Blackjack is the most popular casino game not only at land based traditional casinos but at online casinos as well. The reason for its popularity is that it is a fairly easy game to learn and play. Be careful though because there is some strategy that should be used when playing blackjack. It is not as easy as hitting to 21 or simply beating the dealer. There are odds involved and if played properly the casino edge can be reduced to make blackjack one of the more profitable games in the casino.
The main point to playing blackjack is that it does not matter what cards you have. The most important card on the table is the dealers up card. When playing blackjack you should assume the dealer has a 10 as his hole card (card facing down). If the dealer has a 10 up you assume he has 20. If he has a 6 up you assume he has 16. Always figure that the dealer has a 10 as his hole card. It is amazing how many players do not grasp this concept. How you play your cards is dependant 100% on what the dealers up card is.
If the dealers up card is a 6 or lower you know he has to hit and your strategy should be to let him bust (go over 21). Looking at your cards if there is anyway you can bust by hitting you should stand. This is hard for some people to understand, but if you have 13 and the dealer has to hit, your best bet is to stand and let him bust. If the dealer has a 6 up and you assume he has a 10 underneath, anything over a 5 and he busts and you win with your 13!
The main take away from this is that you do not need to beat the dealer if he has to hit. The best bet is to let the dealer hit and break (go over 21). With you sitting at 13 you actually have two chances to lose instead of one. The first chance being that you go over 21 and the second that the dealer beats you with a higher number combination.
This is just one quick lesson in simple blackjack strategy. For an easier demonstration of this you can always reference a blackjack strategy chart which will show you when to hit, stand, double and split. There are many other blackjack strategy techniques you can use. To see more techniques see the blackjack strategy section and start making blackjack a more profitable game.
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