Although many people understand the basics of Blackjack from playing at home with family and friends, many do not know the options available when playing in a casino. When playing Blackjack in a casino, there are several options that can help keep you out of trouble and keep your money.

Surrender

Surrender allows players to get out of the game early, losing only half of their original bet. If players go over 21 in the first hand or take an unneeded hit, they can easily and painlessly get out of the game.

The majority of casinos do not offer surrendering as an option, so check with the dealer before you begin playing to verify the casino’s rules. Realizing that surrender is not an option in the middle of a bad hand can be very disappointing and dangerous.

Doubling Down

When you finally get that perfect hand, you will regret having made such a small bet. Thus, you have the option of doubling down. Doubling down allows you to double your bet after you have seen your cards. However, you may only accept one more card after doubling down.

Not only is doubling down helpful when you have a great hand, but also you can take advantage of it when the dealer doesn’t have a great hand. If the dealer’s first card is weak, then you can double down and increase the likelihood that you will win big for that hand.

Splitting Pairs

Splitting pairs allows a player to convert one hand into two hands at the beginning of the game. For example, if you had a hand of two Aces, you would want to split pairs so that you would have better odds of winning since you have two great hands.

When choosing to split pairs, you should consider the fact that you stand to lose twice as much if you take this step. Most people use the rule “Always split Aces and 8’s; never split 5’s or 10’s.” Fives are very weak cards so they are better together, and two 10’s make twenty which is a strong hand.