Blackjack - Part Five - Splitting Pairs

If your first two cards are a pair, you have the option to split them, forming two hands. The dealer will deal a second card to each hand, which is then played out separately. Should the second card dealt to either hand also be of the same rank, you can split again. The maximum number of hands that can be formed by splitting is four.

When splitting, you are required to bet the same amount on each hand as you did on your original hand. When playing online, click the SPLIT button. In a casino, indicate to the dealer you wish to split by placing the additional bet on the table near the original bet and announcing "Split".

It's not always good sense to split a pair. Once again, the decision you should make depends on your cards, and possibly the dealer's upcard.

Never split a pair of ten-valued cards. 20 is a strong starting hand. If you split tens, you risk getting dealt, for example, a six on each of them, leaving you with two weak hands of 16 each.

Likewise, never split a pair of 5s. Treat them as 10 and play the hand accordingly.

A pair of 8s should always be split; 16 is the worst starting hand, so you should try to improve it. Always split aces, too. There are more 10-valued cards in the deck than any other rank, so you have a good chance of making 21 on each hand. If you do get dealt a 10 on any split ace, it counts as an ordinary 21, however, not blackjack.

Otherwise, split pairs of:

• 2s or 3s, if the dealer's upcard is 7 or less.
• 4s, if the dealer's upcard is 5 or 6.
• 6s, if the dealer's upcard is 6 or less.
• 7s, if the dealer's upcard is 7 or less.
• 9s, if the dealer's upcard is anything except a 7, 10 or ace.

That concludes our overview of basic blackjack strategy. It may seem quite a bit to digest at first, but as you get used to the game, you'll find the decision-making process becomes second nature.

The next few posts will present some ways of making it easier to memorise basic strategy, and also cover some common rule variations that you might encounter online or offline and how to handle them.

---

Blackjack - Part Four - Doubling Down

If you are lucky enough to be dealt a starting hand that is a likely winner based on the value of the dealer's up card, you can double down, which means that you choose to double your original bet, and if your luck holds as the hands are played out, you will end up receiving four times your original bet in winnings.

The option to double down is only available on your first two cards. Once you have taken a hit to your hand, you cannot then double.

To double down when playing online, click the DOUBLE button. Your original bet will automatically be doubled, and you will receive just one more card on your hand. When playing in a casino, indicate to the dealer that you wish to double by placing the additional chips beside your original bet.

If your first two cards don't include an ace, double with these totals:

• 9, where the dealer has 3, 4, 5 or 6.
• 10, where the dealer does not have a 10 or ace. This includes situations where your 10 consists of a pair of 5s. Don't split them! You turn a strong starting hand of 10 into two weak hands of 5 each.
• 11, where the dealer does not have an ace.

When your first two cards do include an ace, double when the other card is:

• 2 or 3, where the dealer has 5 or 6.
• 4 or 5, where the dealer has 4, 5 or 6.
• 6 or 7, where the dealer has 3, 4, 5 or 6.

When doubling, you are always hoping that the one additional card you will receive will make you a total of 21 (or when doubling on a hard 9, a total of 20). May the cards always fall in your favour!

Tomorrow, splitting pairs.

---

Blackjack - Part Three - Hit Me!

Given that your hand doesn't fall into the any of the categories we've discussed so far, standing isn't the right choice. For now, assume that your starting cards are not a pair, as we'll cover splitting pairs later.

To hit your hand, and receive another card, simply click the HIT button when playing online. In a casino, indicate to the dealer that you want to hit by tapping the table next to your hand.

First, we'll look at hands where the first two cards don't include an ace. You should hit if your hand totals

• 8 or less.
• 9, and the dealer has anything except 3, 4, 5 or 6.
• 10, and the dealer has 10 or ace.
• 11, and the dealer has an ace.
• 12, and the dealer has anything except 4, 5 or 6.
• 13 to 16, and the dealer has 7 or higher.

When your first two cards do include an ace, hit based on the value of the other card:

• 2 or 3, where the dealer has anything except 5 or 6.
• 4 or 5, where the dealer has anything except 4, 5 or 6.
• 6, where the dealer has anything except 3, 4, 5 or 6.
• 7, where the dealer has 9, 10 or ace.

Continue to take hits until your hand reaches a total where you should stand, as per yesterday's post.

I've left out situations where you may wish to double down on your first two cards, as that's tomorrow's topic!

---

Blackjack - Part Two - Decisions, Decisions

Once the starting cards have been dealt, each player must decide what to do, based on their hand and that of the dealer's.

Should a player bust while playing their hand, the dealer will immediately collect their cards and bets.

After all players have finished playing their hands, the dealer turns over his hole (face down) card, and plays out his hand, which is always done according to the house rules; he cannot choose for himself. In these examples, we'll use two rules that are commonly found at casinos on the Strip in Las Vegas, and at many online casinos. I'll cover variations in later posts.

The dealer must draw cards to his hand until:

• he has a total of 17 or more.
• he busts.

If the dealer busts, all players still in the game (not busted) win their hands. Otherwise, he will end up with a final total between 17 and 21. Those players whose hands total more than the dealer's are winners and receive even money on their bets. If the player's and dealer's total are the same, it's a push and no money changes hands. Otherwise, the dealer wins.

Making the right choice when playing a blackjack hand does affect your chances of winning, sometimes dramatically. Playing accurate basic strategy is most definitely your best bet. A regular player will want to memorise the entire strategy, but for now, we'll start with the simplest decisions and work up from there.

Today, we'll just consider when to stand.

If you have a hard total (that is to say, where you don't have an ace worth 11 in your hand) of 17 or more, or a soft total (where you do have an ace worth 11 in your hand) of 19 or more, ALWAYS stand, no matter what the dealer has. When playing online, there'll be a button onscreen marked STAND, but if you were playing in Vegas, you'd indicate you wish to stand by waving your hand, palm down, above your cards without touching them.

You should also stand:

• if you have a hard total of 12, and the dealer has 4, 5 or 6.
• if you have a hard total between 13 and 16, and the dealer has 6 or less.

There is just one special case, where you have a total of 18, and we'll look at that when we discuss splitting and doubling.

Easy, right? Of course it is; blackjack is not a difficult game to learn, and it's lots of fun.

Tomorrow: when to hit. See you then.

---

You Better, You Bet!

Today, I'm going to talk about odds. No, not weird people, but the likelihood of coming away a winner in certain games of chance.

Almost every game which involves placing a bet in the hope of receiving a return involves something called the house edge, the "house" being, for example, the casino, bookmaker or lottery operator. The house edge is the percentage of each bet that the house is expected to retain. If there was no house edge, all these businesses wouldn't be in business. It's what keeps the lights on. At this point, you're probably thinking that some bets have to be a lot better than others, which is to say, the house edge has to vary depending on the game. And, of course, that's exactly right.

First of all, let's look at a really bad bet. National lotteries. Of every dollar wagered, it's not uncommon for the lottery organizer to take somewhere in the region of 50 cents. That makes the house edge a staggering 50 percent, which is to say that the player can expect to see a return of just 50 cents in the dollar over the long term. Still want to play Lotto this weekend? Yes, dreaming of what you're going to do with those millions is fun, but you and I both know that the likelihood of a win like that is infinitesimal.

As a counter example, consider a game that would have no house edge at all. The simple toss of a coin, where you double your bet if you call the coin correctly, and lose if you get it wrong. In the long term, you can expect to win a dollar for every dollar you bet. That doesn't sound very exciting, but to properly calculate odds, one has to look at the long term, or what the result would be over an infinite number of games. In the short term, you could go on a winning streak in your favorite game and do very nicely for yourself. Believe me, I've been there!

Casino games fall broadly somewhere between these two examples. Thankfully, most of them are a lot closer to being an even bet than to a national lottery. One of my favorite games, blackjack, has a tiny house edge of only one half of one percent (0.5%), and that's with fairly average rules. Make your gambling dollar go a lot further - choose your casino games wisely and, while you won't come away a winner every time you play, your money will last longer and you'll have more fun along the way. Sometimes, you'll even find a casino game where the player has an edge. If you do find one of these, you should usually play it at once, and play it hard, because the math is in your favor! Naturally, such games are extremely rare, but they do appear from time to time, and so I'll come back to them in future posts.

Time for an awesome offer! This one comes from Vegas Palms, another well respected online casino from the Fortune Lounge group, with an amazing range of games. As a new player, they'll give you an 100% match on your first deposit, up to $100 or 100 euro. Simply click the banner below and you'll be playing in no time!

In the weeks to come, I'll discuss the odds of some of the world's most popular gambling games, such as blackjack, roulette, baccarat and craps, and some tips and tricks on how to maximize your return from each game. Not secrets, just good sense! I hope you enjoy.

---