Basic Strategy: Perfect Math or Fond Tradition?

Blackjack. It’s as old as the hills, and surprisingly rigid in how it’s played. The game has an “ideal” way to play - the basic strategy - which determines the mostThere are occasions when we here at ReadyBetGo want to bring you interesting facts about the gambling industry  When something catches our eye, we will publish it for your enjoyment. 
Image from Unsplash  logical moves from any given hand. This basic strategy has been around for a long time, although, in blackjack terms, it’s recent history.

The strategy originates from some time in the 1950s, having been created by four soldiers, but was refined in 1962. It's been with us ever since. The question is, is it truly perfect?

Twists on the Formula

The basic strategy is not immaculate for one reason. Casinos choose which rules to use at their tables, and newer blackjack variants add all kinds of tweaks.

The Hippodrome Casino website lists unique online blackjack tables like Classic Blackjack with Sweetheart 16 and Classic Blackjack Noble Diamonds alongside the more familiar European Blackjack. Multi-hand blackjack and games with side bets are some other twists on the formula. Iterations like these each offer unique spins on the game, keeping it fresh, but they nevertheless may render older strategies less viable in doing so.

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Some of the more 'structural' elements that might upset the basic strategy include the number of decks, which reduces the chance of blackjack. Multiple decks make subtle differences to the game, affecting only a handful of positions, but it’s still worth knowing how many cards are in play before sitting at a table. This is only a factor at real-life casinos, however, as online lobbies get their cards from a random number generator.

A Mistake

The soldiers who first invented the mathematical blackjack model are known as the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse - Baldwin, Cantey, Maisel, and McDermott. Legend says that a mistake was made once their strategy started to solidify in the 1960s. The basic strategy's 'perfection' means this mistake has been passed down to modern players.

Unfortunately, it’s unknown what (or where) that mistake is in the charts. That latter point is important, as a huge amount of energy has been expended by sleuths trying to find what would be one of the biggest developments in blackjack thinking in sixty years.

Source: Pexels.

The problem is, it doesn’t exist. The idea of an error in the basic strategy has something in common with aliens and Bigfoot. It’s wishful thinking, a conspiracy theory. Perhaps the biggest evidence against its existence is that the basic strategy has been checked and recalculated many times.

An Optimised Approach

So, why does the rumour exist at all? There may be a misunderstanding in this X-File. As mentioned earlier, the basic strategy offers an optimised approach to playing blackjack by making assumptions about what’s coming next. 

For example, it’s advised to never split tens because it’s hard to beat a hand of 20. Similarly, it's worth standing on 'weaker' hands (13-16) if the dealer also has a weak hand (2-6). It’s only logical. 

The problem with the basic strategy is that beginners may view it as a way to beat the casino. If the basic strategy doesn’t do that, then it must be flawed - or so the assumption goes. However, blackjack is a game of random chance. Therefore, the basic strategy can only ever reduce the house edge. It's imperfect in the sense that it can never guarantee players a win, as is the case with every strategy.

So, to answer the question in the title, yes, the basic strategy seems perfect for what it is, but it's far from a guaranteed moneymaker. That's not going to stop the rumours circling, however.