Shuffle Master Blackjack Machine

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As this article is going to print, ShuffleMaster is about to release a pair of shuffle machines (with 'Ace' and 'King' monikers) to address this issue. Look for write-ups on these new machines in the near future. (See: Shuffle Machines 101). In the meantime, as Kenny Uston would say: 'Go Get 'em'. Shuffle Master With table games continuing to grow in popularity, enhancing your floor mix with proprietary table games, utility innovations, and electronic gaming systems is a great way to increase the profitability of your gaming operation.

Truck drivers have a lot of time to think when they are on the road. In the early 1980s, truck driver John Breeding was thinking about a newspaper article regarding card counting in blackjack. For those unfamiliar with the concept, card counting is a strategy that gives blackjack players the ability to anticipate what cards are left in the deck.

When they think the next card or cards will be advantageous, they up their bets. Counting cards is far from easy, but those who have mastered the craft can essentially reverse the casino edge and win more money more often. Naturally, casinos don’t really like having card counters playing at their tables.

Breeding came up with a solution to the problem and took out a $30,000 loan to develop a device that took away the advantage gained from card counting. He founded Shuffle Master in 1983 and the automatic shuffler finally hit the market in 1992. The only problem was that his shuffler was designed for single decks while casinos had started using multiple decks.

He wanted to create a demand for his machine so he once again thought outside of the box and created a new single deck casino game called Let It Ride. The game was a hit and he successfully increased demand for his single-deck machine. His automatic shuffling machine had caught on by 1995, but the new table game was generating more revenue.

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Shuffle Master Diversifies

By the late 1990s, Shuffle Master has expanded their horizons by creating casino slot machines. The company partnered with larger companies including IGT and Bally Technologies and specialized in branded slots games like Press Your Luck, Let’s Make a Deal, and The Honeymooners. Unfortunately, Shuffle Master didn’t find success with slot machines. In 2004, they once again turned their attention to table games by acquiring BET Technology which had developed popular casino table games such as Casino War and Pai Gow Poker. By 2012, the company had changed its name to SHFL in order to reflect its diverse range of products which now included more casino table games.

During its heyday, Shuffle Master owned a virtual monopoly of the automatic card shuffler business. It also made Forbes’ list of the 200 Best Small Companies for five straight years. By 2013, SHFL was producing a range of utility products including the wildly popular Deck Mate shuffler and automatic chip sorters. It also owned proprietary rights for several table games and had created a variety of electronic table systems and electronic gaming machines. The company was then sold to Bally Technologies for $1.3 billion. A year later, Scientific Gaming bought Bally.

Today, Shuffle Master continues to develop products under its own name. The company is very active in the creation of electronic tables, table games, and an assortment of shufflers and utilities that are used at casinos all over the world. If you’ve been to land-based casino, there’s a good chance you’ve dealt with one of Shuffle Master’s many products.

Electronic Tables

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Shuffle Master has developed a number of electronic table games that incorporate an assortment of special features like bonuses, progressive side bets, and much more. The Fusion line gives players a range of betting options and multi-game configurations that are played at stand-alone and linked terminals. For example, a Fusion Hybrid machine gives players simultaneous access to as many as four live table games from a single terminal. Stadium Blackjack, Stadium Casino War, and Stadium Three Card Poker are among the innovative game options. It’s the same idea with Fusion virtual Multigame which connects players to live games like baccarat, roulette, and sic bo.

Shuffle Master’s i-Table is another interesting product. It integrates a user-friendly touchscreen betting interface with real live dealers who serve up non-stop blackjack variants, Ultimate Texas Hold ‘Em, Three Card Poker, and Mississippi Stud. Then there’s the all-new Quartz cabinet that is finding its way onto casino floors everywhere. It features a 26.5-inch HD touchscreen that can display up to eight different games.

Shuffle Master Table Games

Table games have always been a key component of the casino experience. Thanks to Shuffle Master, casino goers are gaining access to a constantly increasing number of table games. Shuffle Master’s portfolio of proprietary table games includes over a dozen blackjack variants such as:

Free Bet Blackjack: This version of the casino classic lets players split or double down for free when they choose the Free Bet option. If they win the hand, they get paid even though they didn’t risk any money.

Blackjack Switch: Get two hands and then decide whether you want to switch the second card from each hand to make two better hands. The dealer must abide by traditional blackjack rules.

Super Fun 21: Similar to traditional blackjack, but there are a few neat twists. For starters, the dealer gives out all player cards face up. There is also an optional side wager that can net you a 300-1 bonus if you make a blackjack using only diamonds.

Other innovative blackjack variants from Shuffle Master include:

Shuffle Master Machine

Looking to spice your blackjack experience up even more? Shuffle Master offers a dozen more blackjack variants with each one offering unique side bets.

Of course, Shuffle Master’s proprietary games don’t only consist of blackjack games. They offer a nice selection of Hold ‘Em casino games like Cover All, DiamondZ, Enjoy the Ride Hold ‘Em, Texas Hold ‘Em Bonus, and Ultimate Texas Hold ‘Em. You’ll also find loads of Pai Gow Poker variants such as EZ Pai Gow, Six Card Fortune Pai Gow, and Face Up Pai Gow Poker. Those who like to roll the bones have some exciting craps side bet games to choose from such as:

  • Fielder’s Choice
  • Fire Bet
  • Repeater Bets
  • Sharp Shooter

Do you want to try something a little different? Why not try your luck with the following specialty games?

  • Blazin’ 7s Roulette
  • DJ Wild Poker
  • Fortune Asia Poker
  • Four Card Poker
  • Snake Eyes
  • Three Card Baccarat
  • What the Flush! Poker

It’s also worth noting the Shuffle Master brings the thrill of progressive jackpot slots to your favorite table games. With over a dozen options, Shuffle Master offers table games that feature progressive jackpots.

Shufflers and Utilities

It all started with the single deck shuffler. However, cutting edge technology has allowed Shuffle Master to remain at the top when it comes to shuffling machines. The DeckMate 2 is the official shuffler of the WSOP and has some great features and abilities like:

  • A shuffle time of 22 seconds
  • Card recognition
  • Built-in timer for when someone “calls the clock”.
  • Sort cards into their original suited and numbered order.

The i-Deal Plus is emerging as the next generation of single-deck shufflers. It has everything the Deck Mate 2 has, but the i-Deal is faster and more efficient. Of course, Shuffle Master mastered the art of creating multi-deck shufflers, intelligent shoes, and continuous shufflers. These products provide the best deck integrity and virtually take away even the sharpest card counter’s ability to successfully ply their craft.

Shuffle Master produces a number of specialty items too. The list includes:

  • Deck Analyzer
  • Deck Checker
  • iVerify
  • Multishift Drop Box
  • Shuffle flex
  • Shufflink

Safe-Bacc is the most secure baccarat system on the planet. It shuffles, verifies, and automatically loads cards into a removable smart-reading shoe. The U-Spin Roulette system lets players decide when to spin the wheel and launch the ball. Other Shuffle Master specialty items are becoming the standard at casinos everywhere. The ChipMaster – S and the ChipStar systems use advanced technology to provide accurate and lightning-quick chip sorting. There’s a good chance that the scoreboard you saw at the roulette table was an i-Score Roulette model.

Video Slots

Blackjack shoe shuffle

There are a lot of companies creating video slots in a highly competitive industry. Shuffle Master concentrates on everything but slot games. Now, that doesn’t mean Shuffle Master has nothing to do with the ongoing evolution of video slots. Shuffle Master has contributed to the creation of several popular modern slots. 88 Fortunes, Golden Asia, Monopoly Grand Hotel, and Silver Stallion Action Spins are just a few of the slot games that Shuffle Master has helped create in one way or another.

Conclusion

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You might not have heard of Shuffle Master if you play at online casinos. However, you’ve almost certainly seen their innovative products in action if you’ve been to a brick-and-mortar casino. Be it a shuffler, electronic table game, or an electronic scoreboard, it’s probably Shuffle Master. Even when you buy and cash out your chips at the table, it’s likely a Shuffle Master product doing the work. In fact, that table game you’re playing could easily be one of Shuffle Master’s proprietary games. And to think that all of this has come about because of a truck driver’s desire to find a solution to card counting?

In 2000 Shuffle Master introduced the first Continuous Shuffling Machine (CSM) for the game of Blackjack. Their machine was called “The King” and its main purpose was to help casinos foil card counters. In fact, the ads for Shuffle Masters Continuous Shuffling Machine proclaimed, “The King continuous shuffler is the card counters worst nightmare.”

For years casinos have been trying to thwart card counters who gain an advantage at blackjack by using expert play. While card counting isn't illegal, casinos don’t take kindly to it. In Las Vegas, casinos are allowed to bar players they suspect of counting. In Atlantic City, casinos can't ban players but they can limit the size of their bets and shuffle up on any player suspected of counting.

Card counters all over the country do their best to disguise their skills to avoid getting caught. It has become somewhat of a cat and mouse game and casinos would like nothing better than to eliminate card counting permanently.

Shuffle Master heavily lobbied casinos for the benefits of using CSMs for their Blackjack games. They claimed the advantage of a continuous shuffler is three-fold:

  1. It eliminates card counting.
  2. It speeds up the game by eliminating shuffling time.
  3. It offers substantial cost savings because it uses four decks instead of six or eight in the shoe.

Six years later many casinos around the world have adopted the Continuous Shuffling Machines for use in their blackjack pits, much to the displeasure of players and dealers alike. We spoke with several dealers and the consensus among them is a strong dislike for the automatic shuffler. Shuffling gives them a welcome physical and mental break from the game. While shuffling, they can talk and interact with the players and friendly conversation can also help their tips.

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How A CSM Works

After a hand is over the cards just used are placed back into the shuffler to be mixed with the other cards in the shoe. Shuffle Master’s King uses an elevator system to randomize the cards. As the elevator is moved up and down, cards are randomly inserted into one of the 19 shelves in the elevator. The shuffler randomly selects a shelf of cards to deliver into the shoe. Because of the non-linear process, every discard re-inserted following a hand has a chance of appearing in the next round.

Although Shuffle Master says The King differs from their competitor's continuous shufflers because the others use a linear design, most CSMs do the same thing. They put the discards back into play and do away with the dealers having to physically shuffle the cards at the end of a shoe.

The House Edge

The continuous shufflers have no benefits for the player and have been dubbed the 'uncomfortable shoes.' It eliminates card counting for the skilled player and has a major disadvantage for the basic strategy player: it speeds up the game!

When the CSM was first introduced, many players felt it would likely increase the house edge. As it turns out this is not entirely true. Michael Shackleford--The Wizard of Odds--did a mathematical analysis of Continuous Shuffling Machines and found that there was a very slight reduction in the house edge.

In a four deck game the edge is 0.034 percent and in an eight-deck game it is 0.014 percent. Before you get excited about the slight reduction remember that when casinos use a CSM the speed of the games is increased by about 20 percent. The basic strategy player stands to lose more in the long run because they are exposing more money to the house edge.

It’s a treat to visit a casino that offers double and single deck games and it would be unfortunate to see them eliminated altogether. Even a multi-deck shoe game is preferable to the Continuous Shuffling Machines. The best way to make yourself heard is by refusing to play Blackjack at casinos that use a CSM for their Blackjack games.