only been out to Vegas once so far so I haven't played to many places but for blackjack, Planet Hollywood is a favorite so far. I am going back the week of April 18th so hopefully I will find some other good spots!!

[Charles~]

Venetian has decent odds...at high limits though.

[texas]

Thanks y'all, I had some decent luck @ Sahara but I feel much more prepared this time!

[chrisl84pia]

so it was unclear if any of you mentioned, but are there any places on the strip that has blackjack 21+3 (3cardpoker) ???
If so, what are the payout odds?

[julie]

So where are the best spots for a newbie blackjack player? If you had to list a few. Gonna be in Vegas for the first time in August (finally!) and I wanna know where to go and not get totally abused.

I know the basics of the game but any other simple tips would be great!

Staying at the Wynn but I hear their minimums are high there. Would like my $$ to last a little bit.

[JSki]

So where are the best spots for a newbie blackjack player? If you had to list a few. Gonna be in Vegas for the first time in August (finally!) and I wanna know where to go and not get totally abused.

I know the basics of the game but any other simple tips would be great!

Staying at the Wynn but I hear their minimums are high there. Would like my $$ to last a little bit.

Buy one of those cheat cards, they allow you to use them at the table... Follow the rules on the card... If you follow the rules you will have a much better chance of winning and the other players at the table will respect you... If you really want to take the next step try progressive betting... you can find out about it online... but it pretty much works like this... If your first bet is say 10... and if you win your next bet would be 15 if you loose always go back to 10... so if you win a second hand in a row, your third bet would be 20... If you win that one your next bet would be 30... If you loose you always go back to 10... but if you win take half of what you won and add it to your last bet... this way your betting the house money... So when you win take half of the winning bet and add it to the next bet... when you go on a winning run which happens often you win big... Just remember when you loose a hand start back at your original bet amount...

[julie]

Great! Thanks for the tips JSki!