Blackjack on a Budget

CardsThe Poor Man is all about playing casino games on a very tight budget (and I do mean “on a budget”, not “without money” – if you don’t have the money to be gambling, you shouldn’t be gambling, plain and simple). With that said, a surprisingly small number of articles on here have actually been about playing casino games on a budget! I mean, we’ve had, like, one? Maybe? At some point in time, perhaps? Whatever, my point is that we should really, seriously, totally, absolutely look into doing another one of these, and boy do I have a topic for you this time! In my previous article, I recommended that you guys play slots or roulette, since those are games pretty much designed to be played with low stakes. But what about blackjack? Blackjack can, technically, be played with low stakes, but it’s definitely a “high risk, high reward” type of experience. So, with that said, if you want to feel like the main character of “Bringing Down the House”, but be even cooler because you’re on a budget, this is what you gotta do:

1. Learn All There Is To Know About Blackjack

As I said, blackjack is a “high risk, high reward’ type of game, so the more you minimize the risk, the better off you’ll be in the long run. Take the time to absolutely learn the ins and outs of the game, and I’m not really talking about card counting (more on that later). I’m talking stuff like when to bet, when to hold, when to split, odds, probabilities, that sort of thing. At its core, blackjack is a game about math, NOT about chance. Chance plays a big part of it, sure, but odds play an even bigger one. If you know exactly how to play, your wins will increase dramatically. When put that simply, even a child could tell it to you, but it bears saying out loud. Ordinarily, I’d advise you to read books, but since we’re on a budget, there’s PLENTY of YouTube videos that you can learn from for the low, low price of absolutely nothing.

2. Play Online

When playing on a budget, online casino tends to be better than physical casino for several reasons. First and foremost, there are bigger social pressures to spend and bet more at a physical location than there are online. “Oh, sir, you seem like you’re on a streak! One more game, perhaps?” The dealers will ask you, casually trying to make you lose the cash you just earned because if you win too much at his table he might get in trouble. Online, however, there are no distractions of this sort. You can play with real money as much as you want, stop whenever you want and pick up whenever you want. You allocate your own budget without social pressures, and can play without really needing any excuse to do so. Though when it comes to online casino, there’s one thing I need to tell you…

3. Live Casino Is a Double-Edged Sword

On one hand, live casino’s pretty great – it gives you that extra bit of real life interaction, both with a dealer and with fellow players, without really all of them pesky social pressures (live casino dealers don’t really care all that much whether you win or you lose), and they’re available 24/7 from the comfort of your own home, too! It sounds like a great proposition, and it usually is, but keep in mind that limits for live casino are typically higher than limits for standard blackjack, so if you’re playing on a budget live casino may not be the best idea for you in particular. Take your time, discover the limits (especially the lower ones) of all blackjack games and tables, maybe make an OpenOffice table (because we’re too poor to afford Excel) with all of them, and then play on the cheapest one. Remember – you want the most bang for your buck, so the lower the limit, the better!