Rules may be simple
The basic rules of blackjack may be so simple and easy to understand, but there are more to it than meets the eye. You still have to know the rule variations of the casinos as well as the different types of betting options typically made on a blackjack game.
The Rule Variations
As stated above, the rules on how the dealer plays his hand depends upon the casino, but this should be clearly seen though when you look at the blackjack table.
When you see the rule “Dealer Stands on All 17s,” this means that the dealer is obligated to continue hitting or drawing cards until such time that his hand total equals to 17 or higher, may it be a soft or a hard 17. One important thing that you have to know is that a dealer’s Ace is always considered as 11, if possible, without the dealer busting.
When the rule “Dealer Hits Soft 17” is employed, it is basically the same as the first rule variation, but the only difference is that the dealer has to hit when he gets soft 17. He only stands when he gets a soft 18 or higher and a hard 17 or higher.
A hard 17 is when you used the Ace as a 1 to get 17 or a set of cards that did not contain any Ace to form 17, while a soft 17 is when you used the Ace either as a 1 or an 11 to get 17 without busting.
The Types of Betting Options
If you do not want to lose all your bets, then you have the option to surrender or fold your hand. This way, you only lose half your bet, but you have to know though that you have to make the decision prior to drawing another card or making any other decisions like splitting or doubling down. There are two types of surrender. The early surrender is where you could surrender even before the dealer looks at his own cards to see if he has a blackjack or not, while in the late surrender, the dealer has to look at his cards first and check whether or not he has a blackjack and then make the decision to allow (if he does not have a blackjack) or forbid the players from making the surrender option (if he has a blackjack).
Again, before you ask for another card, you have the option to double down, which simply means that you can place an additional bet next to your original bet. You have to know though that your bet should be lower than your original bet but not lower than the table minimum. When you opt to double down, you will be given only one more additional card, so use this option only if you are confident that you are going to get a better hand total.
However, if you are dealt with a pair, you are faced with two options. You can play these two cards as one hand, or you can split them up and draw two more cards to form two hands. If you chose the latter, you have to place another bet for the new hand, and this amount should be equal to your original bet. The dealer then will give you a new card for the first hand, then you can either stand or hit until you are satisfied with the value. After this, you move on to the second hand where you repeat the same process.
The insurance option is offered when the face-up card of the dealer turns out to be an Ace because he can either have a blackjack or not. Now, to insure your hand, you can place half the value of your initial bet so that, if the dealer does get a blackjack, at least you win the insurance bet, which pays out a 2:1 odds, even though you lose your original bet. If the dealer does not have blackjack, you lose your insurance bet but still get to keep your original bet.
