Understanding Blackjack Odds

The objective of blackjack is to have a higher card hand than the dealers, without scoring more than twenty one and going bust.

Each card has its numerical value, with face cards counted as ten points and aces as either one or eleven, depending on the cards already held. Suits are irrelevant.

Cards are dealt one at a time face up with the dealer having one card face up.

The player then weighs the odds on whether to stay on his cards, or hit by being dealt another card without going over twenty one.

The odds therefore depend on the numerical value of the cards that would be dealt next. The odds of busting are lower with a lower hand value.

The highest hand is a natural twenty one (ace with value of eleven, and ten point value cards).

If the dealer has a score of seventeen or more he can stay. If lower, the dealer must hit until he has seventeen or more.

If dealer and player score are tied, the hand is a push. The bets are made and posted with pay off usually 3:2.

It is important to understand how the house advantage works, then neutralize this, and turn it to the players’ advantage.

With the dealer being the last to act, theoretically odds are increased that the player will bust. But by using the method known as basic strategy, the house advantage of 8 per cent can be reduced to just 0.5 per cent.