How to play Blackjack
Once you have placed your stake you are dealt 2 cards and the dealer is dealt at least 1 card (usually 2), one of which is face up.
If you are dealt Blackjack (21) on your initial hand you are paid 2.5x your stake (3 to 2). Assuming you have not been dealt a Blackjack, you may then 'STAND' or 'HIT'.
STAND is when you refuse anymore cards, do this when you feel you have a high hand say 17 or more. Or when the dealer shows a low card, (as the dealer must 'HIT' on 16 and lower hands), hence there is a fair chance of the dealer going 'BUST' if the dealer were to draw a high card.
HIT is when you accept an additional card, you may do this as many times as you wish as long as your hand remains under 21. However if the additional card you receive takes your hand above 21 you go BUST and lose your stake automatically.
Once the player has finished the dealer reveals/draws their 2nd card. The dealer must stand on 17s and HIT on hands totalling 16 and less. If the dealer exceeds 21 after a HIT, they go BUST and automatically lose and the player wins. Once the dealer has finished, whoever has the hand closest to 21 wins unless it ends in a draw.
Notes:
- Kings, Queens , and Jacks are worth 10.
- Ace cards can be treated as either a 1 or 11.
- An ace & 10 value card equals 'natural Blackjack' (21), the highest hand.
Doubling
In Blackjack when your inital hand is of a certain value you are offered the option to double. If you choose this option your stake is doubled and you are dealt ONE more card then your trun ends (you are not allowed to hit afterwards).
Typically you are allowed to double when your inital hand value is between 9-11, although this varies depending on the Blackjack rules your game is played by.
Splitting
When you are dealt a pair of the same cards you are offered the option of splitting. If you choose this option your cards are split into two new hands and an additional card is dealt for each of the two new hands. Your stake is also doubled, one for each hand and these are played independantly. Hence if you lose/bust on one hand you may yet win on the other.
Typically you are not allowed to split again or double on a split hand, but again this depends on the Blackjack rules your game is played by.
Insurance
In casinos where the dealer is dealt both cards from the outset and the face up card is an ace. The player is offered the option of taking insurance, when this is taken an additional bet is placed for the dealer's face down card to be a value of 10. If the the dealer does reveal a 10 the player is paid 2x the insurance stake. Assuming the player loses, the insurance bet basically cancels out the loss. However if the the dealer's face down card is not a 10 value card this insurance bet is lost automatically.
Never take insurance! (it increases the house advantage by 5.8-7.5%).
Surrender
Some casinos will offer the player the option to surrender on their initial hand. If the player does not like their prospects they may forfeit half their stake.
Blackjack Rules Variations
The most common variation of Blackjack rules is:
- 8 decks
- The deck is re-shuffled after each hand
- Dealer stands on all soft 17s
- Dealer hits on 16 and less
- Doubling after splitting allowed
- No re-splitting of cards allowed
- No surrender
- Only one additional card allowed on each ace when splitting a pair of aces
Key variations:
- Number of decks
- Dealer receives 2nd card after the player has finished
- No doubling after splitting
- Single bet position or mutli-hand
Casino operators generally publish their specific blackjack rules online.
Blackjack Jargon
SOFT - An ace & card with a value lower then 10 is refered to as a 'SOFT' hand, because the value is flexible, i.e. a ace & 7 can equal 18 or 8.
HARD - A hand without aces are refered to as 'HARD' hands, because their values are definate.
TIPS
Below are some of the key tips/princples of playing Blackjack and provides an insight to the fundermentals of Blackjack strategy.
- Hitting
- Standing
- Doubling
- Splitting
- Surrender
- Insurance
Hitting
At least 17 - 17 is a magic number in Blackjack as the dealer hit until they get at least 17 and cannot hit on a value 17+, often you must think of 17 as the minium value to play with. Although there are plenty of exceptions.
Standing
Stand on hard 17+ - The dealer must stop on 17 or more (lowering the chance of beating your 17+) furthermore as the dealer has to hit on anything less than 17 the dealer runs the risk of the dealer going bust.
Stand on dealer's 2-6 - As a dealer must hit on anything less than 17 when the dealer shows a low card you know the dealer runs the risk of going bust. In these cases it's better to stand, sit back and wait for the dealer to lose.
Doubling
Take this option when the dealer shows a low card such as 3-6 (banking on the dealer going bust), or when your hand is particularly strong, namely 9-11.
Always double on 11 against 10 - The dealer may have a strong card but you have an even better hand, doubling is the statistically better move.
Splitting
Always split Aces - The split gives you two promising hands with the opportunity to get Blackjacks compared with the soft 12. (However you'll usually only be able to take one card on each ace.)
Always split 8s - Fundamentally a hard 16 is an awful hand particularly if the dealer shows a 7-Ace card, this is a defensive move which is statistically more rewarding than playing hit a 16 hand (even the dealer shows Ace). Conversely if the dealer shows a 6 or less card this becomes an offensive move to increase your bet on the dealers (potentially) poor hand.
Always split 9s against a 9 - While a pair of 9s makes a strong 18 hand, when played against another 9 the dealer has the statistical advantage. This can be reduced (though not removed) by splitting your pair of 9s.
Always split 9s against a 6 - While standing on a hand of 18 is fine against a dealer's 6. Statistically you can make more money by splitting your 9s, it's simply taking advantage of the dealer's (potentially) poor hand.
4s against a 6 - If you are allowed to double after a split (Atlantic City rules) then it is worthwhile splitting your 4s against a 6 in the hope of getting a 5-7 card which then allows you to increase your stake with a double.
Never split 10s - This may be especially tempting when the dealer is showing a 6 but don't, you would be throwing away a definite great hand and exposing yourself to unnecessary risk.
Never split 5s - Throwing away starting hand of a 10 in favour of 5s is bad sense. Having a 10 also opens the opportunity to double down if the dealer shows a poor hand.
Surrender
Some casinos will offer surrender after both you and the dealer have been dealt two cards, meaning that you forfeit half of your bet. The proper strategy for "late surrender" in multiple-deck games is:
Surrender 16 (but not a pair of 8s) against a dealer's upcard of 9, 10 or ace.
Surrender 15 against a dealer's upcard of 10.
For single-deck games the rules are the same with one exception-don't surrender your 16 against a 9.
In "early surrender"(which is very rarely offered) the player is able to surrender before the dealer checks for Blackjack. Add these rules to your basic strategy:
Surrender any hard hand and pair totaling 5 to 7 or 12 to 17, against an ace.
Surrender hard hands and pairs totaling 14 to 16 against a 10.
Surrender hard 16 against a 9
Insurance
Never take insurance - It increases the house advantage by 5.8-7.5% (a sucker bet). Only a card counter can take advantage of insurance (which is impossible on online casinos). Don't do it. |
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