ABOUT ELIMINATION BLACKJACK (TM)

Elimination Blackjack™ is a trademarked unique Blackjack Tournament game hosted by UltimatBet.com and the game is something of a mix between Blackjack and Poker. This online tournament is one of the most exciting tournament games you may ever play. In Elimination Blackjack™, you still play each hand against the dealer but this is where it gets interesting and different:

• You will be trying to accumulate the largest amount of chips along the way.
• The player with the least amount of chips after hands 8, 16 and 25 is eliminated.
• There is a Secret Bet. Each player gets one Secret Bet per round, allowing a certain amount of chips to be bet without letting the other players know what the bet is. The Secret Bet introduces an element of bluffing not found in other versions of Blackjack. If you love the thrill of poker and the excitement of Blackjack, you’re ready to play and win Elimination Blackjack™ at Ultimate Bet.

IMPORTANT POINTS TO NOTE:

• Players can only start with a maximum bet of $25,000 in tournament chips. The preliminary round carries a minimum bet of $500.
• At the final table, players begin with a maximum bet of$100,000 in tournament chips - the minimum bet at the final table is $1,000.
• Elimination Blackjack™ features a rotating marker and the action will start on the button and rotate clockwise every hand.
• Each player has 25 seconds to make a decision. On Elimination Hands, a player will have 10 seconds to decide what they want to do.
• Hands 8, 16, and 25 are Elimination Hands and the player with the least amount of chips on these hands will be eliminated.
• The Secret Bet that can be used at any time and only one is given to each player. The secret bet allows you to place your bet without revealing it to the other players.
• Whoever has the most chips at the end of Hand 30 wins.

RULES FOR ONLINE ELIMINATION BLACKJACK

Tournament Rounds

1. Each Scheduled Elimination Tournament will consist of a minimum of two rounds and is dependent on the number of participants. All tournament rounds, including the finals, will consist of six (6) or seven (7) players at a table depending on the number of entrants. The number of rounds and number of players that advance will be determined after registration closes and before tournament starts.
2. Each Elimination Sit and Go Tournament table will consist of six (6) or seven (7) players at a table depending on the number of entrants. The number of rounds and number of players that advance will vary based on the event.
3. At the time a Scheduled Elimination Tournament is scheduled to start, the minimum number of players that must be registered to play in that tournament is thirty (30). Otherwise, the tournament has to be cancelled.
4. The Elimination Sit and Go Tournament will start as soon as enough players have registered to fill all the available seats and these tournaments will consist of 7, 14, or 21 player fields.
5. The Final Round will be the final table for any tournament. The player with the highest value of chips after hand thirty (30) will be declared the winner or a player may be declared the winner if they are the only remaining player. If there is a tie after hand thirty (30) – then a playoff will be held to determine the winner. This will be governed by the playoff rules (See Section 15).

Players & Protocol

1. To participate in the tournament a player must show up before the sixth hand begins or they will be disqualified. For each absent hand, the minimum bet will be placed for the player and then the player will stand on the first two (2) cards. If at any time during the tournament, a player disconnects or sits out more than five (5) consecutive hands – the player is eliminated.
2. The entry fee will vary based on the event.
3. For any tournament round before the final round each player will receive $25,000 in tournament starting chips with a minimum bet of $500 and a maximum bet of $25,000 in increments of $500. In the Final Round, each player will receive $100,000 in tournament chips and the minimum bet will be $1,000 and the maximum bet of $100,000 in increments of $1,000.

Betting

1. A rotating marker will be used to determine the betting and playing order at each table. The seating position will be determined by a random draw prior to the play of the first hand. The marker will always start at seat #1 and will rotate one position clockwise around the table.
2. Betting will proceed in a clockwise rotation beginning with the position occupied by the marker and players must bet in order. Each player must place their desired bet before each hand begins within the specified time limit and once the hand is over, the dealer will pay winners and collect from losing hands. At the end of any hand, if a player has a total amount of chips that is less than the table minimum wager, then that person is immediately eliminated from the tournament and unable to compete in any further hands for that event.

Dealing

1. The dealer will deal from a 6-deck shoe with cards shuffled after every hand and will deal both initial cards face-up to the players and the dealer will receive one card up and one down. All double-down cards and second cards on split aces will be dealt face-down. All second cards on any other split pairs will be dealt face up.

General Rules

1. The dealer must hit on soft 17 or below
2. The dealer must stand on hard 17 and above.
3. Players may split and re-split up to four hands, except on aces, which may be split only once and receive one card down on each ace.
4. Players may double down any first two cards including after split. Late surrender and insurance are available.
5. In the event that the player has a blackjack and dealer shows an ace, the player must have chips to make an insurance bet. Insurance pays 2 to 1 and the player may wager up to one-half (1/2) their original bet.
6. A player will be paid three to two (3 to 2) on blackjack unless the dealer also has blackjack, which will be considered a push. If the player splits a pair of aces or 10-valued cards and makes a two card 21, it does not count as a blackjack. A player may elect to double down on a blackjack instead of taking three to two (3 to 2).

Player Time Limits

Play of the hands must be completed within the time limits specified.

1. Players have twenty-five (25) seconds on any non-elimination hand.
2. Players also have ten (10) seconds on any elimination hand (hand 8, 16, and 25) and on the thirtieth (30th) hand of the round.
3. Using the secret bet button does not extend your time.
4. If a player does not place a bet within the allotted time, the bet will automatically be the minimum.
5. If the player does not act on a hand within the allotted time, the hand will automatically stand.

Using the Secret Bet

Each player has the option of placing one “Secret Bet” per Tournament Round.

1. When the Secret Bet is used for the wagering portion of a hand, the player may also choose insurance and double down wagers or surrender and stand actions, secretly by selecting these options from the Secret Bet menu.
2. At the end of the hand, after the dealer has completed play, the amount of the Secret Bet and any subsequent hand playing action will be revealed.
3. If a player wishes to split on a Secret Bet, the player must have an equal or greater amount of chips relative to their original bet to split. If the player doesn’t have enough to chips to split, the option will not be given.
4. If a player wishes to double down on a Secret Bet, the player may select the option from the secret bet menu. The player may double for the table minimum up to the full amount of the original wager.
5. If a player wishes to conceal their action on a Secret Bet of not taking any hit cards as being either a stand or a surrender, the player may do so by denoting their decision of this option as selected from the Secret Bet menu.

Elimination Hands

Each Elimination Hand (8, 16, 25) must result in one player being eliminated after the hand is completed regardless of whether a player was eliminated on a previous hand or if the player was eliminated at the beginning of an Elimination Hand for not having the minimum bet.

1. The eliminated player will be the one with the lowest amount of chips when the hand is completed.
2. Any player who does not have enough chips to make the minimum bet on any hand will be eliminated.
3. When players tie for low on an Elimination Hand and those players are in contention for an advancing spot, a playoff will be held between those players to see who is eliminated.

Playoffs

At the conclusion of Elimination Hands 8, 16, and 25, the player with the lowest total value of remaining chips will be eliminated.

1. If two or more players are tied for the lowest total value of remaining chips, a playoff will be held. The number of hands in the playoff will be equal to the number of players tied at the beginning of the playoff.
2. At the beginning of the playoff, the tied players will start with an amount equal to 20 times the value of the minimum bet. The first bettor in the playoff shall be the player who is naturally positioned to be next following the preceding hand.
3. If any player(s) are still tied for low chip count at the end of the playoff, those remaining players start the playoff sequence again.

After the playoff is completed, the remaining player(s) will begin the next hand with the same amount of chips they had prior to the playoff. Players cannot gain or lose chips during the playoff.

Prize Pool

Prize pool will be determined based on number of entries times the amount of the buy in. The percentage paid to the various spots will be determined by the Tournament Director and posted in the tournament details at the start of the tournament.

Well, that’s a basic description of the rules of game for the Elimination Blackjack™ tournament - it is important persons desiring to play this game check on Ultimatebet’s website to ensure that they have read and understood the host’s rules and protocol of the game.

If you do decide to try Elimination Blackjack™, then we wish you lucky winnings! Remember that Elimination Blackjack™ is also a game of skill.

Favorable Rules for Playing Blackjack

Ok, so we were always told that playing Blackjack with a basic strategy will keep the house edge at approximately 0.5%. We also know by now that playing basic strategy as a RULE, will increase your chances of winning; which simply means - don’t get carried away; keep playing that strategy and you are carded to win more easily. This is an established fact.

However, many of us are not aware that the basic strategy applies to certain rules which are more likely to occur with a six deck pack of cards (six-deck Blackjack).

These are the basic rules that would apply:

• The Dealer stands on all 17s
• You may double down on any first two cards
• You may double down after splitting pairs
• A natural would pay the classic 3 for 2 odds

The fact is that many Blackjack variations shy away from these basic rules and this means that regardless of keeping a basic strategy, your chances of winning are further affected, mostly negatively, by variations of the rules listed above.

In order to get the most out of your play and to know where you stand with your chances of winning at Blackjack, you must be aware of the variations in these rules that would turn the house edge for or against you (we list the ‘for’ first and the most negative last):

1. If the house allows you to double down on any number of cards, this will decrease the dealer’s chance of winning by -0.21%, therefore resulting in a total house edge of 0.29% (0.5% minus 0.21%) with this rule alone. This is great for you.
2. If the house allows re-splitting of Aces, this will decrease the dealer’s chance of winning by -0.6%, therefore resulting in a total house edge of 0.44% (0.5% minus 0.06%) with this rule alone. This is good for you.
3. Eight deck Blackjack will increase the house edge by approximately +0.2%, thereby making it 0.7%, for this rule alone. This starts getting bad for you.
4. If you are allowed to double down on 9-11 only, , this increases the house edge by +0.09%, thereby making it 0.59%, for this rule alone. This is worse for you.
5. If you are not allowed to double after splitting pairs, this increases the house edge by +0.13%, thereby making it 0.63%, for this rule alone. This is even more worse for you.
6. If the Dealer is allowed to hit on a soft 17, this increases the house edge by +0.2%, thereby making it 0.7%, for this rule alone. This is even even more worse for you.
7. If you are allowed to double down on 10 or 11 only, this increases the house edge by +0.22%, thereby making it 0.72%, for this rule alone. Well….. its getting really bad here..
8. The worst of these rules is the ‘Pays 6 to 5′ rule; this rule alone increases the house edge by +1.45%, thereby making the total house edge 1.95%, for this rule alone. This is the worst rule ever for you and the best rule ever conceptualised by casinos to increase their house edge.

If per chance the house uses more than one of the rules that increase their edge (rule numbers 3-8 listed above), then the calculations are summarised in total additions and/or substractions (this means if the house allows you to double down on any number of cards which will decrease the house edge to 0.29%, then if the house also pays 6 to 5 on winnings, then you must then add 1.95% to that; resulting in a total house edge of 2.24%. Voila.

The advice that we are giving you from the above calculations is to try playing at casinos that would give you the first two advantages whilst paying out at 3 to 2. With this approach, you retain the best chances of winning at Blackjack.

Good Luck.

This and many other articles on this site courtesy A1CashCasinos.com.

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How to play Blackjack

The objective in Blackjack is to not to exceed a total of 21 and either the player or the dealer wins who has the cards closer to 21. Therefore, the player or dealer who has a hand with the highest total wins as long as it doesn’t exceed 21. Hands which exceed 21 are ‘bust’.

A ‘Blackjack’ is when a player or the dealer gets a two-card hand of 21 (such as an ace in addition to a card with the value of 10). This is also called a ‘Natural’. A player with a ‘Blackjack’ or ‘Natural’ wins. In most casinos, both online and land casinos, a ‘Blackjack’ or ‘Natural’ pays out 3:2. A new variation of Blackjack, especially in the land casinos, pay out a 6:5:- we strongly recommend that you don’t play this Blackjack as the house edge is increased exponentially to the player’s disadvantage.

If both the player and the dealer have a Blackjack of the same point value of cards, then the two parties call a ‘Push’. Neither the player nor the dealer will win the hand.

Card Values

All normal, numbered card are worth their face value (2 of Spades = 2; 5 of Diamonds = 5 etc. etc.) Any Jack, Queen, or King card is worth 10; an Ace is worth 11. The exception to the value of the cards is to the Ace card only, which, if it would cause a player to ‘bust’ or exceed 21, it is taken as a 1. If it is taken as 11, it is called a ’soft hand’.

Minimum Bets

Minimum bets do not apply across every land or online casino - a player will need to read up carefully on these at each casino - in a land casino, the minimum bet is placed on a sign on the table. If you’re a beginner, look out for the sign prior to starting the game and placing bets.

After placing initial bets, the dealer then deals the cards - how many cards go to the players depend on the Blackjack variant that is being played - in European Blackjack, for instance, the player receives 2 cards but the dealer only receives one card at the point of sharing out 2 cards each to every player.

The Rule of Dealer Peeking

Some casinos allow the dealer to do the customary ‘peek’ to see if he or she has a Blackjack. This practice is not allows done at online casinos and is placing the player at a disadvantage is this isn’t the case. We recommend that you try the Boss Media AB casinos (those online casinos powered by the BossMedia gaming software) in order to play a more fairer game - BossMedia casinos allow the ‘peek’ feature just as it is played in the brick and mortar casinos.

In American blackjack, if the dealer’s face-up card is an ace or is worth 10, the dealer peeks at his or her hole card to see if he or she has Blackjack. This peeking check is done prior to any of the players play. If the face-up card is an ace, the dealer will only peek but after they have offered the players the option of insurance. In some land casinos, especially those in America, the dealer does not actually peek at the hole card until after the players have all played.

If the dealer gets blackjack, a player or multiple players will lose their initial bets with the exception of those players who also have blackjack; they will then ‘push’. All participating players who did not have blackjack will also lose their bets; players who increased their bets by doubling or splitting will only lose their original bet and their additional bets will be returned to them.

Insurance

Players are offered Insurance if the dealer’s upcard is an Ace and before the dealer checks his ‘hole card’. From the view of the casinos, Insurance is a game of its own within Blackjack, which gives a player a chance to protect himself or herself from the dealer getting a Blackjack.

If the dealer’s first card is an ace, insurance against dealer blackjack can be bought for half the price of the initial bet. If the dealer does have blackjack, the insurance pays 2 to 1. If insurance is bought and the dealer does not have blackjack, the insurance bet is lost.

The Insurance is so-called since if the dealer has a blackjack, the bet wins the same amount of the player’s Blackjack bet, such that if insurance is taken and the player doesn’t have blackjack but dealer does, the player does not lose money.

Insurance is always NOT recommended to players especially if they are beginners and do not know how to count cards as it increases the house edge of 2 to a high 15%, depending on the number of decks used and visible ‘10′ cards. Insurance is therefore only recommended if the player has counted the cards and is pretty confident that more than a 1/3 of the deck has cards with the value of ‘10′.

Even Money Bets

There is an option for the dealer to ask the player if they want to bet what is called ‘Even Money’ which is when the player has a Natural (an ace and a ten or face-card) and the dealer is showing an ace. If the player chooses to accept the ‘even money’ offer, he or she is immediately paid 1:1 for his/her natural, independent of whether the dealer has blackjack or not. Unless a plyer has been counting cards, ‘even money’ is also not recommended at all - a player must be absolutely certain that the deck has an unusually high proportion of cards that have a face value of ten.

Splitting

If the particular Blackjack game variant you are playing allows for Splitting and your first two cards are of the same value, you may split them into separate hands (usually two hands), placing a second wager of equal value.

You then proceed to draw cards as usual. However, if you split two aces, you get only one additional card for each hand. If you split two aces and one of your hands totals 21, this is not considered Blackjack, but 21. You cannot split a split hand and only one split is typically allowed; check out the rules for each game variant to see how many times you are allowd to split your cards.

After splitting, a player will now be playing two hands of Blackjack, one at a time. The first hand is dealt a second card. The player must decide whether he would like to Stand or take another card by clicking Hit. Once the player has finished the first hand, he must move onto the second, repeating the same process. After the player is satisfied with both hands it is the dealer’s turn. The dealer will now reveal his other card and take additional cards until he has a total of 17 or more.

Note: The player cannot hit on split aces. The dealer deals a second card only for each hand.

Double down

You can apply the “Double Down” action when you have been dealt two cards and believe that a third card may give you a position to beat the dealer’s hand. Your wager is doubled, and you are allowed to hit and receive just one additional card. Check out the rules for each game variant before proceeding to apply this rule.

It is also possible to Double after a Split, except after splitting two aces.

Counting Cards

Basic strategy of Blackjack provides a player with the optimal strategy play for any blackjack situation based on millions of hands played in the long run.

When a player is able to remember and track the cards that have already been played, the player is at a high advantage if they are certain that there is an overwehlming number of Aces and tens remaining in the deck. This gives the player the advantage of possibly raising their bet if they remain confident of hitting a Blackjack and also can guide the player to double down if they are confident that there are many tens left in the deck.

Some single-deck Blackjack games reduce the house advantage to almost zero depending on the particular rules that any given casino has adopted. When playing at online casinos and at land casinos, look for single-deck Blackjack games that have a 3:2 payout as they give the player the best possibilities to winning at Blackjack. Do not play single-deck Blackjack if the payout is 6:5.

The fact that card counting gives players an added edge and advantage towards the house, some casinos have been known to ban players known to count cards very well; in the United States, this has been done very frequently.

We therefore recommend that players practice at a free online casino in a single-deck Blackjack game, practice counting and to try their hand at playing Blackjack online - there is no way that any online casino can tell whether or not you are counting cards. It is typically illegal to use devices to count cards at casinos so if a player chooses to count cards, it should be done solely as a matter of self-skill and not done via machines or external assistance.

BossMedia online casinos offering the Dealer ‘Peek’ feature (from BossMedia customers site):

CASINO CLUB is operated by Gaming VC Corp BV (Listed on the AiM market (LSE:XXX). Established in 2004, Gaming VC Corp BV is an operating and acquisitions company focused on the growing world of online gaming. The company was incorporated in Luxembourg to acquire the business and operating assets of Casinos International NV, collectively known as The Casino Club, the dominant on-line casino in German-speaking markets. The Casino Club boasts 58,000 active customers and more than 100,000 registered users. Its casino and poker solutions are based on Boss Media solutions.

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There are mainly two (2) types of online multi-player Blackjack games. One version lets you play against the dealer even though you have other players sitting at the table.

The other version refers lets you play against the dealer and all other players seated at the table. Of the latter version, you play against all other players and the winner is the player (or dealer) with the highest hand. This requires some skill including that of card counting in order to guess what the other players have in their hands. The latter version is also a musical chairs version where the winner continues the game until a final round of only two players; essentially a blackjack tournament.

To find online casinos that offer multi-player Blackjack, use out search box in this site or use a search engine to find a suitable online casino. You can also visit our multi-player Blackjack online casinos page for all those casino listed here at this site. If you search on the internet, you may very well find other online casino and gaming sites that are not listed here. Do refer to all the buy-in fees and prizes before enrolling at any online casino.

We do not recommend that you take part in any Blackjack tournament unless you are a skilled Blackjack player who knows the strategies for various games and who is excellent at card counting

Here are a few of the best online casinos offering the multi-player online Blackjack game. Note the varying rules per casino as these are important to note to ascertain the advantage that you’ll have against the house and other players.

Multi-player Blackjack VIP Casino

Atlantic City Blackjack is played with eight (8) standard decks of 52 playing cards that are shuffled before each game; it is an American Hole card game.

There are a few sub-variants of Atlantic City Blackjack such as Multi-hand Atlantic City, Atlantic City Gold Series and Multi-hand Atlantic City Gold Series.

Both the Single-Hand and Multi-Hand Atlantic City have the same rules and strategies to beat them; however, one thing that you must take into consideration when playing Multi-Hand Blackjack is that the more hands you play the less chance you have of hitting certain cards that you may be hoping to get.

Unlike European Blackjack where the dealer only has one card at the beginning of the game, which means he cannot check for Blackjack, in Atlantic City Blackjack the dealer has two cards and can check. One card faces up the other faces down. This means that if the face up card has a value of 10 or an ace the dealer will check to see if he has blackjack. If he does, then the game is instantly over. This feature of Atlantic City Blackjack gives you less chance to lose a large amount of money which is good.

Blackjack Game Variants

There are countless Blackjack game variants both online and in land casinos; however, the online variants seem to be far outnumbering the typical variants as we have known them to date.

Variations in Deck Quantity

Blackjack can be played with either a single- or more decks of 52 cards; ranging from 1 to 8-deck game variants. Here is a short summary:

• Single-deck Blackjack
• 2-deck Blackjack
• 4-deck Blackjack
• 5-deck Blackjack
• 6-deck Blackjack
• 8-deck Blackjack

Variations on what the Dealer does on a ‘17′

A player who is beginning to play at Blackjack must note a few things, amongst them - what the Dealer is required to do on a 17; variants on 17 are as follows:

• Hit on 17s - typically Dealers are always required to stand on a 17 but this particular rule allows them to hit on 17.
• Stand on Soft 17 - The dealer stands if he or she has 17 or better and an ace in the hand.
• Stand on Hard 17 - This is the accepted rule of Blackjack that the Dealer must stand as soon as his or her hand has reached 17 or over and is the ‘classic’ way to play Blackjack.

Variations in Doubling - There are also variations on Doubling or when to double; doubling essentially improves the players odds to achieve Blackjack and therefore many casinos do not offer this option. Online casinos offer double more than once and also after Splitting; if this is the case, beware that the win in that Blackjack game may be less than 3:2 as the player’s chances have increased to win and therefore the win may be less.

Certain rules changes are employed to create new variant games. These changes, while attracting a Beginner, do actually increase the house edge overall.

In the Double Exposure Blackjack variant, both of the dealer’s cards are dealt face-up. This game increases house edge by paying even money on blackjacks and players losing ties.

Double Attack Blackjack has very liberal blackjack rules and the option of increasing one’s wager after seeing the dealer’s up card. This game is dealt from a Spanish shoe, and blackjacks only pay even money.

Chinese Blackjack is played by many in Asia, and typically does not allow the player to split cards.

Asian Blackjack, a 6-deck Blackjack variant, is offered by Red Lounge Casino, a UK online casino. In their Asian Blackjack, the following rules apply:

• 7-7-7 of any suit and 6-7-8 of the same suit pays 3 to 1;
• a Player may surrender half of his or her bet, provided dealer does not have an Ace showing, before a third card is dealt to any hand.
• If the player has a blackjack and the dealer is showing an Ace, player may claim even money (1:1) or continue the game.
• Dealer does not draw a hole card (i.e. the face down card).
• Uses six 52-card decks.

Elimination Blackjack is a tournament form of blackjack and Poker combined.

Optional and Side Bets - Many casinos offer optional side bets at standard blackjack tables. A common side-bet is the “Royal Match”, in which the player is paid if his first two cards are in the same suit, and receives a higher payout if they are a suited queen and king; the player also receives a jackpot payout if both the player and the dealer have a suited queen-king hand.

21+3 - This variant is becoming increasingly common in land casinos and Virgin Casino offers this exciting game online. In 21+3, the player’s two cards and the dealer’s up card form a three-card poker hand; players are paid 9 to 1 on a straight, flush or three of a kind. It is importnat to note that though exciting and thrilling, these types of side bets invariably offer worse odds for the player than classic blackjack.

Lazy Blackjack - Lazy Variant Blackjack is a term used when playing Blackjack with a much longer time limit. As far as we know, there are no more online casinos offering Lazy Blackjack. The Lazy Blackjack tables all have the same rules as the classical ones, except for the time limits, which are much longer. Lazy variant games are suitable for players who do not mind if the game goes very slowly or want it to go slow.

There is a program called Lazy Blackjack which is intended for right organization and conducting of Blackjack both in “real” and in Internet casino.

The program does your card counting gives all the necessary prompts in different game situations and is indispensable whilst playing online Blackjack. The program lays out a basic game strategy and prompts various game situations. We haven’t tried the program at all so are unable to vouch for its authenticity.

Casino Blackjack

The game of casino Blackjack is also known as Twenty-one in the English language, in the French language as ‘Vingt-et-un’ or ‘Pontoon’. Blackjack is perhaps the most popular casino card game worldwide both in brick and mortar casinos and at online casinos. If you’re a Beginner at Blackjack, find out how to play Blackjack.

Blackjack’s overwhelming popularity is perhaps due to the fact that the game is as much a game of chance as it is of skill. The practice of card counting (keeping track of which cards have been played since the last shuffle) has also ensured that game received much casino as well as public exposure.

The History of blackjack

It is generally accepted that Blackjack originated in the european casinos in France during the 18th century and was then called ‘vingt-et-un’ which simply means ‘21′ - the reasons being quite obvious as the player (or dealer) first to get 21 won the game. The game of 21 in the French era did not offer the 3:2 bonus for a two-card 21.

When first introduced into the United States the game was not very well known so to increase its popularity, brick and mortar casinos offered various bonus payouts in order to even get players to play the game. At present, it is now the most popular casino game with many variants or variations.

Card Values

All normal, numbered card are worth their face value (2 of Spades = 2; 5 of Diamonds = 5 etc. etc.) Any Jack, Queen, or King card is worth 10; an Ace is worth 11. The exception to the value of the cards is to the Ace card only, which, if it would cause a player to ‘bust’ or exceed 21, it is taken as a 1. If it is taken as 11, it is called a ’soft hand’.

What is a Blackjack?

A Blackjack is when a player or the dealer gets a two-card hand of 21 (such as an ace in addition to a card with the value of 10). This also consitutes what players call a ‘Natural’ and the holder of these cards is automatically the winner. If the dealer also has a Blackjack, then the two parties call a ‘Push’. In most online casinos, a ‘Blackajck’ or ‘Natural’ pays out 3:2. If there are any online casinos giving less payout than the classic 3:2 (such as a 6:5), we strongly recommend that you don’t play this Blackjack as the house edge is incrteased exponentially to the player’s disadvantage.

Blackjack Variations/Variants

There are many Blackjack variations out there today (according to Wikipedia, these number on the 100 variations) and even much more when playing at an online casino - each blackjack variation also has its own set of rules, strategies and odds and a player is well advised to read the rules carefully prior to playing and placing any bets.

Note that a lot of countries and states actually have acts and laws which set the rules on playing Blackjack. Don’t forget that in your jurisdiction, the act of even playing a casino game might be restricted or illegal so please acquaint yourself with your governing state laws prior to placing any bets or playing Blackjack or any other type of casino gambling and betting game.

To know more about Blackjack game variations, check out our Blackjack games page which lists most Blackjack games that a player can have fun at playing, both online and off-line.