Blackjack is a simple game to learn to play and when played optimally using the strategy card has a very small H/A or house advantage, depending on the variation usually between 0.3 - 0.7% with the most common being just under 0.5%.

  Play begins with the player placing a bet, the dealer then deals each player 2 cards face up and the dealer 1 card face up 1 card face down, the player makes his decisions based on this.

  If the dealer has an ace showing the player will be asked if he wants insurance against the dealer having blackjack ( an ace with a 10 or face card ) , always say no as the H/A is over 7%

Play proceeds with the aim of the game to get closer to 21 than the dealer without going over called busting.

Cards ranked 2-10 are scored on the value of each card, all face cards are valued at 10, an ace can be worth either 1 or 11.

The player can:-

Stand         if satisfied with hand

Hit       to request another card until he decides to stand, or hit 21, or bust.

Double down       if   a player is in a favourable position he may decide to double down  which is to double the initial bet, the player then receives 1 more card and 1 more card only.

Split       if a players 2 dealt cards are the same he may split his hand if desired into 2 separate hands by making another wager equal to the opening bet.

Surrender       a few casinos let a player surrender his hand and receive back half his wager

  After players have completed their hands the dealer will play his according to the house rules, the dealer must hit on all hands less than 17 and stand on hands of 17 or more ( with the exception of a few where the dealer hits a soft 17 )

The end results are as follows:-

Player and dealer tie= Push ( player gets wager back )

Player beats dealer = player wins even money

Dealer beats player = player loses

A players blackjack is payed at 3-2 ( for example a $2 wager wins $3 , player receives $5 )

All blackjacks beat a non blackjack 21