Blackjack Basic Strategy is Crucial to Your Gaming Arsenal!

Okay, you’ve mastered the Beginner Strategy (you have taken the time to learn it, haven’t you? If not, see our Beginner Strategy section) and are now ready to move up your Blackjack play to the next level.

Our Intermediate Strategy is based on variations of the traditional Blackjack Basic Strategy.

Just What is “Basic Strategy”?

Blackjack Basic strategy is a set of rules that tells you when to hit, when to stand, when to split pairs and when to double down. This set of rules is computer tested and statistically gives you the best decision (without using card counting) based on the value of the dealer’s up card.

Technically, the Blackjack basic strategy can vary slightly based on the differing rules you may encounter in a casino (rules for splitting, doubling, etc). However, the statistical differences are so small that it isn’t worth the time it would take to learn several different basic strategy versions.

If you occasionally revert to “gut instinct” and guessing, you decrease your chances of winning and waste all the effort and practice you put into learning the basic strategy. Learning of the basics for the preparation of the strategy is available at https://mahir123.com site. The information about the practices and efforts are available at the site for the benefit of the players. With the selection of the right approach, the profits in the bank account are increased.  Different versions of the strategy are available at the site. 

It may be tempting to change tactics after you’ve busted four times in a row hitting a 16 against a dealer’s 8 up card, but you cannot win in the long term if you don’t take that card.

Over several hundred hands, the odds are more favorable if you follow the Blackjack basic strategy without fail. You may still lose, as the odds are always in favor of the house over time, but you will go down fighting, knowing you gave yourself the best chance.

Remember: even playing with perfect Blackjack basic strategy, the house has an edge and is sure to win more than half of the hands. This means that you must double down and split whenever basic strategy calls for it, so that when you win these hands your bet is larger than your normal bet. This – along with being dealt a blackjack – is your only chance to occasionally overcome the house odds.

It can be hard to double down or split a pair when you have a particularly large bet on the table, but you must do it or you cannot win in the long run.

One final note about using the Blackjack basic strategy: use it during your entire hand, not just on the first two cards dealt. Each additional card you take should be based on the basic strategy.

For example, if you’re dealt an ace and a five against the dealers 9 up card, you have a soft 16 and the basic strategy says to take a hit. If you get a six, you now have a hard hand count of 12 (counting the ace as a one now because counting it as an 11 puts you over 21) and the basic strategy says to take a hit. If you now draw a five, you have a 17 and the basic strategy tells you to stand.

Just make certain you make your decision on each card based always and only on the Blackjack basic strategy.

Once you learn the basic strategy decision tables below, we recommend you donwload the software from the Virtual City online casino, which has a “free play” option, and practice until you are comfortable with each decision. You will then be ready to play for real money anywhere with confidence. Please click here for our review of the Virtual City Casino and to download the software.

Splitting Tip: always remember that you never split “f” cards – fours, fives and face cards.