I have been watching the World Series of Blackjack, and have seen a wide variety of uses on the BK Power Chip. Are there any general guidelines that should be followed on the use of the Power Chip eq. When to hit and when to replace the card? Thanks
Power Chip So far no one has come up with a complete basic strategy for using the power Chip. On the world series of BJ I have seen mistakes (at least what I think are mistakes) made by players using the chip. Plan on using the Power Chip (if necessary) when making a big bet. Use it when checking the double down card (when making a full double down on a max bet). Now consider the following situation : You are delt a 10+2. Do you use the Power Chip to replace the 2 or take a hit and if you like the result you can save the Power Chip for later? .....................BlueLight
Three Possibilities With your 10,2 and a huge bet out there are three possibilities in games with card replacement: 1. You replace the 2. Result: You live with the card you get and your power chip is no longer available for later use. 2. You hit, get a bad card, and replace the hit card. You live with the hit card and your power chip is no longer available for later use. 3. You hit and get a card you like. Your power chip is available for later use. What cards do you like on a hard 12? If the dealer is showing 7 or below you like 6 through 9 - a 52% probability with card replacement. If the dealer is showing 8 or above you like 7 through 9 - a 41% probability with card replacement. What would you like to replace the 2 with? If the dealer is showing 7 or below you like 8 through Ace - a 54% probability. If the dealer is showing 8 or above you like 9 through Ace - a 46% probability. If you replace the 2, you have zero probability of having your power chip available for later use. If you hit the 12 you might be able to save your power chip for later use, depending upon what card you get. If you draw to 17 against 7 or 18 against 8 you'll want to just wave off and not use your power chip (although 17 against 7 is a special case for the last hand or two.) Your chance of saving your power chip if you hit is 5/13 or 38% against dealer 7 or below, and 4/13 or 31% against dealer 8 or above. So, by hitting the hard 12 instead of replacing the 2 you trade off a few single digit percentage point chances of success for the double digit chance of saving your power chip for later use. Remember, later use could be your very next playing decision in this hand. If you hit your hard 12 with a 4 and the dealer has a ten showing, you could hit again and replace the bust card. Rule of thumb: Save your power chip. It will have much more impact on the final hand or two than in the middle of the round. Only use it in the middle of the round to replace a card that already busted your hand with a huge bet out.
Power Chip Thanks for the suggestions on the Power chip use. What I got from you guys is: 1) Save it as long as you can 2) Use it on Max bets if needed 3) Use it to check max bet doubles 4) Use it in the middle only to replace a maxbet bust card 5) Sometimes its appropriate to hit and replace the hit card, sometimes you can replace a card and keep the other. Im wondering on my #5 if a simple rule/guideline could be stated. eg. If you have a total of ____ and one card is a ten and the dealer has a ___, replace the card that is not the ten. And if you have a total of ___ or less, and the dealer has ___, hit it and use the power chip as needed. Can anybody fill in the blanks? or, is it not that simple.
