A typical casino table is being manned by dealers. There are several types of dealers, one example is the blackjack dealer. All of them should be collected during a deal because everything happens real time and the duty calls for dealers who can multitask on the table. It may seem easy but there are a lot of things happening during a typical deal and the blackjack dealer should always be on top of things.
The name blackjack is most popularly understood as a name for the game of 21, but there are other things that are called blackjack. One of these is the short, leather-covered club that was often carried by policemen in the early 20 th century. Genre: Card & Casino. If you like Blackjack, you'll love Microsoft Bubble! Beat the dealer! Make your bet, and you're dealt two cards. If you think you can get closer to 21 without going over, have the dealer give you another. Do you feel lucky? The game was originally named Zweikartenspiel but everyone called it Double Exposure. The name caught up and this is how the game is known to this day. You have probably guessed where the name originated from – in this variation the dealer has both their cards exposed, which helps with decision making and is especially great for advantage players.
What is a Blackjack Dealer?
A Blackjack dealer is the person responsible in looking after operations in a blackjack table. They usually stand or sit behind the table and dispense cards, collect winnings and identifying the winner of each particular deal.
Duties and Responsibilities of a Blackjack Dealer
- Blackjack dealers have to perform a variety of task in order to maintain smooth operations on the table. These tasks include counting of chips, handling money, applying the process of house rules to maintain a degree of integrity during a game.
- Dealers also have to exchange paper currency to chips and should be able to calculate winnings as well as losing bets real time.
- To look presentable, a dealer is responsible in maintaining the cards and chip tray in an orderly fashion to attract more players.
- Since money talks in the casino, integrity is a very sensitive issue. A dealer is required to report any irregularities found in the premises and should be able to provide accurate relay of information. Finally, they should be prepared in performing duties assigned by their supervisor.
Work Condition of a Blackjack Dealer
- A blackjack dealer is given the minimum 40 hour week schedule. Shifts may change dynamically based on instructions since casinos usually operate 24 hours a day.
- Casinos are located in enclosed spaces and allow patrons to smoke inside air conditioned facilities. One must prepare by taking vitamins to make sure that the body will resist smoke which lingers in the air.
- Constant flow of players is not guaranteed and there may be times that a blackjack dealer will have to wait for people to flock the table.
Educational Requirements of a Blackjack Dealer
- Most of the jobs simply require a high school diploma and being a blackjack dealer is no exception. Although there are some skills an aspiring candidate must have to be successful in this field. These include mathematical skills and multi tasking skills. Most of the deal happens in a short span and immediate action is required. The job needs to be done precisely.
Occupation and Progress of a Blackjack Dealer
How To Dealer Blackjack
- There are plenty of opportunities available for blackjack dealers. As entry level dealers, you get better chance at promotion if you are licensed by a gaming institute. Blackjack is the most common game in a casino which guarantees employment. With additional training and education, most dealers find themselves becoming pit bosses, supervisors and managers.
It may seem like an easy job on the outside. But in reality, being a blackjack dealer is not an easy task. With all of the things that you need to manage while on the table, as well as making computations in your mind it can get confusing. But with proper training and the right attitude, you can find success in this field.
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Blackjack (Twenty-one, pontoon or Vingt-et-un) is a kind of card game which usually involves gambling. It is often played in casinos. There is a dealer, who deals cards from a special device called a 'dealer's shoe' or a 'shuffling machine'. The dealer has one to eight decks. When there are one or two decks, the dealer usually holds the decks instead of dealing from a shoe.
It is a 'dealer versus players game'. Each player has their own game against the dealer. Cards are dealt in succession, and bets placed for each hand. Players win if their cards add up to more than the dealer's hand to a limit of 21. Hands which add up to more than 21, called busted hands, lose. Face cards count as 10. Aces can count as one or eleven.
'Blackjack', an ace and a face card or ten, is the top scorer. Blackjack usually pays a bonus. Five cards adding to 21 or fewer is the next ranking hand. Apart from that, unbusted hands rank by total add-up. Hands below the dealer's hand lose unless the dealer goes over 21 (busts). Hands equal to the dealer's keep their chips. If both the player and dealer bust, the dealer wins.
Players have a choice whether or not to get extra cards. Stand means to get no more cards and hit means to ask for another card. To stand, wave your hand back and forth. To ask for another card, wave your hand toward you. You can ask for any number of cards unless you bust. The dealer has rules as to when he takes extra cards for himself (or herself). In the UK, the dealer must stand on 16.[1] These rules are set by the casino and cannot change after the game has started. In some states or countries, the rules are set by the government.[2][3]
There is some skill in blackjack, because the odds change as the cards are dealt. The critical information is the numbers of tens (including face cards) which have been dealt. This is because they are the common cause of 'busting' the dealer hand and because they are needed for a blackjack. Aces are also important because they are needed for a blackjack.[4] Keeping track of the cards is called 'card counting'. It is legal if done without a device like a computer. But, many casinos tell players to leave if they think are counting the cards.
History[change change source]
Over the years the origin of Blackjack, like many other games, has eluded researchers for a long time and which continues to be hotly debated to this day. Till date there has been no clear consensus, but most agree it probably originated in French casinos around 1700, where it was called Vingt-et-Unwhich, translated, means twenty-one. Most believe it was probably derived from the French card games, Chemin de Fer, and French Ferme, which were in vogue at that time. Another of its version was prevalent in Spain, which was called 'One and Thirty'. The basic rule of the Spanish version was to reach 31 with a minimum of three cards.A theory that's also doing the rounds is that Blackjack was an invention by the Romans. It is believed that Romans used to play this game with wooden blocks of different numerical values. This theory holds some weight as Romans loved gambling, but that by no means confirms the theory. Among the various versions of the game, 'Vingt-et-Un' or '21' continued to grow in popularity and reach. It gradually spread to North America thanks to French colonists and soon after it was played throughout the continent. The rules of Blackjack were then different from those of modern or contemporary Blackjack. Just to elaborate, in this form of Blackjack, only the dealer was permitted to double. Also, a betting round was there between each of the playing cards dealt.The game was still termed '21' when it gained popularity in Nevada in 1931 as the State first chose to make gambling legal. Its origin is disputed, but it is certainly related to several French and Italian gambling games. In Britain since World War I, the informal game has been called pontoon.[5][6] To draw more people to the game, some casinos then offered a special bet: A hand featuring either of the black jacks (the Jack of Spades or that of Clubs) plus the Ace of Spades would pay 10-to-1 odds on the lucky player's bet. Although casinos later discontinued this peculiar payout, the name 'blackjack' or 'black jack' remained, as the game is known today.Five of Clubs: 'Watson’s card'. The name has nothing to do with Sherlock Holmes but refers to a famous gambler who is supposed to have won £10,000 at Faro through his wager in connection with this card.Blackjack was not conceived by any one person at one definite point of time. On the contrary, blackjack has evolved over centuries; it continues to evolve and grow even today, thanks to the Internet. Fuelling its popularity the online casino industry has developed various versions of the game which has truly revolutionized it.Now a few reputed casino operators have started an innovative and far more enjoyable concept of this game: live blackjack game with real dealers. Live Blackjack is the most advanced way to play your favourite casino game right in the comfort of your home, without having to go a long way to a field-based casino.[7][8]
Blackjack example[change change source]
This is an example of a Blackjack game. Players are named by gambling chip colour: white, brown, blue and black.
The dealer has given two cards each to the four players who are betting. One of the dealer's two cards is face-up so all the players can see it (an Ace), and the other is face down.
- Black gets an Ace and 2 which is worth either 13 or 3, and asks for a hit and gets a King (worth 10) which takes black to 13; black hits again, gets 16 and decides to stand.
- Blue gets a King and Jack which are worth 20 together and of course chooses to stand. (Splitting a K and J may be possible in some games although it is unusual to split a 20 because it is such a high hand)
- Brown gets a 10 and 4, and asks for a hit, gets 2 which takes brown to 16. Another hit and they get a 10, which means they are bust at 26 and the dealer takes the chips. Normally the cards would be taken away immediately with the bet.
- White gets two 5s, so they double the bet and split the cards, the dealer gives them a 5 and a 7 for each. They ask for hits in both cases and get a 9 and 6, taking them to 21 and 16 respectively.
The dealer turns their card over and gets a 6, together with the Ace takes them to 17, and stands because the dealer must stand on 17. (In this case the dealer must stand on a 'soft' 17). Results:
- Black loses their chips because the dealer's 17 beats black's 16
- Blue is paid the same amount of chips they bet because blue's 20 beats the dealer's 17
- Brown has already lost their chips when they went bust
- White's 21 is paid at 2:1, which means that white receives double and a half the amount of chips white bet for one of the splits, however white loses the other half of chips bet on the 16 which is beaten by the dealer's 17. Most games do not pay 2:1 for a hand of 21 however. The strongest scoring 21 would be an ace card and any other 10-point card. You can actually get to 21 in many different ways, but the ace and 10-point card combination will beat those variations.
Variations[change change source]
Blackjack Dealer Rules
- Base (American): with one dealer's open card and one hole card. With an open ace or a dozen (in some variations only with ace), the dealer looks at the hidden card and, if the blackjack dealer, the game ends.
- European: the dealer takes the second card after all players finish the set. In the case of a blackjack dealer, the players are returned all additional bets (except for 'insurance'),
- On the basis of Blackjack, numerous versions have been created, with their own names such as Blackjack in the open (Double Exposure), 3-Card Blackjack, Blackjack Switch, Spanish 21, Caribbean 21, Super Fan 21, Pontoon, etc.[1]
References[change change source]
- ↑UK regulations
- ↑Rose, Nelson I. and Robert A. Loeb 1998. Blackjack and the law. ISBN0-910575-08-8
- ↑Humble, Lance and Carl Cooper 1980. The world's greatest Blackjack book. ISBN978-0385153829
- ↑Thorp, Edward O. 1966. Beat the dealer: a winning strategy for the game of Twenty-One. Vintage. ISBN978-0-394-70310-7
- ↑'Blackjack'. Britannica.
- ↑'Onlinecasinonox'. November 13, 2017.
- ↑'History of Blackjack'. WOPC. February 11, 2010.
- ↑'Onlinecasinos'. November 13, 2017.