Blackjack Decisions Summary
The characteristic that makes blackjack unique among all casino games is
the many options a player has to decide on. After you receive your
first two cards, in addition to the option of hitting and standing under
certain conditions you are allowed to split your hand your bet, insure
your hand, or if you are not satisfied with your cards, sometimes you
can surrender them and get half your money back. Almost all decisions
are indicated to the dealer - the way you move your hand or where you
place additional chips after your original wager is made. Let's look at
these decisions and their signals; just remember that in Atlantic City
and many other where multidecks are used, you are never permitted to
touch your card or your initial bet.
Standing The player always has the option of standing at any
point - the usual procedure is to give a hand signal rather than a
verbal signal. To indicate to the dealer that you wish to stand, simply
wave your hand, palm down, over your cards. The dealer will then move on
to the next player. In many Nevada games, the cards are dealt facedown
and the players pick them up to play the hand. A standing signal in this
game is given by tucking your the first two cards dealt (the ones you
are holding in your hand) under your chips.
Hitting If you are not satisfied with the total of your hand, you
may draw one or more cards as long as you don't break, or go over
twenty-one. To call for a hit, either point at your cards or make a
beckoning motion with your fingers. In the Nevada facedown game, scrape
your two cards toward you on the felt to call for a hit. When the hit
card breaks your hand, the dealer will automatically scoop up your bet
and place your cards in the discard tray, as you have lost, even if the
dealer subsequently breaks. If you break in the Nevada facedown game,
just toss your two held cards to the dealer faceup.
Splitting Pairs
When the first two cards you receive are of equal value, you may elect
to split them and play each as a separate hand, drawing until you are
satisfied or you break. You play first the card on your right, and then
the card on your left. Two ten-value cards such as a king and Jack can
also be split, but when aces are split, most casino permit drawing only
one card to each split ace. If a ten-value card is drawn to a split ace,
or vice versa, the resulting hand is considered as twenty-one, not a
blackjack, and is paid off at one to one. This twenty-one would tie any
dealer twenty-one but lose to a dealer blackjack. In many casinos, if a
pair is split ,third card of the same rank is drawn, the hand may be
resplit. To indicate to the dealer your desire to split, merely slide up
another equal value next to your first wager, touching neither your nor
the original bet.
Doubling Down
When you think that with just one more card in in to your first two you
will beat the dealer, you are allowed to double your original bet and
draw one, and only one, more card. many casinos will permit you to
double down on any initial except two cards totaling twenty-one of
course, some restrict this option to hands that total ten or eleven. To
signal the dealer the intention to double, place another bet, up to the
amount of the original wager, alongside your first bet. In the Nevada
facedown turn your two cards over and put out your extra bet. Since you
will always have the advantage when you take this option, you should
double for the full amount. Again, to minimize the chances of player
cheating, you are not permitted to touch either your cards or your
original bet. When you split a pair, many casinos will permit you to
double down after you draw the first card to each of the split hands.
Insurance
Whenever the dealer's up card is an ace, before proceeding with the
hand, he will ask, "Insurance, anyone?" If you believe the dealer's hole
card is a ten for a blackjack, you are permitted to place a side bet up
to half of your original wager on the insurance line in front of you.
If, indeed, the dealer does have a ten in the hole, you are immediately
paid two to one on your insurance bet, but lose your original wager
unless you too have blackjack and tie the dealer. You are not really
insuring anything; you are simply betting that the dealer's unseen card
is a ten. The only time taking insurance is recommended is when you have
a blackjack and are past the third level of a winning progression (a
succession of winning hands).
Surrender
A few casinos offer the option of surrender. If you are not satisfied
with your chances of beating the dealer after seeing your first two
cards, you may announce, "Surrender"; the dealer will pick up your cards
and collect half your bet, returning the other half to you. This is the
only decision in blackjack that is indicated verbally. Where the dealer
is required to first check his hole card for blackjack, the option is
called "late surrender." If you are permitted to turn in your hand
before the dealer checks for blackjack, the decision is termed "early
surrender." In some casinos, you must announce your surrender decision
before the dealer deals to the first hand.
Surrendering before the dealer checks for blackjack is a very
advantageous decision for the player because the player only loses half
his bet to a dealer blackjack. This option is rarely offered in casinos.
Dealer's Play After offering cards to all players, the dealer
exposes his hole card. If there are players who still have not broken,
the dealer then acts on his hand according to fixed rules, with none of
the player options. When the dealer's cards total seventeen or more, he
must stand, and with a hand of sixteen or less, the dealer must hit
until he reaches seventeen or better. If the dealer breaks, all
remaining players win. In most casinos, the dealer must count an ace in
his hand as eleven if it will raise his hand to seventeen, eighteen,
nineteen, twenty, or twenty-one. A few casinos make an exception to this
rule and require the dealer to hit A, six, or soft seventeen, It is
important to note that the dealer has no choice in the matter. If all
the players have hands totaling eighteen, nineteen, twenty, or
twenty-one, the dealer must still stand with a seventeen - an obvious
loser. Likewise, if the players show hands totaling twelve, thirteen,
fourteen, or fifteen, the dealer must still hit his sixteen and risk
breaking an otherwise winning hand. If the dealer does not break, and
reaches. a hand between seventeen and twenty-one, proceeding
counterclockwise from third base, he collects from players with lower
hands, pays off at even money the players with higher hands, and pushes
or ties those with equal hands, indicating this with a tap of the back
of his fingers in front of the player's cards. Players are now free to
pick up winnings, if any, and make a new bet as the whole process is
repeated.
The popularity of traditional blackjack is actually diminishing at the
beginning of the new millennium. The casinos are introducing variations
to traditional blackjack which are competing with blackjack tables for
space on the casino floor.
If you are just learning how to play the game, set up a game at home
with a spouse or friend. Deal out some hands with this website on your
computer nearby to insure that you understand all the decisions.
Blackjack is a simple game to learn.
Another suggestion for learning the basics of play, is to open an
account at an Internet Casino-a no-money account-and play blackjack in
the "free play" mode, or click here to play the free games.
Next... Blackjack History
