18+ T&C Apply – Blackjack Heads Up Vs Full Table To receive the welcome bonus a minimum deposit of £/€/$ 10 is required. The minimum deposit for other offers that require a deposit will be clearly communicated. You’re using perfect basic strategy, and the house edge in this specific casino is only 0.4%. It’s a two-deck game with good rules. It’s also the middle of the afternoon, and the casino isn’t busy, so you’re playing heads up against the dealer. This means you’re getting in 200 hands per hour. Most blackjack players would be better off playing at full tables so that they will at least lose at a slower rate. However, it you are using an effective winning strategy, such as the Power Blackjack Strategy, then you will want to play as fast as possible since this will increase your winnings per hour. Dealers at a full, seven-seat blackjack table can deal about 60 hands an hour, though they often don't manage to get through more than 50. On the other hand, when it's just you against the dealer the game flies and you might play 250 hands in a single hour.

  1. Blackjack Heads Up Vs Full Table 2019
  2. Blackjack Heads Up Vs Full Table Standing
  3. Blackjack Heads Up Vs Full Table Set
  4. Blackjack Heads Up Vs Full Table Top

Knowing where to sit at a blackjack table may be the difference between waiting for a seat at a packed table and getting stuck into a table with only a few players.

Before he or she leaves, they lock up the two spots. Now if you are playing two hands, you get 2/3 of the table to yourself. You can do the same thing at your partner's table, so you each get to play close to a heads-up game. Just make sure to switch tables once in a while so they don't pick up your chips that are left at the 'other' table.

While sitting at a certain seat doesn’t have any mathematical advantage, for new players and card counters, certain seats are crucial for game play.

Blackjack table seating positions

Before we get stuck into where we should sit, we need to know what these positions are called in blackjack lingo. Each are termed according to their position and what advantages players have said they have sitting there. However, statistics prove all seats are equal for the basic strategy player, but they do have certain advantages and disadvantages associated even though they don’t have anything to do with the odds of the game.

While blackjack tables at brick and mortar casinos can feature up to six or seven players, only three positions are prominently named with two of them discussed more so than the other. Additionally, blackjack tables aren’t always full so these seats may not always be taken.

Blackjack first base – The first seat on the far right facing the dealer is known as the first base position. This is because cards are dealt by the dealer to this position first from the dealer’s left player to right player and this first base positioned player will get the cards first, as well as being in the position that enables them to be the first to hit, stand, split, double down, or surrender on their hand.

Blackjack third base – While many blackjack players mistakenly think third base is the third or middle seat, they’ll find they are incorrect. The third-base position is actually the last seat from the right or the first seat on the left. This position is sometimes referred to as the anchor and sees the player receiving the first two cards dealt by the dealer last, as well as being the last player to decide and act on what they want to do with their hand.

Shortstop position – This one isn’t as commonly mentioned as the two above as it doesn’t come with as much responsibility, which we will discuss below. This seat is located in the middle of the table and can actually prevent other players to the left of them from joining the table.

Blackjack

Which is the best seat at a blackjack table?

Blackjack Heads Up Vs Full Table 2019

Statistically, it doesn’t really matter where you sit, unless you plan to count cards. Many state third base is the best seat, while we recommend it as the worst seat for the new blackjack kids on the block. It has been suggested that the third base seat has the advantage of whether or not the table as a whole wins or loses, however this is not mathematically correct.

This theory has come about because the third base player performs their action just before the dealer. If this player who sits at third base hits instead of stays when basic strategy recommends them to do so, this can see players blaming the third base player if the table loses. This is exactly why players who are new and do not know how to play basic strategy should not sit at third base, as it could result them having a negative experience and being mistakenly blamed for the tables loss, despite the theory not being mathematically correct.

Similarly regarded is the first base position which not only offers the entire view of the table, but the discarded pile as well meaning you can keep an eye on what cards have been drawn and what cards haven’t. However, this position is second in line to receiving glares from other players if they lose – so be prepared for the responsibility.

The shortstop position, on the other hand, gives a good view of the table. But it’s not as good as first or third, but is said to stop players from sitting at third base if the seat is open, meaning less players and more chances to put on an extra bet.

Depending on the amount of players, other seat positions aren’t usually mentioned. However if you want to view other players and their moves, fourth position (to the left of the shortstop position) offers a view of the entire table. Although statistically speaking other player’s moves do not affect your gameplay as they can ultimately both hurt and help your hand, it is always a good idea to keep an eye on players who are on a winning streak. You may be able to pick up some handy strategy hints this way.

Additionally, if you do not like the responsibility of being dealt the first and last cards of a hand we recommend to sit in the second or fourth seats depending on how many players there are at the table. If there is only the third or first base position available when you join the table remember that statistically it doesn’t affect the table’s odds at all so try to enjoy the experience.

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How to pick a good blackjack table

At land-based casinos you will find there are multiple blackjack tables available to join, some fuller than others. With so many available it can be hard to know what to look for in order to pick a good table. We have made it a lot easier for both new and experienced players when it comes to picking a good blackjack table.

Betting limits – Keep an eye out for the minimum and maximum table limits which are displayed on the signs next to the table. For experienced gamblers, keeping an eye out for land-based casinos which colour code their signs can make it easier and quicker to pick and choose where you sit. For example, red equals a $5 minimum bet, while black equals a $100 minimum bet – corresponding to the colour of chips, making this easier to remember. The best way to figure out your betting limit is to set a bankroll and divide by 20. For example, if you have set yourself a $100 bank roll, then you should play at a table with a minimum betting limit of $5.

Blackjack dealers – Blackjack dealers can effect your overall experience whether you are a new blackjack player or a professional. We recommend standing back and watching the dealers to see how fast they deal, see if they provide help (important if you are a new player) or see if they let you know how much you have in a hand as they are dealt. These features will ultimately come down to what you want in a blackjack dealer as an experience player doesn’t want to be told basic tips, while a new player does.

Seating positions – Although we did say all seats at a blackjack table are considered mathematically equal, in terms of players it can be different. As we recommended standing back from the table with blackjack dealers, we recommend doing this if there are a few players seated so you can monitor their behaviour. If you notice a few players eyeing off the third base player after a loss it might be better to find a new table. If you are an experienced blackjack player however and you plan to count cards, the seating position is said to be incredibly important.

Best seat for blackjack card counters

Card counters actually have an advantage when it comes to the seating position. These players are recommended to sit in the third base position to give them more time to keep an eye on the table, as well as count, and of course bet last.

Card counters also have the same perception for first base. Additionally, these seats are recommended to avoid being detected as you have the vantage point of viewing the whole table without having to movie your head.

Unfortunately for card counters, they can’t do so online and really the entire concept of seating positions in blackjack goes out the window when we play blackjack on the Internet, but there is one exception.

Online blackjack seating positions

This is where new players are best suited. If you are new to the game and seem to always end up sitting at the third base position only to receive horrible stares that make you want to opt out it might be best to go online until you are confident to play at a land-based casino.

However, there is an exception when playing online and this involves the live dealer blackjack variants. When you sign up for an online casino, we recommend doing so at our suggested online casinos due to their reputation, and make a deposit you can access the live dealer lobby where you will see blackjack as an available variant.

Here, you are able to pick the seat which you would like to sit at, provided the table isn’t full. This can give you the experience of picking a seat, and if the chat function is available you will be able to read players reactions as to where you are sitting. Any vulgar or inappropriate content is not tolerated at our recommended online casinos so it is the perfect place to practice sitting at third base.

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Did you know that you can play more than one hand of blackjack at a time in most casinos?

If a table is full, this isn’t possible. But at most casinos, the blackjack tables aren’t quite full. I see a lot of my fellow gamblers playing two hands simultaneously. You’re not limited to just two hands either. You could even play three hands at the same time if you needed to.

Is this a good idea or not? A simple answer might be to think about what playing multiple hands does to your average win or loss rate.

If you’re a recreational player, even if you use basic strategy, playing multiple hands simultaneously just means you’ll lose more money faster. But if you’re an advantage blackjack player, playing multiple hands simultaneously will result in a higher average hourly win rate.

Blackjack Heads Up Vs Full Table Standing

If you’re thinking about playing two hands at a time instead of just one, you should examine your reasoning for this rationally. If you think it’s just going to change your luck, you shouldn’t do it. The number of hands you’re playing doesn’t affect luck in any way because, after all, luck is just standard deviation.

The house edge will stay the same regardless of how many hands you’re playing.

Blackjack Heads Up Vs Full Table Set

What Playing Multiple Hands Does

Let’s look at a few different scenarios.

In the first scenario, you decide to play one hand at a time for $5 per hand. You’re using perfect basic strategy, and the house edge in this specific casino is only 0.4%. It’s a two-deck game with good rules. It’s also the middle of the afternoon, and the casino isn’t busy, so you’re playing heads up against the dealer. This means you’re getting in 200 hands per hour.

The amount you’re mathematically expected to lose in this scenario is easy to calculate. You multiply the number of bets you’re making per hour (200) by their size ($5) to get your total amount of hourly action.

In this case, you’re putting $1000 into action per hour. The house edge is the amount the casino expects to win in the long run, so you multiply the house edge by the action. That gives you an expected hourly loss of $4.

Now, let’s take a second scenario. It’s the same table, same rules, same amount per hand, and same perfect strategy on your part.

But because you’re playing two hands per hour, the game slows down a little bit to 160 hands per hour, but multiplied by 2, since you’re playing both of them.

Now, you’re getting in 320 hands per hour, which means your hourly action jumps to $1600. 0.4% of $1600 is $6.40 per hour in expected losses. It’s obvious that you’re going to lose more money playing two hands per hour.

Also, the more hands you get in, the closer your actual results will get to the mathematically expected results. In other words, if you’re hoping to capitalize on a short-term lucky streak, you reduce the probability of doing that by playing so many hands.

Now, let’s look at a third scenario. You’re playing the same game, but you’re counting cards, and you have a 0.4% edge over the house instead of playing against a house edge of 0.4%.

Instead of an expected loss per hour of $4, you now have an expected win per hour of $4. AND if you play two hands instead of one, you have an expected win per hour of $6.40.

Since you’re counting cards, you get more information faster by seeing more cards per hand, too. The more cards you see, the more accurate your count becomes.

One More Example of Playing Multiple Blackjack Hands at Once

I want to look at one more scenario. This time, instead of playing for $5 per hand, you have a player who’s
betting $100 per hand.

That’s 200 hands per hour at $100 per hand, or $20,000 in hourly action. 0.4% of that is $80 in expected losses per hour.

What if this player decides to start playing two hands at a time instead of just one, and he only bets $50 per hand? He’s still putting $100 “per round” into action, but the action slows down because of the extra hands.

Instead of 200 bets per hour at $100, he’s getting in 320 bets per hour in at $50 per hand, or $16,000 in hourly action. His hourly expected loss goes down to $64 instead of $80.

If this player were counting cards with an edge of 0.4%, his hourly win rate would drop correspondingly. This seems counterintuitive, but if you think about it, this is the case.

Some Conclusions to Draw From All this Math

The first conclusion is that if you’re not changing the size of your bets, but you’re making almost twice as many bets per hour, you’ll lose (or win) more money based on your mathematical expectation. Average players will lose more per hour, and advantage players will win more per hour.

But if you reduce the size of your bets AND reduce the number of hands you’re getting per hour, you’ll lose (or win) more money, again based on your mathematical expectation.

Most of my readers are basic blackjack strategy players. This means that, over time, they’re going to see a net loss. But that net loss is lower than you’d see at almost any game in the casino.

My hope for that player would be that they’d realize the importance of getting in fewer hands per hour. The fewer hands you play per hour, the less money you’ll lose on average over time.

Playing two hands at once is one way to get in fewer hands per hour, but it’s not the only way. You could also limit your play to tables with a minimum number of players.

If you stick with games where there were at least four other players at the table, you’d only play 70 hands per hour instead of 200 or 160. You could afford to bet more per hand and still lose less money per hour at such a table.

And if you stick with your other betting amounts, you’d save a lot of money and have a lot of fun socializing while you’re at it.

Blackjack Heads Up Vs Full Table Top

Conclusion

The pros of playing multiple hands of blackjack at the same time are simple enough.

  • If you have an edge over the casino, you can make more money per hour doing this.
  • If you don’t, you can put the same amount of money into play per round by playing two hands instead of one and betting half the amount. This will reduce your hourly expected loss rate.

The cons of playing multiple hands of blackjack are simple enough, too.

  • You’re less likely to see a lucky winning streak based on short term variance.
  • You’re going to lose more money per hour if you don’t reduce your bet size, because you’ll be getting in more hands per hour for the same amount per hand.

Should you play multiple hands of blackjack simultaneously? That depends on all the factors discussed above.

Are you a card counter? Do you think you’ll try to earn more by playing two hands at a time after reading this? Are you a basic strategy player? Do you think you’ll try to get in less action per hour to try to reduce your hourly loss rate?

Let me know in the comments.

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