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Every blackjack player knows, or should know, that with best strategy on every hand, the return to player rate in blackjack here at Everygame Casino is about 99.5%. However, there are several really difficult hands that come up in blackjack and many players still do not fully understand these hands. So, we will try to set everyone on the course to blackjack fun and profit, which takes just a smidgen of luck to achieve.
Always Look at the Dealer’s Up Card
If the dealer is showing a 5 or a 6, he or she may have a very poor hand. If the dealer is showing an ace or a ten-point card, he or she may have a very strong hand. A player with the same hand may play it one way when facing a 5 or a 6 or a different way when facing an ace or a ten-point card.
The point here is the dealer’s up card is as important to the player as his or her own hand.
The Horrible 12
So many players have 12 points. Stretching this analysis a bit, we can say that a lot of players have 13 points as well. With these hands, a player can bust. What should he do? If the dealer has a 7 to an ace, the correct play is to hit because the dealer could have anywhere from 17 to 21.
If the dealer has 5 or 6, the best play is to stand because these hands often result in a bust for the dealer.
So, we have two permanent strategy features in blackjack. First, protect your flank. That means that you have to risk busting if the dealer already has you beat. You don’t know what the dealer has but there are very good chances that she already has you beat if she has a 7 to an ace.
Second, let the dealer lose the hand without giving the house the chance to get you to bust first. A lot of blackjack players stand with 12 or more points in all cases. As we have seen, this is poor strategy. It means that the player has not looked at the dealer’s up card and made a decision based on that card.
This second rule applies when the dealer has 5 or a 6.
The Hand You are Playing when You are Counting Cards
The only way counting cards gives a player an advantage over the house is when the player has a powerful card count and can win extra money by making a strong and aggressive bet at that critical moment.
A lot of blackjack players practice card counting but freeze up at the blackjack table when the moment to strike is there. If the card count says that there are a relatively large number of 10-point cards still in the deck, and the player has 12 points, a hit at that moment has a strong probability of the player busting.
However, the dealer’s down card may be a 10-point card and with a 7 to ace up card, the dealer has the player beat. The player has made an aggressive bet because the card count showed that to be the best strategy, but the cards in the actual hand indicate that the player has a powerful weakness in this hand.
The point is that card counting is a lot more complex than just +1 or -1. Furthermore, many land-based casinos use a six-deck shoe. This makes card counting especially difficult and fraught with danger for the player. Online casinos such as Everygame Casino have perpetually shuffling software so card counting at an online casino is next to impossible.
Doubling Down Can Confuse Players
If you are dealt 11 points, you should double down even when the dealer has an ace. Statistically, the player has a slightly better chance to win the hand when he or she doubles down with 11 points. And, if you double down, you would win double your original bet.
What should a player do when he or she has 10 points and the dealer has a 10-point card? In this case, and also when the dealer has an ace, the best strategy is to hit but not to double down. Many players get caught up in the excellent point count and treat it like an 11 count. A 10 count is just slightly less valuable than an 11 count but that slightly lower value changes the strategy.
It is the composure a player needs in this case that makes it a difficult hand.
16 Points Can Discombobulate a Player
At first look, we would say that a player should never hit with 16 points. In a game that offers the surrender option, if the dealer has 7 to an ace, then surrender would be the best play from the statistical point of view.
If the game does not offer the surrender option, then the player’s best play facing 7 to an ace with 16 points is to hit! A lot of blackjack players cannot bring themselves to hit with 16 points. But when a player is facing 7 to an ace, the best play is to hit.
Now, if the dealer has a 2 to 5 showing, then the strategy changes dramatically and the player should stand.
Two 8’s Also Add up to 16 Points
Statistics have borne out that a player should always split two 8’s even when the dealer has 9 to and ace! Standing with two 8’s in a hand where the dealer has 9 to ace will lose many more times than if the player splits the 8’s. Splitting 8’s when the dealer has 18 points “beat”, seems counter-intuitive. Still, splitting those 8’s is the best play regardless of what the dealer has.
Some Players Do Not Fully Understand the Difference between a Soft Hand and a Hard Hand.
Of course, everyone knows that a soft hand has an ace that can be either 11 points or one point. But there are hands that confuse players when the hands are soft. The classic such hand is a soft 18.
Clearly, a player will stand with a hard 18 no matter what the dealer’s up card is. Hitting a hard 18 is a very poor strategy in all cases. But a soft 18 can also be just 8 points! In many hands, 18 points is not a strong hand for the player. So, the player should hit soft 18 unless the dealer has a 5, 6, or 7.
Everygame Casino Will be Back
Clearly, there is more to blackjack than what we have covered here. So, Everygame Casino will continue our discussion of tricky blackjack hands in an upcoming article.
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