Tabasco style blackjack
14 July 2000
By Mark Pilarski
Dear Mark,
I recently came across a blackjack game called
Spanish 21. I didn't play but the rules looked
very similar to regular 21. Any differences
before I give it a try? Seth G.
There are two notable exceptions when comparing
Spanish 21 to a regular blackjack game. In
Spanish 21, all the 10s (not the Jacks, Queens,
Kings) are removed from the deck. Also, the
player gets paid for a hand total of 21, or the
standard three-to-two payoff for a blackjack,
even if the dealer's hand is a natural
blackjack. Additional player friendly rules are;
doubling down on two or more cards, pair
splitting and double downs up to four times
after splits, bonus payoffs for different
combination 21s, and a super bonus that pays out
$1,000 for a suited 7-7-7 when the dealer's up
card is a seven. (Side note: In my entire
18-year gambling career I've never seen this
occur, whether dealing or observing countless
hands of regular blackjack as a pitboss.)
So, Seth, even without the 10s in the deck, is
Spanish 21 a good play? Yes, if you utilize
perfect basic strategy. By employing Spanish 21
basic strategy-which obviously differs from
normal blackjack strategy-you reduce the house
edge down to .8 percent. Deviate and the house
advantage can be up to three percent.
Dear Mark,
I am a keno writer who works in Las Vegas. One
of our regular customers asked if I knew how
many different number combinations are possible
in keno. I told him "in the thousands" but I
wasn't sure. How many possibilities are there?
Diane S.
You were off, Diane, a few quintillion. To be
exact, there are 3, 535, 316, 142, 212, 174, 320
numerical combinations using 20 balls with 80
numbers to choose from.
Dear Mark,
In Las Vegas a few casinos now offer 100X odds
on a crap game. What is the house advantage on
this bet? Tim T.
The house edge is 0.09%. As minuscule as this
is, Tim, you better be capitalized to the hilt
before you embrace this wager. Two or three
seven-out, line away calls and you're in the
poorhouse.
Dear Mark,
If my playing style in blackjack does not give
me a positive result in computer simulations,
will it still help me win in actual casino
gambling? Felix S.
The only playing method that will give you a
positive expectation in blackjack is card
counting. Period.
Dear Mark,
What I like best about craps, besides winning,
is how much fun it is. Why don't more players
enjoy playing the game? Ernie M.
You are correct, Ernie, craps is fun, craps is
social, craps is exciting, but except for an
odds wager, all craps bets come at a cost. Craps
is a negative expectation game, meaning that no
matter how you bet, the odds are against you.
I recommend all players treating craps like a
bag of M&Ms. Eat (bet) only the colors (pass
line, place bets) you like (a wager with a low
house edge).
Dear Mark,
I heard it is a felony to cheat in a casino in
Nevada, even at a $5 blackjack game. True?
Kenneth K.
Be it $5 or $5,000, cheating in a casino is a
felony punishable by up to 10 years in a
rudimentary Nevada hostel-prison. Cheating is
one mistake that a misinformed player who
romantically envisions himself as a cagey cat
should avoid. Most, if not all, casinos will
prosecute to the full extent of the law.
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