Blackjack is beloved worldwide for good reason. The rules are simple to grasp yet allow for intricate strategy, making it easy to learn but difficult to master. While luck plays a role, understanding the mechanics of the game by studying blackjack hands is key to long-term success.
In this comprehensive guide, we break down everything you need to know about the various blackjack hands, from the best to worst. You'll learn hand rankings, terminology, soft vs hard hands, and basic strategy to equip you to make optimal moves at the table. So shuffle up and deal – let's dive in!
Blackjack Hand Rankings and Probabilities
The goal of blackjack is straightforward: get a hand value closer to 21 than the dealer without going over. But not all hands are created equal in their likelihood of winning or losing. That's why every good blackjack player understands hand rankings and probabilities inside out before sitting down to play.
The Best Possible Hand – Natural Blackjack
There's no better way to start a round than being dealt an ace and a ten-value card, like a 10, Jack, Queen, or King. This unmatched combination is called a "natural" or "blackjack" and pays out 3-2 on your initial bet.
You automatically win unless the dealer also draws a natural, resulting in a push (tie). With a natural blackjack hand, you get paid out before anyone else receives cards, making it the best possible starting hand with odds of 4.8% in a single deck game.
More Favorable Hands
While nothing beats a blackjack, other strong starting hands in rank order include:
● Hard 20: Comprised of any cards totaling 20 (like 8+Q). You'll stand on this extremely formidable hand nearly every time.
● Soft 20 and 21: These contain an ace counted as 11 rather than 1. Examples include A+9 and A+8+2.
● Hard 11 and Hard/Soft 19: Splitting a pair of aces, which counts as Hard 12, also makes the list of desirable hands.
When dealt any of these hands, especially against a dealer's weaker upcard, you're in an excellent position to win that round.
Unfavorable Hands
On the flip side, some starting hands make winning very unlikely and busting extremely probable. These include:
● Hard 16: This stagnant hand offers bleak prospects. With a 62% chance of going bust by taking another card, standing provides the "best" outlook.
● Hard 15 or less: Low hands like Hard 13 and 14 leave little room to improve without going over 21. Even if the dealer has a moderately poor hand themselves, hitting is extremely risky.
● Soft 17 and under: While the presence of an ace helps, low soft hands still carry significant bust potential with further hits.
Never let unfavorable holdings put you on tilt though! Even dealt a Hard 16 against the dealer's ominous face card, you still have around a 35% probability of winning if playing perfect basic strategy.
Blackjack Terms and Lingo
Now that you know the best and worst starting hands in blackjack, understanding key terminology is vital for any card counter or advantage player. So before hitting the tables, commit these essential phrases to memory:
● Bust: Going over 21, resulting in an automatic loss of your bet for that round regardless of the dealer's hand.
● Double Down: Doubling your initial wager in exchange for one additional card. Generally only done on very strong starting hands.
● Hard Hand: Any hand without an ace or where the ace can only be counted as 1 without the total going over 21.
● Hit: To take another card from the dealer.
● Push: A tie between the player's hand and the dealer's. Initial bets remain on the table for the next round.
● Soft Hand: A hand where the ace can be counted as 11 without the total exceeding 21. Offers more hitting flexibility.
● Stand: To stick with your current cards and decline any further from the dealer.
With these terms locked down, you have the lingo to follow any gaming guide or have an informed conversation at the blackjack table! Now, let's examine hard versus soft hands more closely.
Soft Hands vs Hard Hands
One nuanced strategic aspect of blackjack is knowing when to utilize the ace as 1 or 11 based on your other cards. That difference distinguishes soft from hard hands. Mastering the contrast is key to making optimal plays.
The Flexibility of Soft Hands
Soft hands contain an ace counted as 11 rather than 1. Since the ace holds two potential values, soft hands afford more hitting flexibility without busting compared to hard hands.
For instance, say you're dealt an ace (11) and a 5. That grants you a Soft 16 – not an inherently strong hand, but the ace's duality retains plenty of space to improve. Drawing a 3, 4, 5 or 6 safely builds your hand without fear of exceeding 21. Even landing a face card still provides a Soft 17 for potential further hits.
Of course, caution remains essential when playing soft holdings. If the dealer shows a menacing face card or ten, standing on low soft totals to avoid getting burned becomes advisable. Yet in a vacuum, soft hands provide Beginner blackjack players considerably more room to operate.
The Rigidity of Hard Hands
Hard hands conversely lack an ace or only allow counting the ace as 1 without busting. Devoid of the ace's flexibility, hard hands strictly abide by standard 21 rules – land on a 5 when holding 16 and you go bust.
Faced with a Hard 16 yourself against the dealer's ominous face card, hitting risks immediate loss by exceeding 21. Standing retains a fighting chance to win depending on the dealer's final cards. With hard hands, each hit directly impacts your ability to stick below 21.
That rigid restriction naturally lowers your odds and room to maneuver somewhat. Yet by following basic strategy guidelines, even tough hard hands retain decent winning chances against the dealer's similarly bounded hand ceiling.
Choosing Hard vs Soft Strategically
Whether to utilize the ace as 1 or 11 depends largely on what other cards make up your hand. Following basic soft and hard rules provides mathematical guidance tailored to each situation for optimum results.
For instance, treated as Soft 18 (A+7), conventional strategy says to stand. Yet counted as Hard 8, hitting is recommended when holding a Hard 8. Re-evaluating the ace as 1 rather than 11 now leaves more space to build the hand without exceeding 21 on further draws.
Constantly assessing whether to leverage soft or hard ace values lies at the core of many strategic decisions in blackjack. So understanding those dynamics remains vital to navigating choices on close hands.
Basic Strategy Guidelines
Devising an overall blackjack strategy requires accounting for many hand value permutations against all dealer upcards. Memorizing extremely granular basic strategy charts certainly helps optimize play.
Yet several easily digestible rules of thumb exist for quickly strengthening your decision-making when variance deals you a tricky hand.
Stand on Hard 17 or more
Landing on a Hard 17 makes standing advisable against all dealer upcards except an ace according to basic strategy doctrine. You already occupy a reasonably strong position. Further hits mainly risk going bust against the dealer's probable made hand ceiling.
The same logic applies to any hard total exceeding 17 as well. Unless you specifically see the ace in the dealer's visible card, opting to stand preserves plenty of winning chances versus taking another card. Trust the initial positive variance!
Double Hard 9, 10, and 11 vs Weaker Dealer Upcards
Only offered on your opening two cards, doubling downs let you increase favorable correlations by essentially buying an extra card. Hard 9, 10, and 11 all provide opportunities to whip inferior dealer holdings by doubling when the visible card ranges between 2 and 6.
Accepting just one further card boosts potential hand value without breaking 21. Combining elevated risk with high reward, this aggressive tactic squeezes value from strong starting hard totals against presumably inferior dealer openings.
Always Split Aces and Eights
Landing a starting pair brings an intriguing option – splitting to play each as an independent hand. This maneuver becomes advisable when dealt a pair of aces or eights, doubling your chances to win one hand.
Splitting aces nearly guarantees a Soft 21 hand after drawing one extra card to each ace. Meanwhile, dealt eights require only one more high card to produce probable 18s. Either brings strong potential at low bust risk, making splitting the clearly optimal play.
In Closing
That covers many essential blackjack hand intricacies and strategies for beginners! Remember: no amount of memorization replaces putting knowledge into practice through repetition. So don't just read about mastering blackjack hands – head to the nearest casino and put these tips into action!
The more you internalize optimal decisions for each hand through experience, the less variance can impede your results. While the house ultimately holds an edge, following basic strategy drops its advantage below 1%. Few other casino games offer such narrow margins.
So feel empowered to have a fighting chance versus the dealer! Hopefully these hand rankings, terminology breakdowns, guidelines and strategies give you the tools to make the right choice when dealt any combination of cards. Stay disciplined in your approach and watch your skill progress exponentially. Good luck at the tables!
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the worst starting hands in blackjack?
Among the very worst hands are Hard 15 and under. These extremely low hard totals require multiple perfect hits to stand any chance at competing with even mediocre dealer upcards. Starting with such poor holdings means relying heavily on luck.
How do soft and hard hands impact blackjack strategy?
Understanding whether you hold a soft or hard hand is foundational to blackjack strategy. Soft hands enable much more hitting flexibility thanks to the ace's duality compared to rigid hard hand dynamics. This directly feeds choices on when to hit, stand, double down or split.
What does it mean when a dealer has a "stiff" hand?
When a dealer visibly holds a hard total between 12 to 16, players refer to this as a "stiff" hand. The dealer retains a strong chance of going bust if forced to hit again to reach 17. Exploiting dealer stiff hands presents huge player advantage opportunities through perfect basic strategy.
What are the best times to double down in blackjack?
Doubling down allows you to place an additional wager in exchange for committing to just one further card beyond your starting two. It becomes advisable on Hard 9, 10, or 11 specifically when the dealer shows a relatively weak upcard between 2 to 6. This greatly augments win correlation chances when you double down in ideal situations.
Should I always split aces in blackjack?
Yes, you should virtually always split starting ace pairs in blackjack. By playing each ace as an independent hand, you maximize the likelihood of drawing 10-value cards to build extremely strong Soft 21 hands. Even drawing low cards still provides flexibility to hit again with minimal bust potential. Splitting aces probably offers the single best statistical play in blackjack.