Blackjack
Single Deck is Better
by
Henry Tamburin
Why is a blackjack
single
deck game
better for
the player than a
multiple deck game?
This lesson at Learn to
Play Blackjack answers that question.
One of the major
reasons is
simply due to the fact that you will be dealt more hands in a
blackjack single
deck game compared to a multiple deck game. Here's why this is so.
Suppose
you
took a single deck of cards, shuffled them, and
then randomly picked one card. What is the probability that you'll pick
an ace?
Since there are four aces in a single deck of cards, the chance of
drawing one
of those aces is the ratio of 4 over 52.
Once you
draw the ace, you are left
with 51 cards to draw a ten-value card.
There are 16
ten-value cards in a deck
of cards (the four tens, jacks, queens and kings) so the chance of
drawing one
is the ratio of 16 over 51. If you multiply these two ratios, you will
compute
the probability of getting an ace followed by a ten-value card in a
single deck
to be 2.41%. (4/52 times 16/51 =
2.41%.)
However, you could have just
as
easily drawn the
ten-value
card first then the ace. Therefore, the overall probability of getting
a BJack
hand in a single deck game is twice 2.415 or 4.82%.
This
translates into one
out of every 20.72 hands, an important statistic.
For a 6-deck game the chance of drawing the ace as the first
card is the ratio 24 over 312. The chance of drawing the ten-value as
the
second card is the ratio 96 over 311. Multiply the two ratios and you
get
2.37%. Double it and you get 4.74%, which is, less than the 4.82%
probability
of getting a BJack in a single deck game.
In fact, if you do the math for 2, 4 and 8 decks here is
what you'll calculate as the probability of getting a BJack hand.
Single deck
=1
in every 20.72 hands
Double deck
=1 in every
20.93 hands
Four decks=
1
in every 21.02 hands
Six decks
=1
in every 21.07 hands
Eight decks=
1
in every 21.07 hands
Notice that you'll only be 98% as successful at drawing a
BJack
in an eight-deck game compared to a single deck game, which
makes the
blackjack single
deck game better.
Essentially the effect of
removing a
card from a single deck
affects the percentages of the remaining cards to a much greater extent
than in
a multiple deck game. This is another important point to remember when
you
playing blackjack single deck.
Although getting more BJacks
is good for the player, it's
even better when you get one and the dealer doesn't. Which brings me to
the
second reason why the blackjack single deck game is better than a
multiple deck
game, namely
the dealer’s chances of duplicating a BJack is
less
in a single deck game compared to a multiple deck game.
The
exact probabilities of the dealer duplicating our BJack in the same
round are:
Single deck =
1
in every 27.25 hands
Two decks
=1
in every 23.74 hands
Four decks=
1
in every 22.34 hands
Six decks=
1
in every 21.92 hands
Eight decks
=1
in every 21.71 hands
BJack pushes are about 20% more likely in a six or eight
deck game, compared to a single deck game, which reduces our earnings
potential
(remember you get paid 3 to 2 on a BJack hand when the dealer doesn't
have BJack
but gets nothing when he does have a BJack).
This makes a blackjack single deck game a much better game.
Another reason that a player's expectation is better in a
single deck game is that a player is more likely to get a good hit when
doubling down on 10 or 11 compared to the same situation in a multiple
deck
game.
When you get a 10 or 11, it's usually made up of two
undesirable small cards. Their removal from the single deck increases
our
chances of getting a good hit.
Because of the dilution effect of so many more cards in
multiple deck games, the probability of drawing a good card is less
compared to
the single deck game.
To summarize, single deck games are a better deal for players
because:
1. You will be dealt more BJack hands
2. The dealer is less likely to also have a BJack hand and
tie you, and
3. You are more likely to draw a good card when you double
down on 10 or 11.
Even though single deck games have historically been better
for players than multiple deck games, don’t run to your favorite casino
and sit
down at any old single deck table.
Check first what the house pays for a BJack because many
casinos nowadays are paying only 6 to 5 rather than the traditional
3 to 2.
The
6 to
5 payoff
is terrible and increases the house edge to over 1% against a basic
strategy
player.
Therefore, single deck games are good but
only
when the house pays 3 to 2.
Blackjack
Single Deck is followed
by a lesson about Surrender
OR
Return
to Learn to Play Blackjack Program
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