Blackjack Online

Blackjack is said to have derived from early game versions of Baccarat, which both are credited to the French as being the 1st to have invented either game. Blackjack , also known as Pontoon or even “21”(“vingt-et-un” meaning “20 and 1”), wasn’t as popular during the introduction to America as it had been before in many other countries. Blackjack got its name because of the lack of popularity. Known as “21” during the earlier years in American history, places where Blackjack was played, began to offer incentives for players to try the game out. The most popular incentive was the idea of getting a black Ace and a black Jack, calling it Blackjack, which would pay players 10 to 1 odds on their bet. The name Blackjack was utilized and became the new popular name of the game. As the game grew even more popular over the years to come, Blackjack was not required to have only an Ace or Jack to make Blackjack, instead the game evolved into any card value of 10 along with any Ace. With the odds of getting Blackjack was increased, the payoff for this hand dramatically decreased. Today, almost all casinos offer a 3 to 2 payoff for the hand.

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The object of the game of Blackjack is fairly simple, get 21 or as close as you can to it without going over while beating the dealer’s hand at the same time. With the object of the game known, the other rules of the game will be easy to follow. While most casinos play the game of Blackjack pretty much the same, there are other variations of the game that players enjoy to play as well.

Basic Rules of play of Blackjack:

The value of the cards are basically as you read them: cards 2-9 are valued by their numbers(meaning 2=2, 3=3, etc). All face cards which are Jack, Queen, and King, all have the value of 10. The Ace however, has a value of 1 or 11. The value of the Ace can change during play, meaning if a player were dealt A 2, the player could have either 3 or 13. If that player decides to draw another card to get closer to 21 and draws a 9, then he would have 12 or 22. Since 22 is over 21, the Ace will become a 1, giving the player 12, and he or she may draw another card or stand. Once these values of the cards are learned, just about anyone can play the game of Blackjack. Any hand dealt to either the player or dealer, includes an Ace with any card value of 9 or less, is called “soft”, meaning the Ace is used as 11. (example: A+7=18, called “soft” 18)

Play for the Player: the player places a wager in the betting box and then is dealt his or her hand. A player gets dealt two cards, and is then determined whether the player wants to “Hit” (meaning draw another card) or “Stand”(meaning to draw no more cards). The dealer is also dealt two cards at the same time, with one card facing up, and one facing down(hole card). Once the player realizes the value of his or her cards compared to the dealer’s cards, the player can then make the decision whether he or she needs to hit or stand. Once the player stands, he or she may not hit to anymore cards and the play turns to the dealer.
If during a hit, the player goes over 21(busts), the hand is over and the player automatically loses.

Play for the Dealer: Once the player’s hand is finished, the dealer is next to act on his cards. With one facing up, the dealer will turn over the “hole card” to determine what the value of his hand is. Unlike the player hand, there is a few rules for the dealer that differs from the player. If the Dealer shows 16 or less, the dealer must hit for another card without choice. The only time the dealer does not have to hit when his value is 16 or less, is when the player before hand, busted. If the Dealer’s hand is of value of 17 or more, the dealer must stand without choice, regardless of the players hand. If the dealer busts, all players or player at the table win as long as they did not bust before hand. If the Dealer stands on a hand, the hand which is closer to 21, wins. The odds are usually paid 1:1, essentially doubling your bet.

With this said, this is just the start of playing blackjack. There are other options of play during the game such as “Doubling Down”, “Splitting”, and Surrender”.

“Doubling down” is an option that allows a player to double down on their bet once the 1st two cards have been dealt and usually equals 9 or 10. When “Doubling Down”, a player gets to hit one card only regardless of the total of their hand after the hit card has been dealt. One tip when doubling down is to only double down if the dealer is showing a 6 or less.

“Splitting” is an option that occurs when a player is dealt the same value of cards such as a 7 and another 7, 9 and another 9, etc. Depending on the casino rules, card values of 10 can usually be split as well, but some casinos may require the same cards together to be able to split, such as KK, QQ, or JJ. Aces can also be split, but when splitting Aces, the payout is normal if you complete a Blackjack or 21 during the split. When splitting cards, the cards will be split into two hands, requiring another ante or bet to be placed for the 2nd hand. Once cards or split, for example, 9 and 9, each card will be dealt another card to go along with the original 9, giving you two hands to play. Depending on what the other 2 cards making each hand are, you may then decide whether to hit or stand to complete play on each hand. In some cases, again, depending on the casino, if you are dealt another paired card to other original cards that were split, you may be able to split again, costing you another ante or bet. A tip when splitting, is the same as doubling down, a player usually fairs better to split if the dealer is showing 16 or less.

"Surrender" is a lesser-known play option in blackjack, which is not offered in every game. Surrender allows a player to fold their hand at the cost of half the original bet. If you originally bet $20, a surrender would cost you $10 out of that $20. The decision to surrender must be made prior to any other action. Once you draw, split or double down then surrender is no longer available as an option. There are two types of surrender, early and late. The difference between the types is only in the way that a dealer blackjack is handled. In an early surrender, a player may choose to surrender before the dealer checks his hand for a blackjack. The early surrender is rarely offered because is can give the player a nice advantage. In the late surrender, the dealer first checks for blackjack. Surrender is only then available if the dealer does not have a blackjack. Learning to use the surrender option can be very valuable in the right situation.

The game of Blackjack has evolved over the many years, and even now a days, different variations and rules are offered at all casinos world wide. With the birth of online casinos, you can find any version of Blackjack that you want to play. Online casinos bring the casino to the player, instead of the player bringing their self to the casino. These basic rules of the game will pretty much allow you to play at any casino online or land-based.