Always Split Aces and Eights

There are some basics in blackjack. Splitting aces and eightsonly makes senses since a hand equaling 2 or 12 compared tohaving two hands of 11 is a no brainer. Even though you onlyreceive one card to your ace, the chances of getting 21 or arelatively decent hand are good.

Splitting eights all the time is a bit riskier. Some blackjackstuds say not to split eights if the dealer is showing a nine ora ten. For me, it depends on how the cards are flowing that daywhether I will split the eights all the time or just when itfeels right against that dealer nine or ten.

Probably the most important strategy for wining blackjack is toalways play the dealer for a ten in the hole. This will be thebasis of your winning strategy. If the dealer is showing a ten,you play him as if he has twenty and hit or stay accordingly.The same rule applies if the dealer is showing a six or anyother bust combination (12, 13, 14, or 15). You always have toplay as if you had x-ray vision and could see the dealer's holecard.

Playing hunches will kill you. You have to have a plan and stickto it. And your plan should follow the basic rules. Grantedthere will plenty of times that the dealer doesn't have that tenin the hole, but you have to stick to your guns and play it thatway.

One mistake that I see a lot of novices make is splitting tensor face cards. They will do this mostly when the dealer isshowing a bust card. They think they will be able to doubletheir money hitting each one of their tens. This is ridiculous.Who splits the second best hand in blackjack? Definitely not me.

Besides doubling down on tens and elevens, if the house allowsit, I love to double on soft 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, and 18 if thedealer is showing a 3, 4, 5 or 6. There is a good chance thedealer will bust, and also a good chance you will improve yourhand, or get a ten and it remains the same.

I have always held if I had twelve and the dealer showed a bustcard. But, recently I read that you should hit a 12 against thedealer when he shows a 2. I was a bit hesitant to do this sincethere was a chance that I would bust. But, playing this way, Ihave found out that I have won more than I have lost. Thisstrategy you will have to decide for yourself if it right foryou.

These are some of the basic blackjack strategies that you canapply. The key is to remain consistent even when the cards areagainst you. If you hit a bad run, get up from the table andtake a break. Don't keep throwing your money away when a dealeris hot.

About the author:and smells of a Las Vegas casino Submitted by: Super Article Submitter

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