Blackjack
Blackjack originated, like so many card games, in France in the 1700's. Maybe the legionnaires had too much free time on their hands, but it's doubtful they knew that they had just created what would become perhaps the most popular card game in the world.
After being introduced in the US as vingt-et-un (twenty one), the game didn't draw many players, so the casinos decided to offer a 10-1 payout if the player got an ace of spades and a black jack (either a spade or a club.)
Although the special bonus was quickly abolished, the name blackjack simply stuck, and remains with us today.
Blackjack rules
- The hand with the highest total wins, as long as it doesn't exceed 21
- A hand that exceeds 21 is called a bust
- The cards 2-10 are worth their face value, although J,Q,K are all worth 10
- An ace is worth 11 unless it causes a player to bust, in which case it's worth 1
Winning
- The goal of blackjack is to attain a higher hand than the dealer without busting
- If the player and the dealer both have the same hand, it's called a push
- Note: every player plays an independent game vs. the dealer
Different Strategies
There are several different strategies that a player may wish to look up as these strategies claim to increase a player's chance of winning. These include:
- Basic strategy
- Composition-dependant strategy
- Card counting
Practice Blackjack
