How does the poor play of others affect your odds at a blackjack table?
Sometimes, there’s nothing more frustrating at a blackjack table than to play with folks who don’t have the same level of skills as you do. For some, it goes completely against their nature to visit an online or offline casino to play blackjack. And, of course, make poor decisions which will only lead to depleting a bankroll. Some players would even say that one should never play blackjack with newbies because everyone loses at the table when a person doesn’t master basic blackjack strategy. But the truth is, we’ve all witnessed other players making poor decisions at one point or another. And maybe even at some point, it was you who played a less than an optimal game. So today, we thought we’d discuss the impact of a poor decision by other players at a table and how this affects your Blackjack odds.
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Blackjack is a maths’ game so let’s crunch some numbers
It wasn’t long ago that a study surfaced on the web. In the piece, an experienced card counter compared the short-term effects of playing with novice, average and expert blackjack players. And the results might surprise you. Indeed, suppose you’re in a $10 a hand game. And the player in front of you keeps on asking for too many cards. Or opt to stand when he (or she) should hit. Well, you can expect to lose on average $4.31 an hour.
Let’s use the same scenario and assume intermediate players are sitting with you. Well, in this case, too, you can anticipate losses of around $4.31 for every hour you’ll play. So you know, you’ll also get the same results if pro players surround you.
What if you play a heads-up game? Does it change your Blackjack odds ?
Suppose you’re still thinking that other folks’ decisions affect your odds at a blackjack table. And opt to load up a heads-up game such as Evolution‘s Infinite blackjack, for example. What kind of outcome can you expect?
Shockingly, you’ll end up with the exact figure if you play heads up against the dealer as if you’d play with novice or experienced advantage players. So after knowing this, it’s easy to conclude that other players’ decisions have no impact on your odds (nor the edge the house has over you) in the short run.
So what does impact your odds at a blackjack table?
Sure sometimes other players may ask for a card that’ll essentially “mess up” your current hand. But, the tip is not to let it get to you. If you comment on someone’s poor play, this could put you on “tilt” and lead to making bad decisions yourself. Staying cool is the foundation of improving your odds at a blackjack table.
Remember that blackjack is a game where taking advantage of the low house edge only works in the long run. However, you can positively impact your odds (online or offline) by making sure you make optimal decisions at all times. You see, casinos don’t consider lucky runs in their stats. So, why should you?
The positive ways bad players can affect your odds
It might be hard to believe, but playing with bad blackjack players has its perks in the long run. Notably, you are less likely to draw attention as a card counter when sitting with poor decision-makers. This is especially true if the player in question is a high roller.
Less than competent advantage players may also start blaming others (including you) for their “bad run”. If your card counting strategy is undetected, this will undoubtedly take off some heat. If this happens to you, staying focused and ignoring other players’ comments is best.
Why waste a breath on fools, they’ll ignore the wisest advice? This saying also applies to blackjack. See this as an opportunity to develop and test your concentration under challenging circumstances.
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| $25 FREE on Signup 100% up to $1.000 on First Deposit Hotspot Leaderboard | Visit Casino |
