Caddy Blackjack Analysis
February 28th, 2014 at 1:32:55 PM
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Occasionally, my friends and I play caddy blackjack in lieu of hitting the casino, so that we can play with quarters and avoid the casino having the edge. The game is described in Ken Uston’s Million Dollar Blackjack (chapter 18). The game is an exciting alternative to poker and casino blackjack, and I’m actually quite amazed it’s not available at a land or online based casino, with a rake taken by the house for the service.
Description from Ken Uston:
Standard Rules of Caddy Blackjack:
"The deal rotates from player to player, with the player who gets a blackjack or natural getting the deal (the players cut for the deal at the start of the game).
• Single deck, cards face down
• Ties go to dealer
• Blackjack pays 2-1 to player
• Five card Charlie honored, player wins double bet
• No insurance
• Dealer can hit or stand, as he chooses after dealing to all players
• Player can double down on hard totals of 10/11 only, regardless of number of cards dealt to player
• Pairs except aces can be split
• When dealer begins, he declares his bank. He deals until the bank has been depleted or another player gets blackjack
o If dealer gets blackjack, dealer has option to restate bank amount
o If dealer and player get a blackjack, dealer keeps deal
• When two players get a blackjack, first blackjack gets deal (player closest to dealers left)
• Player who earns the deal but does not want, may auction to another player
• If dealer exposes cards, he loses hand to that player
Ken Uston then discusses winning at caddy blackjack. Player partnerships can increase your edge by increasing your bankroll when playing the role of dealer. Card counting can help, especially as the dealer. However, with a single deck game and many players, its less valuable to card count when a player.
Has any deeper analysis of Caddy blackjack ever been published? I’d imagine the individual blackjack rules do not matter as much as the fact that the dealer can hit or stand as he chooses. Does the dealer have incentive to not play as a traditional dealer?
Searching around on the web/in blackjack books, you can’t find much on the topic besides Uston’s chapter. VsJack attempted a similar style game, but is currently offline.
Description from Ken Uston:
Standard Rules of Caddy Blackjack:
"The deal rotates from player to player, with the player who gets a blackjack or natural getting the deal (the players cut for the deal at the start of the game).
• Single deck, cards face down
• Ties go to dealer
• Blackjack pays 2-1 to player
• Five card Charlie honored, player wins double bet
• No insurance
• Dealer can hit or stand, as he chooses after dealing to all players
• Player can double down on hard totals of 10/11 only, regardless of number of cards dealt to player
• Pairs except aces can be split
• When dealer begins, he declares his bank. He deals until the bank has been depleted or another player gets blackjack
o If dealer gets blackjack, dealer has option to restate bank amount
o If dealer and player get a blackjack, dealer keeps deal
• When two players get a blackjack, first blackjack gets deal (player closest to dealers left)
• Player who earns the deal but does not want, may auction to another player
• If dealer exposes cards, he loses hand to that player
Ken Uston then discusses winning at caddy blackjack. Player partnerships can increase your edge by increasing your bankroll when playing the role of dealer. Card counting can help, especially as the dealer. However, with a single deck game and many players, its less valuable to card count when a player.
Has any deeper analysis of Caddy blackjack ever been published? I’d imagine the individual blackjack rules do not matter as much as the fact that the dealer can hit or stand as he chooses. Does the dealer have incentive to not play as a traditional dealer?
Searching around on the web/in blackjack books, you can’t find much on the topic besides Uston’s chapter. VsJack attempted a similar style game, but is currently offline.
March 10th, 2014 at 2:16:16 PM
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I guess I answered my own question here - a basic strategy is outlined for both players and dealers in "The World's Greatest Blackjack Book." The book publishes a strategy developed by Julian Braun which is, as far as I can tell through my own research, the only basic strategy published for the specific game. In the version he describes, you can also auction the deal, so a player with enough bankroll playing against amateurs could potentially buy the right to deal and further guarantee his success. Since table position matters in this game, a player may also eek out a small advantage by picking the right position.
VsJack appears to have been the only attempt at getting this game in the online world, where I also think the game makes alot of sense over playing online blackjack against the dealer (as continuous shuffling removes any card counting edge, caddy blackjack would be the blackjack player's only possibility of 'beating' the game online). Oregon bars also allowed social gaming, which I imagine would mostly involve poker or caddy blackjack.
Anyway, I'm still amazed that no-house blackjack isn't offered at any casinos in poker rooms, where the casino could just take a rake. Does anyone know if a place like this exists, either in-person or online?
VsJack appears to have been the only attempt at getting this game in the online world, where I also think the game makes alot of sense over playing online blackjack against the dealer (as continuous shuffling removes any card counting edge, caddy blackjack would be the blackjack player's only possibility of 'beating' the game online). Oregon bars also allowed social gaming, which I imagine would mostly involve poker or caddy blackjack.
Anyway, I'm still amazed that no-house blackjack isn't offered at any casinos in poker rooms, where the casino could just take a rake. Does anyone know if a place like this exists, either in-person or online?
