Stories From The Field

Long time no post. Wanted to share some of the foolishness I have encountered at the tables. First up: Splitting 5s.

I remember when I first started playing Blackjack. All I knew was that 21 won. Get a 17 or better and you can split like pairs and double down. While I split 10s left right and center it never occurred to me to split 5s. Well in late August I ran into someone who it occurred to. I know, I know, other people's play doesn't affect your overall EV. Maybe. Maybe not but when you have a large bet out and the dealer doesn't break because the person who misplayed "took" the cards, the loss is the loss. Personally, I don't mind losing to the house, I DO mind losing to another player. Anyway, here's how it went down:

Count is high. I go for it. I get an 18. Not the best hand, but it's against a dealer 5. Dealer MUST draw regardless of what the hole card is and this is a stand 17 game. The odds are very much in my favor. I see the pair of 5s to my right. "Double down" I say to myself. One card out. Nobody else needs to draw. Next thing I know the 5s are split. First card out is a 3. Then an Ace. OK 1 -1 card out. Count is still high. next card is a 10. Here comes mistake number 2. This MOFO hit a 15 against the dealer 5. Next 10 card is out. Bust. what does the dealer flip? an 8, next draw 7. 20 stand. This was the dealer's hand to lose. Going by basic strategy, the 3 was coming out anyway. The dealer would have gotten the ace for a 6-16 and then the 10 for a 16 and then the next 10 to bust. Instead everyone on the table lost money.

Mind you, the count was still high, so I bet high again only to get a surrender hand with lots of 10s on the table, which effectively ended the player advantage. I left after that. Of all my losses to date, THIS lost has affected me emotionally the worst because it didn't have to happen. So a note to you newbies out there. You might be playing against people trying to make a living playing Blackjack. You may want to experiment and "have fun" with your low bets, but you could be costing people money.

Story 2: Standing on a 4.

Since I am now playing hours at a time I get to observe a lot of people with questionable skills come and go at the tables. I now play at places where their play has a negligible but not totally zero impact on my outcomes so I don't stress about that. A lot of people are playing short games. I get it, I did that for a time too. And no, they aren't Wonging either. This week we had the guy who sat down and bet 25 bucks with his first hand. On a $10 minimum table. Here I was thinking he had serious bankroll and the sense to go with it. He gets dealt an Ace 3. He makes a lot of negative noise, mainly about how he didn't get a Blackjack and then stands. I felt myself beginning to ask him why, but I have learned that what people do with their money is their business.