Blackjack Insurance
In most casinos, the player has the option of placing an additional bet called insurance, when the casino dealer has an ace up.’’ This bet is placed on the table, in front of the main bet, in the area marked:
“Insurance pays 2 to 1”
The insurance bet can be at most half of the main bet. For example, if the player’s main bet is $100, the insurance bet can be at most $50. In what follows we discuss only the case when the amount of the insurance bet is exactly half of the main bet.
The player wins the insurance bet when the dealer has blackjack and loses otherwise. In case of a win the payoff to the player is 2 to 1.
To clarify the meaning of the insurance bet, assume that John’s main bet is $100, that the dealer has an ace up, and that, after looking at his hand, John places a $50 insurance bet. Two cases are possible:
1. The dealer has blackjack: If you do not have, you loses your main $100 bet, but wins $100 with the insurance bet. In this case, he neither loses nor gains anything. If you have then you ties with the main bet and wins $100 with the insurance bet. Hence, you would have a profit of $100.
2. The dealer does not have blackjack: In this case you will lose your insurance bet. Afterward he must play his hand, which he might win, tie, or lose.
We notice that if you have blackjack and takes insurance, you will win an amount equal to his main bet, no matter what the casino dealer’s and is.’’ For this reason, many players insure immediately they have blackjack and the dealer has an ace up.
Nevertheless, calculations show that insurance should not be taken. The players, who do not keep track of cards and insure their jacks, win less, in the long run, than those who do not insure. Bad players insure when they have a good hand and do not when they have a bad hand. Obviously, they are influenced ii action by the usual meaning of the word “insurance.”
As a general rule, the players who do not follow the cards s not insure, no matter what their cards are.
The players who keep track of tens should insure if 3 X the number of unseen tens the number of unseen cards. (1)
Observe, however, that not all the cards which are dealt are scarily seen.
It follows from (1) that if, for instance, a gambler plays in deck game and if 25 tens and a total of 74 cards remain unsex should insure, since 3 X 25 = 75 and 75 is greater than 74. However, if only 24 tens remain the unseen cards, you should not insure, since 3X24=72 and 72 is less than 74.
As will be indicated later, the blackjack players who do not keep try tens, but use various other count systems, should also insure the conditions. While the players will derive a profit from acne, only those who follow the tens can always make correct dance decisions.