Blackjack Glossary and Slang Terms

Ace-Neutralised/Reckoned – In counting systems that are Ace-Neutralised, any ace will have a value of zero applied to it, and will effectively be discounted. In contrast, Ace-Reckoned systems will assign those aces a negative number. This makes Ace-Neutralised strategies more efficient to calculate, but such systems do have other problems. If you’re playing with multiple decks and want to calculate a proper true count, you’ll need to keep a separate count of the number of aces dealt if you’re using an Ace-Neutralised system.

Action  – This refers to the total amount of money bet

Basic Strategy – This is the theoretical ‘optimum’ way to play Blackjack. Experts will argue about exactly which card to play, but you can keep the house edge to a minimum by sticking to Basic Strategy. (Also see ‘Matrix’)

Blacks – Alternative term for $100 chips, the colour of which tends to be black

Burn Card – After a dealer has shuffled the cards, they may remove the top card before dealing – this top card is the ‘Burn Card’

Cage (or Cashier’s Cage) – The area in a casino where players go to redeem chips

Cold – A player currently experiencing a significant losing streak

Counting System – Counting systems attach values to different cards to determine when there may be lots of high or low cards left. The more high cards that are left to be dealt, the greater the chance that the player will draw a Blackjack – bringing with it a juicy payout, typically of 3:2. (Also see ‘Positive Count’)

Discard Rack – This plastic tray is used to store cards that have been used or dealt. It’s transparent, so card counters can sometimes use it to estimate how many decks have been dealt

Draws the Paint – If you hit and draw a card with a value of Ten, this is known as ‘Drawing the Paint’

Eighty-Six – In casinos, somebody who has been barred has been ‘Eighty-Sixed’. The phrase was originally used in restaurants and bars, and meant something that had been taken off the menu or counter – Article 86 of the New York Liquor Code governs those situations where liquor should be withheld.

Face – Refers to any card that’s a Jack, Queen or King.

Firing – The placing of large sums of money

First Base – Where there are multiple players, the one sitting to the dealer’s left will have their cards dealt first. This player or seat is known as the ‘First Base’. (Also see ‘Third Base’ and ‘Under the Gun’)

Front-Loading – This refers to stealing a look at the dealer’s Hole Card as it’s being tucked underneath the Up Card

Grinder – A player who always puts down small bets

Hi-Lo – As outlined by Edward O. Thorp in his classic book Beat The Dealer, the Hi-Low system is one of the simplest and easiest of counting systems. The 2-5 cards are assigned a value of +1, and the Ten-Ace cards a value of -1. (6-9 are given no value.) The bigger the score gets, the greater the likelihood that there’ll be some high cards coming up.

Hole Card – The dealer has two cards, one face up and one face down. The card that’s left face down until the player hands have been completed is called the Hole Card. (Also see ‘Hole Card’)

Loaded Deck – This is a deck that has had extra cards inserted in order to mislead onlookers

Matrix – A chart based on Basic Strategy that shows you what to play in any situation

Mechanic  – Somebody who’s highly skilled at manipulating the skills. This is often associated with some kind of cheating

Natural – Alternative term for a Blackjack – a hand containing an Ace and any Ten-value card.

Paint – Alternative name for a picture card (Jack, Queen or King)

Pat Hand – A Blackjack hand with a value of at least 17 points

Penetration – This refers to the depth of any card deal

Positive Count – In card counting, if the remaining decks appear to have a greater proportion of high-value cards, this is known as a Positive Count

Push – Both the dealer and the player draw a hand of the same value. Casinos would generally rule this to be a tie

RoR – This means Risk of Ruin, and tells you how likely you are to lose your entire bankroll

Shill – A player employed by the casino who tries to incite interest and draw players to the table

Shuffle-Tracking – Following specific cards as they get shuffled so that you can tell when they’re likely to come up again

Snapper – A Blackjack consisting of an Ace and a Ten

Steaming – Raising your bets in order to chase your losses

Ten Rich/Poor – A deck with either a higher proportion of tens (Ten Rich) or a lower proportion of tens (Ten Poor)

Third Base – Where there are multiple players, the one sitting to the dealer’s right will have their cards dealt last of all. This player or seat is known as the ‘Third Base’. (Also see ‘First Base’)

Toke – A tip given to the dealer

True Count – Counting systems are very effective at calculating the likelihood of high or low cards being turned up. But the more decks are being used, the more distorted the count will become. A True Count will adjust the running total to reflect the number of decks being used.

Under the Gun – The player who has to go first in a betting round. (Also see ‘First Base’)

Up Card – The dealer has two cards, one face up and one face down. The card that’s face up is called the Up Card. (Also see ‘Hole Card’)

Weight – In a card counting system, the Weight refers to the value assigned to a card

Wonging – Named after the legendary card counter Stanford Wong, this practice refers to only placing bets when there’s a Positive Count

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