Inside Blackjack: Hard/Soft Hands, & Pairs

Developing a good Blackjack strategy is indispensable especially if you are among those that are intent on making money in the long run. Among the concepts that you need to understand are hard hands, soft hands and pairs.

To state the obvious, a pair are any two similar hands (i.e., 44, 55 etc). A hard hand is simply any kind of hand without an Ace, while a soft hand has one. With a soft hand, the total can change (because the Ace can be either a 1 or 11). This will be something your Blackjack strategy must account for.

There are several ways to approach the game with these facts in mind. One method often used is to presume that the hole card of the dealer is a 10. How does this work? Suppose you have 15 and the dealer's up card is a 6, then standing pat would be a good idea; if she has a ten in the hole and takes another card, like as not she'll bust.

On the other hand, if she shows up a 7 and you are holding a 15, the Blackjack strategy would be to hit, because she could be holding a 17 (with the ten in the hole).

Of course, there are plenty of other ways that you can play hard and soft hands in Blackjack. Some of the standard ways include the following.

For hard hands:

1. If the total is 8 and under, hit.

2. If you have a 9, and the dealer has a 3,4,5 or 6, double down. Any other card, take a hit.

3. If you have a 10 and the dealer has a face card or a ten, hit. Otherwise, double down.

4. 13 upwards, the Blackjack strategy is to stand.

For soft hands:

1. With an A2 or A3, you must take another card, unless the dealer shows a 6. In that case, double.

2. For A4 and A5 hit; if the dealer holds cards 4-6, double your bets.

3. For Aces with 6 to 7, always double except when the Blackjack dealer holds a 3,4,5 or 6. A8 and higher, stand.

When you hold pairs, the optimum Blackjack strategy is as follows: for 88s and higher, always split. If you are holding 66 or 77, split, provided that the dealer's up card is lower than any of yours. If her card is higher, hit. For 55 and below, you should hit, although some players prefer to split if the dealer is showing low value hands too.

This may seem confusing, but it's less complicated than it actually looks. As you play, you'll be using these Blackjack strategies instinctively, and your game play will progress to the next level.