Blackjack is a card game between a player and a casino, which is represented by a dealer.

To start, the player makes a bet. The dealer then gives him two cards and takes two for himself.

If the player has blackjack (21 points in two cards) he wins immediately. If not, he must decide to stay with his cards (stand); to get another card (hit); to double his bet and get only one more card (double); to separate his pair, to add another bet, and to play two hands (split); or to quit his hand and lose half of his bet (surrender).

If during this process: a) the player’s hand exceeds 21 points, the player loses (busts) and the dealer takes his bet; b) the dealer exceeds 21 points, the dealer loses (breaks), and the dealer must return the player’s bet and pays him an additional amount equal to his bet; c) the player and the dealer tie in points, the player’s bet is returned (pushed back) with no additional payment.

After the first two cards are dealt, if the dealer’s up-card is an ace, he will offer the player insurance. This insurance payment of up to 1/2 of the player’s original bet gives the player the chance to break even if the dealer has blackjack. If the dealer has an ace showing and the player has blackjack, the dealer will offer the player a one-for-one payoff on his bet (even money) instead of the blackjack premium payoff (usually 3-for-2). This lets the player avoid the risk of a tie (a push) if the dealer also has blackjack.

Players compete with the casino not with each other.

After the players have made their bets by putting chips in the betting circle, the dealer gives each player two cards face-up and deals two cards to himself, one face-up (the up-card) and one face-down (the hole card).

The dealer reviews all cards to see if any player has blackjack (21 points). If a player has blackjack (and the dealer’s up card is not an ace), the dealer pays him 3:2 (three chips for every two bet and returns the two bet) or 6:5 depending on the table’s rules.

The dealer offers the player insurance when his up card is an ace. The player can insure his hand for as much as half of his original bet.

If the dealer’s hole card is a 10-point card, giving the dealer blackjack, he pays the player $2 for every $1 of insurance purchased and takes the player’s original bet, allowing the player to breakeven for the hand. If the dealer does not have blackjack, the dealer takes the player’s insurance and play continues.

The dealer offers the player even money when the player has blackjack and the dealer’s up-card is an ace. If the player accepts, he is immediately paid $1 for every $1 bet and the dealer takes his cards off the table. If the player declines the offer, and after the dealer peeks at his hole card, it turns out that the dealer does have blackjack, it’s a push (a tie) and the player’s bet is returned (pushed back). If the player declines the offer of even money, and the dealer does not have blackjack, the player is immediately paid the blackjack payoff of 3:2 or 6:5. This process is illustrated in the diagram.

Once all the blackjack, insurance, and even money transactions are over, the dealer asks the player on his far left what he wants to do—stand, hit, double, split, or surrender. The player makes his decision based on the point value of his hand and the dealer’s hand, using the basic strategy recommendation. The following paragraphs describe these five decisions.

STAND…No more cards.

Signal: The player waves his hand horizontally over his cards.

Dealer’s Action: The dealer moves to the next player.

Comment: A player’s unclear signal to the dealer can cause major problems. For example, the dealer may deal the next card to the second player when the first player wants a hit. To avoid this, dealers will often confirm the player’s decision when the player’s hand signal is unclear or when the player’s decision is unusual, but not always. Warning: be sure to signal clearly.

HIT…One more card.

Signal: The player points at his cards or taps the table.

Dealer’s Action: The dealer gives the player another face-up card then asks for the next choice if the player is under 21. A player can continue to hit until he makes the decision to stand, or he busts.

Comment: If a player hits and busts, the dealer takes the player’s bet, puts the chips in his chip tray, takes the player’s cards, and puts them in the discard pile.

DOUBLE…Double the bet and receive one more card.

Double…Double the bet and receive one more card

Signal: The player places chips equal to his original bet or less (called double-for-less) just behind his first bet and holds up one finger, indicating he wants one more card.

Dealer’s Action: The dealer deals him one card. If the card causes the player to bust, he loses both his original bet and his double bet.

Comment: Some table rules allow players to double only when the player’s hand has a specific point value (e.g., 10 or 11), others have no restriction on doubling.

SPLIT…Split the pair; put a second bet on the new hand.

Signal: The player places a bet equal to his original bet beside his original bet and holds up two fingers indicating that he wants two cards, one for each new hand.

Dealer’s Action: The dealer separates the player’s two cards and bets to create two new hands then he deals another card to the first new hand. He then asks the player for his decision. The player has all the same options with a split hand that he had with an initial hand (hit, stand, double, split, or surrender). If the decision causes the player to bust, he loses the bet for this hand. The dealer moves to his second hand of the split pair once the player has finished. If the player receives another pair on any hand, he may split again and the process repeats.

Comment: A pair is two cards of the same rank [e.g., two eights] and at most casinos, any two 10-point cards (e.g., a ten and a jack). Usually, table rules limit a player to splitting three times for a total of four hands and four bets. Players can hit, stand, double, re-split, or surrender for each new hand except when the original pair is aces. If a player splits aces, the dealer will deal him one card for each split ace. Table rules do not allow re-splitting aces or the blackjack payoff on 21 points.

SURRENDER…End the hand and the player keeps half of the original bet.

Signal: The player says “surrender” and/or runs his hand in a straight line behind his cards.

Dealer’s Action: The dealer takes the player’s cards, removes half of the player’s original bet, and pushes back the other half.

Comment: Surrender comes in two flavors—early and late. Early surrender happens before the dealer checks for blackjack. This is rare nowadays, which is why early surrender is not included with the description of even money, insurance, and peeking. Late surrender, which happens after the dealer peeks at his hole card and announces that he has blackjack, is also rare but much more likely than its early-surrender cousin. Casinos do not typically allow early or late surrender at low-minimum blackjack tables.

Play continues for each player clockwise. The dealer then turns over his hole card and either hits or stands, depending on the table rules and his points. The dealer then determines if each player has won, pushed, or lost.

Win - The dealer pays any player who is closer to 21 than he an award of one-for-one on the player’s original bet, and he returns the player’s original bet.

Push - The dealer returns any player’s original bet where the player’s and his points are equal (a push);

Lose - The dealer takes the bets of those players who have fewer points than he.

The dealer adds all cards to the discard pile and play continues until the dealer reaches the cut-card (a plastic marker the same size as the cards) in the shoe. He continues to deal this final hand to the remaining players then shuffles the cards. To leave the game, the player pushes his chips forward and waits for the dealer to exchange his chips for higher denominations (color up), which the player can hold or redeem at the casino’s cashier window for cash.