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A Winning Blackjack Strategy

Keeping track of how much each card is worth in Blackjack is very easy, which is one of the reasons so many novice gamblers like to play the game.  Each card is worth whatever that card shows, with all face cards (Jacks, Queens, Kings) being worth 10 points.  Aces are worth either 1 or 11 points, whichever helps the player’s or dealer’s hand the most.   You simply add up the values of all the cards you’ve been dealt, and if you’re closer than the dealer to a total of 21, without going over 21, you win.

What makes Blackjack a game of strategy is a set of rules governing what the dealer must do, based on his total in each hand.  If the dealer has a total of 16 or less, he must take a ‘hit’ (another card).  If he has 17 or more, he must ‘stand’ (cannot take another card).  You, as a player, are not bound by any similar rule.  This gives the smart Blackjack player a decided advantage.

After dealing the first two cards, everyone at the table knows the value of one of the cards in the dealer’s hand.  Remember, each player and the dealer are showing one card, while holding another face down.

Always assume the dealer has a card worth 10 points as his ‘face down’ or ‘hole’ card.  This is just a case of playing the odds.  Every deck of cards will contain exactly four cards worth 2-9 points in Blackjack (2 of spades, 2 of clubs, 2 of hearts, 2 of diamonds, etc.).  But, every deck contains sixteen cards that are worth ten points!  There are four 10s, four Jacks, four Queens, and four Kings – all worth ten points each.

By assuming the dealer is holding a ‘face down’ card worth ten points, you have a better chance of guessing correctly what his total is than if you assume he’s holding a card worth any other amount.  And winning at Blackjack is about playing the odds about the one dealer card you cannot see!

Remember that when the dealer has a total of 16 or less, he is required to take more cards until he has a total of 17-21, or he busts out (goes over 21).  Also, if the dealer has 17 or more, he is required to ‘stand’ (stop taking cards).  Use this knowledge of the rules to your advantage by combining the value of the card the dealer has that is face up, and your assumption that his face down card is worth ten points.  You’re playing the odds in your best-guess attempt to determine the dealer’s total.

Here’s the key.  If the dealer’s face up card after he’s dealt the first two cards to everyone at the table is a 2-6, assume he has a total of 12-16.  That’s the total of the card he’s showing plus your assumption that he’s holding a card worth ten points.  When this happens, you know the dealer is required to take at least one more card.  If the card he takes is worth ten points (again, the odds favor it), he’ll bust out and you’ll win.

The way to play this strategy is to concentrate on that magical 12-16 total.  Let’s say you’re dealt two cards that total 12 points.  You’re pretty far from 21, of course, so it’s tempting to take another card.  But, if the dealer is showing a 2-6, you should assume that he’s got a total that is less than 17 and must, by the rules, take another card.  Knowing that a card worth ten points has a better chance of being dealt than a card worth any other amount, you should stand on your 12 and hope the dealer gets hit with one worth 10.  He’ll bust, and your 12 will win! 

Stick to this Blackjack strategy with discipline, and you just might walk away with more money than you had when you sat down.