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For other uses of the word see Blackjack (disambiguation)

Blackjack! The Jack playing card, like the Queen and King, counts 10 points, and the player picks a value of 1 or 11 for the Ace.

Blackjack, also known as vingt-et-un, pontoon or twenty-one, is one of the most popular casino card games in the world. Much of its popularity is due to the mix of chance with elements of skill and decision making, and the publicity that surrounds the practice of card counting, in which players can turn the odds of the game in their favor by making betting and strategy decisions based on the cards that have been dealt. Officially, casinos strongly frown upon card counting. However, because card counting is a difficult skill to master and few players are successful at it, unofficially casinos are happy to have the public believe that there is one casino game in which money can be earned over a long period of time. (Players lose money while they are learning the technique and in the event that they eventually become good enough to consistently beat the house, they will inevitably be banned.)