Is It Always A Good Idea To Insure A Hand If You'Re Counting?

The question is whether it is always a good idea to insure a hand if you are a card counter. The answer to that is NO. However, it is more complex than that and deserves an expanded answer.

And in the interest of expanding, we can say that YES, it is absolutely appropriate, when it applies; in fact, it's an essential part of the card counter's arsenal, affording a golden money-making opportunity on occasion. On other occasions the count that is derived from a system can tell a player when to absolutely NOT exercise the option.

As you may know - or may be hearing for the first time if you are not familiar with concept of card counting - the player will sometimes make an adjustment in the Basic Strategy when the count dictates it. In terms of the mathematical analysis, studies have indicated that of all the playing variations that the player performs in association with the card count, the most important one, by far, is that which concerns insuring a hand. That is because the dealer will have a ten-value card or Ace showing much of the time, and so there are going to be a lot of decisions that specifically deal with insurance.

Because the Ace is treated as a "high" card by some card counting systems, a "low" card in a couple, and neutral by others, a card counting strategy, which customarily clues the player in on the richness of the remaining deck or shoe in terms of the high cards may not be as sharp when predicting the possibility of Aces emerging. It should be mentioned, though, that many counts either have a compulsory or optional side count of aces that can be employed, which gives an idea of how many aces are yet to be played, relative to how many SHOULD have been played, thus giving a barometer of "ace density."

In those situations when the dealer is showing an Ace, however, the card counter can gain even more specific insight as to the probability of there being a ten-value card underneath. This is the usefulness of card counting when it comes to this situation.

Every different card counting system has a "strike number", i.e., a count level, at which the player will exercise the insurance option. For example, the Uston SS Count, which is an "unbalanced" count, requires that the player insure when the count is anything other than negative (that is, zero or any positive count). Others place their strike number at a "true count" of +1. The number will vary according to the count system, but there is no question that insurance is a weapon which can be used to great advantage by skilled card counters.