The Six Categories of Blackjack Players

Tuesday 23rd February 2010

The legendary Blackjack author Frank Scoblete identified six categories of Blackjack player in the video Blackjack Winning Strategies. Which one are you?

Category 1

The player who plays on hunches and instinct, they never play their hands consistently. These players are hoping for a lightning strike from lady luck, they usually don't get it. The casino will win between $6 and $12 for every $100 bet by hunch players.

Category 2

The player who refuses to hit any hand that they might possibly Bust. They reason that certain hands are more likely to bust and therefore they will wait and hope the dealer busts. Unfortunately, the Dealer busts only about 28% of the time. The casino will win between $6.50 for every $100 bet by those players whose strategy is to never Bust.

Category 3

The player who mimics the Dealers style of play. That is hitting all hands that are 16 or less and standing on all hands that are 17 or more. This player figures that since the casino wins lots and lots of money from the other players the casinos strategy must be best. Unfortunately, these players have forgotten one thing, the players play their hands first, if they bust they lose regardless of whether the Dealer busts after them. The casino will win approximately $5.50 for every $100 bet from the player who mimics the Dealer.

Category 4

The player who plays in an approximation of the basic strategy, with some slight changes. This player may have even read a book on Blackjack, but refuses to play the correct Basic Strategy on certain hands, such as hitting when they have a 12 against a Dealers up-card of 2. The casino wins $2 to $5 for every $100 bet by players who play an approximate form of Basic Strategy.

Category 5

The player who always plays Basic Strategy. The casino will win only between $0 and $0.61 for every $100 Bet by Basic Strategy players. In certain Single-Deck games, the Basic Strategy player will even enjoy a small edge over the casino.

Category 6

The expert card counter, who will win $0.50 to $1.50 for every $100 bet against the casino. Card counting is for the player who wants to invest time and energy in mastering advanced techniques for expert play.