For as long as the game has existed, there has been blackjack betting strategies of some sort or another. One area of strategies based on a form of money management is called a progressive betting system. This has been used in many different casino games & requires that you either lower or raise the amount you wagered according to whether you just lost or won your previous bet. There are untold variations to the progressive system of betting, but most fall soundly into two camps, “positive” and “negative” progressive systems. In the positive kind you are required to raise your bet after a win & the negative type, you raise your bet after you lose.

The only winning system

Most casinos actually like system players simply because most systems actually don’t work. Probably the only true winning system for blackjack is card-counting and not surprisingly casinos do not like card counters and regularly try to detect card counting in action. Card counters can significantly lower the house edge & even bring it in their favor. Other systems are far less effective in the long-term.

Progressive betting is still one of the most popular methods although it’s not guaranteed to give you the constant big wins you might be looking for. The most prudent way to use a progressive system is to bet more after a win & less after a loss. This basically means you will progressively keep increasing your wager for a winning streak and lower the bet back down to the minimum amount when you are losing.

Progressive Blackjack- Positive and Negative Systems

These systems are actually not strategies for playing but rather strategies for betting, a simple or complex form of money management. The positive systems may work something like this: A wager is placed for the minimum bet, let’s say $10 and you get back your bet. At this stage you play with your winning of $10 so you replace the bet at the same amount of $10. If you win a second time you’d increase your bet to $15; another win, then up to $20. When you eventually lose you would go back to your original bet of $10. This is only one variation; some systems require you to double the bet each time you win rather than only by small incremental advances. This type of positive progressive system is fairly rational when compared to its counterpart.

Negative progressive systems are less sensible & are capable of blowing an entire bankroll after a quick successive losing streak. An example of this is the Martingale system, which requires you to increase your wager after every loss in the hope of getting your money back. Despite this systems inherent dangers it still has a loyal following among many gamblers.