Online Blackjack Strategy

How to Play Online Blackjack

If you’re new to blackjack, it’s important to know all the rules before we jump into more advanced concepts. Here’s a quick step-by-step guide to playing blackjack in South Africa.

Blackjack Card Values

Blackjack card values are fairly easy to understand. Still, there are a few distinctions that you may not be familiar with. Knowing these values is important to understanding even basic blackjack strategies.

Numbered cards – 2 through 10 – are each worth the number of points on the card. For example, a two is worth 2 points, a five is worth 5 points, and a ten is worth 10 points.

All face cards (jacks, queens, and kings) are also worth 10 points. That means there are 16 10-point cards in every 52-card deck. It’s always likely that you or the dealer will receive a 10-point card when hitting, as there are more of these cards than any other, impacting basic strategy significantly.

Finally, aces can be worth either 1 or 11 points. An ace will count as 11 points unless that would take you over 21. In that case, you can count your ace as only 1 point instead. If your hand has an ace worth 11 points, you have a “soft” hand, and you cannot bust by hitting.

Blackjack Terms

In order to use blackjack strategy in South Africa online casinos, there are several important terms to understand. Let’s break down the most common jargon you’ll run into at the blackjack table.

• Push – When you have the same value hand as the dealer at the end of play, the two hands “push.” When this happens, you get your bets back without winning or losing any money.
• Natural 21 -This is another name for a blackjack. You only get a natural 21 on your first two cards, and only by receiving both an ace and a 10-point card.
• Hard Hand -This is any hand without an ace that counts as 11 points. Your hand is “hard” because there is no safety net. You can only increase your total by hitting.
• Soft Hand -Soft hands are those with an ace that counts as 11 points. Since your ace can become a one-point card, you can safely hit with no risk of busting.
• Up Card – This is the dealer card you see throughout play.
• Down Card/Hole Card -These terms refer to the hidden dealer card, which they only reveal if they have a blackjack or at the end of the round.
• Insurance – If the dealer is showing an ace, they will offer you an insurance bet. This costs half the amount of your initial bet, but pays 2/1 if the dealer has blackjack. You are insuring yourself against this possibility.
• Bust -A hand worth over 21 points will “bust.” If you bust, you immediately lose all bets associated with that hand. If the dealer busts, any of your hands that are still active win.

Basics of Blackjack Strategy

The fundamental idea behind blackjack strategy is maximizing the amount you win in the long run. This involves understanding the odds of winning against various dealer cards, so you know when to hit and when to stand. Blackjack strategy also helps you understand how much money to bet in situations where you have the advantage through splits and doubles. The basis of all of this is pure math. There are mathematically correct plays to make in every situation, and while they won’t guarantee you win every time, they will maximize your chances of coming out ahead. To start, let’s go over the various actions you can take during a hand of blackjack, and when those choices make sense.

Hit

Hitting is one of the most common actions you’ll make when playing online blackjack. Usually, you hit whenever you have a hand of 11 points or fewer, or when it is likely that the dealer will beat your current hand. That means that if the dealer would beat you with a ten, you’ll usually hit with a 16 or less.

Stand

Another common action, you usually stand when either you or the dealer is highly likely to bust by taking a card. You might also stand with some high, soft hands. Even though you could improve by taking another card, there’s little reason to improve a soft 19 or higher

Split

If you start with two cards of the same rank, you have the option of splitting that hand. To do so, make a second bet equal in size to your original wager. The dealer will then separate your cards into two hands and deals a second card to each. You can now play these hands as normal. As a rule of thumb, always split aces or eights but never split tens or fives.

Double Down

You may double down after receiving your initial hand. To do so, put down a second bet equal to your initial wager. The dealer will give you one more card and, at that point, you must stand. You should normally double down if you have an 11 or 10, and your total beats the dealer’s card. Some blackjack games do not allow doubling down after splitting. This rule doesn’t change blackjack strategy dramatically, but it tilts the odds slightly in the casino’s favour.

Surrender

If you see your initial hand as hopeless against the dealer, most online blackjack games will give you the option to surrender. When you surrender, you lose only half your bet, but the hand is immediately over. Only surrender in the most desperate of situations, as even most of your bad hands will win often enough to return more than half over the long run. Still, you will usually want to surrender a 16 against a dealer 9 or higher (including an ace), or a 15 against a dealer 10.

Blackjack Basic Strategy Chart

Our blackjack basic strategy chart provides you with the mathematically correct play in every situation you might see at the table. You can use it to perfect your blackjack strategy for South Africa casinos. While there’s no guarantee you’ll win every time, you can rest easy knowing you are making the best plays possible to get the highest theoretical return. This is a key step in maximizing your blackjack results.

Blackjack Betting Systems

Many players enjoy using blackjack betting systems when they play. While these systems don’t make you more likely to win or lose, they help structure your results in ways that might be more to your liking. Whether you prefer taking risks for big payouts or small wins as often as possible, we have a system for you.  

Be aware that many of these systems were first designed for roulette or other games. Since blackjack sometimes requires you to make multiple bets in a hand, these systems may require some changes. This is easy, however, so long as you keep proper track of your wins and losses.

Card Counting Guide

Card counting is an advantage play used by gamblers around the world who want to make long-term profits by playing blackjack. It works by considering the cards that have already come out of the shoe to determine which cards are remaining. You then adjust your bets and decisions to take advantage of the deck composition.

On a basic level, card counters attempt to bet more when the remaining show is in their favour, and less (or not at all) when it favours the casino. Unfortunately, it’s difficult to use this technique as a part of your online blackjack strategy. Here’s a more in-depth look at how card counting works, and why it sometimes doesn’t.

Basic Card Counting Strategy

As cards leave the blackjack shoe, the remaining cards aren’t always in balance. If there are more high cards remaining – especially aces and ten-point cards – then the player has the advantage. A deck with lots of low cards, especially ranks 2-5, will favour the dealer.

Because of this, counting the cards that leave the deck can tell us which side has the advantage. If we know the rest of the shoe favours the player, we can raise our bets to take advantage of this. Do this often enough, and you have an edge over the casino.

Counting systems can get very complex, especially for gamblers who want a big edge. However, even a simple system of counting aces and fives can give the player enough of an advantage to break even. If more fives are out of the deck, you can increase your bets. If more aces are out, or if the deck is neutral, you can bet the minimum or walk away from the table.

Why Card Counting Doesn’t Work in Online Blackjack

Unfortunately, this strategy won’t help you win at online blackjack. Even in live games, casinos have techniques that can thwart card counters. If you’re too obvious about raising your bet, they will simply refuse you service. Meanwhile, continuous shuffling devices constantly refill the shoe, making it impossible to count.

That last problem is the one that carries over into online blackjack play. Almost all online casinos use random number generators that reshuffle the entire shoe after every single hand. That means there is never any deck penetration, nor anything to count. You play every hand with a perfectly balanced, complete shoe of cards, meaning the odds are always the same for you no matter what has happened on previous rounds of play. One exception may be live dealer games, though most casinos still use continuous shuffling at these tables to combat card counters.

Other Blackjack Tips and Tricks

Beyond everything we’ve talked about already, there are many more factors that can influence your results. Here are a few more tips and tricks you can add to your blackjack strategy at South Africa casinos.

Position at the Table

Many players have superstitions about table position or get mad at the final player to act (usually the leftmost seat at the table) if they make decisions they don’t like. In reality, your results will be the same no matter where you sit, and the final player can’t do anything to change the odds of other players in the long run.

However, there may be a minor advantage to sitting to the left. This will allow you to see as many cards as possible before you play your hand. If there’s a dramatic sequence of cards – such as many low cards coming out of the deck in front of you – that could impact some of your close plays, such as choosing whether to hit or stand with 16 against a dealer 10.

Other Players’ Hands

No matter where you sit at the table, it’s worth glancing at other players’ hands. Once again, this will rarely impact your results or decisions. If you’re stuck in a close spot, however, it doesn’t hurt to remember that the cards you can see are out of the shoe as it could be enough to tilt your thinking.

Number of Decks Used

If you have the choice, it is usually best to play in games that use as few decks as possible in the shoe. With fewer cards in play, any counting techniques you use will be more effective, even if the dealer shuffles the cards after every hand. For instance, in a two-deck game, even knowing that three aces are already out of the deck is enough to tell you that your odds of you or the dealer getting one in the future have dropped significantly.

Buying Insurance

Here’s a simple rule to follow, never take insurance! While it can feel like you are protecting yourself, you will lose money in the long run by buying insurance. Similarly, don’t accept even money on a blackjack when the dealer is showing an ace: this is mathematically the same as taking insurance, and will cost you money in the long run.

Bankroll Management

As in any form of gambling, bankroll management is key to long term success in blackjack. While it can be tempting to move up in stakes to chase losses, find a small betting unit that you are comfortable with it and stick with it. This will protect your bankroll from short-term losing streaks that are very common in blackjack.

Practice Your Blackjack Skills

Now that you’re armed with all the tools you need, it’s time to apply them in real blackjack play, or practice your strategies with free play. Sign up with one of our recommended online blackjack sites to perfect your skills today!