CARD VALUES
The card values correspond to their listed numerical value for 2 to 10. All face cards, Jack, Queen, King, count as 10. Depending on the situation, an Ace can be used as either a 1 or 11. Suits don't matter. A hand with one card valued at 10 and an Ace is called a Blackjack, and is the best hand in the game. It's unbeatable, unless the dealer also has one. The odds of being dealt a Blackjack are 4.8%.
PLAYER OPTIONS
In a game involving multiple players, the round begins with the person to the left of the dealer as the first to act, then play goes clockwise around the table. The dealer goes last. At this stage, there are several choices for players.
HIT
Receive another card from the dealer. Some variations cap the total number of cards at five. If at any time during play your card total exceeds 21, you bust and lose the round.
STAND
Stay with the current score total and don’t receive any more cards.
DOUBLE DOWN
An option to double the play – You can double down after you receive your two initial cards and you will then receive only one more card. You may like to consider doubling down when you find yourself in one of the following situations.
1. When your cards total 11.
When your two initial cards total 11, you have a better chance of hitting 21. In the event you don’t, at least you’ll get a number closer to 21.
2. When you have a soft 16, 17 or 18.
This means your two initial cards total 16, 17 or 18 and one of the cards is an ace. Here you may like to consider doubling down only if the dealer is showing a lower card. You might be tempted to stick, particularly with a soft 18, however there’s a chance of improving your hand with a single card.
3. When you have a hard 9 or 10
“Hard” means your hand totals 9 or 10, and neither of your two initial cards is an ace. Again, it may be better to double down only when the dealer is showing a low card. Provided you get a reasonably high card, you could be in very good shape against the dealer.
Remember you won’t always find things going your way when you double down. If you’ve seen Swingers, you’ll know there are some risks with doubling down. In the movie Trent says: “Double down, baby. You gotta double down on an eleven.” Trent is dealt a ‘7’ for a total of 18, only to lose to the dealer’s non-natural 21. Ouch.
In the Global Poker version of Blackjack, the ways you can double down are a bit different, so make sure you check out our Global Poker Blackjack Rules page.
