Avoid HAL blackjack

[zdgp]

On all my previous HAL cruises, I enjoyed playing blackjack often, but no more. A few months ago HAL changed the payout on blackjack from the traditional 3 to 2, to the reduced payout of 6 to5. This is a significant change. It triples the house percentage for the basic strategy player from 2/3 of one percent, to slightly over two percent. To quote the immortal words of Sam Goldwin: “Include me out.”

[zdgp]

This is a follow up to my post of three months ago. It appears that most cruise line casinos have gone over to “6 to 5” blackjack. Apparently the customers are tolerating it, and the reduction in traffic is small.(Traffic must be down some, as I can’t be the only one who quit playing because of this rule change.)

I’ve read that some ships still offer “3 to 2” on high minimum tables, such as $25. I don’t know about this working – I’ve played on 14 cruises, and I can count on one hand that number of cruise passengers that I’ve seen playing blackjack with green chips.

Unlike craps and roulette, blackjack is a game of skill. Under the “6 to 5” rule, a skilled player, who plays flawless basic strategy, is looking at a significantly higher house percentage than any player at the crap table. Doesn’t make sense.