History Of Blackjack

The history of the game that is known today as blackjack (also called 21) has its roots based in earlier games. Like most card games, blackjack isn't based on a single other card game. It is thought to have its roots in several games like baccarat, chemin de fer, trente et quarante, quinze, and other similar games.

The french game 'vignt-un' or 'vignt-et-un' (translated to english, twenty-one) was first developed and played in french casinos sometime just prior to the year 1700. The aim of the game was to get closest to a card total of 21 when the values of individual cards are added together, without going over 21.

Each player was dealt a card and then bet, then another card was dealt and a bet followed. This continued until a player stuck with the cards they had, got 21, or went over 21. After the final round of betting, the player closest to 21 was awarded the prize pool.

There was no bonus for a player with a two card 21 in the early days of the game, and only the dealer was allowed to double down. If the dealer was dealt a card total of 21, the dealer won triple the amount originally wagered by the players who had bet.

The game spread around Europe and in the second half of the 19th century, vignt-et-un was introduced to the United States. The book American Hoyle mentioned the game for the first time in the 1875 edition. After being introduced to the US, the game enjoyed some popularity as a house game. That is, it was played at home rather than in casinos. Sometime around 1910 the game made its debut in american gambling houses.

It didn't do well when it was introduced so gambling house owners decided to offer bonuses to attract potential players to the game. One of the bonuses offered at that time was a 10 to 1 pay-off if a players hand was made up of a black jack (either the jack of clubs of the jack of spades) and the ace of spades.

The game with the black jack and ace of spades soon became known as blackjack. The 10 to 1 pay-off for a black jack and ace of spades hand was soon ended but the name stuck and the game became very popular.

In 1956, a man named Roger Baldwin put together a paper entitled The Optimum Strategy In Blackjack. His paper was published in the Journal of the American Statistical Association and was fairly hard to understand. But the paper was the first real test of using math to increase a players odds of winning at blackjack.

It showed mathematically inclined gamblers how they could have even odds or better when playing the game. Although the paper was still a rough guide, it ignited an interest in the relationship between math and blackjack that was further refined as time passed.

In 1962, Professor Ed Thorp wrote a book called Beat the Dealer. The book discussed card counting methods and players who read it began to make use of the info to make a lot of money. Casinos lost so much money that they changed the rules of the game to give themselves even more of an advantage. These rule changes caused a loss of revenue for the casinos because people stopped playing.

In order to draw potential players back, the casinos then went back to the original rules. But they introduced specific methods aimed at taking any advantage away from people who used math to better their chances of winning. Card shuffling machines, excessive shuffling, multiple decks, and other methods were first introduced at this time.

In 1994, Stanford Wong wrote a book based on computer work he did related to blackjack. The book Professional Blackjack is still regarded as essential reading for both beginners and advanced players. It explains how to count cards and make decisions based on computer analysis of blackjack hands.

Today, blackjack is one of the most popular wagering games played at casinos and other gambling venues. This is largely due to the fact that blackjack is one of the few casino games where skill (rather than luck) can determine a winner. A person wishing to play blackjack on the internet can play find various sites that offer real money play including those located here.