Dealer Upcard

1. Dealers Up Card Card In Blackjack
2. Dealer Upcard
3. Dealer Upcard Meaning
4. Dealer Upcard
5. Dealers Up Card

1. The player to dealer's left must start by flipping cards until able to beat this card, before beginning the first round of betting. Some play with back betting. When a player flips all seven cards without beating the best hand, and is thereby knocked out, there is a round of betting begun by the best hand showing before the next player begins.
2. Of course the most important card on the table is the dealer's upcard. You will be making all of your playing decisions based on the value of the dealer's upcard and your hand. The 5 and 6 are the dealer's worse upcard because she has about a 42 percent chance of busting (more than any other upcard).
3. STRATEGY #10: ALWAYS SURRENDER HARD 16 AGAINST A DEALER’S 9, 10, OR ACE UPCARD, AND HARD 15 AGAINST DEALER’S 10 UPCARD. A hard 15 and 16 are two of the worst hands in blackjack, especially when the dealer is showing a strong upcard (e.g., 9, 10, or Ace). You are the underdog but you can minimize your losses by surrendering the above hands.

Contract Rummy

Contract Rummy is the general name given for a whole class of Rummy games, all sharing two centralfeatures:

The other day, I overheard two venerable blackjack veterans debating which was the weakest dealer upcard. They figured it for five or six. The first said six, having 'read somewhere' that dealers break with it most often. The other disagreed because the dealer could have an ace in the hole and make a pat hand with a six, but always had to draw.

• A specific number of deals comprise a game.
• In each deal a contract - a particular, predetermined pattern of melds - must be met in order to lay down any cards.

What is the history of Contract Rummy? David Parlett reports that all Contract Rummy games (of which there are numerous variations under a variety of names) date 'from the Contract Bridge boom of the 1930's'. Richard Fry notes that the first version was 'probably the game developed by Ruth Armson, called Zioncheck'. Albert Morehead stated in 1950 that Contract Rummy 'is one of the most popular games played by women's clubs and card-playing groups that meet regularly.'

The rules detailed below are representative of all Contract Rummy games, though there are numerous regional andlocal variations even among games with the same name. Some of the particular variations are:

• Carioca Rummy - A two-player South American version
• Continental Rummy - A version with only one contract
• King Rummy - A version with four contracts.
• Progressive Rummy - The number of cards deal increases each hand
• Liverpool Rummy - A version with fewer contracts and more jokers
• Shanghai Rummy - A version with more contracts and wilder scoring

Other names for Contract Rummy include 'Combination Rummy', 'Deuces Wild Rummy', 'Hollywood Rummy', 'Joker Rummy', 'Shanghai Rummy', and 'Zioncheck'.

Contract Rummy Rules

Number of Players: 3 to 8; each plays for himself (no partnerships).

The Deck: For 3 or 4 players, use two decks of 52 cards each, plus one joker, for a total of 105 cards. For more than 5 players, use three decks of 52 cards each, plus two jokers, for a total of 158 cards. The cards are ranked (hi) K-Q-J-7-6-5-4-3-2 (lo). An ace may be ranked either high or low. Jokers are wild.

Starting a Game: To determine who deals first, the deck is shuffled and cut, and each player draws a card. The player drawing the lowest card deals first. Thereafter, the deal passes from player to player to the left.

Dealing: In deals 1 through 4, ten cards are dealt to each player; in deals 5 through 7, each player receives twelve cards. Cards are dealt clockwise, starting with the player at the dealer's left. After dealing, one card is turned as the upcard, and the remainder of the deck is turned face-down to form the stock.

Objective: A game consists of seven deals. In each deal, the objective is to complete a certain meld, called a 'contract', which increases in difficulty as the game proceeds. The player who lays off all their cards first wins the hand. The player with thelowest cumulative score after seven deals wins the game.

Play: Each players turn consists of a draw, possible melding or laying off, and a discard. Each player's turnmust end with a discard, which is placed face-up on the discard pile.

Melds: Each meld consists of either a set, consisting of three or more cards of the same value, or a sequence,consisting of four or more cards of the same rank and consecutive value. An ace may rank either high (A-K-Q) or low (3-2-A), butsequences may not extend 'round the corner' (K-A-2). Jokers are wild, and can stand in for any card.

When two or more sequences are required, they must be in different suits, or if in different suits, not in consecutive order(i.e. they must be separated by at least one card).

Contracts: Each deal has a different contract, which consists of some combination of sets and sequences:

The Upcard: The player in turn may draw either the top card of the discard pile, or the top card of the stock.If he does not want the discard, he may decline it, and any other player may take it. The right to take it passes tothe player's left (clockwise around the table). If an out-of-turn player takes the top of the discard pile, he must alsodraw the top card of the stock (as a penalty), but he may not yet meld, lay off, or discard, since it is not yet his turn.

Once the fate of the discard has been decided, the in-turn player must take the top card of the stock. Since he hasrefused the discard, he cannot take the top of the discard pile, even if a new card has been revealed.

Fulfilling The Contract: Once an in-turn player has drawn a card, he may fulfill the contract by laying downthe appropriate melds. He may only lay down the precise melds as called for in the contract; he may not lay offany additional cards at this time.

Laying Off: In the subsequent turns after a player's contract has been met, he may lay off additionalcards to any meld on the table, whether his own or his opponents. However, he may not create any new melds of his own.

A player may not lay off any cards until he himself has met the contract.

Jokers: A joker is a wild card, and may be used to in place of any other card as part of a meld. When doing so,the player must state its suit and rank. Any player in turn (providing he's already fulfilled his contract) may later trade the actual card for the joker, and may then either use the joker immediately, or hold it in his hand.

Going Out: When a player has discarded his last card, the hand is over, and scored. If the stock is exhaustedbefore any player has gone out, the discard pile is shuffled by the original dealer and turned face-down to form a new stock.

Scoring: At the end of a hand, each player scores the sum of all cards in his hand. For purposes of scoring, the cards remaining in the players hand have the following values:

Dealers Up Card Card In Blackjack

The player with the fewest points at the end of the seven deals wins the game.

Variations

• Some play that dueces are also wild cards. If so, they also count for 25 points in scoring.
• In some variations, number cards (2 through 9) count as 5 points, rather than their index value.
• Some variations give bonus points for winning a hand, not using wild cards, etc.
• Some play that jokers may be substituted by any player at any time, regardless of whether it's theirturn or not. In this case, if more than one player claims a joker, precedence goes to whoever's turn is next.

Dealer Upcard

Other Contract Rummy Rule Links

Other Contract Rummy Variations

• 12-Step Rummy - From Kate Hanratty
• 6 7 8 9 10 - From Alan Hoyle
• Continental Card Game - From Mike Gaston
• Crummy Rummy - From Mike Rosulek
• Rummy Rummy - From Bill Whitnack

Additional Information

In card games, hole carding is the obtaining of knowledge of cards that are supposed to be hidden from view. The term is usually applied to blackjack but can apply to other games with hidden hole cards, like three card poker and Caribbean stud poker. So long as it does not involve the use of a device like a mirror or actions like touching the dealer's cards, in most jurisdictions hole carding is a legal form of advantage gambling in casino table games. In other games, like stud poker, casinos normally have rules against rubbernecking or having a confederate stand behind an opponent to signal hole cards.

Blackjack players must usually make playing decisions based on only seeing one of the dealer's cards (the upcard). But if the dealer's hole card is spotted, a player who plays correctly has a theoretical advantage of up to 13% instead of the normal player disadvantage of around 0.5%. A hole-card player will often choose not to make certain plays, such as hitting a hard 19 against a dealer 20, so as not to reveal that he can see the dealer's hole card.

This technique is not applicable in most games outside of the United States where the second dealer card is normally not dealt until all players have played.

Strategies[edit]

A normal blackjack strategy has ten columns, for an ace through dealer ten value card. Strategy tables for hole carding differ from normal blackjack tables as they include a column for each possible total dealer hand instead of simply the visible card. Below is a sample hole card hit/stand table for six decks, stand on soft-17. The columns are based on the dealer hand and the rows based on the player hand. Green denotes a hit.

First-basing and spooking[edit]

One method of hole carding is to peek at the card when the dealer checks the hole card for blackjack. This is called 'first-basing'.^[1] A modification called 'spooking' refers to a partner with a better view peeking at the hole card in the same circumstance and communicating the information to the player. Peeking devices have made these methods largely obsolete.^[2]

Front-loading[edit]

Front-loading refers to observing the hole card as it is slid under the upcard.^[3] Newer methods of hole-carding concentrate on observation before the down card is placed under the upcard. This provides information about the card even if the dealer upcard is not a ten or an ace. The advantage varies depending on the rules, the percentage of cards seen, and the strategies used.

Partial information[edit]

At times the player will see a corner of the hole card, but not enough to determine the exact card. For example, if there is no pip in the corner, the card may be an ace, 2 or 3. Or, if there is a pip in the corner, it is a 4-10, but not a face card. To make use of this additional information, a different set of strategy tables must be used depending on the set of possible cards in the hole.^[4]

Dealer Upcard Meaning

Below is a sample blackjack, partial hole card hit/stand table for two decks. The columns are based on the dealer upcard and the rows based on the player hand. Partial hole card tables contain ten columns as the dealer's total hand is not known with complete certainty. A different set of tables must be used depending on the information acquired from the hole card. In this table, the hole card is a six or seven. Green denotes a hit. One might note that this table bears little resemblance to standard blackjack strategy.

Next card play[edit]

Hole carding generally refers to knowing the dealer’s hole card. Next card play refers to knowing the next card to be dealt. If a round has not started, and a player knows what his or her first card will be, one can simply alter one's bet depending on the value of that card. In a game like blackjack, if the dealer has already dealt a player's first two cards, and the player knows the next card to be dealt, it becomes possible for playing decisions to be altered to include this additional information.^[4]:255 Strategies are significantly more complex as there exists a different strategy table for each possible next card. Strategies may also differ depending on a player's position in the dealing rotation:

• First Seat – If the player does not take the known card, another player gets it.
• Last Seat – If the player does not take the card, the dealer may draw it. This also applies in a situation where no player to one's left is likely to draw a card.
• No hole card – In a no-hole-card game, if the player does not take the card, it may become the dealer’s second card.

Other methods[edit]

Dealer Upcard

• Warped cards – In a casino where a blackjack dealer bends the hole card to check for a blackjack, the cards can become warped. The warps can be later used to determine the value of a face down card. This method is largely obsolete as most casinos use devices instead of bending cards to determine dealer blackjacks, and cards are regularly replaced with new decks.^[5]
• Dealer tells – When a blackjack dealer checks for a blackjack, some dealers may give clues as to the value of the down card, akin to poker tells. Again, most casinos now use devices to check the down card, rendering this obsolete in most casinos.^[6]
• Peeking at other players' cards – Depending on the game and casino, this may or may not be acceptable and may aid player decisions.
• Counting by inference – In blackjack where player cards are dealt face down, the actions of other players can provide clues as to their hidden cards. This is less valuable in modern casinos due to the fewer number of single-deck games and reduction in penetration (how deeply the dealer deals before shuffling.)

Notes[edit]

1. ^Blaine, Rick. Blackjack blueprint : how to play like a pro-- part-time. Huntington Press. p. 154. ISBN0-929712-16-1.
2. ^Snyder, Arnold. The big book of blackjack (1st ed.). Cardoza Pub. p. 311. ISBN1-58042-155-5.
3. ^Uston, Ken. Million dollar blackjack (6th rev. print ed.). Gambling Times. p. 197. ISBN0-89746-068-5.
4. ^ ^abGrosjean, James. Exhibit CAA : beyond counting (1st ed.). South Side Advantage Press, LLC. p. 279. ISBN0-9790061-4-7.
5. ^Humble, Lance; Cooper, Carl. The world's greatest blackjack book (Rev. ed.). Doubleday. p. 141. ISBN0-385-15382-1.
6. ^Snyder, Arnold (2005). Blackbelt in blackjack : playing 21 as a martial art (3rd ed.). New York: Cardoza Pub. ISBN978-1580421430.

Dealers Up Card