Playing Blackjack Against The Dealer

Some hard totals in blackjack are more difficult to handle since they are neither high enough to stand on nor low enough to hit without a significant risk of breaking the hand. This gets many recreational players perplexed causing them to make intuitive decisions while at the table and we all know what hunches translate into in the context of gambling – excruciating losses in the long term.

The basics of Blackjack are fairly straightforward, both when playing against a real-life dealer or against an AI, which is probably more likely in these lockdown days. It’s even true when playing it for fun and for free with friends or even your kids (you can play with candy just as easily as you can play with real money).

Our free blackjack game puts you up against a digital dealer and challenges you to beat a computer designed to win at all costs. Think you’re up to the test? Play blackjack online for free with Arkadium and see just how good you are at this classic card game! What is blackjack? Blackjack is one of the most popular online casino games. Usually in blackjack, the dealer must hit on 16 and stand on 17. These rules are slightly different for other variations of twenty-one. So generally, the odds of the dealer's final score being 16 are 0% because he must hit. This table will show the probability of the dealer busting or getting a non-bust hand as well as natural blackjacks. For example, if you play a 6:5 blackjack game you’re adding a 1.39% disadvantage. If the dealer hits soft 17 that’s another.18%. However, it’s possible to find games where the player is paid 3:2 for blackjacks and the dealer stands on soft 17. So find those games. Also be careful about which blackjack variation you play.

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Two of the hands many unwitting players tend to struggle with are hard totals 12 and 13. Some people are bold enough to always hit those hands in an attempt to outdraw their dealer. Others are terrified of the idea of busting on a hit so they always decide to stand.

What both types of players choose to ignore is that mathematically, there is a right and a wrong way to play hard 12 and hard 13. It all comes down to what dealer upcard you are facing. In this article, we explain the right ways to play these totals and tackle some commonly committed mistakes.

The Optimal Playing Decisions for Hard 12

Like all hard totals, hard 12 lacks an Ace that can be counted as 1 or 11 which takes away the much-desired flexibility of its soft cousin. This hand total can result from the following two-card combinations: 6-6, 7-5, 8-4, 10-2, and 9-3.

A pair of Aces also results in a 12 but we are not discussing this here because this is a soft total that calls for an entirely different approach. The correct playing decisions for a hard 12 are based solely on the upcards of the dealer.

The number of decks and the playing conditions for the dealer do not affect your decisions in this case since the optimal strategy for hard 12 is the same no matter whether you are playing single-deck, double-deck, multiple-deck, H17, or S17 blackjack.

Basic strategy advises players to stand on hard 12 against dealers who expose a 4, a 5, or a 6. If you take the time to examine the chart in our article on blackjack odds and probabilities, you will immediately notice that these three cards are very disadvantageous for the dealer because they carry over 40% risk of the dealer busting.

The Optimal Playing Decisions for Hard 12 Additional TipsIf the dealer exposes cards 2, 3, 7, 8, 9, 10, or Ace, players are recommended to hit their hard 12. The dealer may still be in a breaking position with the deuce and the trey but these two cards are not as bad for him or her.

The likelihood of the dealer busting with them is respectively, 35.30% and 37.56% so you stand better chances of winning if you hit instead of standing on your hard 12. Hitting the hard 12 against a 2 or a 3 is recommended because there are only 4 out of 13 possible card denominations that can lead to a bust – the 10 and the three court cards (Jack, Queen, and King).

Then again, 3 out of 13 card denominations result in a significant improvement of the player’s hand, the 9, the 8, and 7. If you draw cards 2 through 6, you may not end up with a stellar total but at least you can rest certain they will not bust you either.

Note that when the dealer shows upcards 7 through Ace, they are in a standing position which is to say there are more likely to turn over a hole card that gives them their standing total of 17 or higher. Because of this, you are recommended to take a hit on your hard 12. Otherwise, the dealer will outdraw you most of the time with upcards 7 through Ace.

Doubling down is never an option with a hard holding of 12 but you may choose to split paired 6s. We cover this subject in more detail in a separate article. For now, it suffices to say that here your splitting decisions are affected by the number of decks in play as well as by your dealer’s upcard and their fixed standing total.

Misplaying Hard 12 against the Dealer’s Deuce

One of the most striking things about this hard total is that it appears on the list of the most frequently misplayed hands in blackjack despite the fact the basic strategy decisions for hard 12 are among the simplest to learn because they are pretty much the same regardless of deck number and dealer standing rules.

Many unknowledgeable players tend to misplay their hard 12 particularly when they are up against a dealer exposing a deuce. As we explained, the correct play for hard 12 against a 2 is to hit. Yet, many people choose the opposite move – they stand instead of hitting because they are scared of busting with a ten-value card.

All qualms of the house outdrawing them disappear because the deuce is a bad card that exposes the dealer to the risk of busting, right? But then again, there is also the “10 in the hole” rule some players always abide by, reasoning that the dealer’s hole card should always be considered a ten-value one. The dealer would flip a 10 next to their deuce, take another hit, and bust.

And, yes, the deuce is surely not the most advantageous card for the dealer but it does not put them in the worse possible position, either, like a 5 or a 6 does. Their bust frequency with the deuce is lower as we told you earlier, which skews the probabilities of winning the hard 12 with a hit in your favor, albeit slightly.

Misplaying Hard 12 against the Dealer’s Deuce Additional TipsAs was previously explained, there are only 4 out of 13 cards that can cause you to bust on a hard 12 by taking a hit. Cards 5 through 9 put you in a better position with pat hands that total 17 through 21. Therefore, there are 5 cards that help you out of 13 possible denominations.

In six-deck blackjack where the dealer follows the S17 rule, your probability of winning is roughly 35% if you choose to stand on hard 12 against a deuce while that of you losing is almost twice as high at around 65%, i.e. if we do not take pushes into consideration.

Meanwhile, the likelihood of you winning if you take a hit in this situation is slightly greater at around 37% while that of you losing is roughly 63%. You are dealing with negative expectation no matter how you look at it. If you are consistent with standing on hard 12 against a deuce, you will lose $30 on average per every $100 you wager ($65-$35 = $30) when you flat bet in increments of $1 per hand.

Provided that you hit this hand consistently, you will lose only $26 on average for every $100 wagered on your hard 12 against a deuce ($63 – $37 = $26). It makes sense that you should choose the move that causes you to lose less money, right?

The Optimal Playing Decisions for Hard 13

The optimal playing decisions for hard 13 are also the same regardless of how many decks you are playing and the fixed rules set by the house. This is yet another hand that lacks an Ace or when it contains one, it has a value of 1 only. Here are a few examples of hard 13 hands: 7-6, 8-5, 9-4, 10-3, 10-2-A, and 9-3-A.

Since hard 13 is more prone to busting than hard 12 (with 5 out of 13 card denominations that can break the hand), players should approach it more conservatively. Basic strategy recommends standing on hard 13 against upcards 2 through 6 because these put the dealer in a breaking position.

Conversely, the optimal approach for hard 13 when the dealer shows cards 7 through Ace is to take a hit. These cards are more likely to result in pat hands and put the dealer in a standing position where they outdraw the player’s hard 13.

Now that you know how to approach hands 12 and 13 against all possible upcards of the dealer, these two hard totals should no longer pose as a predicament to you at the blackjack table. Moreover, the strategy works in both online and landbased blackjack games.

It’s easy enough to find how to play blackjack articles on the internet, but a lot of them ignore the subtler aspects of the blackjack card game’s rules.

This post is my attempt to correct that and focus more on the rules of play than the basic stuff.

At the same time, this post should be more useful for the blackjack beginner because it covers rules that other pages don’t cover.

A Broad Overview of Blackjack Card Game Rules

You play real money blackjack with the same standard 52-card deck that’s used for poker or other casino card games like baccarat. The joker is never used, and there are no wild cards in blackjack. Most casinos use multiple decks of cards, usually 2, 6, or 8 decks.

The dealer uses a blank card to signify when it’s time to reshuffle the decks, and if the casino is using more than 4 decks, the cards are dealt from a box called a “shoe.” In single deck or 2-deck games, the cards are dealt by hand.

The object of the game is to get a score as close as you can to 21 without going over. You have one opponent – the dealer. How the play of the other gamblers goes has nothing to do with your own outcomes.

The cards have point values based on their rankings. In other words, the 2 of spades is worth 2 points, the 3 of hearts is worth 3 points, and so on. The suit doesn’t affect the point scores for the cards.

Face cards – the jack, queen, and king – are each worth 10 points.

And an ace counts as 1 or as 11, depending on which is better for the player.

Blackjack Betting Rules (Cash and Chips) – How to Bet on the Card Game

Before you can play, you must buy into the game. This usually means exchanging cash for chips at the blackjack table, but in many casinos, you can play cash, too. Usually you only play cash once when you first sit down at the table, though – as soon as that first hand is dealt, the dealer will want to convert your cash to chips.

It’s important that you don’t hand your cash directly to the dealer. Lay it on the table. The dealer doesn’t want to be accused of stealing your money, which is why they have such specific procedures in terms of counting your money on the table in such a way that it can be filmed by the camera above – the “eye in the sky.”

You’ll find a placard at the blackjack table which lists the betting limits. You’ll rarely find a casino offering a minimum bet of less than $5 per hand, and $500 per hand is often the maximum bet. High roller rooms often have higher betting maximums, but it’s important to know the minimum before sitting down.

You don’t want to buy in for $300 at a $100 minimum blackjack table and wind up with only 3 chips to play with.

The Rules for Dealing Blackjack – How to Deal the Card Game

The cards get shuffled periodically at most casinos, usually when the deck has been dealt down to the cut card. In some casinos, though, a continuous shuffling machine is used. In this case, you can forget all about counting cards.

The Dealer Has Specific Rules for How to Deal

She waits until everyone has placed their bets and the decks have been shuffled. Then she gives each player a card, one at a time, clockwise around the table. She also gives herself a card, face-up.

The players’ cards are dealt face-up in a game dealt from a shoe, but if the game is being dealt from the dealer’s hand, the cards are dealt face-down.

After everyone gets their first card, the dealer gives each player a 2^nd card. The players either get both cards face-up or face-down, depending on the nature of the game. But the dealer’s 2^nd card is always face-down.

That’s how the initial deal goes.

After that, it’s time to make game-play decisions.

Blackjack Rules for Naturals

Match The Dealer Blackjack

The first thing that happens after the deal in this card game is the adjudication of “naturals”, AKA “blackjacks.”

A blackjack, or natural, is a 2-card hand worth 21 points. To get a blackjack, you must have an ace, but you must also have a 10-point card. It doesn’t matter if it’s a face card or a 10, it still counts as a blackjack if it’s 2 cards that make up a total of 21.

Why Does The Blackjack Dealer Have An Advantage

If a player gets a natural and the dealer doesn’t, the player immediately gets paid off at 3 to 2 odds. In other words, if you bet $5 on the hand, you win $7.50 immediately. That’s it for the hand.

Note:

Some versions of blackjack only pay off at 6 to 5 odds. You should avoid such games, as they give the house a much higher mathematical edge than the standard version of the card game.

If a dealer gets a natural and the player doesn’t, the player immediately loses. But you only lose the bet. You don’t pay a penalty or anything like that.

If both the player and the dealer get a natural, the result is a push. The player gets to keep his bet, but he doesn’t get any winnings. A push is basically the same thing as a tie.

A natural only happens about once out of every 20 of your hands, so it’s common enough that you’ll see it often.

But most of the time, you’ll still have to play your hand.

Blackjack Gameplay Rules – How to Play the Card Game

So far there hasn’t been much gameplay to discuss – just betting, shuffling, dealing, and checking for naturals.

Once all that’s done, the gameplay begins, and that’s where the rules for this card game get interesting.

The player to the dealer’s left acts first, and play proceeds around the table. The dealer acts last.

Why Does Blackjack Dealer Always Win

The 2 basic moves in the game are to stand or to hit. To stand means to decline any additional cards and take the total you have to the showdown. To hit means to accept another card from the dealer to increase your total score.

You have no limit to the number of additional cards you can take, but you can also decide to stand at any time.

But, if at any time, you hit and get an additional card that makes your total 22 or higher, you immediately lose and the dealer collects your bet.

This is, in fact, where the house gets its edge. Even if the dealer also busts, you’re already out of the game if you’ve busted. What should be a tie in a “fair” game is a loss for the player.

But, if you play with basic blackjack strategy, the house edge for blackjack is one of the lowest in the casino. It’s less than 1% depending on the conditions of the game.

Also, this is a good time to point out the importance of an ace. Since it can count as 1 or 11, you have more flexibility in how aggressively you play your hand. That’s why your total number of points when you have an ace in your hand is called a “soft” total. It’s impossible to bust a soft total because you can always decide to count the ace as 1 instead of 11.

The Card Game Rules for Other Player Options

Hitting and standing aren’t your only options. You can also do the following with your hand:

• Double Down – This means to double the size of your bet and take one – and only one – additional card.
• Take Insurance – This option is only available when the dealer has an ace. Insurance is a side bet that the dealer has a 10 for her face-down card, giving her a blackjack. The size of the insurance bet is half that of your initial bet, and it pays off at 2 to 1. Of course, if you win the insurance bet, you lose your main bet, breaking even for the hand. That’s why it’s called “insurance.” You’re insuring your hand against the possibility that the dealer has a blackjack.
• Split – When you have 2 cards of the same rank, like aces or 8s, for example, you can put up an extra bet and play 2 hands. The starting card for each of the 2 hands comes from your hand, and you get a new card on top of each of them. You play each hand independently from that point forward.

Rules for How the Dealer Plays Her Hand

Once all the players have busted (gotten a total of 22+) or stood, the dealer plays her hand. The dealer doesn’t get to exercise judgment when playing her hand; she must play according to the house rules for the dealer.

This means the dealer must hit any total of 16 or lower. It also means the dealer must stand on a total of 17.

There’s one wrinkle, though – a soft total of 17 might force the dealer to stand, or it might force the dealer to hit. If the dealer must stand on a soft 17, that’s an advantage for the player. If the dealer hits a soft 17, the casino has a higher edge than in the other version of the game.

Once the dealer stands, the bets are paid off. If the dealer has a higher total than the player, the dealer wins the player’s bet. If the player has a higher total than the dealer, the dealer pays the bet off at even money.

If the dealer and the player stand on the same total, the bet is considered a push. The player gets his bet back, but he gets no winnings on top of it.

Conclusion

How To Beat Blackjack Dealer

That’s my best, most complete, and simplest explanation for blackjack card game rules.

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Playing Blackjack At The Casino

If I left anything out, let me know in the comments.

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