I am skeptical of much of what Scarne has written about blackjack, so I’ll quote from Mickey MacDougall’s MacDougall on Dice and Cards (Coward-McCann, 1944, NY), which was published prior to any of Scarne’s books: “Many professionals dress up the game by giving prizes for certain hands. A favorite stunt is to offer ten times the size of the wager to anyone holding a natural twenty-one with a black jack. This adds interest to the game, but it also tempts a player to increase his stakes.”

In an honestly dealt single-deck game, this gimmick bonus would give the player a substantial edge over the house, assuming the player knew basic strategy (an unlikely assumption). I would also assume that a gambling house that offered this bonus would be using any number of illegitimate methods to assure the house a healthy edge.

That curious bonus payout that gave blackjack its name, however, has long since disappeared. There may be some casino somewhere that pays a small bonus if a player is dealt a natural 21 which includes a jack of spades or clubs, but that is no longer a normal rule of the game. Today, a blackjack is simply any initial two cards that consist of an ace and any ten-valued card.

That’s when Ed Thorp dropped another bombshell. Under the auspices of their Vintage Paperback division, Random House published a revised and expanded edition of Beat the Dealer. And the most important addition was Harvey Dubner’s Hi-Lo counting system, which Thorp called the Complete Point Count, with a computer-optimized strategy devised by Julian Braun. To the casinos’ frustration, this was a system that could more easily be applied to multiple-deck games.

Thorp was keeping the casinos on the run.

Still, the casino’s fears were mostly unfounded. The Complete Point Count was easier to use than the ten-count, but it was not a lot easier. It required players to keep two separate counts. In addition to the running count of the cards’ point total, the player had to keep a count of the exact number of cards remaining to be played. And in order to play his hand, he had to memorize a chart of 158 different strategy changes to be made according to the count.

Thorp also included a Simple Point Count in this new edition of his book, but at the time that strategy seemed way too simple to most players to gain much of an edge, or to be taken seriously by players who wanted to beat the game. Later, the power of Thorp’s simpler method of adjusting the running count, without keeping a separate count of the exact number of cards played, would be shown.

Some beginners think the best way to play is to play the same way the dealer plays: Hit all sixteens and stand on all seventeens. This is not true. The object of the game is not to make a hand as close to 21 as possible, but to beat the dealer. Often the best way to do this is to stand with a low total, sometimes as low as 12.

Tip: Here’s how many players think: If I hit this 14, I risk busting my hand right here and now. But maybe the dealer has a 6 in the hole. If I don’t take a hit, my hand still has a chance. Maybe the dealer’s hand will bust.

Every player is afraid that he will be responsible for his own loss. But that 14 you are holding is already in dire jeopardy when the dealer shows a 10 up. You must fight for the hand’s survival by taking the hit, giving it a chance of becoming a stronger hand against that 10. With a 14 against a 10, you must fight to the death.

On the other hand, if the dealer’s upcard is 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6, and you are holding a stiff hand, you should stand. Since the dealer must hit his stiff hands, and chance busting even when you are stiff, hitting your weak hands is not advantageous against these weak upcards.

Mistake: Some beginners think the best way to play is to play the same way the dealer plays: Hit all sixteens and stand on all seventeens. This is not true. The object of the game is not to make a hand as close to 21 as possible, but to beat the dealer. Often the best way to do this is to stand with a low total, sometimes as low as 12.

Tip: This is the basic logic of casino blackjack. There are exceptions to these guidelines, as the actual basic strategy decision for any given hand is determined by working out all of the mathematical probabilities. But if you just consider this logic when studying the basic strategy charts, the pattern will become clear to you and it should not be too difficult to memorize.

Only slot hosts, casino hosts, and casino executives can get this rate for your room. By asking for the host immediately, you are likely to get this rate right away, offered by the host in anticipation of your slot action. If you then play little, you will get the rate this time, but maybe not next time, but the point is you did get it this time. If you play a lot and are a good player, then your play will justify that offer, and that will most likely result in your getting other perks, such as the room for free, or an upgrade to a suite, or the total “RF&B,” meaning free room, food, and beverage. You will also make a contact at that casino, and the host will give you his or her business card, with a special reservation number available only to casino guests. From that time on, you will be able to call in and usually get a room even if the hotel is “sold out.” This is because each hotel keeps a portion of their rooms always reserved for casino guests. If you live near the casino and don’t stay at the hotel, then contact the host anyway.

You will get to know someone at the casino at a level which can get you a lot of perks and other help, now and in the future. You may be able to get free dinners, buffets, show tickets, special party invitations, play your favorite slot games anytime and a whole lot of other neat stuff.

Most of the time, joining the slot clubs will bring you benefits later on. If you play slots for even short amounts of time, your play will accumulate. The casino will then recognize you as one of their preferred customers, and you are likely to begin receiving lots and lots of special perks. Most often, you will receive an immediate invitation to return, and this may include free rooms, food, beverages, or at least discounted rooms and other offers, depending on your level of play. Some casinos also offer cash back for your earned points, and therefore it is always a good idea to join the slot club in every casino you visit. If you are a frequent casino visitor, and come to destinations such as Las Vegas, which has many casinos in a relatively small area, then you can easily join several slot clubs at once. Most of the time you will get at least something from each of them, and so you can easily get perks from several casinos, even if you don’t play there, or don’t play there very much. You may, in fact, find out that this casino is very good, and then be able to come back to it again and again. At the very least, you will be able to visit several different casinos and experience their slot clubs.

You should always compare the clubs, because they are all different, and sometimes very different. While at one casino, you may qualify for a free dinner after, say, 200 earned points, at another casino this may take 2,000 earned points. Always find out how many dollars through the machine - known as “action” - it takes to earn 1 point, and then how many points you must earn to get any of the perks this club offers. Then compare this to other slot clubs, and find the one which gives you the most. However, do not select your casino for slot play based only on the offers they give from the slot club. You may find that this casino has slots which are set tighter then other casinos whose slot club policies may not be as liberal. In the end, always select your casino based on the availability of the good machines, and then consider the slot club secondarily. When you do everything together, correctly, you will find that by adding the perks you get from your slot play from the slot club or playing free blackjack, combined with the wins you get on the machines, combined with the losses you save by playing the good machine correctly, it will all add up to a nice overall profit in the end. And that’s where a large portion of your powerful profits from slots will come from.

Two: Play rested, emotionally stable, and without being affected by alcohol, drugs, or any other casino distraction.