Boxed cards

Blackjack terms are fairly easy to follow. Hit, stand, split, double…they’re all pretty straightforward (they mean what you think they mean). The only confusion usually comes in when people start talking to each other online in abbreviations. If you haven’t been part of those circles, the quick description of the rules of a game can take a few minutes to decipher. But aside from that short-speak lingo, there are a few game terms you might not be familiar with. And one – boxed card – is probably foreign to you unless you’ve been on the receiving end of one. That, my gambling friends, can be a blessing or a frustration of untold fury – especially if you get a dealer or pit boss with an attitude (like the opposite exists).

What is a boxed card in blackjack? Well, as much as we’d like not to believe it, even blackjack dealers are human. And, believe it or not, so are their shoes. Not their crappy loafers, the dealer shoes. And a boxed card is simply a card that’s laying face up in the shoe. The rules are pretty clear and generally universal here. The card is treated as dead and immediately put with the other discards. This doesn’t force a misdeal, mind you. The card is simply removed from live play. Sometimes you can spot these a mile away. I never make the dealer aware of it, though. I like to see how the casino responds (there are always subtle differences).

The rules are the rules, of course, but regular players all have their own take on how things like this (casino errors) should really be handled. Dealer errors go beyond blackjack, but in this situation, getting an ace dumped on your queen, only to be told by the casino it’s being replaced with a five because the casino screwed up, is tough to swallow.

You can count me in the camp that feels the error should be solved in the players’ favor. What does this mean? It would have to result in a choice between that card or a new one, which I understand is a fantasy. The only other option is to award the player a straight win, or a blackjack win if that would’ve been the case. That way it doesn’t affect the other players’ deal (you know some moron would complain about distribution every time), and the player is treated properly for the casino error.

The frustrating part is this can and does happen far too often with certain dealers. Multiple cards per shoe will be boxed, and it’s ridiculous. Casinos expect “professional” behavior out of their customers, and the customers should expect the same level of treatment from them. If you walked into a store and purchased a product that broke on your way out the door, you can bet it’d be replaced on the spot with an equal or better product. You wouldn’t go back to an electronics store with a busted 42″ TV and have it replaced with a 20″. Yes, it’s the same thing.