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AIM OF THE GAME
In
the most general terms, the object of Blackjack is to get a hand
that totals as close to 21 as possible without going over. No
matter how many people are seated at the table each individual plays
against the dealer and only the dealer. Other players at the table
mean nothing to you or your hand, so feel free to ignore them. The
dealer always plays his hand last, therefore you must ascertain how
to play your hand according to the dealer's face up card.
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HOW TO PLAY
Dealing the Cards
Once all bets are placed, the dealer will proceed to deal the
cards to the players. Starting from his left, he will make two
passes around the table until each player has the initial two cards.
Whether or not the cards are dealt face up or face down will depend
on which Blackjack game is being played. Cards are dealt face up in
shoe games, and the players are not even allowed to touch the cards.
In the hand held games cards are dealt face down, which requires
that the players pick up their cards. However, when handling the
cards they can only be touched with one hand and must be kept above
the table. Any supplementary cards that are dealt in the hand are
to be left on the table, not added to the cards in your hand.
The Dealers Hand
There are specific rules that a dealer must adhere to when
playing his own hand. If the dealer's face up card has a value of
ten he will instantly look at his face down card, which is referred
to as the hole card. If the hole card turns out to be an Ace, this
constitutes a Blackjack and the end of the hand. If a player also
has a Blackjack, the hand is considered a tie or a push. The dealer
will usually indicate a push by tapping the top of the dealer's hand
(palm up) on the table in front of that particular players' cards.
At this point the dealer will collect the bets and cards from the
losing hands and pay your winning Blackjack bet when it is your
turn. If the dealer does not have an Ace in the hole than the game
will continue and begin with the first player at the table.
Insurance
When the dealer is dealt an Ace as his up
card he will ask all players if they wish to purchase Insurance.
This option is presented before the dealer looks at his hole card.
Insurance bets are made by wagering up to half of your original
bet, which is placed below your normal bet. If it follows that the
dealer has a ten value card in the hole, and thus Blackjack, your
winning Insurance bet will be paid at two to one. However, since
the dealer has a Blackjack you end up losing your original bet. If
the dealer does not have a Blackjack, Insurance bets are lost and
the dealer removes them immediately. At this point, play will
continue with the original bets made by the players. According to
most avid Blackjack players, the Insurance bet is not generally
recommended unless you are playing with extremely high odds.
Hitting and Standing
The most common decision a player
must make during a Blackjack game is whether to take an additional
card (Hit), or stop at the current total (Stand). There are a
number of ways to let the dealer know that you wish to Hit or Stand.
The typical way to denote that you wish to Hit is to scrape the
bottom edges of the two cards that you are holding towards you, and
the dealer will deal you another card, face up, in front of you.
Another option is to point your index finger at your cards. This
will also indicate to the dealer that you would like another card.
Some casinos will permit you to say "Hit Me", but this is usually
discouraged since spoken words can not be recorded by the security
cameras. If you do not want any more cards and wish to Stand, it is
common practice to slide the two cards you are holding partially
under your bet, face down. Other options include waving your hand,
palm down, across your cards from left to right or right to left, or
by saying "Stay" aloud. Again, the spoken command is generally not
looked upon in a favourable light since security cameras are not
able to pick up sound.
Card Counting
In order to achieve a long term advantage
in Blackjack, a player must learn card counting techniques. Card
counting requires only some very basic arithmetic, and no
memorization at all. One of the most popular systems in use today
is the point count system, which is also known as Hi-Low. Using this
preferred method, a plus or minus value is allocated to each card in
the deck, and then added up as each card is dealt. Any cards two
through six will decrease your chances of winning, therefore you
will designate a +1 value to each of these cards. Each time any of
these cards is dealt to a player you will add +1 to your count.
Conversely, tens and aces increase your chances of winning unless
they are dealt to another player. Each ten and ace will receive a
-1 value, which will be added to your count should these cards be
dealt to someone else. Since sevens, eights, and nines really do
not effect your chances of winning, you will not assign them a value
at all.
As the cards are dealt, you will keep a running count of the exposed
cards, and make wagers that are based on the current count total.
The higher the plus count, i.e. the higher the percentage of tens
and aces that remain undealt, means you have the advantage and
should increase your bet. If you encounter a high minus count, you
have a much greater disadvantage and should bet the minimum or leave
the table. If the count is zero this means the deck is neutral and
no one possesses an advantage.
These same rules also apply when playing a multi-deck Blackjack
game. The only adjustment you will have to make is dividing the
count by the approximate number of decks left to be played. In
either game, single or multi-deck, the same point values are
assigned and the same method will be used to make betting decisions.
Double Down
Doubling Down pertains to doubling the size
of your bet, and can only be done with the original two card hand.
In order to Double Down you must place your cards face up in front
of you, and add an additional bet to the betting circle. This
auxiliary bet should be placed adjacent to the original bet, and
must be of equal value. When doubling down you are only dealt one
extra card for that hand. This means that the player can not stand
on his original hand or take more than one additional card. Players
usually choose to Double Down if they believe that their hand has a
much better chance of beating the dealer's hand.
Splitting Pairs
Players can normally split any two cards of
the same value into two separate hands. When Splitting Pairs each
hand will be played independently; it is like you are becoming two
different players. In order to play both hands, you must place
equal bets on both hands. You must play out one hand completely
before proceeding to the second hand. Some casinos allow unlimited
splitting, which means you can keep splitting hands as many times as
you like. However, the most common rule is probably the one that
allows a player to split up to three times, making four separate
hands with four separate bets. While these rules may vary from
casino to casino, the rule concerning Aces is across the board.
Since splitting an Ace is such a powerful move for the player, you
are restricted to drawing only one additional card on each split
Ace.
Basic Blackjack Terminology
Burn Card: A single card taken from the
top of the deck or the first card in a shoe which the dealer slides
across the table from his/her left to the right, and is placed into
the discard tray. The card may or may not be shown face up (which
can affect the count if you are counting cards). A card is burned
after each shuffle.
Basic Strategy: A playing system that provides the long-run,
optimal way to play, based on the players cards and the dealers
exposed cards.
Cut Card: A solid colour card, typically a piece of plastic which
is given to a player by the dealer for the purpose of cutting the
deck's) after a shuffle.
Hole Card: Any face down card. The definition most often refers to
the dealer's single face down card however.
Shoe: A device that can hold up to eight decks of cards which
allows the dealer to slide out the cards one at a time.
Hard Hand: A hand in which any Ace is counted as a 1 and not as an
11, or a hand without an Ace. Example: If your hand consists of an
Ace, 7, and a 9, you have a hard 17.
Soft Hand: A hand in which any Ace is counted as an 11 and not as a
1. Example: If your hand consists of an Ace and a 6, you have a soft
17.
Pat Hand: A hand with a total of 17 to 21.
Stand: To decline another card.
Hit: To request another card.
Bust: When a hand's value exceeds 21....a losing hand.
Push: A tie between the player and the dealer.
Surrender: A casino rule which allows a player to discontinue play
after receiving the 1st two cards by losing half of the amount
wagered.
Pair: When a player's first two cards are numerically identical
(i.e., 8,8).
Anchor or 3rd Base: The last player to the dealers right at the
blackjack table.
1st Base: The first player on the dealers left at the start of each
hand.
Counter: Someone who counts cards.
Point Count: The net value of the card count at the end of a hand.
(A card counting term.)
Running Count: The count from the beginning of the deck or shoe.
The running count is updated by the value of the
point count after
each hand. (A card counting term.)
True Count: The running count adjusted to account for the number of
cards left in the deck or shoe to be played. (A card counting term.)
Rich Deck: A partial deck that has a disproportionately high
percentage of face cards and aces.
Bankroll: The available money a player plans to bet with.
Unit: The dollar amount of a basic bet; one chip.
Flat Bet: A bet which you do not vary i.e., if you are flat betting
five dollars, you are betting $5 each and every hand without
changing the betting amount from one hand to the next.
Settlement: The resolving of the bet. Either the dealer takes your
chips, pays you, or in the case of a push, no exchange of chips
occurs.
Toke: To "toke" the dealer is just another word for tipping the
dealer.
Marker: An IOU. A line of credit provided by the casino to a
player.
Junket: An organized group of gamblers that travel to a casino
together. Junkets are usually subsidized by a casino to attract
players.
Comp: Short for complimentary. Based on the amount of money you
play at a table, the casino (hotel) may give you things like a free
room or free food, etc.
Shuffle Up: Prematurely shuffling the cards to harass a player who
is usually suspected of being a counter.
Pit: The area inside a group of gaming tables. The tables are
arranged in an elliptical manner, the space inside the perimeter is
the pit.
Pit Boss: An employee of the casino whose job is to supervise
BlackJack players, dealers, and other floor personnel.
House: The Casino.
Cage: Short for cashier's cage. This is where chips are redeemed
for cash, checks cashed, credit arranged, etc.
House Percentage: The casino's advantage in a particular game of
chance.
Drop Percentage: That portion of the player's money that the casino
will win because of the house percentage. It is a measure of the
amount of a player's initial stake that he or she will eventually
lose. On average this number is around 20 percent.
Basic Blackjack Strategy
Black Jack's "best odds", also called the Basic Strategy
Total of 5, 6, 7, 8 Always hit.
Total of 9 Double down if dealer shows Deuce thru Six, otherwise
hit.
Total of 10 Double down if dealer shows Deuce thru nine, otherwise
hit.
Total of 11 Always double down.
Total of 12 Stand if dealers shows Four thru Six, otherwise hit.
Total of 13 thru 16 Stand if dealer shows Deuce thru Six, otherwise
hit.
Total of 17 thru 20 Always stand.
Soft total of 13 thru 16 Double down if dealer shows Four thru Six,
otherwise hit. Soft total blackjack and hard total blackjack.
Ace and Six Double down if dealer shows Deuce thru Six, otherwise
hit. Ace and six blackjack strategy.
Ace and Seven Double down if dealer shows Three thru Six. Stand if
dealer shows Deuce, Seven or Eight. Hit if dealer shows Nine, Ten or
Ace. Ace and seven blackjack.
Ace and Eight Double down if dealer shows Six, otherwise stand.
Ace and Nine Always stand.
Ace and Ace Always split Aces.
Deuce and Deuce Split if dealer shows Three thru Seven, otherwise
hit.
Three and Three Split if dealer shows Four thru Seven, otherwise
hit.
Four and Four Double down if dealer
shows Five or Six, otherwise hit. (if double not allowed split if
dealer shows Five or Six)
Five and Five Double down if dealer shows Deuce thru Nine, otherwise
hit. Pair of gambling fives on blackjack.
Six and Six Split if dealer shows Deuce thru Six, otherwise hit.
Seven and Seven Split if dealer shows Deuce thru Seven, otherwise
hit.
Eight and Eight Always split Eights.
Nine and Nine Stand if dealer shows Ace, Seven or Ten,
otherwise
split.
Ten and Ten Always stand on Tens.
To put it differently, here are the
six basic strategy rules for splitting:
1. Always split aces and 8s.
2. Split 2s and 3s against a dealer up-card of 4 to 7.
3. Never split 4s, 5s, or tens.
4. Split 6s against a dealer up-card of 3 to 6.
5. Split 7s against a dealer up-card of 7 or less.
6. Always split 9s, except against a dealer up-card of 7, ten, or
ace.
Here are the basic strategy rules for standing with a hard hand:
1. Stand on 13 against 2 or 3.
2. Stand on 12 against 4 to 6.
3. Stand on 17 against 7 to ace.
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