Most of the time you can walk into any bricks and mortar casino around the world and more often than not, you will see blackjack tables encompassed by a gang of men. When you think of 21, you conjure up images of seedy men sitting in dimly lit, smoke filled rooms, swilling back straight whiskey and the cards being dealt by gorgeous young women. It’s the perfect picture of masculinity. So why is blackjack popular with men? Let’s break down the stereotype even further.
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The Fight Club psyche
Some of the terminology in blackjack works on the same level as why the movie Fight Club is a cult hit.
The whole premise behind Fight Club started when Brad Pitt asked Edward Norton to hit him in the car park of a bar. From there they managed to create a club that appealed to disenfranchised and frustrated men which eventually spiralled out of control to create a semi-terrorist organisation….
But that’s beside the point.
“Hit me”. That statement alone is just so manly and oozing with testosterone. When you want another card in Blackjack to improve your total, you say to the dealer, “hit me!” and tap the table with a certain amount of confidence and force.
It’s simple and straightforward
Let’s face it, men aren’t renowned for their ability to make tricky decisions and intricate thought processes in stressful situations, or even in general.
Blackjack is a simple game. You don’t have to count past 21 and you only ever have two options: hit or wave. So thought and complex problem solving skills aren’t required.
It’s an easy, generally fast game with simple odds. OK, so Blackjack odds of 3/2 can be tough to figure out sometimes, but that’s what the dealer is for anyway.
You get to sit down
You look at those bozo’s that play roulette and craps and you can’t help but pity the fools. There they are standing like a shag on a rock while the smart bloke has parked his arse comfortably at a blackjack table.
There is nothing better than sitting down to do some heavy duty gambling, only a rube or an absolute dope would suffer through standing to have a punt.
A common enemy
All men like to band together to battle a common enemy and with a group of half drunk men sitting comfortably around a table playing blackjack, they all have one nemesis in common: the dealer.
The dealer may be the one that dishes out the cash when you win, and we appreciate that, but they are also the dirty rotten scoundrels that will pull a 21 out of the bag when you have split and doubled your hand.
Every bloke at the table works autonomously in the hope of winning, but bands together in sending negative vibes at the dealer so they bust and the whole table wins.
There’s nothing more blokey than fighting a common enemy. I mean men lined up to unite and fight the likes of Hitler, Global Warming and the obesity epidemic.
You can drink
You’re allowed to drink in casinos and especially at Blackjack tables. Hell, in some casinos, beautiful women in short skirts even bring drinks to you at the table. It’s the epitome of a bloke’s fantasy: cards, alcohol and scantily clad women.
Perfect Pairs
Anything with inflated odds that preys upon the blind optimism of stupidity is appealing to men. We always hope for the best result, even if all the statistics are stacked against us, screaming otherwise. But what right-thinking man could possibly resist odds of 30-1?
So why is blackjack popular with men? You may as well ask “why do guys like boobs”? They just do. There is no great mystery or conspiracy.
Blokes like blackjack because you get to sit down, say “hit me”, not think and unite against a common enemy. If there were perpetually naked women around every blackjack table, then men would never leave the casino.