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Blackjack Objective
Let us consider the objective of casino blackjack. Many blackjack books define the objective as getting a hand as close as possible to 21. This is not entirely true. Your objective is to beat the dealer, and learning this lesson is your first step on the road to becoming a winning blackjack player. It is possible to beat the dealer by holding a hand that is far less than 21, a twelve or thirteen, for example. Remember there are two ways to win, by holding a higher hand than the dealer, and by not hitting a breaking hand and waiting for the dealer to break. This is a decision that many beginning players seldom make. Thinking they must always get as close as possible to 21, they hit more often than they should, thus breaking more often, and contributing to the casino edge of up to 6% over the non-systematic player.
Casino rules are defined to give the dealer one major advantage and one major disadvantage. Their advantage is that they always draw last. If they break after you have broken, they have already collected your chips, and they do not return them. The dealer's disadvantage is that they must draw to sixteen or less; therefore, with hands totaling twelve to sixteen, it is possible that the next card may break your dealer. You, the player, can capitalize on this handicap by making judicious decisions about drawing or standing.
Many players lose because they hit too often. Other novices, unrealistically hoping for the dealer to break, do not hit enough. These hitting and standing decisions cannot be made by hunch - logic must be used. If the dealer's up-card is 2, 3, 4, or 5 you know they must hit, no matter what the value of the hole card is. Therefore, you would stand on a lower hand value, such as thirteen, and hope for the dealer to break. On the other hand, if the dealer has a high up-card, for instance a 9 or 10, you would hit and try to get as close to 21 as possible because there is a good chance that the dealer's hole card is also high, and with a hand greater than sixteen they wouldn't have to draw. After making your hitting and standing decisions, if you haven't broken, you wait for the dealer to deal to the other players and then to themselves; then your bet is paid off at even money if you win, collected if you lose, or left alone if you tie.
