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The game of 21 as we know it wasn’t invented by an individual, it is the sum total of many people’s efforts over several hundred years. Although blackjack aficionados are still a little fuzzy when it comes to the origins of the game, they all agree that it has a rich vein of history behind it. Blackjack purportedly had its origins in France in the 17th century and soon thereafter it made its way to North America. Owing to the French revolution and the spread of migrant workers and immigrants, the Americans soon caught on. As a dynamic game, blackjack has been able to constantly adapt to the times and remains a strong contender for the most popular casino card game. Massive popularity of blackjack gaming Back in the day, some 80 years ago, the state of Nevada made casino gambling legal. To draw large numbers of players to their casinos, state officials announced that any player who managed to draw an Ace of Spades and a Jack of Clubs or Spades would win incredible odds of 10 to 1 on a player’s wager. This is in essence how the name became so popular – an Ace of Spades and either of the black jacks. Sadly these blackjack odds are nowhere to be found nowadays. The age-old French version The French had a variant of modern-day blackjack and called it Vingt en Un. In this particular game, only the dealer was allowed to double. Furthermore, wagers could only be placed after the conclusion of each round, unlike today’s blackjack gaming. The goal however was to hit 21 or as close to it as possible by beating the dealer’s hand. There is talk that the Italians had a hand in blackjack rules with their game ‘Seven and a half.’ Scholars of blackjack gaming Optimum Strategy in Blackjack was first published in 1956. Its author, Roger Baldwin was keen to study the statistical probabilities of winning in blackjack. He used all manner of mathematics, stats and calculations to come up with his groundbreaking book. This work was followed up very closely by Professor Edward Thorp in 1962. His book, Beat the Dealer was a major game changer. This best-seller listed ways of winning at blackjack and actually even caused casinos nationwide to change blackjack rules. In truth, the professor’s book was a mystery to everyone and the only real effect it had was to increase blackjack’s popularity. As the years rolled by and computer programs became more powerful, various other blackjack scholars emerged including Lawrence Revere, Julian Braun, Ken Uston and others. Each of these highly influential figures has helped shape blackjack into a world-class game of epic proportions. |
