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The game of
blackjack was originally called twenty-one and was started off
in French casinos around the seventeen hundreds. Back then if
you achieved the two card twenty-one you were not awarded the
three to two ratio bonus as you are in today’s casinos.
When 21 finally made it over to the United States of America
it was a gambling game with an ill repute. Nobody really
attempted to play it, nor were they interested in
understanding it. So brick and mortar casinos were forced to
offer unbelievable deals to get people interested. The most
popular deal was a 10 to 1 pay out if a player’s hand
consisted of the ace of spades and a black jack, it did not
matter whether it was the jack of clubs or the jack of spades.
This hand was called a blackjack. The moniker stuck with the
game even if the outrageous deal has not lasted the test of
time. In today’s casinos, either land based or online, the
term blackjack does not necessarily have to be an ace of
spades with a black jack.
In order to win at blackjack you must have the hand with the
highest total that does not exceed the sum of 21. If you have
a hand that adds up to a number above 21 it is called a bust
or too many and you automatically lose. Cards with the numbers
2 through 10 are worth exactly what is printed on the card,
otherwise known as face value. The jacks, queens or kings are
called face cards and they are all worth 10. The ace is the
trickiest card and the one card that could change the entire
numerical value of your hand. An ace’s value is 11 unless this
would cause player to have too many, in which case the ace is
worth 1. A hand in which an ace's value is counted as 11 is
called a soft hand, because it cannot be busted if the player
draws another card.
In the game of blackjack you are never playing against the
other people next to you, you are always playing against the
house. Each player’s objective is to beat the dealer by having
a higher hand as long as the value does not exceed 21. If the
dealer busts then only the players with a value below 22 win.
If a player busts and the dealer also busts, the player still
loses. If a player and the dealer have the same point value,
this is called a push, and neither player nor dealer wins or
loses the hand. The result is essentially a tie. Since you are
playing against the house and not other players, if the dealer
has a higher number than some players he wins over those
players, but not he loses to the players with a higher point
value in their hand.
If you do not know the minimum bet that must be made you
should look around the screen. Usually before you enter the
game the minimum bet is posted somewhere near the name of the
game. Just as when you go to a land based casino the minimum
bets are located on the tables next to the name of the game
being played there. Of course you will be able to find higher
priced minimums as well as lower priced ones. Which ones you
choose to play is up to you.
After the initial bets are made you will receive your cards
and then the dealer will receive theirs. You will be given two
cards just as the dealer will get two. However the difference
is your cards will both be face up for everyone to see while
the dealer will only have one card facing up, and the other is
facing down. The card that is facing down is known as the hole
card. If the dealer is showing an ace or a card valued at ten
then the dealer checks his hole card to see if he has
blackjack. This check occurs before players play, but after
they have been offered insurance. If it turns out that the
dealer does have blackjack then all players will lose their
initial bets, except players who also have blackjack, who end
up pushing. A two card hand with the value of 21 is commonly
referred to as blackjack, but it is also known as a natural. A
player automatically wins when they have two cards that value
21, except when the dealer has the same point value, and then
they push.
The player has a few options with what to do with his hand
before the game is over. Here are those options.
• Hit: This means the player will take an additional card.
• Stand: This means the player is satisfied with his hand and
does not wish to add any more cards.
• Double Down: This means the player will double his bet and
take one more card before he stands.
• Split: This means the player will divide his two cards and
play them as separate hands. This will inherently double the
bet and can only be done when the two cards have the same
value.
• Surrender: This means the player can fold and still keep
half of his bet. This option was common at the beginning of
the last century, but has pretty much gone the way of the
dinosaur today. Most casinos will not even allow a player to
surrender.
Once a player has told the dealer that he is going to stand
then his turn is over. After all the players have made their
decisions, the dealer exposes his cards. The house rules say
that a dealer must continue to draw cards until he hits 17.
Once the dealer has reached 17 he must stop hitting. Those
players that have a higher point value than the dealer win and
so on and so on. The winnings are usually a 1 to 1 ratio, but
you may find alternate odds if you look around hard enough.
As in poker, blackjack has its share of game variations that
change the rules of the game. Sometimes the change is slight
and sometimes it is harder not to notice. Here are a few of
the most commonly used game variations:
• Early Surrender: This means the player can surrender before
the dealer checks to see if he has blackjack or not.
• Late Surrender: This means the player can surrender after
the dealer checks to see if he has blackjack or not.
• Multiple Splits: Once a player has split his cards he is
allowed to split to a third hand if the next card is also of
the same point value. This is a rule that is considered to be
quite rare.
• Only One Card for Split Aces: This means a single card is
added on top of an ace and the player has no choice but to
stand. This makes the ace an eleven point card no matter what.
• Five Card Charlie: This means that if the player hits five
times and still has not been given too many cards to go over
21, then he automatically wins. It does not matter what the
dealer has. This makes the player unbeatable.
• Split Any Tens: This means the player can split a jack and a
queen. As long as the value of the card is ten it may be
split. Although this variation is hardly ever used since
having two tens amounts to twenty, a very good hand in a game
called 21.
• Double Down After Split: This means a player may not double
down after he has split his cards.
• Double Down Restrictions: This means the player may only
double down on a certain combination of cards decided by the
house. However, it usually totals 9, 10 or 11.
• European No Hole Card Rule: This means the dealer only deals
himself one card, face up and does not deal himself a second
card. Therefore he cannot check for blackjack if he is showing
a value of ten. The dealer receives his second card after all
the players have played. The risk in this version of the game
is that not only does the player lose their initial bet but
all subsequent bets made in trying to achieve 21. However all
split and double down bets are usually returned to the player
and only the initial bet is taken. In that case this version
of the game plays the same as the regular version.
As you can see the game of blackjack has a multitude of
versions each with its own set of rules, odds and strategies.
Make sure you clearly understand which version you are
playing. Many countries do not allow online blackjack so be
sure to understand the laws on online casinos before you play.
When the dealer has dealt the cards and he himself has a face
card showing an ace, the player is offered the option of
taking insurance. A player is only offered this before the
dealer checks his hole card. If a player accepts insurance he
may bet up to half of his initial bet. The player will be able
to see their insurance bet separate from his original bet.
The reason why a player would accept insurance is because the
player believes that the dealer has been dealt a blackjack,
also known as a natural. The payoff on he insurance bet is 2
to 1. This insurance bet has the ability to protect the
initial bet if the dealer truly does have blackjack. If the
player did bet the full half of the initial bet, the player
will win the same amount of their own blackjack bet. If the
player does not have blackjack but the dealer does no money is
lost as long as the player has bought insurance. On the other
hand if the player does not have blackjack, the game’s wins
and losses proceed as usual but the insurance bet will be
lost.
In order for the insurance bet to be a good choice for a
player to make he should be the kind of player that is good at
counting cards. The house has an edge over the player in
making the insurance bet of 2 percent to 15 percent. This is
also dependent on what how many decks are used in the game.
Sometimes if a player is showing a blackjack the dealer will
offer even money instead of insurance. If the player accepts
the even money offer then the player will be given a 1 to 1
ratio on their initial bet. It does not matter whether or not
the dealer has blackjack; the player wins no matter what. So
in the end accepting the even money offer has the same result
as winning the insurance bet.
Remember to be aware of what is at stake when making the
decision to accept the dealer’s offer of an insurance bet. If
you do not know what you are doing then you could end up out
of your hard earned cash. On the other hand if you can find an
internet gaming room that offers the even money option that
would be a great place to gamble.
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