Blackjack
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Blackjack
Online Glossary of Blackjack Jargon...
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A
B
C
D
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F
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H
I
J
K
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Blackjack
Terms... A
A: (abbrev). Ace.
AC: (abbrev). Atlantic City.
Ace side count: (n). A side count of only Aces that is kept
in addition to the main count when Counting
Cards in Blackjack.
Ace Neutral Count: (n). A Blackjack
Card Counting System which does not assign a value to aces.
Ace rich: (adj.). When there are more Aces in the Blackjack
Deck of Cards than a random probability would dictate.
Action: (n). 1. A bet 2. A large amount of Blackjack
Betting.
Advantage: (n). A player's theoretical expected rate of win
or loss in Blackjack, usually given as a percentage of total money put into
Blackjack action.
Blackjack
Terms... B
Back Counting: (v). Counting
Cards in a Blackjack Game while watching a table but not playing.
Balanced Count: (n). Any card counting system which has an
exact balance between plus cards and minus cards. A card counting system
is balanced when the sum of the card point values for the whole deck is
equal to 0.
Bankroll: (n). The amount of money a player has to play with.
It can refer to a "total bankroll" which is used in Blackjack in the long-run
or "session bankroll" which is the amount of money a Blackjack Player is
prepared to bet in any individual session.
Bar: (v). To ban a player from playing Blackjack in a Casino.
Basic Strategy: (n). A Blackjack
Playing System defining the optimum play for any given situation which
is based on the total of the Blackjack player's hand and the Blackjack dealer's
up card.
Beat the Dealer: (n). A Blackjack
Book written by Ed Thorp that was the groundbreaking work in card counting.
Bet Spread: (phrase). A reference to the spread between the
amount of a Blackjack Player's
minimum bet and maximum bet while counting cards. A 1-4 spread would mean
the player's maximum bet is four times the size of the player's minimum
bet. Sometimes the spead would be referred to as simply "4".
Betting Efficiency: (n). A measure of how well the Blackjack
Betting Strategy can exploit the profit potential of a card counting
system.
Big Player: (n). Someone who plays with a team of Card
Counters. A counter at a table keeps track of the count and secretly
signals the big player when the count is high enough for the big player
to enter the game and make a large bet or series of bets.
BJ: (abbrev). Blackjack.
BJFB: (abbrev). Blackjack For Blood - a Blackjack
Book by Bryce Carlson.
Blackjack: (v). Being dealt a 21 hand when Playing
Blackjack. It is only a Blackjack when your hand totals 21 with only
the original two cards dealt.
Black Chip: (n). A $100 chip.
BP: (abbrev). Big Blackjack Player.
BR: (abbrev). Bankroll.
BS: (abbrev). Basic
Blackjack Strategy.
Burn card: (n). A card taken off the deck at the beginning
of a new deck or shoe that is placed with the cards in the discard pile
or at the bottom of the Blackjack Deck of Cards.
Bust: (v). To go over 21 and lose the Blackjack hand.
Blackjack
Terms... C
Cage: (n). In a casino, where the cashier is located.
Camouflage: (n). Something a Blackjack Player does to hide
that he is counting cards.
Card Counter:
(n). A Blackjack Player who makes money by analyzing the probabilities
and betting accordingly.
Checks: (n). Blackjack Chips.
Cold: (adj). When a run of cards has been bad or will be bad.
Color Up: (adj). To exchange many smaller denomination Blackjack
Chips for a few large denomination chips. This is done as a player is preparing
to leave and he may have too many chips to handle.
Comp: (n). Complimentary services and goods that are offered
by the Blackjack Casino to encourage and reward play.
Counter: (n). A Card
Counter.
Counting System: (n). A Card
Counting System in Blackjack which assigns values to the cards in order
to calculate the probability of winning.
Cut Card: (n). A piece of plastic that is used in Blackjack
to cut the decks after a shuffle and then is used by the Blackjack dealer
to mark the last hand to be dealt from the deck by placing it near the end
of the deck in the shoe.
Blackjack
Terms... D
D'alembert: (n). A Betting
Progression System for Winning at Blackjack where the bettor raises
the bet one unit after each loss and lowers the bet one unit after each
win. A series of numbers equidistant from one another is established, such
as 1, 2, 3, 4. The player starts out by betting 1 unit. If he wins, he continues
to bet one unit. If he loses, he cancels out the 1 and moves to the 2 and
adds one unit to the last number, now having a series of 2, 3, 4, 5. At
any point in the series where the player wins his bet, he reduces his bet
by one unit. If he wins enough bets to return to a one unit bet, he starts
over. If he loses during the series, he cancels out the last number he played
and adds another number to the series. This system, like all progressions
cannot win in any game with a negative expectation..
DA/DA2: (abbrev.). The ability to double down on any first
two cards.
DAS: (abbrev). An abbreviation for a rule that allows the
Blackjack player to double after splits. See double after split.
DD: (abbrev.). Double down.
Dealing Seconds: (phrase.). A method of cheating where the
Blackjack dealer deals the second from the top if the first is beneficial
to the player.
Deck Penetration: (n). How deeply into the pack or shoe a
Blackjack dealer goes before shuffling. Penetration is sometimes expressed
as the number of decks dealt out of the total (eg 5½/6, which means
5½ decks out of six) or as percentage of cards dealt out (e.g. 60%,
75% etc).
Device: (n). A computer or any other calculator that can be
used by Blackjack players to help them win.
Discards: (n). The cards which have already been played since
the last shuffle. They are placed by the Blackjack dealer in a discard tray
on the left side of the table from the player's perspective.
Double Only Any Two Cards: (phrase). Casino rules that allow
for doubling on any two playing cards.
DOA: (abbrev). Casino rules that allow for doubling on any
two playing cards.
Double after Split : Casino rules that allow doubling down after
the Blackjack players has split any pair.
Double Deck: A form of 21 where two decks are shuffled together and
dealt out of the hand. The forms of 21 are: single deck, double deck, and
four, six, or eight deck shoe.
Double Down: To double the size of one's initial bet before taking
one more card. Once a player doubles down, the player may receive only one
more card. Usually, but not always, a player may only double down after
receiving the first two cards. He does this by placing an amount which may
be less than, or equal to (but may not exceed) the original stake, behind
his initial bet. In some casinos the player may double down after splitting
and in some casinos the player may only double on 10 or 11.
Double Exposure: (n). A Blackjack game in which both dealer
cards are shown to the player (before) he plays his hand. Other house rules
are usually changed, such as Blackjack players losing pushes, and Blackjacks
are paid even money to restore the advantage the house loses by exposing
the Blackjack dealer's hole card.
Downtown: The downtown area of Las Vegas - as opposed to the Strip.
Draw: (v). To obtain additional cards to the original two
card Blackjack hand.
Drop: (n). The total amount of money wagered in a casino.
DS: (abbrev). Double after split.
Blackjack
Terms... E
Early Surrender: (n). Blackjack Player may give up or surrender
after receiving first two cards but before dealer checks for an Ace in the
hole. If surrendered, only 50% of bet is lost, instead of entire sum. Excellent
method for controlling player losses and therefore not allowed in most casinos.
Edge: (n). A term used in Blackjack to describe the percentage
of advantage either the casino or the player has on a certain game.
End Play: (n). A style of playing Blackjack in which the player
takes advantage of his knowledge of the last un-played cards at the end
of the deck. Happens when the player whose composition is favorable to the
player.
ES: (abbrev). Early Surrender.
EV: (abbrev). Expected Value.
Even Money: (n). 1. A bet which returns the same amount in
winnings as was wagered by the player if the bet is won.
Expectation: (n). A reference to what a player or the house
can statistically expect to win or lose on a given bet or game - usually
expressed in % terms.
Expected Value: (n). A reference similar to the term expectation.
Eye in the Sky: (n). A video camera, usually mounted in a
bubble on the ceiling, used by surveillance personnel to observe Blackjack
dealers and customers to catch them if they are stealing or cheating.
Blackjack
Terms... F
Face Card: (n). The face cards are the Jacks, Queens, and
Kings. They all have a value of 10.
False Shuffle: (n). The shuffling action by a cheating dealer
which preserves the original order of the cards or some pre-arranged order
of cards that the Blackjack dealer has set up while shuffling for a certain
purpose.
First Base: (n). This is the first player to receive cards
when the dealer deals the cards. This is the player's seat farthest to the
right at a Blackjack table, from the player's viewpoint.
Flat Betting: (v). To wager the same amount of money on each
bet made during a playing session or a portion of the playing session.
Fluctuations: (n). This word describes the ups and downs of
your bankroll. Sometimes abbreviated as "flucs".
Blackjack
Terms... G
Griffin: (n). Peter Griffin, Blackjack author of Theory
of Blackjack.
Griffin Book: (n). A series of books kept by Griffin which
identifies card counters and suspected card counters. It may include profiles
and photographs.
Griffin Investigations: (n). An investigator firm hired by
many casinos to identify and track cheats. They also identify and track
card counters.
Blackjack
Terms... H
H17: (n). An abbreviation used in Blackjack to signify that
the rules of a particular Blackjack game include requiring the dealer to
hit a soft seventeen.
Hard Hand: (n). Blackjack hands without an ace, or with an
ace valued at 1 are said to be hard in that they can only be given one value,
as opposed to "soft" hands.
Hard Total: (n). The total of any hand not containing Aces
or the total of a hand where the Ace is counted as 1. So a 10 and an 8 is
a hard total of 18, or a hard 18. An Ace and a 7 is a hard total of 8..
Heads Up: (phrase). Playing one-on-one against the dealer.
No other Blackjack players at the table.
Heat: (n). The pressure a casino puts on a winning player,
typically someone who is suspected of being a card counter.
Hi-Lo Count: (n).
A balanced level one counting system which values the 2 through 6 cards
as a plus one and the tens, face cards and aces as a minus one.
Hi-Opt I: (n). A balanced level one counting system included
in Humble and Cooper's book, The World's Greatest Blackjack Book. It assigns
the value of plus one to 3's, 4's, 5's and 6's and minus one to ten valued
cards.
High Roller: (n). A person who makes large wagers in the casino.
Hit: (v). To take another card.
Hole Card: (n). Playing situation with a high count value,
very favorable to player.
Hot Deck: (n). To take another card.
House Edge: (n). The term "house edge" refers to the percentage
advantage of casino over the player.
Blackjack
Terms... I
Index Number: (n). A term often used by counters to identify
the count for specific strategy deviations. For example, the proper index
number for standing on a hard 16 versus a Blackjack dealer's 10 is 0, using
the Hi-Lo count.
Insurance: (n). If the dealer's up card is an ace (or ten
as up card), he or she will call for insurance. When you place an insurance
wager, you are betting that the dealer has Blackjack. To make an insurance
wager, pace an amount, up to one half your original bet on the insurance
line when the Blackjack dealer calls for insurance. If the dealer has Blackjack
you win your insurance bet, but lose your original bet. If the dealer does
not have Blackjack, you lose your insurance bet and the game continues.
The insurance bet is highly advantageous to the house.
Blackjack
Terms... J
Junket: (n). An organized group of gamblers that travel to
a casino together. Junkets are usually subsidized by a casino to attract
Blackjack players.
Blackjack
Terms... K
Kelly Betting: (n). Betting a proportion of your bankroll
equal to advantage divided by the variance of the possible outcomes. This
style of betting is intended to minimize the risk faced by a bettor and
most betting schemes recommended by serious Blackjack experts are a modification
of this style of betting.
Ken Uston: (n). Author of The Big Player.
Knock-Out Count: An unbalanced level one counting system which counts
the 2 through 7 cards as plus one and the tens, face cards and aces as minus
one. It was developed by Olaf Vancurra and Ken Fuchs and is featured in
their book, Knock-Out Blackjack.
Blackjack
Terms... L
Labouchere: (n). A betting progression, also known as the
cancellation system. A bettor chooses a series of two or more numbers which
add up to the profit he intends to make. He then bets the total of the two
outside numbers in the series and cancels those numbers if he wins. He continues
betting the two outside un-cancelled numbers until he has completed the
series. If he loses a bet, he adds the amount of his loss to his series
as a single number. He must therefore cancel out two numbers for each number
added.
Las Vegas Strip Rules: (phrase). Rules referring to a game
of Blackjack with a single deck, dealer standing on all 17's, double allowed
on the two first cards dealt and no doubling after splitting permitted.
Late Surrender: (n). A Blackjack rule which allows the player
to forfeit half of his bet after seeing the Blackjack dealer's up card,
unless the dealer has a Blackjack, in which case the player loses his entire
bet.
Level: (n). 1. A reference to the number of values assigned
to cards in a card counting system. A level one system, such as Hi-Lo, assigns
one value, plus or minus one, to the cards. A level two system would assign
two values, such as plus and minus one and two.
LV: (abbrev). Las Vegas.
Blackjack
Terms... M
Martingale: (n). 1. One of the oldest betting progressions
in existence. It requires a player to double the size of his bet after a
loss and to continue doubling his bets until a win is achieved, resulting
in a profit equal to the size of the original bet. It is impossible to win
in the long run using this system.
Mechanic: (n). A dealer who cheats.
Money Management: (phrase). How a player manages their bankroll.
To non counting system player(i.e. stop-loss , risk of ruin, or standard
deviation.)
Money Plays: (phrase). A rule that says a player can bet dollar
bills instead of chips.
Multiple Deck: (n). A phrase used in Blackjack to describe
games, usually Blackjack, in which more than one deck of cards is used.
Blackjack
Terms... N
Natural: (n). When an Ace and a 10 value card are dealt as
the first two cards totaling 21 in value. This hand typically pays 3:2 odds
and can also be referred to as a Blackjack.
Nickel: (n). A $5 chip.
No Double after Split: (phrase). Casino rules for Blackjack
that do not allow doubling when the player has split two cards.
Blackjack
Terms... P
Paint: (n). The face cards, i.e. Jack, Queen and King.
Past Post: (phrase). To cheat by placing or adding to a wager
after the time that no new bets or bet changes are allowed due to there
being information about the possible result, such as the player already
having a card at Blackjack.
Pat Hand: (n). Any hand in Blackjack which is a hard 17 or
greater and would not require a hit.
Penetration: (n). How deeply into the pack or shoe a Blackjack
dealer goes before shuffling - usually expressed as a %.
Pit: (n). The area in the casino surrounded by table games.
Blackjack
Terms... Q
Pit Boss: (n). Casino staff member who checks and monitors
all of the casino play within his/her designated pit area.
Playing Conditions: (n). The options that a casino has imposed
on the game of Blackjack at that casino e.g.. No double after split, double
down on only 10, 11 etc. Table limits for betting, minimum bet and maximum
bet.
Plus / Minus: (n). A commonly used Blackjack term to describe
the Hi-Lo counting system.
Point Count: (n). The net value of the card count at the end
of a hand.
Blackjack
Terms... R
Rat Holing : (v). When the player secretly sneaks a portion
of his chips into purse or pocket in order to hide from the pit crew how
much he's winning.
Rated: (adj). Determination by house that a player's skill
level is on the professional level. A player's rating may be stored by computer
and communicated to the pit.
RC: (abbrev). The acronym for Running Count.
Red Chip: (n). A $5 chip.
Resplit: (abbrev). Splitting pairs after splitting a pair
for the first time if another like card is dealt.
Resplit Aces: (v). The unlimited ability to re-split aces.
Many casinos set a limit to the number of times that aces can be split.
RFG: (abbrev). An abbreviation for complimentary Room, Food,
and Beverage.
RGB: (abbrev). The acronym for Rec.Gambling.Blackjack, a usenet
newsgroup.
Rider Bet: (n). The bet made by a player (the "Rider") behind
another player's bet.
Risk of Ruin: (n). Describes the likelihood of losing all
of one's bankroll.
RNG: (abbrev). The acronym for Random-Number Generator.
ROR: (abbrev). 1. The acronym for Risk Of Ruin. 2. The acronym
for Rate Of Return.
RSA: (abbrev). An abbreviation for Resplit Aces.
Running Count: (n). The total number of points a card-counting
system assigns to the cards seen from the beginning of the deck or shoe.
The running count is updated by the value of the point count after each
hand.
Blackjack
Terms... S
S17: (abbrev). An abbreviation for the casino rule which requires
the dealer to stand on all soft 17s.
SD: (abbrev). 1. The acronym for Single Deck. 2. The acronym
for Standard Deviation.
Session: (n). The time you spent at a table.
Shill: (n). A casino employee, usually hired to be a "starter"
in casino games. This employee may play at otherwise empty tables in order
to attract Blackjack players.
Shoe Game: An abbreviation for the casino rule which requires the
Blackjack dealer to stand on all soft 17s.
Shuffle Master: (n). A reference to Blackjack games which
use a shoe to hold the cards.
Shuffle Tracking: (v). A sophisticated technique that requires
a player to count the cards, observe where groups of high or low cards are
placed in the discard tray, follow them through the shuffle, and then cut
the cards in such a way as to bring excess high cards into play.
Side Count: (n). An additional count to track certain cards.
Common side counts include an ace side count.
Soft Hand: (n). A Blackjack hand that contains an Ace which
is counted as 11. E.g. Ace-9 is soft 20. If later valued at 1, it becomes
a "hard" hand.
Splitting Pairs: (phrase). To double down on a hand with an
ace as part of the original Blackjack hand.
Soft Double: (n). To double down on a hand with an ace as
part of the original hand.
Splitting Aces: (v). If you receive a pair of aces on your
first two cards, you may choose to split the aces. When you split aces,
you will receive only one card on each ace. However, if you receive a second
ace after you split, you may choose to re-split the aces.
Stand : (v). The decision not to draw any further cards, or
hits.
Standard Deviation: (n). A statistical measure of the ariability
of results. It is determined by finding the square root of the variance
of a game.
Stiff Hand: (n). Any Blackjack hand that could bust if drawn
to. The stiff hands are hard totals of 12 through 16.
Stop Loss: (n). An pre-set limit to the amount of money a
player is willing to lose in any given session.
Strip Rules: (n). A set of rules, once prevalent in Las Vegas
Strip casinos, where a Dealer stands on soft 17 (S17), Blackjack Player
is allowed to DOA ( double on anything), Player is not allowed to DAS (
no double down after split), Pair splitting is allowed up to 4 hands, No
RSA ( no re-splitting of aces) allowed.
Surrender: (n). Surrender is the only option of not playing
a hand after receiving your first two cards. When you exercise the option
of surrender, the dealer will pick up your cards, and you will lose one
half of your bet.
Blackjack
Terms... T
Team Play: (n). A term for a group of Blackjack players who
play using one bankroll, usually provided by the player's themselves and
other investors.
Third Baseman: (n). The seat at a Blackjack table which is
the farthest to the left. It is the last person to receive the cards during
a round of play. Also Anchorman.
Thorp: (n). Authoer of Beat The Blackjack Dealer -
the first book to explain card counting.
Tie: (n). Both the player and the Blackjack dealer have the
same hand total. Player keeps bet. Also Push or Stand-Off.
Toke: (n). A player tip to the dealer or to any other casino
person providing service to the player.
True Count: (n). The true count is derived from the running
count divided by the number of decks left in the shoe.
Blackjack
Terms... U
Up Card: (n). The Blackjack dealer's first dealt card, placed
face up.
Unit: (n). This generally means a card counter's minimum bet.
When a counter is spreading $25 to $200 and says he won 10 units, he means
he won $250.
Unbalanced Count: (n). A count in which the number of plus
and minus cards is not equal.
Blackjack
Terms... V
Var: (abbrev). An abbreviation for variance.
Variance: (n). A statistical measure of the variability of
returns on a game.
Vig: (abbrev). The house advantage or fee on a game. It was
used to describe the interest charged by loan sharks and is short for vigorish.
Blackjack
Terms... W
Wonging: (v). 1. To back count the cards dealt at a particular
table and to then join play only when the count indicates the game has swung
to the player's advantage, and then to leave when the count indicates the
game has turned unfavorable. Named after the poker author Wong.
Win Rate: (n). The speed at which one is expected to win,
commonly expressed as a percentage or in dollars per hour or per a specified
number of Blackjack hands.
Whale: (n). This is casino-speak for a high-roller of the
biggest sort.
Blackjack
Terms... X
X: (n). Sometimes used in Blackjack to denote card with a
valued of 10.
Blackjack
Terms... Z
Zen Count: (n). A level two counting system described by Arnold
Snyder in his book, Blackbelt in Blackjack. It assigns a value of plus one
to the 2s, 3s and 7s, plus two to the 4s, 5s and 6s, minus one to the Aces
and minus two to the ten valued cards.
Blackjack Card Game acronyms that are often used in Gambling
Blackjack.
BSE = Basic Strategy Edge
H17 = Hit soft 17 (dealer must hit)
S17 = Stand on any 17 (dealer must stand)
DOA = Double On Any first two cards
D10 = Double on 10 or 11 only
DAS = Double After Splitting is allowed
RSA = Re-Splitting Aces is allowed
ESR = Early Surrender
LSR = Late Surrender
O/U = Over/Under 13 side bets are allowed
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