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Of interest to the Blackjack Community today, the continuing story of the former rule bending genius Jeff Ma. While that name may not be immediately familiar, his history probably will be. Ma is the real life incarnation of a character in the Kevin Spacey driven film 21, which itself was the screen adaptation of Ben Mezrich’s book “Bringing Down The House”. Side note: The film went for simplicity in part because the original title was already taken by a Steve Martin comedy.

Anyway – Back to Jeff Ma. Since breaking casino’s with his team of other MIT students in the early 2000’s Ma has had to follow a path less controversial. And perhaps less glamorous but it seems not less financially rewarding.

Tech Crunch reports that he has just sold his start up TenXer to Twitter for a sum “under $50m”. I earn a sum under $50m, but I am guessing that is where the similarity ends, on the basis I am also assuming there are millions actually involved – like over $45M of them.

“TenXer” is, it seems, a form of management software that refers to the Silicon Valley term meant to imply brilliance of a developer in that it can do the work of 10 in one. In a world where success is often dictated by how quickly a big idea can be transferred into a workable and marketable solution, the appeal of such capacity is like corporate porn.

In a parting notice to its current client base Ma stated, “When we first started TenXer, our goal was to improve the way people worked by using data and analytics to increase transparency and visibility,”

It seems for the time being there will be a hiatus in developement while the team Ma has assembled take themselves off to Twitter headquarters to further plan world domination.

If you have never read the book or seen the film, you are likely new to Blackjack or maybe you just missed it. You should check them out as both are decent and lets face it, we all dream of beating the house. In it, Jeff Ma’s character in 21 is Ben Campbell and is played by actor Jim Sturgess. Ma does make a cameo in the film, see if you can spot him!

Blackjack is the most played casino game worldwide and for good reasons. For the vast majority of recreational players Blackjack is about fun. It is a simple case of you versus the dealer. There are of course players of great skill that can certainly improve their win chances by careful study, but at tables around the world the number of real “card counters” are in a miniscule minority.

Nonetheless – recreational and beginner players can still help themselves by paying attention to a few basic rules. In the following Quick Start guide consisting of 5 Blackjack Tips You Can’t “Win” Without, we hope to highlight a few do’s and don’ts to help those guys on their way.

Basic Strategy: How good are you with numbers? No getting around it, if you have the mental capacity to remember a single set of rules you will improve your chances – and cut the house edge, by playing these almost universally accepted set of fundamentals. You can refer to them Here. If all the rules of Basic Strategy are a bit much – take a look at the following simple hints.

1. Its all about that Ace: Aces should be treated as 1, except when the dealer shows 7, 8, and 9 then they should be treated as 11.

Eg: A, 6 is always 7A, 8 is always 19 Points total is the total of all cards in your hand, not just the first 2, so the same rules apply to 7 and 6,
5, 4 and 4
A, 4 and 8 all of which should be treated as 13.

2. SPLIT OR STAND: Never split 5s or 10s and never stand on 12 through 16 if the dealer is showing a 7 or higher. Split aces and 8s, double down on 11, and stand on a hard 17 (or greater).

3. You want to hit don’t you? Well you always should on a soft 17 (i.e. ace-6).

4. Insurance is a loser’s bet. Never take insurance. Unless you’re keeping track of the ratio of aces and 10-cards remaining in the stack of cards still to be played, and if you are in need of this guide then you are not, the odds are against you.

5. In the most basic of basic strategy, the following summary of rules to live by will steer you well at any blackjack table.

Good Luck Out there!

There are some gamblers and non-gamblers who believe that winning in blackjack is a matter of “luck”. It does not matter if one is playing a friendly game of blackjack at home or participating in a blackjack tournament online or at any land-based casino. The truth is, “luck” or fate, chance or coincidence may be a factor, but a very small one.

Skill not Luck

Let’s consider blackjack tournaments, for example. If you play in any blackjack tournament, you play against a number of players. Sometimes it seems like everyone else is dealt one blackjack after another except for you. When this happens, it is natural to think that bad luck is on your side, the losing player. The reality is that the luck of each draw is evenly spread out among all the players in the tournament. The more important factor in winning blackjack is your skill as a player.

As a blackjack player who aims to succeed in any blackjack tournament, you must practice to perfect your skills in the game. You must learn all you need to learn about basic blackjack strategy, to the point of memorizing basic strategy charts for you to make the best decision pertaining to standing, hitting, splitting or doubling down. Money management and risk management are additional factors that you should learn so that you can aptly build your winnings and beat all other players when it comes to counting all the chips.

Standard Blackjack Strategy

You can reach your full potential as a blackjack player by familiarizing yourself with the standard blackjack strategy. You can source for strategy charts in books or better yet, visit our Blackjack Strategies page. Once you are well-versed in this area, it would become quite easy for you to know when to stand, hit, split or double down.

You can’t run out of chips in a blackjack tournament because you can’t buy back in. Once you’re out of chips, that’s it, you’re out of the tournament. It is therefore relevant to manage your money and gauge the risks you take. Though you double your stack if you win, what happens if you lose? The idea is to bet safely and conservatively early in the game so you can advance to the next round. If you make it to the final table, then it is time to increase your bet to accumulate chips.

Do not rely on “lucky” charms and traditions to win in a blackjack tournament. Prepare yourself by honing your skills in blackjack.

When my dear old Grandad (God rest his soul) introduced me to Blackjack, I was about 6 and he didn’t call it that. He simply referred to the game by the literal “21’s”. The probable reason for this is that he was taught the game at a time when that was the only name it was known by. A brief glance at Wikipedia suggests the game was also known as twenty-one. The game itself has been with us for a period of 500 years or more. There is evidence to suggest it was played initially that far back by the Europeans, but there is some dispute as to which European nation is responsible for its inception. It seems likely it was either the French or the Italians, with the French most widely credited.

So why the change in name to the more widely employed Blackjack in today’s parlance? During the course of the early 1900’s a popular format of the game gave precedent to 21 achieved by way of an ace of spades accompanied by a jack of either clubs or spades – a “black jack”. The process has some merit you may well argue. Indeed, if you look anywhere for illustrations or promotions of the game – what is the most common card combination you will see represented? Almost invariably it is the ace of spades and the jack of the same suit. But this variant of the game seems to have lost its impetus during some point in the mid 1900’s.

History is littered with famous Blackjack players. Hailing back to France, it is said that Napoleon was a regular player of the game during period of exile and incarceration. Though a brief history lesson on the famously vertically challenged one will suggest that a dealer would not want to be beating him too often. These days the game is played by numerous luminaries and celebrities alike. Ben Affleck is a prodigious player of the game and a reputed card counter. Those who play the game professionally are far less recognizable for reasons of not wanting to have their identities that of public record. See our previous article about the ultra secret Annual Blackjack Ball. As an example of the extent to which this is the case, take those famously successful players who have been recognized and entered into the Blackjack Hall of Fame. They are honored at the Borona Hotel and Casino in San Diego, with their pictures on the wall, and where they are welcome at anytime to stay, eat drink and party – on the house – for life, on the proviso that they do not hit the tables.

Now that is some serious 21’s clout, Grandad!

In an era when the term “celebrity” is attached to the most pointless non-entities provided by non-stop reality television cast members who fill endless magazine pages, it is hard to imagine a group at the very pinnacle of their trade that would not be familiar to the masses. However that is how it is, by design in the most part, for the very finest of Blackjack players.

Whilst of course the stars of Poker may have become mainstream, very much at the design of Casino sponsorship, the very most skilled of Blackjack players would find making themselves immediately recognizable a rather counter productive process. Quite simply, casinos don’t want those who they know can beat them so the very best stay under the radar.

Each year the inner sanctum of the finest Blackjack meet at the most secret of events. Known as the Blackjack Ball, the annual get together is hosted by Gambler, author, and consultant, Max Rubin. The event has been taking place since 1997 when it was hosted at Rubin’s home but has since grown to the point where the invite list exceeds 100 and takes place in secret locations.

In an excellent article written by, Lawyer, journalist, and author Michael Craig as a contribution piece on CalvinAyre.com, you can read the story of the 2014 Blackjack Ball. The piece provides a rare insight into the world of the most elite and elusive of Blackjack players and how, inevitably, the evening shapes up into a competition of the best against the best.

Everyone who plays the game of blackjack plays to win, and everyone who wins, dreams of winning big. Let’s face it, we all enjoy a story of winning largesse thus the story of a Las Vegas $1m win, followed by a $300,000 steak dinner will likely capture your attention.

The story goes, according to Bloomberg, that Shane Smith, CEO of Vice Media Inc enjoyed a run that culminated in the $1m range at Bellagio last month, then treated unidentified guests to a blow out dinner that produced a ludicrous check. Just in case you are wondering what cut of meat can push the bill in that direction, it was more (as it often is) about the wine. In this instance, bottles valued at up to $20,000 are credited.

Where the romanticism of the tale (if dropping such change can be regarded as such) loses a little of its luster is when you look at the reported net wealth of the protagonist. Smith is valued somewhere in the region of $400 million and thus could have paid for dinner before gambling without great concern. But let’s not let that get in the way of a good Blackjack winning story shall we?

What may be regarded as significant however is that MGM resorts are pointing to the event as a wider indicator of the gambling Mecca’s overall health. CEO Jim Murren hadn’t seen a check like that since 2007, reported the Las Vegas Review-Journal. He added: “It tells you there is a release valve that has opened. That isn’t a trend, but it’s a sign people are ready to spend money again.”

Smith was in Las Vegas to attend the vast Consumer Electronics show. Such conventions are seen as the way to attract the type of gamblers that will have the punch that he carries. Therefore, more convention space is the direction Sin City is heading in. The Iconic Rivera Casino will be that latest casualty in the drive to create more lucrative space for the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, when it is torn down later this year. Those of us with affection for such wonderful old casinos will shed a tear.