Blackjack is a constantly evolving game that has been around for centuries. New changes happen all the time thanks to its involvement in the online casino scene.
It is an altogether unique experience to play Blackjack as a player gets their own live dealer who will join them at the game table and wait for them to begin.
It is one of the most popular games to be offered in online as well as terrestrial casinos. We will now go over the essentials there are to know about Live Blackjack including its history, and basic rules and options.
History
Blackjack has been around since the 1700s andits actual origin point is still in question. The game was originally known as 21.
The reason behind it is that the objective of the game was to beat the dealer by staying close to 21 without going over it.
The name Blackjack formally arrived when people started playing in America. 21 was originally conceived in Europe.
The story goes that in order to gather more players at casinos in the US, any player who hit the Ace of spades and either one of the black jacks was assigned a 10-1 pay out.
Now though, there is no longer a need for such a payout but the name has stuck. Pay outs are now given for any Ace or 10 that has been struck.
One of the key reasons why Blackjack has come to be so popular is because it offers some of the best returns you can get playing any game at a casino. The house usually has an edge below 0.5%. Also, if you are particularly skilled and experienced, you do have a statistical edge over the actual casino you are playing in.
In fact, you could become so successful that you could be banned from playing at the casino altogether.
Basic Things to Know About Blackjack
Your opponent in Black Jack is the dealer and your sole objective is to have a hand that is a higher value than your dealer. But it shouldn’t go any higher than 21. If both the dealer’s hand and your hand happen to be equal, your bet is returned unchanged.
To begin, you must first place your bet in a so called bet box that will be provided for you. Afterwards, your dealer will deal 2 cards – both facing upwards – to all the players at the table and two cards for him/her – one facing upwards. Card values are important to remember.
2 through 9: face value
10, Jack, Queen, and King: 10
Ace: 1 or 11(Example: Ace of spades 6 of hearts may be 7 or 17 (‘soft’ 17))
The value of your hands is according to the sum of cards you have.
After the initial dealing of cards, each player will get a turn to play their hand along with a choice of receiving additional cards. All the while, they will need to maintain a total no more than 21. Else, their bet will be lost.
Rules for the Dealer
When all the player hands are complete, the dealer will look at their down card and draw more cards in accordance with the rules of the house. Usually, there are two by which they will draw.
- Stand on all 17s
- Stand on hard 17 but hit soft 17
Provided that the dealer does not bust, all hands, that are valued below the hand of the dealer, will lose their bet. All hands with a higher value than the dealer win their bets.
If the dealer does bust, all existing players will win their bet.
If a player’s initial dealing of cards amounts to 21, they get ‘Blackjack’. And if the dealer does not have blackjack as well, the player receives gets a 3 to 2 pay out on their bet. Some casinos up the ante to 6 to 5.
Player’s Hand: Hit, Stand, Double Down, Split, Insurance, Surrender
After the initial dealing of cards by the dealer, players have options to draw more cards in order to increase the value of their hand. We will show you the options detailed below.
- Hit – This results in the dealing of an additional card. You can do as many hits as you like until you bust of course.
- Stand – No additional cards can be dealt to your hand.
- Double down – Following the initial dealing of two cards, you can choose to double down. This involves doubling the stake of the initial bet and being dealt one additional card. After receiving this third card, you cannot hit more additional cards.
- Split – If you are dealt a pair on the initial round of dealing, you can split that and play each split as an independent hand. You would have to have make another bet for equal to your initial bet and then take separate turns playing each hand.Casinos have variable rules on a players ability re-split split hands or double down on them. So you should refer the house rules on that before playing.
- Insurance – Remember, of the two cards dealt by the dealer to him/herself, only one will be facing up. If that card happens to be an Ace, you as player can take insurance. For all intents and purposes, it is a side bet paying 2:1 that your dealer will hit blackjack. In any case, you will still play your hand.If the dealer does get blackjack and you have taken insurance, you will still need to get blackjack yourself or lose out on your initial bet. However, you will win the side bet with the 2:1 payout. If the take insurance and the dealer does not hit blackjack, then you play your hand but lose the side bet. Statistically speaking, insurance is not an advisable bet you should make.
- Surrender – With the surrender option, you can fold your hand in any stage of the game. This way you give up a part of your original bet stake. However this is one of the more rare options afforded at the Blackjack table.
Conclusion
Now you have a basic knowledge and understanding of how Blackjack came about and how you should play it. But before you start playing yourself, be sure to gather additional information on playing strategies. Also find the best casinos online and in the area to play on (if you want to play offline).
