Of the number of things to keep in mind at the blackjack tables, one of them is never listen to the dealer. Not that you should be such an amateur that you’d be seeking the advice of a casino employee as it may determine whether you win or lose money to said casino, but even if it’s offered unsolicited (it happens), you should turn a blind ear and take care of your own business by yourself.

Many dealers, regardless of how much they smile at you and thank you kindly for your tips, are extremely loyal to the online casinos, and are interested in screwing you out of your money, pushing the limit up to but not including stacking the deck. This often can include misdirection with advice, and to the unsuspecting player, will often lead you down the wrong path. It might not cost you the hand, but it likely will cost you some winnings.

What am I talking about specifically? How about a dealer claiming it’s a good thing for everyone that he has an Ace but not blackjack? How about a dealer who’s telling you to hit a 13 against his five? Or better yet, one that discourages you from splitting Aces against his…anything. I’ve seen and heard it all, and it’s amazing to see how many players who seem to know what their doing abandon their strategy and better judgment to follow what the dealer has to tell them, often leading them straight into a brick wall.

Don’t fall prey to this. Some casinos even have profit-sharing systems with the employees on the floor, so the motive and incentive is there for them.

Also, if you’re at any of the USA online casinos and hear it, try to resist the urge to start an argument with the dealer, it won’t end well for you. Since the “wrong decision screws up my hand” theory has been disproven fairly convincingly, you really have nothing to worry about except some other poor schmo losing his bank account. I recommend you play until you win one more nice-sized hand and intentionally stiff the dealer of any tip. Then gather your chips and get up to leave. If you want, you can slide in a “there’s a reason for that” comment to let everyone else here. I can’t see any harm in that.