Dealers Crib - Advanced Strategies

As stated in the basic strategies page, the idea is to have as small a total as possible, after adding both the hand, and the crib.  So, if your hand is worth 4, and the crib is 10, that's worse than two hands of 6.

The difficult question is... how do we know which is the BEST toss into the crib?  There is software available on the Internet, which will give you the highest hand + crib, but there is nothing for us lowball players, except for the software on this site.  Because of this, general guidelines are:

• Do not throw 5's into your crib, unless you have no choice.  If you are dealt 5, 10, 10, 10, Jack, Jack, throwing the 5 and a 10 card is a fair option.
• Don't throw cards, which total 10 (i.e. 2 & 8).  If the opponent throws a 5, you are giving points away.
• Don't throw touching cards, unless you must.  Throwing 3 and 4 into your crib is asking for trouble.
• It's generally safer to throw pairs, than it is to throw touching cards.
• Throwing one card below 5, and one between 6 and 9 is quite safe.
• Try not to throw 10 (face) cards into your crib, as the opponent will most likely throw a 5, if they have one.
• I like throwing a pair of even cards (i.e. 2 and 6) or a pair of odd cards (i.e. 3 and 9), in preference to an odd and even card.

If you have any other tips, or disagree with these, please e-mail me.

Using the software available on this site, following in an analysis of two hands.  As the software is updated, these numbers will change slightly.

Example 1 - 2, 3, 4, Jack, Queen, Queen

Throwing 3, Queen: The average total (your hand + plus your crib) is 7.779 points

Throwing 2, Queen: The average total is 7.899 points

Throwing 3, Jack: The average total is 9.321 points

The above are the best three tosses... following, is the worst play...

Throwing Queen, Queen: The average total is 16.699

Example 2 - 2, 3, 3, 4, 7, 9

I suggested three possible throws (on the dealers basic strategies page).  They were 3 & 4, 2 & 9, and 2 & 4

Throwing 3, 4: The average total is 10.898

Throwing 2, 9: The average total is 10.1

Throwing 2, 4: The average total is 11.734

But other throws are possible...

Throwing 2, 3: The average total is 8.191 (the best throw)

Throwing 2, 7: The average total is 11.502

The worst play is...

Throwing 7, 9: The average total is 17.805