Blackjack is often referred to as the king of casino games. It is probably the most widely played casino game, both in land based casinos and online casinos. The game is pretty simple. You have to play against the dealer and have to make sure that your card total does not go over 21 but is still better than the dealer's hand. In the beginning, you are given two cards and you can get another card by 'hitting.' If you are happy with the card total, you can 'stand'. The entire strategy of the game is based upon these two decisions.
Basic strategy
For anyone who wants to be a good blackjack player, learning the basic strategy is a must. You will find various basic strategy charts on the internet that will help you. Now, it can be very difficult, in fact it is almost impossible, to learn the entire chart. However, there are other simpler ways as well. Firstly, you need to remember that basic strategy will help you in minimizing your losses. However, this does not mean that it will minimize losses of hands. In fact, you might lose more hands then you normally do. But, the basic strategy will help you in winning more money in the hands that you do win.
People often play the game instinctively and end up making the wrong decisions. For instance, consider that you have the hand of an ace and 7 and the dealer's up card is 6. Now, basic strategy advises you to double down when faced with such a scenario. This will mean that if you get an ace, 2, or 3 then you improve your hand, but any other card will worsen it, and you will have twice as much to lose now. Many people will not do this and stand. But it has been seen that in the long run, this strategy will result in you losing 50% or more hands but you will win 10% more money.
- Playing hard hands: A hand that does not contain an ace is called a hard hand. If your hand total is 8 or less, then you should always hit. If you have a hand of 9, then double if the dealer has 3, 4, 5, or 6, else hit. If you have 10, and the dealer has any card from 2 to 9 then you should double, otherwise you should hit. On having a hand of eleven, double if dealer has between 2 to 10, else hit. Always stand if your hand total is in between 17 and 21.
- Playing soft hands: Hands having an ace in them are called soft hands. On having an ace with a 2 or a 3, double if the dealer's up card is 5 or 6, else hit. If you have an ace and a 4 or 5, then double if dealer has 4, 5, or 6, else hit. If you have an ace and 7, then stand only if dealer has 2, 7, or 8. Remember that you should always stand when you have an ace with 8 or 9.
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