The difference between blackjack and other games at the casino is that by using skill alone a player is able to shift the odds of winning in their favour. The principal way of doing this is by a method called card counting.

To describe how card counting works is quite complicated. When you play a game of blackjack, one or more packs of cards will initially be shuffled and then a number of hands will be played before the cards are shuffled again. After each hand the used cards are discarded and not used again until the pack or packs is shuffled again. As a result of this the cards that have been discarded can have an affect on what cards are likely to be dealt out of the remaining cards. For example if you are playing with one pack of cards and all the aces have already been dealt in previous hands, as a player you know that no more aces are going to be dealt again until the pack is shuffled.

When playing, certain situations can arise due to which cards have already been dealt, where the odds shift in favour of the player and against the casino. To maximise the potential of this situation a player will then increase the amount they bet in order to maximise their winnings.

In the early 1960's a man called Dr Edward Thorp published a book called "Beat the dealer". In it he described a method of card counting called the Ten-Count strategy. He described a way of assigning numbers to the cards dealt and when a ratio of numbers occurred the odds will have shifted such an amount in the players favour that a player should increase their bets to maximise winnings.

Unfortunately the method he described was quite complicated to use in the casino and subsequently an easier method was devised. This method is called the High-Low count and is the most common card counting method in use today. The difference between this method and Dr Thorp's is that anyone with average intellect can learn to use it fairly easily.

In the 1960's blackjack was usually played with one deck of cards but due to card counting becoming widespread casinos started to increase the number of packs due to the potential for card counters to shift the odds in their favour. The casinos realised that the more packs of cards used the smaller the potential advantage the card counter could get. Nowadays it is rare to find a game played with one or two decks. In most casinos it has increased to between four and eight decks. There is still an advantage to be had when more decks are used but it is considerably less than when one or two decks are used. If you want to be a successful card counter then finding these games is essential.

You may think this must be cheating, surely the casinos aren't going to let people win. It is most definitely not cheating or illegal, you are just using your skill to improve your odds at the game. Unfortunately casinos don't see it that way and if they realise you are card counting then they may ask you to leave the casino, they reserve the right to refuse entry to anyone they like. Keeping yourself under the radar can be one of the most difficult aspects of card counting, as by its nature the way you have to play the game can look suspicious. The main problem is that when using this method every so often when the situation arises you are required to raise your bets considerably. The more you raise your bets the more you are potentially able to gain. If you start by betting £5 each hand then all of a sudden for 3 or 4 hands in a row you bet £500 it can look suspicious and you may end up getting a tap on the shoulder.

Professional card counters may get themselves banned from numerous casinos and have to resort to wearing disguises and searching out ever more distant casinos in order to play the game. There is no need to worry too much though, as unless you are betting hundreds on a single hand, casinos are unlikely to pay you too much attention.