A Beginner's Guide to Playing Blackjack

Blackjack is one of the most popular casino games in the world. And it can be quite fun to play, especially when you're winning. However, you need to know what you are doing, or else you'll end up making some silly mistakes.

Let's start with the basics:
Blackjack can be played with one deck of cards or up to eight decks of cards. The object of the game is to get as close as you can to 21, without 'busting', or going over 21. Cards are ranked at face value, however all face cards are worth 10 points, and Aces are worth 1 point or 11 points. The best hand in Blackjack is an Ace and a picture card - this hand is actually called 'blackjack' and will pay 3:2 on your wager. A winning hand pays even money and you win a hand by having more points than the dealer, without going over 21. The dealer has to follow certain rules about when to hit and when to stand, but your hand is in your control - you can hit when you want to or stand when you want to. You can also double your wager under certain circumstances, and split pairs if you wish to do so. If both you and the dealer bust, you lose your bet - and therein lies the house advantage. However, the house advantage can be minimized by the fact that you can hit, stand, split and double when you choose.

The game is dealt with each player and the dealer being dealt two cards - all the players cards are face up, but one of the dealer's cards is dealt face-down. If the dealer is dealt an Ace as the face-up card, all players are offered 'Insurance', should they wish to 'insure' their hand against a dealer getting 'blackjack'. Insurance bets pay 2:1 if the dealer's other card is a picture. With the dealer's card remaining face-down, players act in turn to hit, stand, split or double.

Stand:
If you wish to 'Stand', you wave your hand and the dealer will move on to the next player. If you're playing online, you simply press the 'Stand' button.

Hit:
If you wish to 'hit', you tap the table and the dealer will give you another card. You can keep on hitting until you choose to 'Stand', or until you 'bust'.

Double:
Different casinos have different rules as to when you can double. Usually you can only double if your first two cards add up to 9, 10 or 11. However, some casinos will let you double on any two cards. If you decided you wish to 'Double', you simply place an equal wager next to your original wager, and the dealer will deal you one, and only one, more card. If the card dealt is not to your liking, you have no choice but to accept it and hope for the dealer to bust.

Split:
If your first two cards are of equal point value, you can split them by placing an equal wager next to your original one. Splitting your hand basically creates two hands out of one, and each hand is played individually. Some casinos allow you to split more times than once if you are dealt cards that are of equal point value to your split cards.

Surrender:
Some casinos allow you to 'Surrender' your hand. If you don't like your chances of winning, you can forfeit your hand, and reclaim half your original wager.

When all players have finished acting, the dealer will flip over his face-down card. The dealer has to hit if the two cards are under 17 and stand if they are 17 or over.

Conclusion:
Those are the basic rules of blackjack. To learn to play the game properly, you should learn some basic strategies for when you should hit, stand, split or double. There are many blackjack instructional cards you can use, but be careful, as you may require different instructional cards for different casinos, for if the rules change, so do the cards.

Remember to try and always have fun, even if the cards are not going your way!

Ed note: Practise up on your Blackjack at Casino Del Rio.

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