For Beginners, We Make Learning a Blackjack Basic Strategy Simple
With only four easy rules to remember, we take the mystery out of Blackjack basic strategy. This section is for those of you who have never played Blackjack or have played only a
few times (or have played many times but are still a consistent loser!).
Blackjack can be as simple or as complex as you want to make it. Using card counting and advanced techniques, you can actually have a slight advantage over the house in
certain conditions. That is, if you are willing to spend hundreds of hours learning and
practicing, plus hundreds of hours each year playing!
Only a few of us have this kind of
dedication (if you are one of them, be sure to visit our Advanced Strategy section).
The beginner strategy is a simplified Blackjack basic strategy designed for those of you who have never played Blackjack
before or have played only a few times. It requires that you learn only four simple rules.
You may have heard of the term "basic strategy" for Blackjack. The Blackjack basic strategy is a
set of betting and hit/stand rules to statistically maximize your chances of winning.
The Blackjack
basic strategy rules, while not complex, still take some time and quite a bit of practice to
learn and apply consistently. Consequently, we believe it's more appropriate to call this
an "intermediate strategy". You will find it fully and clearly explained in our
Intermediate Strategy section.
For beginners, or very occasional players who don't want to spend hours practicing the
Blackjack basic strategy, we've developed our Beginner Strategy.
While this will not give you the
same low odds against you as the true Blackjack Basic Strategy (about 1%), it produces a low 2.5% or so
edge for the casino, still one of the best odds you'll find in any casino game. You won't
lose your shirt and you'll have a fighting chance of winning if you encounter a favorable
run of cards.
It should only take a few minutes to learn these four simple Blackjack basic strategy rules,
though you should probably practice for a few hours to get comfortable with them before
actually playing in a casino game.
We recommend you download the software from the Blackjack Ballroom online casino, which has a "play for free" option. This way, you can practice as much as you like before playing for real. Click here for the review and links to Blackjack Ballroom.
Hard vs Soft Hands in the Blackjack Basic Strategy
In order to understand and apply any Blackjack basic strategy, even the beginner strategy, you
need to learn the difference between "hard" and "soft" hands. This is because the
strategies for various plays are different depending on whether you have a soft hand or a
hard hand.
A "soft" hand is one that has an Ace which is counted as 11. For example, a hand
composed of an Ace and a 4 is called a soft 15.
A hand that either contains no Aces or the Ace is counted as a 1 is called a "hard" hand.
For example, a hand composed of a 6 and a 9 is a hard 15. But a hand with an Ace and 4
is called a soft 15 (11 plus 4).
A soft hand can become a hard hand if you draw additional cards and your total would
"bust" you (give you a count greater than 21) by counting the Ace as an 11. In this case,
you would count the Ace as a 1.
For example, if your first two cards are an Ace and a 5,
this is a soft 16, counting the Ace as 11. If you then draw a 7, this would bust you with a
count of 23 if the Ace is counted as an 11. In this case, you count your Ace as a 1 and
have a hard count of 13.
Blackjack for Everyone’s Basic Strategy for Beginners
Here are four Blackjack basic strategy rules that anyone can easily remember. Always
adhere to them exactly and you will be playing better then the majority of people who sit
down at a blackjack table.
While these four rules do not represent "perfect" Blackjack basic strategy, they give you a great deal of
the advantage of a perfect basic strategy and are very simple to memorize.
-
If the dealer's up card is 7 or higher, continue to draw cards until you have a hard
count of at least 17 or higher, or a soft count of 18 or higher.
-
If the dealer's up card is 6 or lower, draw cards until you have at least 12. Stop when
you have 12 or higher.
-
Always double down when your first two cards total 11. Do not double down on any
other two card count.
-
Always split aces and eights. Do not split any other pairs.
And that's it! These four simple rules will keep you out of serious trouble and ensure that
the house edge is around three percent or so – some of the best odds you'll get in a
casino.
There are several additional, more sophisticated Blackjack basic strategy rules you can use to
drop the house edge even lower and those are explained in the Intermediate Strategy. If
you are willing to invest some additional study time, you can tip the scales just a bit more
in your favor.
