Blackjackinfo Trainer (Basic Strategy Engine from Ken Smith)

If you’re looking for the best online information about blackjack, blackjackinfo ought to be near the top of your list. It’s one of the first sites I visited when I learned about blackjack, and the school inside the site is one of the best.

The site changed hands in 2016 when the original owner, Ken Smith, sold it. But the site still has a lot to offer new and experienced blackjack players.

Here’s my complete review of the blackjackinfo site, including information about the original owner of the site.

Learn at Blackjackinfo

The best section of the blackjackinfo site is the learn section. Found as the first tab or link on the menu, every blackjack player, or anyone who thinks they want to play blackjack needs to check out everything in the learn section.

I’m not exaggerating when I say you’re going to know more about blackjack than 95% of gamblers after reading everything in this section. And the percentage might even be higher.

Here are the topics covered in the learn section of the site:

  • Blackjack school
  • Blackjack basic strategy engine
  • Blackjack rules
  • Card counting
  • Tournament strategy
  • Blackjack betting strategies debunked
  • What is Wonging?
  • Glossary of blackjack terms

The next four sections include additional details about the best sections in the learn area of the site.

Blackjack School

The blackjack school at blackjackinfo might be the most valuable section about blackjack online. You can find the blackjack school under the learn section, listed at the top left of the site.

With 24 in-depth lessons, blackjack school gives you a complete course for blackjack play. It starts with basic strategy and covers everything you need to know to go from a beginning player to a seasoned advantage player.

Here are the main topics covered in the school:

  • Basic strategy
  • Counting cards
  • Money management
  • Mental attitude
  • Evaluating games
  • Playing tactics
  • Advanced course
  • Single deck games
  • Double deck games
  • Surrender

The blackjack school dates back to 1997 when Ken Smith was involved with starting the GameMaster site. blackjackinfo has housed the school for many years. And I hope for every future blackjack player that the course stays live for years to come.

I highly recommend the course. I always recommend books for blackjack players, but the best place to start is the blackjackinfo school.

Blackjackinfo Trainer and Basic Strategy Engine

While the strategy engine might not be the only one available online, it’s the first one I remember using. And it’s still one of the best and easiest to use online.

The blackjack strategy engine lets you enter the rules for any blackjack game and produces the best strategy for the game. It also lists the estimated house edge for the game using the presented strategy. Of course, card counting changes the edge, as the edge listed only considers strategy play.

To change the rules on the engine, click on the adjust the rules button. Then enter the values for the following options:

  • Number of decks
  • Soft 17
  • Permitted doubles
  • Double after split
  • Surrender
  • Dealer hole card

Blackjack Tournament Strategy

You can find a great deal about blackjack strategy online and in books. But there are few resources covering blackjack tournament strategy.

Blackjackinfo lists 10 articles that are a must-read for every blackjack tournament player. And the person who put the list together, Ken Smith, might be the best tournament player in history. So you want to listen to what he has to say.

Card Counting

Finding the blackjack games with good rules and using the right strategies are important. But counting cards is the best way to win. And the site offers a complete section teaching you more about counting.

The blackjack school section includes a lot of information about counting, so you should start there. But then visit the card counting section to complete your education.

Practice at Blackjackinfo

After learning everything you can in the learn section of the site, you need to practice your new skills. And blackjackinfo offers everything you need to practice.

Here are the available sections in the practice area:

  • Online blackjack strategy trainer
  • Blackjack strategy quiz
  • Casino Verite blackjack
  • Plastic strategy cards
  • The store
  • Blackjack software

The next two sections include additional information about the main areas of the practice section.

Blackjackinfo Strategy Trainer

The blackjackinfo strategy trainer uses a free game that teaches you basic strategy when you play. It works with desktop computers with flash and with mobile devices.

You select the options for the rules of the game and start playing. Every time you make a strategy mistake the game tells you you’re making a mistake.

The page also includes additional information and a link to a more powerful software for blackjack players called Casino Verite.

Another piece of good software for blackjack players recommended on the site, MGP Blackjack Combinatorial Analyzer can be found in the software section under the practice tab.

Blackjack Strategy Quiz

How do you know if you correctly remember everything you study about blackjack? What about taking a quiz?

blackjackinfo provides a 20 question quiz covering blackjack strategy. I recommend taking the quiz after reading everything in the learn and practice sections of the site.

Other Site Sections

While learn and practice are the two main sections of the site, you can learn many other things about blackjack. Other sections include explore, online blackjack, online casinos, and the forum.

In the explore section you can find a link to the site blog and interviews. Some of the interviews are amazing, and I recommend checking them out. A few of the interview subjects include:

  • Stanford Wong
  • Mike Aponte from one of the MIT blackjack teams
  • Hollywood Dave Stann
  • Zengrifter

The online blackjack section covers live dealer games, tournaments, free games, and various laws including US law and New Jersey laws.

You won’t find anything new in the online casino section if you’ve spent any time at all researching casinos online. While the site covers blackjack and does it extremely well, I’m disappointed in the online casinos section.

At one time the blackjackinfo forums were quite active. But they aren’t very active now. Of course, the same can be said for most forums, as they aren’t as popular as they once were.

Overall, if you want to learn more about blackjack, blackjackinfo is a great option. It’s easily one of the top five online sites for blackjack players and soon to be blackjack players.

Ken Smith Was Blackjackinfo

Ken Smith launched the blackjackinfo site in 1998. I don’t know if that makes the site the oldest blackjack site online, but it makes it one of the oldest.

Smith grew the site into the powerhouse it remains today. But he sold the site in 2016. Not much has changed since the sale, so the site still offers some of the best blackjack advice online.

To learn more about blackjackinfo, you need to learn more about Ken Smith.

He spent many years in Mississippi but currently lives with his wife in Dallas, Texas.

Smith spent over 20 years traveling to play in blackjack tournaments. His first blackjack tournament was in 1994, and he’s been crowned King Ken after appearing on the cover of All In Blackjack magazine.

He wrote two books covering blackjack tournament play. Both books are only available in digital format. The titles are:

  1. How to Win More Blackjack Tournaments
  2. How to Win Even More Blackjack Tournaments Volume II

In addition to writing books and content for the blackjackinfo site, he’s also appeared on television many times and published blackjack strategy cards.

His strategy cards are popular and available on Amazon and many other online stores. Most of his television appearances have been in blackjack tournaments, including every season of the Game Show Network’s World Series of Blackjack.

Smith launched VerbMaestro, a learning tool for Spanish, in 2020.

New Site Owner

Joshua Chan, the owner of LatestCasinoBonuses.com, bought blackjackinfo in 2016. LV Bear, a pen name for a long-time advantage blackjack player, currently runs the blackjackinfo site. You can learn more about both Joshua Chan and LV Bear on this page.

While I still visit the site for blackjack study, the new owner runs a huge network of sites. I don’t feel the current site has changed much, and I don’t expect it to change much in the future. I’m sad about this because I enjoyed reading new articles when Ken Smith owned the site.

Conclusion

Blackjackinfo provides high-quality blackjack information. And even though the original owner of the site, Ken Smith, doesn’t run the site anymore, the site still is a must-read for blackjack players.

Your first stop should be the blackjack school. And this is especially true for new blackjack players. It’s also a good school for experienced blackjack players who don’t understand card counting.

I’ve been visiting the blackjackinfo site for close to 20 years. And I plan to visit again many times in the future.

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