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The Objective of Blackjack
The Objective of Blackjack
Beat The Dealer. There are some misconceptions about the objective of the game
of blackjack but at the simplest level all you are trying to do is beat the dealer.
How do you beat the dealer?
1. By drawing a hand value that is higher than the dealer’s hand value
2. By the dealer drawing a hand value that goes over 21.
3. By drawing a hand value of 21 on your first two cards, when the
dealer does not.
It’s also important to note, the other players’ hands at the table have nothing to do
with winning the game of Blackjack like they do in Poker games. For all practical
purposes, it’s just you against the dealer. Unskilled patrons of the game will try to
convince you “it’s a team sport” but don’t be fooled.
2-9 count at face value, tens and face cards count as 10, and Aces count as 1 or
11.
Playing Blackjack
Blackjack games come with many rule variations and different numbers of decks.
The most common game of blackjack is dealt out of a 6-deck or 8-deck “shoe” (a
plastic, card-dispensing device). Single and double deck games are still alive and
well but not all casinos that have blackjack will have single and double deck so the
“shoe games” are a little more common. Our example will be the procedure for the
most common blackjack game played with 6 decks. Here is the basic overview of a
round of blackjack:
Cards Dealt
Hit – If you would like more cards to improve your hand total, the dealer will deal
you more cards, one at a time, until you either “bust” (go over 21) or you choose to
stand. There is no limit on the number of cards you can take (other than going
over a total of 21). [Hand Signal: Tap the felt with your finger.]
Double Down – If you have a hand total that is advantageous to you but you need
to take an additional card you can double your initial wager and the dealer will deal
you only 1 additional card. [Hand signal: Just put up a wager, equal to your initial
wager, on the left side of your original bet and the dealer will give you one
additional card, turned sideways to indicate you may not take additional cards.]
Note: most casinos will also allow you to “double for less” meaning you don’t have
to put up an equal wager to your original wager. However, mathematically
speaking there is never a time when doubling for less is a better decision than
doubling for the full amount, so we would discourage “doubling for less” even if the
casino will let you.
Split – If you’re dealt a pair (2 cards of equal value) you have the option to put out
a second wager and the dealer will split the two cards so that each card will
become the first card on two new hands. This also applies to face cards. You are
allowed to split a hand consisting of a King and a Jack because they both have the
same value, even though they are not actually a pair. [Hand signal: Put up a
second wager equal to your first. Then give a “peace sign” to signify you would like
to split and not double down. The dealer will make two hands out of your first hand
and you will be dealt a second card on each.]
Surrender – If you don’t like your initial hand, you have the option of giving it up in
exchange for half your original bet back. [Hand signal: draw a line across the felt
behind your bet as if you were cutting a slit in the felt with an imaginary knife. It is
common for dealers to mistake this signal for the “hit” signal. To be safe, always
verbalize the word “surrender” to your dealer and then make the signal on the felt
for the cameras.]
6. Payouts
Ok so you’re done playing your hand and the dealer is done playing
their hand according to the restrictions above. One of 2 things will happen.
1. The dealer will bust, and they will pay even money (1 times the
wager) to each hand that is still in play on the table. or…
2. The dealer will make a hand (17 through 21). If your hand is still in
play, it’s a simple battle of who has the higher hand. If the dealer has
the higher hand, they sweep your bet. If you have the higher hand,
the dealer pays you one times your wager. If you and the dealer have
the same hand-total, it’s considered a “push” and you keep your
money but are not paid on your wager.
Now the round is over! That’s all there is to it. The cards get swept up and you
start another round.
Doubling After Splitting (DAS): This simply means you can double down on a
hand you just split. Some casinos will allow you to double after splitting and some
don’t. Most casinos do allow this rule and it IS advantageous to the player.
Re-Splitting Aces (RSA): Some casinos allow the player to re-split their aces
after they have already split a pair of aces, meaning if you just split a pair of aces
and received another ace as the next card, you are allowed to split to a 3rd hand
up to a total of 4 hands. The ace is the most powerful card for the player so it is a
very advantageous rule for the player if the casino allows RSA. Typically speaking,
even if the casino offers RSA, you are still only allowed to take one card on each
ace. You can’t double after splitting an ace and you can’t take additional cards.
This is because the casinos know the Ace is the most powerful card and they are
trying to limit situations where the player has an advantage.
Early Surrender: This is a dead rule that hasn’t been in casinos in the United
States since the 70s. It is the same as the usual “surrender” rule only you can
surrender before the dealer checks for a blackjack or offers insurance. When it
was still around it was highly favorable to the player, to the point where a perfect
basic strategy player could have a small edge, without counting cards. It went
extinct for that reason. Early surrender is also the reason why some perfectionists
will call the common surrender rule by its proper name, “late surrender” to
distinguish it from its counterpart.
6 to 5 Blackjacks: Some casinos that offer blackjack will reduce the 3 to 2 payout
for Blackjacks down to only 6 to 5. This increases the house edge and takes more
money out of people’s pockets. It also makes card counting basically useless.
Even casinos that have this rule may not have it at every table. Be sure to read the
rules on the felt before you sit down.
CSM Blackjack: Some casinos use Continuous Shuffling Machines on their
blackjack tables. This is a machine that continually shuffles the cards as they
are being played. Instead of putting the cards in the discard tray until the end of
the shoe, the dealer will continually feed the machine all the used cards and there
is never an end to the shoe. This also makes card counting impossible and
worsens the odds for a basic strategy player.
Single Deck versus Multi-deck: All else being equal, the house edge on
Blackjack gets higher for every deck you add to the game. As a rule of thumb, a 6
deck game will have a higher house edge than a 2 deck game if all other
conditions are equal. The problem is, all the other conditions are rarely equal.
Often times a single deck game will not allow doubling after splitting or re-splitting
aces and will have 6 to 5 blackjacks, whereas an 8 deck game in the same casino
might allow DAS, RSA, and have 3:2 Blackjacks and end up with a lower house
edge. There are many trade-offs when it comes to the rules and number of decks.
Deck/Shoe Penetration (PEN): This refers to the percentage of the cards that are
actually dealt out over the course of a shoe. Usually the there is a cut card
inserted in the shoe toward the back of the cards to be dealt. When the cut card is
dealt out in the course of the game, it signals to the dealer that the shoe is running
out of cards and the dealer will shuffle the cards and start a new shoe. While a
quarter deck of cards is plenty sufficient to finish a round of Blackjack, most
casinos will cut off much more than that (several decks) to limit the profitability of
the game for a card counter. For a card counter, the depth of penetration can
make or break a blackjack game.
Games Masquerading As Blackjack
Blackjack is a very popular game in the United States because many people try to
beat it by counting cards. Because of its popularity and commonly known rules,
many casinos have created Blackjack variants that use a lot of Blackjack rules and
terminology to try and piggyback on Blackjack’s notoriety. Casinos know they are
creating new games entirely, but they want you to think the new games are the
same as blackjack so that you can feel like you’re playing a familiar game and the
casino can enjoy a higher house edge. Here are some of the Blackjack
doppelgängers you should avoid: