Black Jack – also known as ‘twenty one’ and ‘pontoon’ – is a game that nowadays is commonly seen in a betting house with players trying their luck on achieving the elusive ‘21′. It’s widely believed that the game came into existence in France during the 17th century. However, as with most other betting games the exact development of the game is a mystery.
Black jack was introduced to the States following the French Revolution, but the game did not become popular in the gambling dens until the house provided bonus payouts. This was the only method that seemed to get people gambling on pontoon. One variant on the bonus pay out was for a gambler to make ‘twenty-one’ with the blackjack card (worth ten points) and an ace (given a value of eleven points). With the expanding appeal of the game the bonus pay outs were canceled but the name of the game ‘pontoon’ lasted.
Pontoon is not simply about acquiring an outright ‘21′, but the primary adventure is to beat the croupier without busting. The betting house clearly has a house edge over the pontoon players in the long run, but with black jack the gambler retains a bit of choice.
Since 1931 when the U.S. initial approved gambling, twenty-one has developed into a quintessential gambling den card game. Furthermore, it’s the joining of both skill and mathematics used in pontoon that has caused the game to be massively popular. Black jack affords an attractive proposition to any scientist, math guy or betting player wanting to research the strategy of the game.