Is blackjack a game of skill or is it pure luck?

Question

I say its skill but i got into a heated argument that it was luck

Answer 1

You can play blackjack with a level of skill and expect to win with some outstanding numbers depending on your level of skill.

Card counters can gain an edge of 0.6%-1.7% depending on their skill

Shuffle trackers keep track of cards they saw dealt, and follow them through the shuffle to the next shoe, and can further add advantage to their EV. They may keep track of several cards, or as few as only one card. If a player is skilled enough to use the cut card to manipulate an ace to be dealt to them immediately after the shuffle, or predict when an ace is goign to be dealt based on the cards dealt immediately prior to is, their expected return that very hand is 153%!! so that one card can be very valuable. Oporunities like that are very rare and i have only pulled off that stunt once, though i wont tell how.

In the past, you used to be able to "guess" what the dealers hole card was based on some "signs" that could be read from the card itself and the dealer, this is known as hole card play and can be VERY advantageous, though it is gone with history now for the most part.

There is still "luck involved even if you are a card counter or not, even when you hold an edge over the house, its only an edge, and anythign could happen even though winning is slightly more likely at the given moment.

Answer 2

It is a game of odds with a bit of luck on the side. There are various tables on the market that outline when to hit, fold, double, split etc. The cards that are dealt to you and that the dealer has is out of your control so what you get in your hand is strictly luck. If you follow the tables you will automatically follow what is the best thing to do in terms of odds of winning. For example you are dealt a 4 and K and the dealer is showing a 9 then the chart says hit. It is pure luck if the next card is a 7 or less. (the dealer may only have a 9 and 4 as well and if you decided to go against what the chart says and stay then he would look at your 4 and he would hit knowing you may have 14 and he only has 13. If he busts then you would have won a hand by going against the odds. That is the part when I consider it to be some luck on the side. When I play I follow the table 99 percent of the time but sometimes you have to go against what is in the tables which is where luck comes in.

In terms of skill, it is only skill if you are card counting. The rest is odds with some luck.

Answer 3

Not sure why this is in the R&S section. The answer is both. If someone is accomplished at counting cards and knows how to play according to counts, they can actually shift the odds in their favor over the long run. However, in any given situation, it's still a matter of "luck" which card comes up next. When you get down to it, Blackjack is really a game about odds and statistics. Good players know how to take advantage of how the odds shift as different cards are played. But it's also a game about winning over the long run rather than on a particular hand.

Answer 4

I used to think it was more skill than luck. But after the past few weeks, I have had several losing sessions and I am beginning to think that it is mostly luck.
When I see an old lady at the table hit a 15 against a dealer 6 and get a 5 to make 20 and win, then I have to start thinking that luck plays a bigger part than you can imagine.

Answer 5

well, if you are a cheater, or called card mechanics, or cardsharp, than that's 100% skills. You depend on your skill to cheat with other people's card.

If you play a game of blackjack with a bunch of friends who only plays them for fun, then its purely luck

Answer 6

Some skill involved, some luck involved. To win a lot takes a lot of skill. You can win a lot at one sitting but that could be just a good day.

Answer 7

A bit of both. Luck is in the hand that you are dealt. The skill comes in on how much you bet on each hand. Bet low when you are going to lose and bet a lot when you have a better chance of winning.

Answer 8

No skill involved. It's a ranking of probabilities. There are tables available showing you the best calls depending upon your hand. Ultimately, the odds are balanced in the dealer's favour, so even a "skilled" player will lose out over time.
If you want to play card games with skill, then choose poker.

Answer 9

its a mix of 70% skill 30% luck card counting is a skill what card u get is luck

Answer 10

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A Muslim will say that winning a game of BlackJack is by the will of Allah. I think it is Bullshlt