800-498-2234. We designed the software that we wish we had to learn. Yes. When you’re playing at a table, you want to see a 4. Hall patented his creation in 2009 and the rest, they say, is history. 5, cards 3, 4 and 6 are +1, cards 2 and 7 are +0. For every 10,000 bets units in the jackpot, the return increases by 14. Our first card counting test is rather generic and covers things like – the legality of it all, popularity of the various systems, rules, balanced versus unbalanced systems and the Illustrious 18. The greater the count, the more high cards in the shoe, and the more high cards in the deck, the greater the counting edge for the player. Long term, it works. If 12 units stretch your bankroll too thinly, then you can use a more conservative 1-8 bet spread system. Cards 2 through 6 have a +1 count. a 2 counts as two, a 9 counts as nine. In this post on the card-counting simulator, we learned about the basic rules of the game and used Python to create a basic card-counting strategy. Most memorably, it was notoriously used in Las Vegas casinos by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) blackjack team around 1980 to 1990, where the students walked away with millions of dollars. 3. . Call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ, PA, WV) or 1-800-270-7117 for confidential help (MI), or visit (WV). This calculating strategy, known as card-counting, was made famous by the MIT Blackjack Team, a group of students from MIT, Harvard University, and Caltech, who for several decades starting in 1979, optimized card-counting and other techniques to successfully beat casinos at blackjack around the world — a story that later inspired the. - 0: cards with value 7-9. The virtual blackjack is also instantly available online for 247. Also, make sure your return has. Start With a Fresh Deck. Each card is assigned a specific point value in the Hi Lo System. As the Spotter, always bet the minimum. Every card from 9 to ace is worth -1 and every card from 2 to 7 is worth + 1. 5, 8 is 0, 9 is -0. The counter continues to add the tags of each card in every hand including the dealer’s hand until the end of the round. Players - 1-7 seats, each seat can use a different playing & betting strategy. You must keep track of not only the cards that you are being dealt, but every single card dealt to every. As you may know, teams employ spotters to make minimum bets at tables and count cards. . For each card, assign a specific value. While dealing each card, add or subtract its point value from the running count. So anytime before a true 3, you will hit 12 v. The running count keeps getting updated with the latest data after every deal. For example, for the popular Hi-Lo counting system, you would input the tag value -1 for Ace and Ten, and tag value +1 for 2-6. A single-deck countdown is your “speed bag”; try to get through it as quickly as possible while maintaining your accuracy. Keep a Running Count. Counting Cards as a Team 1. The team-based approach is nothing new to card counting. Card Counting, 101. Players get dealt two cards and can choose to take. Card Counting is a perfectly legal way to beat casinos, but casinos w. You may have seen his team featured in the documentary Holy Rollers: The True Story of Card Counting Christians, and has been covered by New York Times, CNN, and The Colbert Report. Beat the house and shift the odds in your favor by learning and practicing Card Counting. You need to start with three counts of 0 and then add the point values of that card to each of the counts. Here is how your counting would look during a random blackjack round: Player. | Terms and conditions apply. Baccarat and blackjack have similar odds but in blackjack you can improve your odds through card counting and basic strategy. Start by practicing with a fresh deck of cards. These can then be used for a card counting strategy. 5%. By the time you are done counting the entire deck, “zero” should be your running count. You use this count to determine how much your bet should be. The Halves is one of the most complex and complicated card counting systems out there. Before delving deeper into the world of counting cards in blackjack, it’s crucial to grasp the fundamentals. The Silver Fox blackjack counting system is a lot like the Hi Lo, except it tracks every card except the 8. In this, card 5 is counted as +1. -0. As far as I know, it is the first side bet to be based on the player's first two cards and the dealer's up card. Watch Online Gambling's video guide to Bet Spread in Card Counting from our Blackjack Academy video series, presented by Mr Blackjack. 56%. A card counter raises his bet when the deck offers favorable odds to the player, and lowers his bet when the deck offers less-than-favorable odds to the player. AMA. Advantages of the True Count. If you plop down at a 6-to-5 table with bad penetration, you will not manage to generate any long-term profits even if you are the reincarnation of Kenny Uston himself. Ken Uston. 21 - Counting Cards: Ben (Jim Sturgess) counts cards in a casino. Plus 1. Cards 2 through 6 have a +1 count. In reality, splitting that hand will give you worse odds in blackjack, even if the dealer has a bust card. When you’re playing at a table, you want to see a 4. Betting amount = true count – 1 betting unit. To reach the last card of the deck, click the forward icon on the left. As per Wong's betting ramp. Better yet, with registration , you can add your own card counting strategies and/or load one of our 20 preset strategies. The team-based approach is nothing new to card counting. . This is the Kotlin implementation of these rules: fun cardValue(card: Int) = when (card) { in 2. Blackjack: Play Like The Pros, by John Bukofsky. A deck rich with high cards (10, jack, queen, king, ace) favors the player, whereas an excess of low. The MIT Blackjack Team was a group of students and ex-students from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard University, and other leading colleges who used card counting techniques and more sophisticated strategies to beat casinos at blackjack worldwide. Numbers 10 – Ace: -1. If we fix the counter’s maximum bet at $100, then a smaller spread will yield a higher average wager and thus a higher win-rate. Using user inputted card values and the number of decks remaining in the shoe, the program gives a number that represents the statistical advantage to the player or the dealer. How to Count Cards. Ace Five-Count is a simplified card counting system. Ace can count as a 1 or an 11. You will bet on the Player or Banker according to the Running Count as you play. Blackjack card counting software. Card counting in blackjack is used to determine when the player has an advantage over the house. Blackjack card counting is used mainly at land-based casinos and in live dealer games. Keep a running total. As the cards are dealt, the. Counting is not an offense under an state or federal law in the US, so casinos cannot convict or arrest you. In Blackjack Card Counter v2. . 5 to 8 points = -1. 3. Step 1: Card Values. The shoe and the plastic cardTHE NOTION THAT A BLACKJACK PLAYER MUST BE ABLE TO CARD COUNT 6 OR 8 DECKS WITH HI-LO FIRST IN ORDER TO BECOME A CARD COUNTER IS BEYOND BELIEF. Many casinos also use the practice of ‘burning’ the top card before play starts, which simply means discarding it and dealing the next card down. 5 and 10, J, Q, K, A are -1. It is a three-level blackjack card counting technique, which is suitable only for advanced and expert card counters. iPad. Split 6s against a dealer 3-6, and against a 2 if DAS is allowed. Another low card 3 brings us to plus 3. While not illegal, given that it doesn’t involve any criminal activity, card counting is banned in most casinos because it reduces. 16: Basic strategy when dealer exposes both cards; 17: The Ace-Five card counting method; 18: Basic strategy exceptions for three to six cards; 19: Blackjack splitting strategy when a back-player is betting; 20: Blackjack doubling strategy when doubling after splitting aces is allowed; 21: Details on the Wizard’s Simple Strategy;. It is a difficult skill to learn and master and even more tricky to implement especially in multi-deck games with CSM. Award winning casino practice software tools for beatable games: Blackjack card counting & shuffle tracking. The easiest one to learn is card counting. Zen Count. You start with 0 and you count what cards are out of the deck. You may have seen his team featured in the documentary Holy Rollers: The True Story of Card Counting Christians, and has been covered by New York Times, CNN, and The Colbert Report. 56% × $17347/$10000 = 67. The major aim in the construction of these tools is the accurate simulation of play in a. Calculate the count per deck. In card counting, smart investing means guaranteed returns. This is a balanced system, which means that a regular 52-card deck has a total count of zero. The best blackjack card counting systems will teach you how to keep a running total in a simple way, and how to adjust the count to accommodate the number of decks in play. Split 7s against a dealer 2-7. I strongly recommend Qfit blackjack software products. The basic difference is that the UBZ2 is an unbalanced system, while the Zen Count is a balanced system. Card counting is a strategy wherein players keep track of the proportion of high-value cards to low-value cards remaining in the deck. Keep a running total. Here are a few reasons why card counting is not dead. The higher the true count is, the greater the advantage to the player. If you need a criminal defense lawyer in Las Vegas because of charges related to card counting, De Castroverde Criminal & Immigration Lawyers are here for you. Still, you will get an excellent chance to hone your counting skills and earn some extra cash. Mar 12 2023. While dealing each card, add or subtract its point value from the running count. . Hi-Lo card counting follows these rules: - 1+: card with value 2-6. Just plug in the tag values for each card rank and click Calculate. The value of each card is either the number on the card, or 10 for face cards, or one or 11 for an ace. The students realized they could beat the house by basing their bet choices on. A quick note here: if you’ve ever played blackjack, you’ll know that your entire strategy depends on the cards the dealer draws. But if the player is given a 3 and an Ace, you can request an extra card from the dealer by counting the Ace as 1. Play Blackjack for fun or experimentation and then simply select how many decks are in use and record the cards as you play by selecting the appropriate button. This in theory makes it harder for card counters to keep track of the running total. Always split aces and 8s. With the help of techniques like card counting, you can reduce the house edge even further. Card counting is one of the most popular techniques blackjack players use to gain an advantage over the house edge. There is a weird way at looking at Schlesinger’s results that yields a higher win-rate under the assumption of a $100 maximum bet. The first step is to take a deck of cards and count through it, one at a time. By Eliot Jacobson Ph. 20 is considered a very good hand in blackjack and will win or tie in 92% of cases. A bit of simple math will show you that there are, in a complete deck, an equal number of “plus”-valued cards and “minus”-valued cards. The money was soon multiplied, and the blackjack card counting team was killing it in the Atlantic City casinos and shortly after all over the world. If you want to learn how to count cards, take advantage of our unique card counting app. Colin has been counting cards for over 15 years, and ran a multi-million dollar blackjack team. Finding blackjack games with low deck penetration is the best for card counting. 20 is considered a very good hand in blackjack and will win or tie in 92% of cases. As a quick brief on how the card counting system works, let's consider the Hi-Low count. $25). 1. Standard online games will shuffle the cards after every hand and negate card counting. Lucky Lucky is a side bet based on the player's first two cards and the dealer's up card. Check out some of the free online blackjack basic strategy and. The Blackjack Life: A Journey Through the Inner World of Card Counting, the Lessons of Teamwork, and the Clandestine Pursuit of Beating the Odds Nathaniel Tilton 4. . If you're interested in learning how to count cards to gain a real edge in the game of blackjack, this is a great place to start. read By Henry Tamburin Ph. Therefore, the number of times we have seen a card will range from 0 to 24 in our simulations. Subtract one when a high card is dealt and add one when a low card is dealt. Award winning casino practice software tools for beatable games: Blackjack card counting & shuffle tracking. When the shoe is shuffled, the running count is 0 and the dealer’s advantage is about 0. My current 2021 results, started the year with 500 bucks. Counting cards is simple, but can take time to master. There are no shortage of tall tales in books and online about “breaking” blackjack codes and making millions overnight. Blackjack may be played with one to eight decks of 52-card decks. Data - I figure, if you're going to play billions of hands, you ought to record what happened. The process of counting cards begins with assigning values to the cards. The greater the count, the more high cards in the shoe, and the more high cards in the deck, the greater the counting edge for the player. The game is played with one to eight decks of 52 French cards. Modern Blackjack - New, free, 540-page, online Blackjack book. Contact a Las Vegas Criminal Defense Attorney Today. In a typical 6 deck shoe, each additional true count point gives the player a 0. However, this should be done in the player’s mind without the casino’s knowledge. Using this number, you have all you need to build the Speed Count method. Master card counting. Numbers 10 – Ace: -1. 1. Are you a Blackjack Card Counter? If you are, then you'll want to avoid getting caught. The running count keeps getting updated with the latest data after every deal. 37,856 pages of Blackjack tables are viewable including about 15,500,000 Blackjack statistics from 320,000,000,000 rounds of play. Simply put, when a low card is shown, you add 1 to your count, and when a high card is shown, you take away 1. By way of comparison, Stanford Wong, in his book Professional Blackjack (page 203) says the variance is 1. T, the Hyland, and the Church. The objective is to have cards that add up to 21 without going over (or “busting”). Cards 7 to 9: 0. I'm Ready. This is what you’ll learn: Assign a value to each card. IAmA Card Counter and serious casino advantage player. Card counting is a long-term strategy, and keeping your 1 percent edge requires playing by the book game after game, while keeping count of what cards are rapidly being dealt and flipped on. You should always be. This book teaches players the basics of the game but also instructs the reader in basic strategy and card counting. So a card counter keeps a running tally in their head, adding 1 for low cards and subtracting 1 for high cards. For example, if the running count is +12 and the game has six decks, the true count is +2. Rather than teach you 9 different basic strategy charts for each variant of. As cards are dealt you just add and subtract points according to their face value, and when the count reaches +1, +2 or +3 you can increase your bet. You Need A Lot Of Cash To Start With. Many blackjack aficionados refuse to play any other type of blackjack as this blackjack variant offers slightly better odds, and it enables savvy players the option to count cards. Articles About Card Counting. Card counting is a technique used by skilled blackjack players to gain an advantage over the casino. BUY THE MOVIE: counter would add one, for the three card, add another one, for the six card, and subtract one, for the 10 card. e. Click here to download the Blackjack Deviations Chart for 4 to 8 Deck – Dealer STANDS on Soft 17 (245kb) There is no such thing as an all-encompassing chart. How Card Counting Works. Gamblers who are experienced with baccarat and blackjack sometimes wonder if the latter can be beaten through card counting. Use our Blackjack Training Drills to master blackjack basic strategy and card counting: Our Basic Strategy Drill trains you at basic strategy so you never make a wrong playing decision. Many films and TV shows have been made about people winning games by counting cards and lots of players have tried the strategy. About this game. Cards 7, 8, 9 each count as 0. Card Counting: A strategy for establishing an edge in the game of Blackjack by tracking the ratio of high cards to low cards that have already been played. The blackjack card counting trainer lets you practice the Hi-Lo count online at your own pace. As your count gets higher, there are fewer “small” cards in the deck, giving you an advantage. This includes split hands. This is the test for card counting accuracy. 2. Suppose the first player has a 3, 6, and 10 for a total of 19 and decides to stand. Counting cards in blackjack has long been a controversial and misunderstood practice. You can specific the vibration preferences within the app (Ex: vibrate twice when. It fits in your pocket. Expected Value: $101/hr (if 100 rounds/hr), more if you can play less crowded tables. All you need to do is keep track of 2 cards – Aces and Fives. But if you’re playing in a game being dealt from multiple decks in a shoe, you need to know how to convert the running count to the true count. As each card is dealt, players add 1, subtract 1, or do nothing based on the card's value. -As cards are being dealt in the game, you can see the number of cards in the shoe decrease. For example, if the first card dealt is a 6, then the Banker count is -1132, the Player count is 1128, and the Tie count is -11595. They then use this knowledge to modify their bets and playing styles. AV is ~$40 an hour over just under 700 hours. In card counting, smart investing means guaranteed returns. POSSIBLE RANGE. Unfortunately, card counting is not a skill that you can pick up with a secret handshake or a cheat sheet. A card counter keeps a mental record of the kind of cards that already have been dealt so that they can tell if the remaining cards within the shoe or deck are. Snyder’s Red 7 card counting technique is the first unbalanced point count system ever invented. Master card counting. This technique involves. -231. In Hi-Lo, 2-6 have a value of -1, and 10-A have a value of +1. ”2. The High-Low was first introduced in 1963 by Harvey Dubner 1 . The way blackjack players use their card counting skill is evolving, though, and if you want to stay ahead of the game you have to be willing to think about card counting differently. Play the math and play consistently. The game’s object is to create a hand with a value equal to or closer to 201 than the dealer’s hand without busting. If you come up against a dealer using multiple decks in blackjack, you can still use the Hi-Lo strategy. To correctly count cards in blackjack, whether online or at a casino, you must maintain a running total based on the face value of any cards shown. Card counting. No sleight of hand, marking cards or mucking — none of that stuff. Serious Blackjack Software. AMA. Each of the blackjack enthusiasts had to put in an initial investment of $4000. Blackjack is a popular game involving luck and strategy. CardCounter - Simple. Back-Spotters are particularly helpful in crowded casinos where. Here is a key for using this chart:Counting cards is most effective with fewer decks in the shoe. In most other card counting strategies, players must. Hint 2 Add/subtract the value of each card to variable count. Trespassed from 1 property (small chain), backed off from 1. If you want to learn how to count cards, take advantage of our unique card counting app. Colin has been counting cards for over 15 years, and ran a multi-million dollar blackjack team. Although, most online casinos use software that shuffles the cards every time a new hand is dealt, making it a bit tricky. The device vibrates when it hits a certain true count. The simplest systems are Hi-Lo Counts. When You’re Counting Cards and the Count Is Positive. 00398. As cards are dealt throughout the game, calculate the sum of the assigned values. , +1 + (+1) + (‒1) = +1). Card counting is the process of assigning certain values to the cards and then keeping a running count of these cards. A quick note here: if you’ve ever played blackjack, you’ll know that your entire strategy depends on the cards the dealer draws. How to Count Cards in Blackjack: Thorp Method. Here, the counter adds one for the three cards, another one for the six cards, and minus one for the 10 cards. A 1–4 bet spread for single-deck games is sufficient to gain the advantage. At this point, the running count is +4. By monitoring the cards that have. If the count gets to 14 or 15, you double your bet again. The 4 is a low card. D BLACKJACK CARD COUNTING Through the first eight chapters of this guide, you’ve learned how to play blackjack and how to play every hand perfectly, regardless. The Hi-Low consists of assigning a point value of +1, 0, or -1 to every card dealt to the player. In blackjack, if you count cards, it's very easy to tell if other players are counting. Counting cards is most effective with fewer decks in the shoe. 15 questions (or so) BLACKJACK CARD COUNTING PRACTICE. In general, depending on how many decks are being used in the blackjack game, players. Card counting, as a blackjack strategy, might appear to be a simple one but in an actual game of blackjack, it is very hard to master the skill of card counting. Find out the benefits, strategies, legalities and history of card counting, and practice with our exclusive Casino. a. Done properly, counting cards is a clever way to lower the house edge in online blackjack. This is called a “balanced” count. Again, online casinos have safeguards for this and have the highest rates of deck penetration in the industry. The 4 is a low card. This is because 3 – 1 = 2, and 2 betting units equals $20. Based on the values assigned to the cards that have been dealt, keep a ‘running count’. Asymmetric systems, such as the Knock Out system (KO), are designed to eliminate the proper value of the cards (more in step 3). How to Count Cards in Blackjack. I’ll try the Mini-Course for now. With the 50% deck penetration that this type of blackjack provides, you won’t be able to make any serious money. 21 - Counting Cards: Ben (Jim Sturgess) counts cards in a casino. To display the next card, hit the pile of cards on the right. The underlying principle behind card counting is that a deck rich in tens and aces is good for the player, a deck rich in small cards is good for the dealer. Cards 7 through 9 have a 0, or neutral count. Reasons why include that baccarat is dealt from a shoe, and players can track card values as the shoe is dealt. From researching the mathematics the movie, which is based on a true story, uses behind counting cards, we realized we could take a step back and analyze how the game itself is played (see [5] for a description on the math used in the. Counting cards is a strategic method employed in blackjack to predict the likelihood of upcoming cards, allowing players to make informed decisions regarding their bets and gameplay. While this is true to a degree there are simple card counting strategies you can pick up relatively easily and use without being completely obvious at the tables. The pros will tell you… your investment starts by investing in yourself — by using the same training used to train an army. No. ) Start the count from zero. A few exercises can help players in their card counting practice. Numbers 7 – 9: 0. Cards 10 through ace have a -1 count. Imagine playing with a single deck and knowing that an Ace had been removed. It also plots the trend of true counts and the. The major aim in the construction of these tools is the accurate simulation of play in a casino :. Casino games online: Blackjack chart Check Details Gambling streaks and the standard deviation, part 4: blackjack card. Compare the number of lower point cards that have been played to the number. With the Red 7 system, a player only needs to keep a running count in. 5 and the 9 is worth -5. Card Counting in the Actual Casino Environment Additonal Tips Another thing successful card counters tend to do is scout the casinos for the best possible blackjack games. My comments on the movie "21" Australian Blackjack; Introduction to Card Counting. If lots of low-value cards are left, you know that you are statistically more likely to get a. There are many reasons for this obsessive misdirection, not least of which is the sheer bulk of movies, books and websites devoted to the topic. How to Count Cards; Blackjack Strategy Charts; Blackjack Training Drills; About; Blog; Podcast; Blackjack Bootcamp; Private Training; Login; The Card Counting Mini‑Course Video 1 of 5: What is Card Counting (And How Does it Work)?16: Basic strategy when dealer exposes both cards; 17: The Ace-Five card counting method; 18: Basic strategy exceptions for three to six cards; 19: Blackjack splitting strategy when a back-player is betting; 20: Blackjack doubling strategy when doubling after splitting aces is allowed; 21: Details on the Wizard’s Simple Strategy;. -2. Beating Blackjack isn't nearly as hard. $3,000 Welcome Bonus. The same goes if the. Depending on which counting system you are using, this count will fluctuate with every card that is dealt. Counting Cards In Blackjack - How To Count Cards In Blackjack. 15% compared to multi-deck blackjack games that have a house edge between 0. 6 -> 1 10, 11 -> -1 else -> 0 }How Casinos Catch Card Counters. By also keeping track of the number of decks remaining. At the turn of the century, card-counting blackjack whizz Geoff Hall had a vision. The chart below provides you with an easy reference for how to count cards using different card counting systems. Frequently Asked Questions: A selection of common questions from players who are new to blackjack and counting. : r/IAmA. BLACKJACK CARD COUNTING TEST. In this, card 5 is counted as +1. The High-Low was first introduced in 1963 by Harvey Dubner 1 . Learn More. I’ve personally won over $600,000 from card counting and and have run blackjack teams responsible for winning over $4Million at blackjack. Blackjack is a card game played against other players or a dealer. Show running countCounting cards in blackjack is a simple process that involves assigning a value to each card in the deck. An Ace is minus 1. In this lesson we are going to explain how to evaluate double-deck blackjack games. Arguably, it’s effective only in estimating the soundness of the “insurance” and “even money” side bets. CVData Features. 2. Most card counting systems start with a count of 0. By also keeping track of the number of decks remaining. 11 min. Using what you see in your running count, keep a ‘true count’. 18% + 14. This way, a running count is kept. Blackjack Card Counting Summary . Another low card 3 brings us to plus 3. Numbers 7 – 9: 0. Face cards such as kings, queens and jacks are of a 10-point value; the Ace, on the other hand, is a special case as its value can be either 1 or 11, so respectively the Ace can also be a high. Cards ranging from 2 to 7 are given a positive 1 while 8’s and 9’s have a zero value. Keep a Running Count. Self-Practice. You add another unit for every +1 that goes on the count. It works by assigning a value of +1 to cards 2-6, a value of 0 to cards 7-9, and a value of -1 to cards 10-Ace. Using standard Las Vegas rules and a basic High-Low card counting system, a player’s advantage with perfect strategy when the count is zero is -0. Hi-Lo count is based on the following rules: +1: Cards from 2 to 6. 1. Some players split 10s thinking they will make two more hands of an equal value. In this system, cards 2 to 6 are assigned +1, 10 and an. A low-value card will add to your count by one point, and a high-value card subtracts one point from your running count. 0 and 9 points = 0. Card counting systems have three levels of complexity. You always want to start counting at the beginning of a shoe, starting with 0. You take a look at your logs and realized you are only $2000. Blackjack Card. g. But in a multiple-deck game of blackjack, let’s say eight decks, that’s 31 Aces left instead of 32. Ace-to-Five Count is the simplest card counting method available as you’ll only have to track aces and fives. This will clear the pile of cards on the right. The running count helps you figure out when the shoe is rich in aces and 10-value cards. Some of the most common blackjack card counting myths are that you need to be a mathematical genius in order to count cards, that you can get rich quick by. The higher the count, the. Alongside this strategy, the team uses a three-person team strategy with a big player, a controller and a spotter. It involves keeping track of the cards that have been dealt and adjusting your bets and playing strategy accordingly. The process of counting cards begins with assigning values to the cards. The pros will tell you… your investment starts by investing in yourself — by using the same training used to train an army of winning card counters over the last 15 years. Select a Spotter to keep count of the deck at a specific table. 3. Card counting is a technique that involves tracking and remembering cards that have been dealt out of the deck during a particular game. So if it says “0. Card counting: the stuff of casino myths and legends. When the count is +2, you’ll bet $15. Hi-Lo is a card counting system that assigns values to cards in the shoe depending on whether they help or hinder the player’s advantage. The reason is simple: online tables use RNG (Random Number Generator) to prevent cheating of any kind. We can do this by taking the running count and dividing it by the number of decks. For each card, assign a specific value. k. In simple terms, card counting is a strategy used by players to keep track of high- and low-value cards dealt by the blackjack dealer to determine if the dealer or player will have the advantage in the next hand. The only way to get a blackjack is to get a card worth 10 points and another card worth 11 points.