How to Play Blackjack

Blackjack is one of the most popular casino card games to play online. A major reason for this comes down to how the game is mastered. A lot of players will only play with friends or go to casinos for the thrill of the game. Not only that, many of them only know the basic blackjack rules but are completely unaware of its strategies and deeper strategies. Only with a little common sense and patience will you be able to increase your chances of winning bigger pots and hence win more money.

The goal of the game is to get as close to 21 as possible without going over 21. When you have a face card or a 10 you are said to have “21” if the dealer also has one. If you do have “21” you are said to have “Blackjack”. This is the best hand in blackjack and the only way to win.

Players can either bet on the outcome of the hand (all players do this) or they can bet on the flip of a card (most players bet on the flip of the card and whoever has the lowest card wins).

To explain the game without giving too much detail would be a bit difficult and most players will only learn the very basics and never try advanced strategies.

When playing blackjack you should try to get as many players playing as possible. This maximizes your chances of winning and also keeps the game interesting.

The game starts by a player placing a bet. If the dealer has an ace as their up card that gives them a starting edge. Most players will say that the ace deals but the reality is that the dealer has less of an advantage than you.

When the dealer has an ace, they will have to pay out 17% of their total bet ( resulting in a loss of $1.17 ) to players and dealer. In turn, the players have the option to take insurance or not ( determined by the pay table for that particular casino ) and if they take insurance, they win even money on their bet (i.e., $0.90 to $1.00). Players may also elect to surrender, in which case they lose the bet but they keep their cards.

Outside wagers are typically safer. Surrendering, in turn, allows the player to lose only half of the original bet, rather than the whole thing. However, there are options where you can make an even bigger save and turn the odds in your favor by deciding to surrender and look for a sure bet.

Now that you know the high points and low points of each hand, you can do basic calculations to choose which hand to play and how much to bet. This is more for fun, though, and not really how the casinos make their money. They likely use roulette as a scare device to separate the passive casino players from the aggressive ones. Of course, any time a number is reportedly “due” or “unable” it’s probably with this kind of rubbish, so who knows what’s really going on.

Basic Strategies

There are a few different strategies you can use when playing blackjack. Some are extremely aggressive, such as hitting on any number and standing on 17 or higher. While this is one of the least aggressive strategies, it can be hard to prove. Others are passive, such as doubling down when their first two cards equal 10 or 11. These strategies can be very lucrative, especially if the deck has a lot of 10s and Aces.

Beating the dealer

The house edge

The house edge, or vigourish, is a percentage the emerges when the casino is considered as the player. It is generally determined by the rules and the odds dealt by the dealer. This is the edge that the casinos have no control over and which is why they continue to profit, largely because of people’s lack of discipline and the greed to beat the house. However, players can use their control of the odds to their advantage and the only thing that a player has in order to do this is to learn the strategies and to use them correctly in a game.

The key to a successful blackjack strategy is to learn when to double down, to get more money on the table when possible, to get the money or cards when you have the best chance of beating the dealer and to accept a loss when you know you have made an error or you can’t have the same result.

The card counting Lesson

If you would like to do card counting in blackjack, you need to follow a specific protocol until you learn the card counting Lesson.

The card counting Lesson applies to the process of adding cards when standing on 17 or higher and subtracting when you see cards with a value of 2 through 6. In this card counting Lesson we will start by learning the values and principles of the deck.