How to Play Blackjack: Rules and Strategy

Mastering the art of playing blackjack is simple. For most first-timers, Blackjack is perhaps one of the best games to start with. The casino only has a very small advantage and a common understanding of the game’s rules is important to everyone playing the game.

How to play live blackjack? Blackjack rules? Blackjack strategy? These are some of the most searched questions regarding blackjack. And this page is here to provide answers. This will ensure as you enter the live casino section or decide to play our blackjack games, you are up to date and well prepared to take on the dealers.

Blackjack Rules

The following are the basic rules involved in Blackjack gameplay. Whether you are playing live dealer blackjack, or software-based, the same procedure is applicable.

The first step is placing your bet. This usually involves placing the amount of money you’d like to stake. Your win will be equivalent to the amount you stake times the odds of the bet you choose to place
The dealer will then deal two cards to you then two to him/herself. Your cards will be dealt face down, whereas only one card of the dealer will be face down while the other one will be facing up. The dealer’s facedown card is referred to as the hole card
You are then given time to look at your cards. Depending on the value of your hand, you can choose to take the following steps. Stand hit, split, double down, surrender among many others. As you make your choice, always remember that your aim is to beat the dealer by having a higher hand value without exceeding 21. If you think your choice will see you get more than 21, it’s better not to risk
All the other players are allowed to do the same after which the dealer makes his/her move. The dealer is expected to hit if their hand value is less or equal to 16 and stand if their hand value is 17-21
The results are then determined. You are a winner if your hand value is higher than that of the dealer but under 21. If you exceed the 21 marks, you automatically bust. If your hand value is equal to that of the dealer, the result is a draw and you get a full refund of your bet. If the dealer exceeds the 21 marks, you win.

Card Values

For all our readers learning to play this beautiful game, you must understand the value of every card in the deck. All the cards with numbers will retain their face value. Kings, Queens, and Jacks are all valued at 10. Suits, on the other hand, have no meaning i.e., they are worthless.

In Blackjack, Aces are considered as a wildcard. You can choose to value them as either 11 or 1 – depending on the value of the other card. If you choose to value the Ace at 11, then you have a hard hand. If you value it as 1, then you have a soft hand.

Blackjack Hand Rules

After the dealer has dealt you with two cards, you are required to make a choice depending on the value of your two cards. Below is an explanation of what you can do with the cards i.e., the action you can take after viewing your cards.

Hit: When you hit, you are simply asking the dealer to deal you with another card. You can hit as many times as you like as long as you don’t bust
Stand: When you stand, you are simply opting not to take any more cards. The dealer will move to the next player
Split: This option is only viable if you’ve been dealt with a pair i.e., you have two similar cards. After that, you can opt to split them into two independent hands. When you split, you have to place a second bet, with the same value as the first one
Double Down: Doubling down simply requires you to double your bet. If you go for this option, you are offered one drawcard

Basic Blackjack Strategy

Now, back to the basic tenets of online blackjack strategy.

To increase your chances of winning, learn how to split your hands. Know when the time is right to split hands and when not to.
Never should you split a pair of low-value cards. This increases your chances of losing. However, it’s advisable to split a pair of Aces.
Know when to double down. If the dealer has a low-value card and you have a low-value card and an Ace, then go for doubling down.

However, always remember that the blackjack strategy is best used if you have a strong grasp of blackjack basics.

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