Blackjack Tips

This article serves as a mini-education offering strategies, rules and a brief outline of the game delivered in quick informational bites.

1. Blackjack: Play Dealer must stand on ALL 17s tables.
2. Best: single deck tables, no double down restrictions. Re-splitting and surrender allowed.
3. You only have to beat the dealer: you can win with a 13 or 14 hand and a dealer bust.
4. Master the hit/stand strategies and true count system for card counting.
5. Snag the third base seat to survey all the cards on the table before your decision.
6. Watch for dealer tells. Signs that can give away hands.
7. Dont take Insurance.
8. Dont play blackjack at a table where players blackjack pays 6-5 or even money. Stick with the standard 3 to 2 payout.
9. Pass up blackjack tables that utilize a continuous shuffling machine where cards are returned to the shuffler after each round.
10. A Quick Tip Blackjack Strategy follows:
    • Your Hand against Dealer Upcard (D)
    • 12 to 16: (D) stand on 2 to 6, hit on 7 to ace
    • 17 to 21: (D) stand
    • 10 or 11: (D) double down on 2 to 9
    • Soft 13 to 17: (D) hit except double down on 5, 6
    • Soft 18 to 21: (D) stand except double down on soft 18 and 5, 6
    • 2,2; 3,3; 6,6; 7,7; 9,9: (D) split on 2 to 7 but stand on 9,9 against a 7.
    • 5,5; 10,10: never split
    • 8,8; A,A: always split

Blackjack Terminology

• Hard Hand: a hand that does not include an ace. What you see on your two cards is your total count, such as 9 + 8 = 17.
• Soft Hand: a hand that includes an ace in first two cards dealt. It has two values, depending on whether you use the ace as 1 or 11. A five and an ace would be 6 or 16.
• Stiff Hand: a potential bust hand, such as a 13 or 14. Also, a hard 15 or 16.
• Push: same count as the dealer -- a tie -- no money is exchanged, you dont win or lose.
• Burn Cards: number of cards casino discards at the beginning of a new shuffle.
• Multiple Decks: four or more decks played in a game, always dealt face up.

If you play blackjack with poor strategy or instinct, you give the casino an advantage of over 5%.

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Related Pages at Gambling Smarts: Blackjack Rules and Strategy Blackjack Basics