A9 vs. 6

[FerrisB]

On another note, I saw the dealer's hole card for one hand. She had a 10 facing and a 10 as the down card. I'm sitting on a hard 17. Do you hit and try to improve your hand. I did not hit.

[MDAP]

The answer in the books is to DD that hand, however, I take into account where and how long I have been playing. If I'm at my home casino I may need to hold for longevity purposes. If I'm playing unrated on a trip, I DD and don't think twice about it and head straight for the door once the shoe is over. If I'm down for the session I may act like a gambler and make some "only way I can get even" comment. In other words the situation will dictate the play. Sometimes, you have to make a negative EV decision to prolong your positive EV going forward.

[Freightman]

On another note, I saw the dealer's hole card for one hand. She had a 10 facing and a 10 as the down card. I'm sitting on a hard 17. Do you hit and try to improve your hand. I did not hit.

17 does not beat 20, so therefore, the proper play is to.....tell the critter you saw the hole card, and that it should be burned. If he buys it, you've got another kick at the cat. If he doesnt buy it - hit. You might get a 3 to tie, or a 4 to win.

Or, if you can surrender, do that. Or, if you do hit and get an ace or deuce for 18 or 19, you have to hit again.

[stopgambling]

The real answer is if can you do it often then don't hit. If there is almost no chance of anything else then don't hit cause there maybe other chances with the same dealer. if you are never to come back ,hit for sure.

[seriousplayer]

On another note, I saw the dealer's hole card for one hand. She had a 10 facing and a 10 as the down card. I'm sitting on a hard 17. Do you hit and try to improve your hand. I did not hit.

In this case if you have seen the dealer's hole card and it makes a total of hard 17 you do need to hit to improve your hand. There is a different strategy for hole card play. Basic Strategy is not valid anymore once you have seen the dealer's hole card. There was one idiot I was playing with today. I got a Blackjack she payoff my hand and skipped all the other players. She have an up card of 7 and mistakenly turn over a 5 to make the total 12. Then the pit boss came over and gave everyone a chance to improve their hand. One idiot was holding a total of 15 he hit the 15 and received a 10 and busted. The correct hole card strategy is to "stand" with a hard total of 12.

[cc12b]

Howdy. The other night when playing I came across this situation. DD, 70% pen, +12 tc. This was the last hand before the shuffle. Max bet on the table. I had A9 vs 6. I had the urge to double my bet but wasn't sure if this would be greedy or draw attention to me. I just tucked my cards and took the money. Dealer ended up busting out after pulling a 10.

Should I have doubled down?

I did couple days ago. Dealer and table thought I was joking, I got 5 but dealer got 2 face cards so table happy because most of them have "dealer bust" side bet . Now after reading some posts saying it is quick way to be shown the door I think it's not worth it.

[Meistro123]

At such a high true count this is a mandatory double.

[Jabberwocky]

At such a high true count this is a mandatory double.

The same argument holds true for splitting TT. But obviously some aren't concerned with longevity.

[Meistro123]

And I would make the same statement about splitting tens true 12 also. The gain in EV is 100% worth any variance or heat elicited by this move. Getting backed off is not really the end of the world, you just move on to the next casino.

[cc12b]

Getting backed off is not really the end of the world, you just move on to the next casino.

Well, my next of the wood does not have many stores (5 within 1 hour drive) to go to next one, and I play rated. I know few counters were backed off, even 86

[moo321]

If I asked if you would rather risk doubling the A9 or sit there and count for 4 hours, and you get paid the exact same amount, which would you choose?

[seriousplayer]

If I asked if you would rather risk doubling the A9 or sit there and count for 4 hours, and you get paid the exact same amount, which would you choose?

I would risk doubling the A9 because counters play for short sessions and if you sit there and count for 4 hours it give the casino more time to study your play.

[moo321]

I would risk doubling the A9 because counters play for short sessions and if you sit there and count for 4 hours it give the casino more time to study your play.

That's precisely the counter-example that many of the "DON'T MAKE AGGRESSIVE PLAYS!" types fail to keep in mind.