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The blackjack rules are simple, you have to hit 21 with your combined card numbers. If your the combined number of your cards are higher than 21, then you are "bust". In blackjack, you play against the dealer. The successful blackjack player is a dedicated gambler, lured by the seemingly simple rules, he has learned that there is more to blackjack than pure chance. The key to winning blackjack is by sticking to the basic strategy, taking advantage of the opportunity to double down and split pairs, he makes every effort to reduce the houses edge.

The play of blackjack: If the dealer does not have a blackjack, his card remains face down and play continues. In blackjack each player has four options. Standing, Hitting, Splitting and Doubling down.

If the player is satisfied with his two-card hand, he will stand. Hitting is when a player draws another card, dealt face up by saying "hit me" or by scratching the table. The player can continue to draw cards until he is happy with his count, if his count exceeds 21 the player is "bust" and loses his bet to the dealer.

Splitting

If a player is dealt two cards of the same rank, he is able to "split" his cards, effectively making each card the first card of two seperate hands and place an equal bet on each hand.

The dealer will then deal a second card to the first hand, this hand is to be played out before the dealer deals a second card to the second hand. It is important to acknowledge that some hands are considered to be better than others when splitting pairs.

There are some rules involved with splitting pairs:

• Should the second card in the split hand form a pair, the player can split again
• If a player splits a pair of Aces, he is not allowed to draw a third card to either hand.
• If the player receives a third Ace, he may split again.
• If a player scores a blackjack with a split pair, he wins immediately, but is paid only at 1-1 and not 3-2.

Doubling Down

If a player thinks he has a good chance of winning, he can "double down". This means he places a second bet on his hand in return for just one more card. This third card is dealt face down and is left untouched until all other players bets have been settled. Some hands are considered better than others when doubling down.