Blackjack Classroom

Choosing your Table Position

So you've found a casino at which you are comfortable with the atmosphere and the odds. You walk up to a table and there are two seats open, the far right and the far left seats also known as first and third base. The baseball analogy refers to the fact that first base is the first person to play their hand and third base is the last. You are probably saying that it doesn't matter, that statistically you have the same odds in each seat. If so, you are correct. Unfortunately, a good deal of blackjack players at the table will blame the third base player for "stealing the dealers bust card" or somehow negatively affecting the outcome of the game. Little do they realize that their decisions had as much of an effect on the dealer's cards as yours did and that you could just have easily have "stolen" the card that would give the dealer a winning hand. So sitting at third base is not a very social position.

First base, however, is the most social position. Sitting at first base you rarely catch any flack for playing correct basic strategy. For a card counter just starting out, if the dealer is a little fast, first base is not a bad seat. It allows you to recall your basic strategy, play your hand, and then have time to count the rest of the cards on the table. But once you are a more experienced counter third base is the ideal place for you because you are able to see the maximum number of cards before you play your hand, making your decision the most informed one you can make.