Welcome to our black jack games guide. Here you will find information about blackjack. The rules for black jack games, the history of the games, blackjack basic strategy and more.

The first recognized effort to apply mathematics to black jack games was recorded in 1956, when Roger Baldwin published a paper in the Journal of the American Statistical Association entitled "The Optimum Strategy in BlackJack". In 1962 Professor Edward O. Thorp refined basic strategy and developed the first card counting techniques. He published his results in a book that became so popular that for a week in 1963 it was on the New York Times best-seller list "Beat the Dealer".

Because of this book a number of casinos changed their black jack games rules, giving them an even greater advantage than they had previously enjoyed. But this didn't last for long, because people protested by refusing to play the game with the unfavorable rules, casinos quickly responded by going back to the original rules. Soon black jack games began to compete with craps as the most popular casino game in the state of Nevada.

In the 1970's computers which could perform a million-hand black jack games simulations allowed players to produce sophisticated game strategies and many scientists, mathematicians, university professors, and other intellectuals began writing books on the game. Soon it became evident that Casinos were afraid that scientific, computer-devised systems would have harmful effect on their potential profits, and many changed their games from single deck to multiple-deck games in the 1970's to counteract the computer strategies.

Rules

The rules of black jack games differ slightly from area to area and/or from casino to casino. Therefore, it is important to research what the rules are for the area/casinos you plan on playing in.

The black jack games table seats a dealer and one to seven players. The first seat on the dealer's left is referred to as First Base, the first seat on the dealer's right is referred to as Third Base. A betting square is printed on the felt table in front of each player seat. Immediately in front of the dealer is the chip tray. On the dealer's left is the deck or shoe and beside that should be the minimum bet sign, which you ought to read before sitting down to play.

On the dealer's immediate right is the money drop slot where all currency and tips (chips) are deposited. Next to the drop slot is the discard tray. Play begins after the following ritual is completed: the dealer shuffles the cards, the deck is "cut" by a player using the marker card, and the dealer "burns" a card. Before any cards are dealt, the players may make a wager by placing the desired chips (value and number) into the betting box.

Once all the bets are down, two cards (one at a time) are dealt from left to right. In many Vegas casinos, players get both cards face down. In Atlantic City and most every where else the player's cards are dealt face up. Should the cards be dealt face up, don't make the faux pas of touching them! They are dealt face up for a reason, primarily to prevent a few types of cheating.

The dealer receives one card down and one card up. The numerical values of the cards are: (10, J, Q, K) = 10 ; (Ace) = 1 or 11 ; (other cards) = face value (3 = 3). Since a casino can be very noisy, hand signals are usually the preferred method of signalling hit, stand, etc.

The rules the dealer must play by are very simple. If the dealer's hand is 16 or less, he/she must take a card. If the dealer's hand is 17 or more, he/she must stand. Note that some casinos allow the dealer to hit on soft 17 which gives the house a very small additional advantage. The dealer's strategy is fixed and what you and the other players have is immaterial to him/her as far as hitting and standing is concerned.

If you have a pair that you want to split and your cards are dealt face down, turn them over and place them a few inches apart. If your cards were dealt face up, point to your cards and say "split" when the dealer prompts you for a card. The original bet will go with one card and you will have to place an equal amount of chips in the betting box near the other card. You are now playing two hands, each as though they were regular hands with the exception being that if you have just split two aces. In that case, you only get one card which will hopefully be a 10. If it is a ten, that hand's total is now 21 but the hand isn't considered a black jack games.

Insurance comes into play when the dealer's up card is an Ace. If a player wants insurance, half the original amount bet is placed on the semicircle labeled "insurance" which is printed on the table.

Basic Strategy

The black jack games basic strategy is a simple set of rules. Basic strategy reveals when to hit, stand, or double by taking into account only two factors: your cards and the dealer's upcard. Basic strategy allows you to win more and lose less.

The following terms are useful when learning basic black jack games strategy:

HARD HANDS - all hands not containing an Ace.
SOFT HANDS - all hands containing an Ace coupled with a 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, or 9.
PAIRS - all hands that contain a pair of cards with the same value. A simplified approach to basic black jack games strategy is as follows:

HARD HANDS:
If you have a 9 or lower, hit.
If you have 10 or 11, double down if your total is more than the dealer's upcard; hit otherwise.
If you have 12 through 16, hit when the dealer's upcard is 7 or higher; stand otherwise.
If you have 17 or higher, stand.

SOFT HANDS:
If you have 13 through 18, double down when the dealer's upcard is 5 or 6.
If you have 17 or lower, hit.
If you have 18, hit when dealer's upcard is 6 or less; stand when dealer's upcard is 7 or more.
If you have 19 or higher, stand.

PAIRS:
Always split a pair of 8's or Aces.
Never split 10's, 4's, or 5's.
Split all other pairs when dealer's upcard is 6 or less.

Insurance is NOT recommended!

Splitting pairs: If your two cards are the same value, you can 'split' them into two separate hands. The catch is that you also have to make two bets (one for each of the hands you now hold). Each split pair can be split again, for a total of four hands. If you split on an ace, you can only take one hit, but for all other cards you can take as many hits as you want.

Doubling down: When your total is 10 or 11 (after being dealt your first two cards) you can choose to 'double down'. This is starting a second bet (up to the same amount as your original wager).

When doubling, you can only take one hit. (NB It is dangerous to split two fives - you are replacing a hand that is potentially excellent for drawing on or doubling down on, by what will probably be two poor hands.)

Insurance: If the dealer's face-up card is an ace, you can make a side bet. You can wager up to half your original bet that the facedown card is worth 10 or more (i.e. a picture card or a 10). If you are correct, and the dealer has a black jack games, the player wins the side bet (the insurance bet) but loses the original bet. Therefore the player feels no net loss or gain. If it's not a face card or a 10, you lose the side bet or 'insurance'.

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