The Blackjack Basic Strategy

The Blackjack Basic Strategy Chart is a visual guide that can be found all over the internet due to its wide acceptance. It is what players use to decide what to play when it is their turn to play. They have the option to hit, double, split, stay or surrender. If you abide by this chart each time with discipline, you will leave the casino with only 0.5% odds of beating you. In order to have an edge over the casino, you have to use a counting strategy with the basic strategy.

How To Use The Blackjack Basic Strategy Chart

The chart shown below is called the basic strategy chart. It has three sections

Follow these steps to use this chart and reach a decision each time you are asked to play:

• The first step is to determine if you need to use the hard totals, the soft totals or the pairs section of the chart.
  
  

  The sections are circled in the red image above and have a purple background. If you have pairs, two of a kind like two aces, fives, Ks, etc. then you choose the pair section. If dont have pairs then you have to see if you have an Ace as one of your cards. If you do have an ace, then you are going to play from the soft totals section. If none of the first two options are true, then you will play the hard totals section.

• The second step is to determine the row where your decision will be made from.

  Split Example

  Lets say you have two Sixs. Because they are the same value card you will chose the third section in the chart: u>the pair section. You will then point to the row where the 6, 6 are.

  Soft Totals Example

  Lets say you have an Ace and a six. Because one of the cards is an Ace you will choose the "Soft Totals" section.

  Hard Totals Example

  Lets say get a Ten and a Six. Because you didnt have a split nor a soft total then you need to find the row in the hard total section. You will add the two cards: the 10 and the 6 and the total is a 16. You will then point to the row where the 16 is.

• The third step is to find the cell in that row that will help us make the decision in the game (hit, split, double or stay).

  Simply look at the dealers upcard. Find that card in the column header of the chart. Once you find it, go down that column and where your row intercepts that column, you will have your answer. For the difference scenarios in step 2 lets see what happened if the dealer upcard was 7:

  Coincidentially they all land on HIT. If you want to see the computer make these decisions, simple go to simulate a game and pause it. Click on the chart button and see what the computer player chooses to play.

Here is a chart you can get on amazon for a couple of bucks: