Blackjack is a card game that, along with Roulette and Slots, is one of the most popular games in casinos, both online and offline.

• Blackjack Standard Strategy
• How To Win Blackjack Strategy
• Advanced Blackjack Strategy Chart
• Printable Blackjack Basic Strategy Card
• Blackjack Strategy Chart
• Blackjack Strategy Card

Blackjack Basic Strategy Any trusted online blackjack strategy guide will start with basic strategy. This approach informs players, based on their hand and the dealer's upcard, which action is most likely to win. If you do not follow basic blackjack strategy, your odds drop even lower. So assuming you are playing the game to win, why wouldn’t you use basic blackjack strategy? It may seem like a huge risk to hit when you have 16 and the dealer is showing a 10, but sticking to the strategy consistently will give you the best odds.

The game is played against a Dealer with the aim of getting a higher score than them and as close to 21 as possible without ‘Busting’ – going over. It is normally played with either 6 or 8 decks of cards and can involve several other Players, all of whom are playing directly against the Dealer.

How to Play Blackjack

Goal of the game

The aim of the game is to beat the Dealer’s hand. You do this by getting your hand as close to 21 as possible without going over this amount and ‘Busting’.

Blackjack Basic Strategy. For Blackjack Basic Strategy the first thing to look at is the tables below. This has details of what you should do to optimize your chances with every version of your starting hand versus the Dealers visible card. It is useful if you can remember this as best you can to give you the best possible advantage against the. Blackjack is one of the most widely played card games to ever grace the gaming felt, with millions of Blackjack hands contested at Blackjack tables around the world each day. The game of twenty-one is a strategic endeavor that allows an advanced player room for aggressive betting maneuvers and subtle strategy plays to gain an advantage over the.

Card values

1. All numbered cards from 2 to 10 are counted at face value.

2. All picture cards (Jack, Queen, and King) count as 10.

3. An Ace can be either 1 or 11.

Setting-up the game

1. Set your budget – We recommend that you take the equivalent of 40 hands to a table before you sit down and start playing.

2. Choose your table – All will have a minimum and maximum amount you can bet, choose one where you can play a hand for around a fortieth of your budget. i.e. if you have a bankroll of £200, you should be looking at playing £5 per hand.

3. Take a seat – You can choose any empty seat at the table, more than one if you wish, and whilst the choice of the seat makes no difference to the outcome of any given hand, the Dealer starts from one end when dealing and the action starts with the first Player to be dealt with and goes around until everyone has finished.

4. Decide how much you would like to change up and play with. These funds are then changed into Chips which are used for the game, you can cash them into real money and walk away at the end of any hand.

Blackjack Rules

1. Place your bet (Remember, if there is room at the table you can play more than 1 hand if you do this you will need to place a bet for each hand you wish to play).

2. You will be dealt 2 cards face up so all other Players and the Dealer can view them.

3. The Dealer normally deals 2 cards for him/her, 1 face-up, and 1 face down. Some versions of Blackjack see the Dealer giving themselves 1 card only at this point (in this case, the 2nd card is dealt face up after all Players have finished their actions).

4. You now need to decide your move on each of your hands. The 2 main choices are Hit or Stand. Hit means receive another card. Stand means you don’t want another card and you are satisfied with what you have. If you Stand, you take no further action in the hand, if you Hit you have the same decision to make again after receiving your next card. There are sometimes 3 other decisions you can make, Double, Split, and Insurance. These will be explained later.

5. After all, Players have completed their hands, the Dealer deals him/herself cards until they have at least 17. It is worth noting that the Dealer has no say in what they do, they have to Hit until they get at least 17, even if all Players have only 15 and the Dealer has 16.

6. Once the dealer has 17, 18, 19, 20, or 21 he will Stand. If he gets 22 or more, the dealer busts, and all Players left in the hand win.

As mentioned above, there are 3 other actions you can sometimes take:

Double Down

This Doubles your bet (you need to place a further bet the same amount as your initial bet) and gives you 1 further card, after which your hand is finished irrespective of what card you get. If you win, you get Double your total bet.

You would normally only Double if you have a 9, 10, or 11 and the Dealer doesn’t have an Ace or a 10 – See the chart below for more details.

Split Cards

If you get 2 cards of the same value, you can Split them and play with 2 hands, each containing 1 of the cards. You will need to pay a bet equal to your initial bet and you will get dealt another card for each hand. You then decide for each hand whether to Hit or Stand. If you get 21 after Splitting, this only counts as 21 and not Blackjack. If you Split Aces, you will only get dealt 1 more card and will then need to Stand. At most casinos, if your 2nd card is the same as the first, you will be allowed to Split again if you wish.

Blackjack Insurance

If the Dealer shows an Ace as their face-up card, all Players have the option of Insurance. If you choose to take Insurance, you will place a bet equal to half your initial bet. If the Dealer then gets Blackjack, so the 2nd card has a value of 10, you will get Double your bet, if not you lose the Insurance bet.

The game ends

1. The hand ends for a Player when either your hand goes over 21 meaning you Bust and lose your bet, or when the Dealer completes their actions.

2. Once the Dealer has completed their action, the payouts take place for all remaining Players still in the hand.

3. If you have a higher total than the Dealer and both totals are 21 or below, you win the hand and get Double your bet. If you and the Dealer have the same total, you Push the hand and get your stake back (Unless one of you has 21 with their first cards, known as Blackjack and the other has 21 with 3 cards or more, in which case whoever has Blackjack will win the Hand). If the Dealer has a higher total than you and both are 21 or less, the Dealer wins and you lose your stake.

4. If the Dealer gets over 21, they Bust and all remaining Players win Double their stake.

5. If you get 21 with 2 cards, you have Blackjack, and if the Dealer doesn’t have 21 with their first 2 cards, you get 1.5 your bet back, as well as the bet itself – equivalent to 2.5 times your bet. If the Dealer also has Blackjack, you Push and get your stake returned.

Blackjack Definitions

Hit

Hit means to draw another card. You can request a hit as many times as you like, but if your total goes over twenty-one, you will bust and lose the hand.

Stand

Stand means the player receives no more cards. The hand as it currently stands will be judged against the dealers.

Split

If you have two cards of the same denomination, a Split button will appear. You can split your cards into two hands and play each hand separately. Your original bet will be duplicated for the new hand. Each hand will be played out as usual except when splitting Aces, where only one additional card per hand is dealt. The split option can only be used once per hand — you cannot split part of a split hand. Any winning 21 obtained after splitting a pair is paid 1-to-1.

Double Down

If you select this option, two things will happen: you will get exactly one more card, your turn will end, and your bet will be doubled.

Surrender

Where permitted (usually on a Blackjack Surrender table), a player may give up his first two cards and lose only one-half his original bet.

Blackjack Payouts

If you win the hand, you will get back your original bet plus the same amount in profit. A hand that consists of an Ace and any ten-value card is called a natural twenty-one, or a natural blackjack (except in the case of a Split hand – see details above). If you win with a natural blackjack, you will be paid off at three-to-two, which means you get your original bet back plus a 150% profit. (So if you bet £50 and win with a natural twenty-one, you get £50 (your bet) plus £75 (your bet plus half of your bet), which totals to £125).

Blackjack Odds

Knowing the blackjack odds will make you a better player and hopefully beat the odds when playing at a casino. If you want to apply any gambling strategy successfully you need to know the odds of the game you’re playing. It goes without saying but we’ll say it anyway: the odds are always in favor of the house. How else do you think they can create billion-dollar mega-casinos in Las Vegas? The Blackjack rules are carefully structured to ensure a house edge. But just how heavily are the Blackjack odds weighed in favor of the house? If you’re a smart player, you know the house edge not as great as one might think – and certainly not insurmountable. You will be able to calculate the following:

1. Blackjack odds variations
2. Odds of busting
3. Player advantage VS dealer up-card

Blackjack Odds Variations

If you want to be serious about playing blackjack you need to be able to calculate your odds for the game you’re playing. The blackjack odds depend on the different types of rule variations. Some online blackjack sites can be unclear about this so you need to pay attention. You can also adjust your blackjack strategy according to these rules. The following table shows the effect that rule variations have on the player’s expected return after taking the proper strategy adjustments. These changes are relative to the standard Atlantic City rules which result in a player’s expected return of -0.43%: 8 decks, dealer stands on soft 17, the player can double on any first 2 cards, the player may double after splitting and the player may split to 4 hands. I will explain some of the rule variations under the table.

Five, six and seven-card Charlie:

a Charlie is an automatic winner, so in a six-card Charlie the player wins on any six-card hand that didn’t bust.

No-peek rule:

The dealer doesn’t peek to see if he has a Blackjack.

How to calculate? You start with the basic Atlantic City rules (-0.43%) and take the rule variations according to the game you are playing to calculate the effect it has on the expected return. For example “Player may double on any number of cards” (+0.23%) and “Player may not resplit” (-0.10%). The expected player return would now be -0.43% +0.23% -0.10%= -0.30%. These blackjack odds (-0.30%) are better for the player than under the standard Atlantic City rules (-0.43).

Blackjack Odds of busting

This table is used to calculate the blackjack odds of the player busting if he hits. This can be useful but I think a smart person already knows that if he hits on 16 he has more chances of busting when he hits on 12.

Player advantage VS the dealers up-card

This table is more useful than the odds of busting because it calculates how much the dealer’s up-card has a positive effect on your odds and the odds of him/her (the dealer) busting.

Blackjack Basic Strategy

Blackjack Standard Strategy

For Blackjack Basic Strategy the first thing to look at is the tables below. This has details of what you should do to optimize your chances with every version of your starting hand versus the Dealers visible card.

It is useful if you can remember this as best you can to give you the best possible advantage against the House.

If your hand contains an Ace, look at the 2nd chart, if you have a pair the same value, look at the bottom chart. For all others, the top chart is the place to look.

Blackjack Chart

Use this Blackjack strategy chart as a cheatsheet if you will. It will help you memorize what actions to take with your opening hand.

How to Play Hard Hands:

A hard hand is two starting cards that do not contain an ace.

If you have eight or less, always Hit.
If you have Nine: Double if the Dealer has 3 to 6 – otherwise Hit.
If you have Ten: Double if the Dealer has 2 to 9 – otherwise Hit.
If you have Eleven: Double if the Dealer has 2 to 10, Hit if the Dealer has Ace.
If you have Twelve: Hit if the Dealer has 2 or 3, Stand if the Dealer has 4 to 6, otherwise Hit.
If you have 13- 16: Stand if the Dealer has 2 to 6, otherwise, Hit.
If you have 17 – 21: Always Stand.

How to Play Soft Hands:

A soft hand is when one of your starting hands contains an ace.

If you have Ace 2 or Ace 3: Double if the Dealer has 5 or 6 – otherwise Hit.
If you have Ace 4 or Ace 5: Double if the Dealer has 4 to 6 – otherwise Hit.
If you have Ace 6: Double if the Dealer has 3 to 6 – otherwise Hit.
If you have Ace 7: Stand if the Dealer has 2, 7 or 8. Double 3 -to 6 – otherwise Hit.
If you have Ace 8 or Ace 9: Always Stand.

How to Play Pairs

If you have a pair of Aces or Eights: Always Split.
If you have a pair of twos or threes: Split if the Dealer has 2 – 7, otherwise Hit.
If you have a pair of fours: Split if the Dealer has 5 or 6 – otherwise Hit.
If you have a pair of fives: Double if the Dealer has 2 to 9 – otherwise Hit.
If you have a pair of sixes: Split if the Dealer has 2 to 6 – otherwise Hit.
If you have a pair of sevens: Split 2 to 7 – otherwise Hit.
If you have a pair of nines: Split 2 to 6, and 8 or 9. Stand if the Dealer has 7, 10 or Ace.
If you have a pair of tens: Always Stand.

Strategy Card

Blackjack Tips

Taking Insurance or Even Money

Blackjack is a gambling game, so hedging your bet and playing safe by taking Insurance or even money doesn’t make much sense. In around 7 out of ten instances the Dealer shows an Ace they will not have blackjack, so buying Insurance is a losing long-term strategy and should be avoided.

Splitting Tens when Dealer shows 6

It is always a good idea to maximize your bets when the Dealer shows a 6 as this gives them the biggest chance of Busting, and although you will still expect to make money if you Split (less than $18 extra per $100), you can expect to make over $70 per $100 in bets by doing nothing and Standing on 20. There is a high chance that the Dealer will Bust, so always Stand on a hard 17 or greater.

Standing on 16 when Dealer shows Ace

Standing on 16 when the Dealer has a Ten is not nearly as bad as when the Dealer has an Ace. There is a good chance you will Bust when Hitting on 16, but at least you give yourself a chance to win or push the hand, otherwise in order to win you have to count on the Dealer Busting with an Ace.

Standing on Soft 18 when Dealer shows 6

As mentioned above, the Dealer having a 6 is the best possible hand for the Player as it presents the best chance of the Dealer Busting. You need to, therefore, try and maximize your returns in this situation, so Double and try to take down a bigger win. You can’t bust by taking one more card, so go for it!

Standing on Soft 18 when Dealer shows 9

This is a common one, and although 18 isn’t a bad total in Blackjack, when the Dealer has a 9 there is a high chance they will get a Ten or an Ace (38% of the time to be exact), so give yourself a chance to win and Hit it!

Hitting 11 when Dealer shows Ten

One of the best things about Blackjack is being able to control when to put more money on the table. If you have an 11 and the Dealer doesn’t get more money down by Doubling. You can expect to make about $18 for every $100 you bet, while Hitting will only earn you about $12.

Standing on a 12 when Dealer shows 2

This one divides Players a lot as plenty won’t want to risk Busting. However, there are plenty of cards that can save a Dealer who has a 2, so instead of hoping they Bust, take another card and try and get a better total.

Doubling 11 when Dealer shows Ace

Any time the Dealer has an Ace you need to be cautious. Just Hit instead of Doubling, there is no point betting more money against the Dealers Ace.

Hitting 2/2 when Dealer shows 7

Another important one of our Blackjack tips. Twos are actually reasonable cards to start with for a Player. It is likely the Dealer has a “stiff hand” or a 17, therefore Split that 2/2 and make some money.

Hitting 4/4 when Dealer shows 6

There is a consensus that you should Double 4/4 against a 6 to try and maximize your returns as the Dealer has a high chance of Busting, but we would recommend you Split the hand against a Dealers 6. When the Dealer shows a 6, you generally want to play as many hands as possible because the Dealer is likely to Bust.

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BlackJack Basic Strategy and Advanced Betting Methods

How To Win Blackjack Strategy

Blackjack is one of the most widely played card games to ever grace the gaming felt, with millions of Blackjack hands contested at Blackjack tables around the world each day. The game of twenty-one is a strategic endeavor that allows an advanced player room for aggressive betting maneuvers and subtle strategy plays to gain an advantage over the dealers inherent statistical edge. Players attempt to achieve a count that is both twenty-one or less and higher than the dealers count at the end of the round, using a number of available tactics to maneuver themselves into the most favorable position as possible. The guide assumes that you're already familiar with the rules of the game and are playing against a 4-6 deck shoe where the Dealer Hits a Soft 17 and soft doubling is allowed. Here's a quick review of the options available to the player, all of which are non-reversible once selected:

• Hit - Tells the dealer that you would like another card dealt to your hand. You may use this option as many times as you choose unless your last requested action caused your hand count to exceed 21. At that point your hand is busted, your bet is forfeited to the dealer and no further action is permitted until a new hand begins.
• Stand - Instructs the dealer that you do not want any more cards dealt to your hand. Once you Stand, you may no longer build your hand in any way. You may Stand on your first two cards or on any other count that does not exceed 21. Standing declares your hand is ready to face the hand of the dealer to determine a winner.
• Split - If your starting hand consists of a pair (two cards of the exact same value, including two Ten value cards) you may Split them at your option. After announcing your intention to Split the hand, you must first place a wager equivalent to your original bet into the betting circle. The dealer will then proceed to separate the two cards of the original hand into two independent hands and deal one card to each of them. The player then plays each hand out individually (in sequence) until they Double, Stand or Bust during the same turn.
• Double - Certain hands have the option of being Doubled. After announcing your intention to Double, you must first place a wager equivalent to your original bet into the betting circle. The dealer then deals out only one additional card to your original hand. No further action is permitted after you receive this one additional card. Your hand is then ready to face the hand of the dealer and determine a winner.
• Surrender - Players may have the option to Surrender certain hands. When you announce your intention to Surrender the hand, half of your original bet is forfeited immediately while the other half is returned to you without further play. This action ends your hand, which does not proceed to a showdown.

Using the Blackjack Basic Strategy Charts

In the following sections, you'll be presented with a number of basic strategy charts that will allow you to cross-reference each recommended play based on the players hand count versus the Dealer upcard. The top row of each chart shows a listing of numbers starting with 6 and working its way progressively to the right, eventually ending with the Ace (A). These headlining numbers represent the Dealers upcard, the card the Dealer has dealt face-up to their own hand. The Dealer upcard is the basis from which all Blackjack basic strategy is derived, since certain dealer upcards will actually give the player using Blackjack basic strategy a mathematical advantage over the Dealer. Of course, some Dealer upcards decrease the players advantage. The reason each chart uses the 6-5-4-3-2-7-8-9-T-A (left-to-right) sequence is that these numbers represent the weakest dealer upcards on the left up to the strongest on the right, in order of strength. For example, the 6up is the weakest upcard for the Dealer, and conversely the strongest dealer upcard for the player. Next is the 5up, also a very weak upcard for the dealer, continuing on to the Aup on the far right. The Aup is the single strongest Dealer upcard and therefore the worst upcard for the player. The dealer upcards are shown as the card value with 'up' (such as 7up) in the text explanations that accompany the the basic strategy charts in our guide.

The leftmost column in each chart shows either the players Hand Count (for the Hard hands) or specific hands (for Soft or Paired hands). A player determines the count, or total, of a Hard hand (explained below) by adding their cards together. Cards 2 through 10 are counted at face value, with Kings, Queens and Jacks (known as Paint cards due to their elaborate, colorful designs) also being counted as 10's. The total arrived at when adding the cards together is known as the Hand Count and is indicated by a tiny 'c' in the notation. For example, a hand of 86 would make a Fourteen count (14c) since 8+6=14, while a hand of K4 would also result in a 14c since the King is valued at ten and 10+4=14. The only exception to arriving at a count by this method concerns hands that contain Aces. In Blackjack, an Ace may count as either 11 or 1 depending on whether or not counting it as an eleven would cause the player to go over 21 and bust. If counting the Ace as 11 would cause a hand to exceed a 21c an Ace must be counted as 1 instead, and this rule holds true for hands that contain multiple Aces. For example, a hand of A4 would result in a 15c (11+4) since counting the Ace as 11 wouldn't cause the total to exceed a 21c, but a hand of AA4 would only result in a 16c (11+1+4). The second Ace counts as only One to avoid putting the count over 21. Note that the suits of the cards do not effect the count of a Blackjack hand and can be entirely disregarded. Paired hands are covered in a separate section apart from the standard Hard hands.

In the Blackjack Basic Strategy Guide to follow, each of the five playing options from above (Hit, Stand, Split, Double and Surrender) are indicated by their own specifically colored entry in each of the strategy charts. A summary of each color-coded indicator is shown to the right. While a player is always allowed to Hit or Stand on any count (unless their last play caused them to bust) and they may always Split a starting hand that consists of a Pair, occasionally there are a few rule-based restrictions to some of the recommended plays depending on where you're playing the game of Blackjack. The options of Double and Surrender are sometimes restricted or not allowed under certain rules conditions even though they are the recommended optimal play on our chart. If this is the case, consult the accompanying text in each section for a thorough explanation of how to handle this situation and consider finding a more favorable game that will allow these optimal playing decisions! Now let's get started learning the correct Blackjack basic strategy. Be sure to take your time and work through each section until you understand every play based on the corresponding dealer upcard before you move on to the next. We'll start with the most encountered type of hand, the Hard Counts.

Blackjack Basic Strategy : Hard Hand Counts

The first group of starting hands we'll examine are known as the Hard Hands. Hard Hands are un-paired and contain no Aces, such as T5 or 76. Hard hands make up the majority of the starting hands you'll receive from the dealer, so playing them correctly is essential for solid play. Hard hand counts are discussed separately from starting hands that contain a single Ace, known as Soft hands, and also paired hands. Both of these types of hands will be examined shortly after the Hard hand counts.

The primary choice for Hard hand counts of 11c or below is whether you'll Double or Hit the hand. Hand counts of eight or less are always Hit due to the fact that mathematically they are not profitable to Double against any dealer upcard (and hitting them will never result in a bust). The more flexible counts are the 9c, 10c and 11c, where doubling takes on more importance and frequency. Nine counts are doubled against only the four weakest Dealer upcards (6-5-4-3) but Ten counts are doubled against almost all of them, only hitting versus the powerful Dealer Tup or Aup. An 11c is the most Doubled hand of all, aggressively pushing in another bet against all dealer upcards. While using the chart returns maximum value for each of these counts, if you find yourself short on chips and unable to afford the additional wager necessary to Double (or you've already Hit the hand previously) just Hit any 11c or less and then proceed as normal.

With the Hard counts of 12c or higher, the chart indicates that a more conservative approach (Standing) is now necessary against several of the weaker Dealer upcards. This is partially because of the new threat of potentially busting the hand with a hit, but also that the various counts will have statistically better chances of winning a showdown by Standing against the applicable dealer upcard as compared to Hitting them. It is also useful to note that now Surrender is a recommended option for the 15c and 16c versus the strongest Dealer upcards. Both of these counts are surrendered versus Dealer Tup and Aup, and a 16c is even surrendered versus a 9up as well. These two counts will bust a high percentage of the time so the best option is to take back half your bet and live to fight another day. If you are unable to Surrender these hands due to rules restrictions (or you've already Hit the hand previously) you should Hit them instead. The counts of 17c or higher are always Standing hands, regardless of the dealer upcard.

Blackjack Basic Strategy : Soft Hand Counts

The second group focuses on Soft Hands, which are starting hands that have a single Ace in them, such as A3 or A6. These types of hands are called soft because they will never bust when taking just one card to them (the initial hit). Soft hands have the additional element that Hitting may actually cause them to become a Hard Hand, and they may also stay soft (able to use the Ace as an 11) even with additional cards added to the hand. We'll examine these situations shortly after we take a look at the first subsection of Soft hands, the soft 13c (A2) through soft 17c (A6).

Soft hand counts are arrived at by adding the Ace as an 11 with the second card of the hand. The soft 17c or less hands actually have the same options available to them as the hard 11c or less: Double or Hit. You may also note the hand entries A2/A3 and A4/A5, which list two hands on the same line. This is because the strategy for both of these hands is identical. The A2 is played the exact same way as the A3, and the A4 is handled like the A5. As before, if you can't afford to double the hand as suggested (or are not allowed to based on the rules) just Hit instead and proceed as usual.

When you've hit any of these soft hands and arrived at a Hard hand count, it's time to switch back to the appropriate strategy line from the previous Hard Count strategy section to determine the correct play. For example, let's say you were dealt A6 versus a dealer 8up, and based on the strategy chart you proceeded to hit the hand, receiving a 7 as your third card. Your previously soft hand count of 17c has now become a hard count of 14c (1+6+7). Of course, the Ace is only counted as 1 now since counting it as 11 would cause a bust. Now, a player must revert to the Hard Hand strategy guide to play the 14c since the hand is no longer soft. This aspect of strategy applies to all soft hands that subsequently transform into Hard hands, with only one rub. Most Blackjack rules state that three-card hands are NOT allowed to be Surrendered under any circumstances. So even if your soft hand becomes a Hard 16c versus a Dealer Tup, you'll have to default to Hitting the hand as the preferred option.

Concerning the soft hands that stay soft after the third card is taken, consider the following scenario: You are dealt A2 versus a Dealer 4up and Hit the hand based on the basic strategy chart, receiving another 2 as your third card. Your hand count is now a soft 15c (11+2+2), so you'll now use the soft hand strategy for your soft 15c (the A4 line, since your hand is now effectively A2+2) to make your play as the hand does not yet qualify as Hard. However, even though an A4 indicates that it should be Doubled versus the Dealer 4up most blackjack rules state that three-card hands are NOT allowed to be Doubled under any circumstances. If the correct strategy was to double, you'll have to default to Hitting the hand as the preferred option for this group of soft hands.

For the next group of soft hands, A7 or higher, we'll once again add the tactic of standing into the mix. The soft 18 (A7) is the most aggressively doubled of this group, adding another bet against the five weakest dealer upcards. A player also stands with it against a 7up or 8up and even Hits it against the strongest three dealer upcards. The soft 19 (A8) is kept against just about any dealer upcard except the 6up, where it most profitable to actually double it! Lastly, the A9 is always held regardless of the dealer upcard with excellent, but not indestructible, chances of holding up at the showdown.

As we've previously discussed, there will be times where either your bankroll or the rules of the game prevent you from making a correct doubling play. In previous sections, we've always recommended that the hand be Hit whenever this situation arises. However, for these soft hands, considering their already high count totals, the default play is to Stand when you can't double them. So if you have an A7 versus 2up but your hand is a three-card hand, you'll have to simply Stand as the rules preclude you from doubling anything other than two-card hands.

Blackjack Basic Strategy : Paired Hands

Advanced Blackjack Strategy Chart

The last group are the Paired Hands, where a player was dealt two cards of identical value, such as 44 or 55. Remember that since the Paint cards all count as 10's, hands containing two ten value cards like KT or QJ are also considered pairs. Pairs have the additional option of being Split into two separate hands, which requires one additional bet from the player for the new hand.

With this group of hands the options are fairly cut-and-dry. Most of these paired hands will either be Split or Hit, with only one exception: a pair of fives. It is never recommended to split a pair of fives, instead the chart suggests you actually play the hand as if it were simply a hard count of 10c. In fact, if you reference the correct strategy for a 10c in the previous chart you'll find that it is identical to the strategy for 55. For any of the other pairs, they are split fairly aggressively against several dealer upcards. If you are unable to Split any of these pairs the default move would be to treat them as Hard hand and play accordingly. However, the only reason you'd ever do so is that you are down to your last chip. There is no other reason not to follow the chart, since you won't have to worry about three-card hands with pairs and any other play is clearly sub-optimal.

For the bigger pairs, we see the options are much more clear. In fact, the second biggest pair TT (any two ten-count cards) is always a Standing hand. Conversely, the beautiful starting hand of AA will always be Split. A pair of 99's is Split against all but three dealer upcards, the 7up-Tup-Aup. The only exception to the basic play of Pairs in Blackjack occurs when we are dealt a pair of eights. As the chart shows, they will be split against all of the upcards excepting a dealer Aup. But when facing the strongest dealer upcard of them all, Surrendering the pair of eights is actually the mathematically best play. Notice that we're not treating the 88 as a hard hand in this strategy line (otherwise, we'd be surrendering against a few more dealer upcards). Just the specific case of being dealt 88 versus Aup requires Surrender. Against any of the other dealer upcards we'll favorably Split the eights and proceed as usual.

Blackjack Card Counting : The Running Count

Printable Blackjack Basic Strategy Card

One of the more advanced Blackjack concepts is Card Counting. In the ChessandPoker.com Blackjack guide we use card counting to determine the amount of our initial bet. To count the cards, we'll use the method detailed in the chart to the right to adjust the Running Count, which is the current indicator of the value of the deck in comparison to players advantage. Determining the always-changing Running Count is fairly simple. You start out with a count of zero in your head. Then, everytime you see a 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6 valued card come out of the deck in any players hand, including the dealers, you mentally add +1 to the count in your head for each of these cards. Whenever you see a Ten value card (any Ten, Jack, Queen or King) or Ace dealt into any players hand, you subtract (-1) from the count in your head. This ongoing total in your head is called the 'running count' (RC). The 7, 8 or 9 value cards do not affect the Running Count and can be disregared for counting purposes. Here are some example card groups and the resulting Running Count for counting each clump of cards (negative values shown in parentheses).

Whenever the running count is positive, it is said that the player has an advantage. When negative, however, the player is at an disadvantage. The larger (or smaller) the running count, the more pronounced the advantage (disadvantage) is for the player. As you'll soon discover, even though the process of card counting is sometimes presented as a difficult talent to acheive, it is actually not that hard at all. In fact, it will quickly become second nature once you get the hang of it. An added benefit is that our Blackjack guide does not depend on Card Counting to alter our Blackjack playing strategy, just the betting aspect of the game. So if you happen to lose count for any reason, you can usually approximate where you were to a close enough degree that your betting will not be altered to a point where you'd need to start over. Of course, you can always default to one chip betting and be just fine! However, for those of you that would like to look at a more advanced method of betting your hand, the next step is to use Card Counting to effectively structure your bet sizes.

Advanced Blackjack Wagering : Betting Ramps

ChessandPoker.com has developed our own Blackjack betting system, often known as a betting ramp, based on the counting system we just discussed. This method is designed to gradually increase a players bets when they hold an advantage over the dealer based on a favorable deck, and cut them back when they are at a disadvantage. It has the added benefit of disguising your counting endeavors by adjusting your bet sizes in a way that seems natural to the dealer, instead of drastically changing them on a hand-by-hand basis. Remember, it's entirely acceptable to simply bet the minimum on each hand. However, if you'd like an extra edge and enjoy sliding your chips into the betting circle when you're favored then let's have a look at our progression chart!

It's useful to note that whenever you lose at the appropriate count in both the Third and Fourth levels, you'll actually drop back two levels instead of just one. This aspect of the strategy, while slightly inaccurate, is partially designed to protect your bankroll while at the same time giving the impression to the dealer that you're simply playing your rushes (betting more when you're winning) and then regaining your common sense when you lose a few hands. Keep in mind that while no betting system can offer the player using it any guaranteed edge, our advanced methods effectively position the player to take advantage of premium situations in a much safer, gradual way than is the case with standard counting systems.

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Blackjack Strategy Chart

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Blackjack Strategy Card

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