When To Double Down And Split

Introduction to Splitting Pairs in Blackjack

SJWs Always Double Down is a solid continuation of the taxonomy of the Social Justice Warrior. It is full of recent examples of their doubling down behaviour, explains some the biological and sociosexual reasons for that behaviour and offers the reader some practical ways of identifying and dealing with the SJW. TWO 8s: sixteen is a lousy total to work from, but splitting the 8's gives you a 62% chance that at least one of your hands will give you 18 or even a soft 19. Some people argue that if the dealer is showing 9 or 10, then don't split and hit on your 16. It's your decision! No double after split After a split, most games allow doubling down on the new two-card hands. Disallowing doubling after a split increases the house edge by about 0.12%. Double on 9/10/11 or 10/11 only Under the 'Reno rule', double down is only permitted on hard totals of 9, 10, or 11 (under a similar European rule, only 10 or 11).

One of the options available to you in a game of blackjack is to split the pair of cards the dealer gives you. Why would anyone want to split pairs in blackjack? What are the advantages of splitting pairs in blackjack? What is the procedure involved in splitting pairs in blackjack? We will discuss these and some other relevant points during the course of this article.

  • Some games even feature Blackjack When To Double Down And Split a progressive jackpot network that’s linked across multiple games and Canadian jurisdictions. This means that This means that Blackjack When To Double Down And Split.
  • A significant thing that you need to remember when you double down the pair is to say ‘double’ or ‘double down’ when you place the bet. This way the dealer is not going to make the mistake it as a wish to split the pair. The reason is that the action to double and split is almost the same.

First of all, we will see what splitting pairs in blackjack is all about. Assume you are dealt a hand that has two cards of the same value, i.e. a pair, such as 2-2, 3-3, 4-4, K-K, and so on. Remember here that the operative phrase here is ‘equal value.’ What that means is you can even split a pair of cards that may not be the same number, but of the same value, e.g. J-K. When you have such a hand in blackjack, you have the option of breaking up the pairs and using them as individual cards to pursue further hands. You also have the option of breaking, with the first card being the one on your right and then to the one on your left.

More about Splitting Pairs in Blackjack

So what are the other cards you can split in blackjack? For one, you can also split a pair of aces. However, things become slightly different when it comes to splitting a pair of aces. When you split a pair of aces, in most casinos you are allowed to draw just one card to each of the split aces.

So what would happen if you were to draw, say, a 10-value card to a split ace? You would think that would be deemed a blackjack, but that is not actually the case. A 10-value card with a split ace is considered a 21, and so you get paid, at 1:1. When you get a 21 of this kind, you would always tie with the 21 that the dealer may have. However, it is not strong enough to defeat a dealer’s blackjack.

Why Split Pairs in Blackjack

So far we have discussed about what split pairs in blackjack are, how they fare with different card values, and so on. However, there is one basic question that still needs to be answered? Why would you want to split pairs in blackjack? There are three primary reasons for this.

The first and obvious reason for splitting pairs in blackjack is because you are not happy with how your hand is turning out. Sometimes, a pair can be a losing proposition, and that is an apt situation in which to change strategy and split the pair. The second reason is also simple – by splitting pairs in blackjack you ensure that the bet has been enhanced even after the cards have been dealt. The third reason is even more critical; if you are able to split the pairs at the right moment, you also bring the house advantage down by 0.5%.

All good players know that you should never miss a good double down or split opportunity. Doubling down is where you have the opportunity to ‘buy’ one extra card by doubling the size of your original bet. Splitting is where your first two cards are of the same value and you have the opportunity to ‘split’ them to create two separate hands. Again this is usually done by contributing an extra amount that is equal to that of your original bet. But why do some basic strategy tables tell you to double down with a total of 11 against a dealer’s 10, while others tell you not to? And one basic strategy table will tell you to always split a pair of 8s and Aces, and the next will tell you not to when the dealer has a 10? What are the right decisions? Well, it depends on which one of three different rules your casino uses.

The three rules
Casinos can use one of three different rules that determine which of the player’s bets are lost when the dealer achieves a blackjack. The ‘European No-Hole-Card’ rule is sometimes called ‘All Bets Lose’, and it means that if you have split or doubled, both your original wager, and the additional amount you have put out for the split or double will be lost if the dealer has a blackjack. This rule is used by many casinos outside of the US. The ‘Original Bets Only’ rule (OBO) is a little more generous, and results in only the original being lost if the dealer has blackjack, and is adopted in most US casinos. This means that even if your split hand has busted, it will not lose if the dealer has blackjack. The ‘Original and Busted Bets Only’ rule (OBBO) is almost the same as OBO except that all busted hands will lose, even if the dealer achieves a blackjack. So if you have split and you have not busted on your second hand then you will get to keep that bet if the dealer gets a blackjack.

When To Split And When To Double Down

When to double down and split in blackjack

When To Split And Double Down In Blackjack

So what should I do?
Confused by all the rule variations above? Don’t worry. You only need to identify which of these rules is used at your casino and then adapt the basic strategy accordingly. If your casino has the OBO or OBBO rules, you can use most of the basic strategies in books and on the internet. If your casino has the European No-Hole-Card rule, just remember that you should never double down on 11 versus dealer 10, split Aces against a dealer Ace or split 8’s against a dealer 10 or Ace.

When To Double Down And Split In Blackjack

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