Well, I was going to regale you with my vegas stories but instead I spent the last hour and a half (seriously) typing up these blackjack tables. I didn't make these up, these are out of a casino blackjack book, or you can find them on the web all over. I like these b/c I think they're the most readable. KNOW THESE TABLES and YOU WILL WIN MONEY. I doubled my money playing blackjack everytime. Casino Tip: If you're cheap, go to the Casino Royale or Slots'a Fun for $1 blackjack. Most casinos have $3-$5 minimum, where it's too easy to lose your money on a few early bad hands. If you're in Vegas for the whole weekend, this is what you want to do. If you don't have a car, you can get anywhere on the Strip in a cab between $5-$10 (incl. tip). That's a sweet deal, especially if you have several people sharing the cab. ****** TABLES ****** These are the blackjack tables. Memorize them. Know them. They will win you money. Background: A soft hand is a hand where you have an Ace that can either be a 1 or an 11. ie, if you are dealt a 4 and an A, you could have either 15 or 5. A hard hand is the opposite, where any aces are forced to be ones, ie, you have a 5, a 9, and an A. The A must be a 1 or you'll bust. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- This is how the charts work: the top row is whatever card the dealer draws. The left hand numbers are your cards. In the first table for example, for normal hands, if the dealer has a 7, you should continue to "hit" until you have at least 17. If the dealer has a 4, you hit until you have at least 12, etc. (for soft hands, where you have an A that can be either an 11 or a 1, you hit until you reach 18 or 19, because you have insurance of if you go over 21, the A is forced to a 1 and you then revert to the normal play. The reason for the disparity between when the dealer has a high card where you hit until you reach 17 and when the dealer has a low card and you hit only until you have 12 or 13, is because on the low card, you're not playing to beat the dealer, but rather betting that the dealer will bust. For example, if the dealer has a 5, and you stay on 12. The dealer hits, and gets a 10, and they have 15. The dealer must hit until they have 17, so they have a higher probability of busting by drawing a 7 or higher. (You want to stay at 12 when the dealer has a low card because if you hit, the highest prob. is getting a 10 in which case you will bust, so you're playing it safe.) Standard Numbers Dealer has 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 A 19 | | | | | | | * | * | 18 * | * | * | * | * | * | * | | | * 17 | | | | | x | x | x | x | x 16 | | | | | | | | | 15 | | | | | | | | | 14 | | | | | | | | | 13 x | x | | | | | | | | 12 | | x | x | x | | | | | x = hard standing numbers, hit until you reach the left hand side number * = soft standing numbers, hit until you reach the left hand side number ----------------------------------------------------------------------- The act of doubling down is when you are dealt your first two cards, you can double your bet and you will receive only ONE more card for your hand. Simple. Always double down on 11 (highest prob of getting 21), and usually 10 and 9. Doubling (hard) Dealer has 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 A 11 x | x | x | x | x | x | x | x | x | x 10 x | x | x | x | x | x | x | x | | 9 x | x | x | x | x | | | | | x = double down ----------------------------------------------------------------------- This shows when to split. Splitting is done when you are dealt two of the same rank. You can double your bet and then you split your cards and play them as two separate hands, hitting or standing on each. Splitting is making the best out of a bad situation. If you're dealt two A's, split and you're more likely to get 21 on one of the cards. And if you are dealt two 8's, that's the worst hand you can get. Reverting back to the first hit chart, you usually want to hit until you get to 17. 16 is not quite there, and is risky, so it's best to split the hand and then hope for beteter luck. Pair Splitting Dealer has 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 A A,A x | x | x | x | x | x | x | x | x | x 10,10 | | | | | | | | | 9,9 x | x | x | x | x | | x | x | | 8,8 x | x | x | x | x | x | x | x | x | x 7,7 x | x | x | x | x | x | x | | | 6,6 x | x | x | x | x | x | | | | 5,5 | | | | | | | | | 4,4 | | | | | | | | | 3,3 x | x | x | x | x | x | | | | 2,2 x | x | x | x | x | x | | | | x = split ----------------------------------------------------------------------- This is when to double down if you are dealt a soft hand (an A and another card). This is more rare - I never used this chart. Doubling (soft) Dealer has 2 3 4 5 6 A,7 | x | x | x | x A,6 x | x | x | x | x A,5 | | x | x | x A,4 | | x | x | x A,3 | | x | x | x A,2 | | x | x | x A,A | | | x | x x = double down