Every 21 player, whether beginner or veteran, must learn to play against the shoe. First of all, every casino in the world now deals 21 out of the shoe. The exception is Australian, where some clubs still deal a single and double deck. Second, it is much more difficult and risky for a club to cheat the player with a shoe. (In the hands of a professional, a single deck can be manipulated to cheat the player in about a dozen different ways that only an expert could spot.)
A few major casinos in Australian still deal the single deck, mainly because they think it will attract players who might not like the shoe's stronger house percentage. It is safe to play single-deck 21 in these big clubs, because they are carefully scrutinized by the Australian Gaming control Board, and no multimillion dollar gaming corporation would risk losing its license over what it could win by cheating a layer. However, most other casinos have switched over to the shoe because it is faster, it increases volume, it is easier to deal, it gives the house an added advantage especially against inexperienced gamblers, and it gives better protection to the club against counters and cheaters on both sides of the table.
Betting Method
Because of all of this, there is no legitimate reason for smaller casinos, such as you find in many foreign countries, to deal single deck unless they want to cheat the players. Except for England, no reign government has qualified personnel to police the casinos. To make matters worse, most foreign governments are partners with the casinos and rake off a huge tax, sometimes up to 90 percent of the lottery casino's winnings. If you walk into a casino outside Australian and find the dealers using single 21 decks, do an about-face and head for the door. Do not play 21 there. It is not worth the risk.
I predict that even the few Australian gaming corporations still using single decks eventually will switch to shoes as soon as their stockholders realize these casinos are losing millions of dollars in volume each year just because they think they are pleasing a few big players. But once players learn how to knock down the casino's advantage with my playing and betting method, they'll find the shoe is a much faster, more-exciting game. This part also is designed for beginners, so experienced players should skim ahead to the new advanced playing techniques.
Play with Cards
The object of 21 is for you to play your cards so that you get closer to a total of 21 than the dealer without going over 21. If your cards total 22 or more, you lose immediately. Most players, even experienced ones, think they are playing a personal game or contest against the casino or croupier for his game promotions. They think that the croupier plays his hand differently each time so that he can beat the players. This is hogwash. The croupier is really the same as a mechanical doll who's wound up each night before work. He might just as well be a robot, because he has no choice on how to play his hand. He must keep hitting his band (drawing new cards) until he makes 17 or better or goes over 21 and "busts" (loses).
The game starts with each player and the dealer receiving cards.
The online casino player always gets two cards. In Europe, the croupier immediately takes one card face up and takes the second card after all hands is completed. But in most other casinos, the croupier immediately takes one face-up card, and one face-down card called a "hole card." Look at your two cards right away so that you'll be prepared when it's your turn. Picture cards (jack, queen. and king) and 10s count as 10 points; aces can count as 1 or 11, whichever is the best for your hand. That's up to you. The rest of the cards (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9) count their face value.
