- Table rules in blackjack usually concern betting and dealing.Blackjack image by MAXFX from Fotolia.com
Blackjack rules vary depending on the casino. However, several basic rules dictate blackjack play in every casino setting, based on both general tradition and official house policy. Understand the table rules before you sit down; they'll affect how you bet as well as how you play the game, and they may spell the difference between walking away with a pile of chips or empty pockets. - Most blackjack tables are oval-shaped and contain room for five to seven players. Players place bets in square or circular sections on the table, and they cannot touch chips in the betting sections after play begins. When the hand is over, the dealer pays out the winners and removes the chips of the losers; only then can players move their chips. Players interested in letting the bet ride need to combine their original pile and their winnings into a single pile in the betting box or circle. A sign on the table clearly marks minimum and maximum bets. Players can only make bets with chips, which they can purchase from the dealer; buy-ins are traditionally 10 to 20 times the average bet for each hand, though they can be any size you wish provided that they meet the minimum and maximum listed on the table.
- Dealers on the table deliver cards from the deck to the players. Rules on handling the cards depend on how the dealer delivers the cards. In games where the dealer uses a shoe, dealers distribute the cards face up, and you cannot touch the cards. In hand-held games, deal the cards face down, and the players can pick them up to look at them. You must always keep the cards above the table and can only touch them with one hand, not two. Subsequent cards from the dealer remain on the table, and players cannot touch them in hand-held games.
- The dealer is always limited in his actions in blackjack, as stipulated by signs on or near the table. If the rules say, "the dealer stands on all 17s," it means he must keep taking cards until they number 17 or higher, at which point he must stop. If the rules say, "the dealer hits soft 17," it means she must hit if his hand includes an ace and totals 17. Otherwise, he must play in an identical fashion to the "stands on all 17s" rule. In addition, if a player has a blackjack (a "natural" 21 created by an ace added to a ten, king, queen or jack), it automatically beats any dealer's hand besides another blackjack and the player will receive his winnings on his turn in most cases. Many casinos pay three to two for a blackjack (150 percent of the original wager); if they do, players will see the rule displayed on the table or a nearby wall.
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