As a matter of fact, there are betting systems that provide a player a much bigger chance of finishing a trip with a win than a loss. If you use this type of betting system, and you look over your records after years of play, you’ll see a whole lot of small wins—and one (or a few) big losses, big enough to wipe out the profits from all of your small wins, and then some. Your best during a high count should be smaller to limit losses on a weak deck. Blackjack Martingale Strategy. The Martingale Strategy is a betting system that uses a negative progression to recoup lost bets. This is one of the more popular betting systems around and is used by many gamblers. Its super simple to learn, and even easier to use.

Image Source: youtube.com

Blackjack Betting Strategies are quite popular, especially since the game has been featured in hit movies likeRain Man, 21 and The Hangover.

No matter what the game, there is one universal rule; if the casino spreads the game, someone has developed the “perfect” betting strategy.

Roulette strategies are perhaps the most prominent as roulette strategies and systems have been offered for sale for centuries.

As a dealer and a player, I have been able to see and try many of the most famous Blackjack Betting Strategies.

Blackjack strategies don’t change around the world but it is interesting to see different perspectives. A good blackjack resource for Canadians is CanadianCasinos.ca.

Play Blackjack Live Online

Want to try playing blackjack online for real money? We recommened playing with live dealers at Bovada casino (US friendly)

The Two Best Systems

There are two strategies that every player should use every time they take a seat at or swim up to a blackjack table.

Play to Have Fun

Napoleon was a fan of Vingt-un (blackjack) near the start of the 19th century. For more than two centuries, blackjack has grown in popularity to become the most popular casino table game.Mathematicians have analyzed the game, hundreds of books have been written about it, and a number of myths and legends have been created.

Earning a place in the Blackjack Hall of Fame at the Barona Casino in California is the only honorary award for players of any casino table game. There is a reason that blackjack has remained popular for a couple of centuries; it’s fun! There are many varieties of blackjack. Mr. Green offers a great selection of 15 blackjack games by 6 software providers, including Double Exposure Blackjack Professional Series by Net Entertainment, VIP Blackjack by Extreme Live Gaming, and 6-in-1 Blackjack by Felt.

Spin Palace offers a remarkable amount of blackjack games. There are over 40 blackjack games in total on offer. They also offer practice play which is perfect for sharpening your blackjack skills before you start playing for real money. Most of their games are developed by Microgaming which are very popular in English speaking countries like Australia, New Zealand, UK and Canada.

Yes, the game has a really low house edge, which makes it appealing, but it is a very social game, so in many cases, the table wins or loses as a group. This builds comradery and makes it fairly common for players to talk with one another. The social aspect of the game is a very important one to most players.

Bet the Right Amount

Image Source: youtube.com

Set up a bankroll before you go to the table. This is your total stake.

As has been mentioned numerous times, blackjack is supposed to be fun. Playing with money you can’t afford to lose (what dealers and players call “scared money”) practically guarantees you won’t enjoy the game.

It is fairly easy to find table limits to fit most bankrolls.

The Martingale – Blackjack Betting Strategies

Image Source: pokerbankrollblog.com

The Martingale system originated in 18th century France and is one of the oldest systems around. The original theory was used to prove that someone with infinite wealth could always avoid a loss in even money bets by doubling the best after each loss. Most likely the first casino game where the Martingale system was touted was roulette, but it can also be used in other areas, such as in stock market trading.

You will often see players use the Martingale system at the blackjack table, doubling their wager after each loss. In theory, this strategy sounds solid. However, blackjack is not an even money game. And additionally, players will occasionally run into a bad streak of cards. At a $5 table using the Martingale system if you lose 8 hands in a row, you will be wagering $1280 on your next hand, so unless you are a legendary high-roller, you are probably better off taking the $5 loss.

2-1-2 (Manhattan) Strategy – Blackjack Betting Strategies

One of the common laments one hears from players is the one where they were “way ahead” but gave it all back. These players are the same ones that usually talk about “playing with ‘house’ money.”

Here is a fact: Once the chips are in your stack, they are your chips, not the house’s.

The second most common lament you will hear is a player talking about missing out on a hot streak. The 2-1-2 strategy helps address both.

First, there is no mathematical foundation for “hot” or “cold” streaks at the blackjack table. Mathematicians will tell you (truthfully) that there is no such phenomenon. Blackjack players know they exist.

As a player you want to capitalize on a good run of cards and this strategy has some merits. Start with a 2 unit bet. If you win you reduce the bet to one unit. If you win that bet you increase to 3 units. Once the dealer wins you go back to your original 2 unit bet.

A run of 10 hands could look like this:

Wager Result +/-

• 2 W +2
• 1 W +3
• 2 W +5
• 3 W +8
• 4 L +4
• 2 W +6
• 1 L +5
• 2 W +7
• 3 W +10
• 4 L +6

With the 2-1-2 strategy, players will win a bit more with a hot run yet not sacrifice all of their winnings.

Oscar’s System – Blackjack Betting Strategies

Oscar’s System was proposed in the 1960’s in a book by mathematician Dr. Allan Wilson. It is a fairly decent system. The goal of the strategy is to win exactly one unit per series.

The player starts a series by betting one unit. After a win, the player adds a unit; after a loss, the next bet is exactly the same as the previous one. That’s it.

Here are two examples:

Wager Result +/-

• 1 L -1
• 1 L -2
• 1 W -1
• 2 W +1

Series complete

Wager Result +/-

• 1 L -1
• 1 L -2
• 1 L -3
• 1 W -2
• 2 L -4
• 2 W -2
• 3 W +1

Series complete.

Playing Multiple Spots

Many players feel that playing multiple hands increases their odds of winning. Playing multiple spots can be exciting, but it does absolutely nothing to increase your win rate.

Most of these systems fall under the heading of progressive bets. While these are among the most common, they are by no means the only strategies out there. It is perfectly fine to sit at the table and make the exact same wager every hand. While this strategy is a bit boring for me, if it works for you that is what counts. There is absolutely nothing wrong with taking out a deck of cards and developing your own strategy as well.

Blackjack Betting Systems in the Long Run

Ok so we’ve covered the popular blackjack betting systems here and highlighted how they are used but are any of them really useful in the long run? The answer is a resounding NO (this article goes into great depth as to why).

While you might make great short term wins, any betting system will not be a formula for success in the long term. To truly gain an advantage against the casino you must start with learning basic strategy and then moving to card counting.

There are plenty of resources to get started. We recommend:

• BlackjackInfo’s Blackjack School – A comprehensive free resource that covers both basic strategy and card counting principles.
• Blackjack Apprenticeship – Run by Colin Jones, a professional counter who featured in the blackjack documentary Holy Rollers, this site provides a paid course offering video training material, private coaching and more.
• WizardofOdds – The wizard has some great strategy charts but only for 4-8 decks. If you need more customized charts then BlackjackInfo has a good strategy chart builder.
• HolyMolyCasinos.com – Offers a how to guide on the rules and how to play blackjack as well as other popular casino games.

Members Feedback

If you ever find yourself in the circle of lovers of this casino game, then you’ll probably learn a thing or two about all the different bets you can place. Also, you’ll most likely be exposed to different blackjack progressive betting strategies, so it won’t hurt if you know what this means. This system teaches you how and when to increase or decrease your wager. In the most general sense, there are two types of progressive betting strategies:

• Positive progression — if you were to follow this, then you’d bet more after each win. With this, players want to maximize their profit and minimize their losses.
• Negative progression — this one includes raising your wager after each losing round. It strives to lessen the effects of losses.

Now that you’re acquainted with this, we can delve deeper into the most popular systems you can follow. However, before we start, we should put a disclaimer of some sorts — no matter which strategy you use, it cannot help you determine the outcome. They can only help you plan your bets accordingly before you start playing. In the end, nothing can exert an impact on the results.

The Martingale System

One could trace the roots of the Martingale system back to 18th century France. It has withstood the test of time, as evidenced by the fact that most novice players have heard about it. The overarching strategy is the following: it’s inevitable that you’ll face losses while playing blackjack. However, at some point, you’re bound to win. So why wouldn’t you double your wager until you emerge as a victor? Of course, some experts might suggest that believing in this might be the prime example of the gambler’s fallacy, but to each their own.

What’s more, you’ll notice that some blackjack players opt to adhere to this betting system. They increase their wager by 2, hoping that they’ll recover all the squandered money. In theory, this sounds appealing and seems like a plausible solution. But in practice, it comes with certain risks. Let’s say that you decide to play at a $5 table and abide by this strategy. As you might know, it’s easy to lose 8 hands in a row, so this means that, during the 9th bet, you’d actually be required to bet quite a substantial amount — $1,280.

If you’re not a high roller, then this professional blackjack betting strategy might not be the best solution.

The Oscar’s Grind

Moving onto another blackjack betting system — the Oscar’s Grind. It was created back in 1965 and mainly applied to the game of craps. Nevertheless, it started spreading to other games as well, including blackjack. It abides by the following this notion: all of your losing streaks will be countered by one winning hand. If this turns out to be true, then you’ll decrease the amount you’ve lost and get a payout, albeit a small one. However, no one can guarantee that this will happen, as the outcome is unpredictable.

So before you toy with the idea of using this system, you should contemplate your betting range. You’ll need to commence with a minimum bet and gradually increase it throughout the game — if you win, that is. It’s recommended you start with a wager that isn’t too high. Let’s say you decide to place $1. If you lose, then you won’t need to change the bet amount. However, if the third round turns out to be the winning one, then you should bet $2 on the following one. Another win increases the wager to $4.

Also, you should stop the moment you have a profit of 1 unit. As with the Martingale, you should use the Oscar’s blackjack betting strategy at your own risk.

The Manhattan System (2-1-2)

Some players believe in the existence of hot and cold streaks. You might even hear some of them lament that they’ve failed to make use of a hot streak. Of course, experts would assure you that this phenomenon doesn’t exist and that you should just enjoy the game itself. Well, it seems that the proponents of the blackjack betting strategy 2-1-2 side with the players on this issue and want to help them win real money.

So how does it all go down here? Well, as you might have inferred from its name, players begin by wagering two units. For instance, they can place $2. In case of a win, they don’t need to increase their bet — they actually decrease it by one unit. So the next one amounts to $1. And if this streak follows them, then they can wager $3. Each consecutive win after that, the players should increase their bet size by one unit. And if during the game, the dealer wins, then those following this system should return to their initial bet. The theory is that you should capitalize on your fortune until it starts declining.

The 1-2-3-5 Strategy

The progressive betting systems are quite prominent in blackjack. During a game, a bet could vary from one round to another — it never remains the same. There are different types of wagers here, but they all share one similarity. In other words, you’ll either increase or decrease the bet depending on whether you’re experiencing wins or losses. If you’re prevailing, then you’ll raise the amount of your wager after each hand. For instance, if you begin with $10, then you’ll put $20 during the next round.

Of course, there are different patterns that you can follow, and one of them is particularly well known — blackjack betting strategy 1-2-3-5. If you decide to try it out, then you’ll increase your wager following this pattern. However, the moment you lose, you’d go back to your initial 1 unit bet. Those who are in favor of this will try to convince you that you’ll get more money during those 5 consecutive winning rounds then you’ll ever lose in 5 losing ones. However, they fail to tell you that you can’t know when you’ll win.

The 1-3-2-6 System

Following the previous one, we would be remiss not to mention the blackjack betting strategy 1-3-2-6. Like the above-mentioned one, it’s simple to learn, and you won’t face any difficulties in implementing it. In essence, you can use it for other casino games as well, but it’s primarily popular in blackjack.

Basically, if you want to try it out, you need to opt for the initial wager. But bear in mind that this will serve as 1 unit in the sequence, so maybe choosing the lowest amount would be the best option. And once you’ve done this, you can start wagering. Naturally, if you win at blackjack, then this will lead you to increase the bet as per the sequence. And once it ends, you’ll need to go back to your starting stake. Additionally, this blackjack betting strategy differs from, say, the Martingale in the sense that you only need to keep increasing the amount if you’re successful. This way, you might recover all the lost money either in a land-based or an online casino.

Betting Strategy for Hi-Lo and Knockout Card Counting

Best Blackjack Betting Strategy Reddit Yahoo

The hi-lo and knockout card counting players have different approaches to wagering. Some say that you might increase your chances by adjusting your bets. And if you want to be successful, you should determine the true count by dividing your running one by the number of decks that are still remaining in the shoe. Then, you should wager the minimum amount when the true count is at 1, and then increase it when it is at 2. As the true count increases, so does your wager. And once it returns to 1, then you should return to your initial bet.

Winning Blackjack Betting Strategies

So before the game starts, you should select the wagering unit that you can use once you employ this blackjack betting system. Your betting unit increases as per the count. Also, always be aware of your bankroll and adjust your wager accordingly. The maximum wager, some say, should be 4 times your initial unit. Just make sure to be present in the game so that you could keep track of the count and your bankroll. Additionally, you can adopt this approach as your knockout blackjack betting strategy as well.

Practice Makes Perfect

Now that you’re familiar with a number of strategies, you can start practicing and opting for the ones you find to work the best for you. However, always bear in mind that there are more blackjack betting systems than actual strategies. After all, they don’t predict the outcome — they just tell you how to bet.

Blackjack Betting Strategy Cards

Nevertheless, if you want, you can try out some of the blackjack card counting strategies (which even help you beat the house edge) and see how far you’ll get. Who knows, you might even become a proponent of some of them or end up disappointed. Either way — good luck!