Officially, the rules of blackjack are for the dealer to hit until he has 17 or more, regardless what the player(s) have (unless the players have all busted). The rule of thumb in most games of casino blackjack is that the dealer always hits a total of 16 or less and always stands on a total of 17 or more. This is the best possible situation for the player as it relates to the soft 17 rule. And this rule doesn’t take into account whether the total is soft or hard. The tables assume the dealer already checked for, and did not have, blackjack. There are 16 total tables, for 1 to 8 decks and whether or not the dealer stands or hits on soft 17. For dealer probabilities before the dealer checks for blackjack please see Dealer Odds in Blackjack under European Rules.

I like to assume that anyone reading one of my posts is starting at zero. I’m not doing exactly that here, because I’m not explaining in detail all the rules of casino blackjack.

Probably the worst situation to be in at the blackjack table is to be dealt a 16 while the dealer has a 7 or higher showing. Blackjack charts from all across the world say to hit the 16 when the dealer is showing a 7 or higher, even surrendering in some situations. If you want to beat the casino, you’re going to have to do better than that. This bonus was later removed but the blackjack name persevered. In virtually all variations of blackjack the dealer does not have any decisions to make. The most common forms of blackjack require that the dealer hits up to and including 16 and sticks on 17 (both soft and hard).

But I do want to draw the distinction between hard hands and soft hands.

Blackjack is a simple comparing game where the player and dealer each start with a two-card hand. The one with the higher total points for their hand wins the bet, but only if they keep theirtotal to 21 or below. A total of 22 or higher is an automatic loss.

Does A Blackjack Dealer Have To Hit On 16 Months

The cards have points based on their rank. The numbered cards have the same number of points as their numbers: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10. The face cards (jack, queen, and king) are alsoworth 10 points each.

The only exception is the ace. No one would blame you for thinking that an ace is worth 1 point. It is, in fact, in many situations, worth a single point.

But it’s also worth 11 points.

When you have a hand with no aces in it, you have a hard total. This means that the total is what the total is.

Does A Blackjack Dealer Have To Hit On 16 Years

Does Blackjack Dealer Hit On 16

For example, if you have a jack and a 3, you have a hard total of 13. There’s no wiggle room there. That’s the total.

But if you have an ace and a 3, you have a soft total. That’s because the ace counts as 11, but if you get a card that would otherwise give you a total of 22, you can count it as a 1 instead.

Does A Blackjack Dealer Have To Hit On 16 Days

With an ace and a 3, you have a soft 14. If you hit that hand and get a 10, you have a hard 14. (Any hand where the ace must be considered 1 point to avoid busting is also considered a hardhand.)

Does A Blackjack Dealer Have To Hit On 16

The strategy for a player with a soft hand as opposed to a hard hand is significantly different. Since you have that added layer of protection from busting, the right move is often to play a softtotal more aggressively.

Does A Blackjack Dealer Have To Hit On 16 Volt

But when we talk about a soft 17 “rule” in blackjack, we’re talking about how the dealer plays his hand.