High Streak blackjack is a variation of standard blackjack that rewards hot streaks with big payoffs and blackjack euphoria. With standard blackjack, the big profits happen when you’re able to win several hands in a row. That’s exactly what High Streak Blackjack is about!
As you would imagine, card counters should absolutely love High Streak Blackjack because of this component. Yes, knowing when the deck is favorable for the player, will help the smart card counter to take advantage of the bonus side bet offered in High Streak blackjack and accumulate a sizable profit. But there are of course rules in place that will fight that player advantage as well.
At this time, High Streak is primarily found in online casinos. You don’t see it in land-based casinos yet, but with the advancing popularity, it may be only a matter of time.
THE BASICS OF HIGH STREAK BLACKJACK
High Streak blackjack is played exactly like regular blackjack. The main difference is the High Streak bonus side bet. When a player makes this side bet, they are eligible for the bonus payout if they get two winning hands in a row. As soon as the player has a losing hand, the side bet is forfeited and the bet must be played again in order to be eligible for the bonus payout.
The game is usually played with two decks of cards. To make it difficult for card counters, the cards are shuffled after each hand.
BONUS PAYOUTS
After two consecutive winning hands:
- Two consecutive winning hands are paid at 1-1
- Three consecutive winning hands are paid at 2-1
- Four consecutive winning hands are paid at 5-1
- Five consecutive winning hands are paid at 10-1
Having a streak of multiple winning hands at the blackjack table may seem to be simple enough thing, especially when you understand basic blackjack strategy and know how to count cards. Not so. Because of the card shuffling after every hand of play, the game becomes much more randomized. Even so, knowing and applying card counting and basic blackjack strategy can give you a very slight edge.
A blackjack is paid at 3-2 odds and insurance pays 2-1. Surrender is not allowed.
The Online High Streak Blackjack Table
The online High Streak blackjack table looks, for the most part, like a standard blackjack table. The betting area of the table, however, is a bit more involved:
- There is a rectangle marked “Click to place bets.” This is where you place your regular bet on the game.
- There is a circle marked “High Streak Bet.” This is where you place your optional High Streak side bet.
- There are additional circles labeled “2nd Streak,” “3rd Streak,” “4th Streak,” and “5th Streak.” You don’t place bets in these circles. Instead, your High Streak bet will move, automatically, into these circles as your blackjack winning streak continues.
Each of your High Streak bets moves to the next higher circle, where it becomes eligible for a higher payout.
PLAYER OPTIONS IN HIGH STREAK BLACKJACK
After the cards have been dealt, you will be allowed to act on your hand, unless the dealer has blackjack. If the dealer has blackjack, the game is over and you lose your main game bet and the High Streak side bet if you placed one. If the dealer does not have blackjack, the following options are available:
- You may stand on your total
- You may hit your total
- You may double down a total of 9, 10 or 11
- You MAY NOT split unlike 10-value cards
- You may split a pair ONE time
- You MAY NOT double down after a split
- You may take insurance if the dealer shows an ace.
All player decisions in High Streak Blackjack should be made based on basic blackjack strategy.
DEALER OPTIONS IN HIGH STREAK BLACKJACK
The dealer must hit any total of 16 or less. The dealer must stand on any total of 17 or more.
If the dealer goes over 21 at any point in the game, the player wins their bet and also adds one win to their overall streak.
STRATEGY IN HIGH STREAK BLACKJACK
Of course, knowing when to make the bonus side bet is most important to the player. With card counting pretty much negated by the repeated shuffling of cards, a player needs to somehow anticipate a winning streak.
Many players state that they only play the High Streak bonus side bet after losing 3 hands in a row. They figure that the law of averages will put them on a winning streak after that. The problem with that rationale is that over the course of time, a player can still go through many losing hands before the number of winning hands evens out that number.
Many regular player feel if you’re going to play High Streak blackjack, the best strategy is to make the minimum bonus bet each time you have the opportunity to do so and look to set up that 5-hand streak.
Playing High Streak Blackjack
Let’s take a look at how a good 5-game winning run in High Streak blackjack can payoff:
Hand 1: The player starts with a $10 regular blackjack bet, and an additional $5 bet in the High Streak bonus bet circle. He wins the hand. His $5 bonus chip moves from the High Streak Bet circle to the 2nd Streak circle, and his $10 regular bet pays out 1-to-1 as in a regular blackjack game. The player receives $10.
Hand 2: The player again bets $10 as his regular blackjack bet and $5 as his High Streak bet. He wins again. His 2nd Streak bet pays out 1-to-1 and moves to the 3rd Streak circle, his High Streak bet moves to the 2nd Streak circle, and his regular bet pays out 1-to-1. The player receives $5 + $10=$15.
Hand 3: The player repeats his blackjack and High Streak bets, and wins his third consecutive hand. His 3rd Streak bet pays out 2-to1 and moves to the 4th Streak circle, his 2nd Streak bet pays out 1-to-1 and moves to the 3rd Streak circle, his High Streak bet moves to the 2nd Streak circle, and his regular bet pays out 1-to-1. The player receives $10 + $5 + $10=$25.
Hand 4: The player repeats his blackjack and High Streak bets, and wins his fourth consecutive hand. His 4th Streak bet pays out 5-to-1 and moves to the 5th Streak circle, his 3rd Streak bet pays out 2-to-1 and moves to the 4th Streak circle, his 2nd Streak bet pays out 1-to-1 and moves to the 3rd Streak circle, his High Streak bet moves to the 2nd Streak circle, and his regular bet pays out 1-to-1. The player receives $25 + $10 + $5 + $10=$50
Hand 5: The player repeats his blackjack and High Streak bets, and wins his fifth consecutive hand. His 5th Streak bet pays out 10-to-1 ($50), and his $5 chip in the 5th Streak circle is returned to him as well. His 4th Streak bet pays out 5-to-1 ($25) and moves to the 5th Streak circle, his 3rd Streak bet pays out 2-to1 ($10) and moves to the 4th Streak circle, his 2nd Streak bet pays out 1-to-1 ($5) and moves to the 3rd Streak circle, his High Streak bet moves to the 2nd Streak circle, and his regular bet pays out 1-to-1 ($10). The player receives $50 + $5(his original bonus bet chip is returned to him) + $25 + $10 + $5 + $10=$105.
So with a streak of 5 winning hands, the lucky player receives $10 + $15 +$25 + $50 + $105 = $205, while betting only a total of $15 per hand, or $75.
Feeling Lucky?
High Streak blackjack is the online blackjack game to play when you’re feeling extremely lucky. Regular players know they have days when the cards just seem to fall right. Those are the days to jump online and play High Streak blackjack, to take advantage of your winning streaks with the bonus payoffs.