Recently, the good news about casinos lowering the minimum bets for blackjack has been going around. When before, players had to lay out more money to play at the table, many casinos now offer $5 bets for the game. Naturally, a lot of blackjack players rejoiced at the news.

But now that we are more sober, reality is sinking in. Yes, lowering the bets to $5 is definitely easier on our pockets, but many of us didn’t realize that the pay outs have been changed as well. Traditionally, the pay out for blackjack is 3-to-2. With the minimum bet of $5, however, the pay out has been changed to 6-to-5.

What does this mean? Say you bet $10 and you won. With the new pay out scheme you win $12. With the old pay out scheme you win $15. It is pretty obvious that this is more disadvantageous to the blackjack player.

There are differing opinions on this issue. Some people say that it does not matter if the pay out is lower – you are paying less to play anyway. The lower the minimum amount needed to play, the better. This is actually what casino operators are saying – they are being friendlier to their customers by lowering the minimum amount.

On the other hand, players should realize that the odds change as well. Just because you pay only $5 as opposed to $10 does not mean that your chances of winning increase or remain the same. Before you sit down and spend $5, make sure you know the odds and the pay out – see if it’s worth playing.

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