For those of you who are new to the game of blackjack and have never sat at a blackjack table in a casino, the following will teach you the basic playing strategies of the game. Play blackjack according to basic strategy and over the long run you’ll be giving the casino as small as an advantage as it deserves. Basic strategy can be contained on a wallet size card that you can refer to while you play. A little practice and you’ll be an expert basic strategy player in no time.

1. Never take insurance unless you’re counting cards
Here’s why. If you’re dealt a natural 21 (blackjack) at a single deck table, and the dealer’s upcard is an ace, there are 49 cards remaining after removing your ace and ten as well as the dealers ace. This leaves fifteen tens to give the dealer a blackjack. Not insuring your blackjack means you will be paid 3 to 2 thirty-four times and push fifteen times (49 total - 15 tens = 34).

This means your winning percentage will be 104 percent by not insuring as opposed to 100 percent if you did. Clearly you’re better off not taking insurance.

2. Always follow strict basic strategy rules
Basic strategy for blackjack is the predetermined set of plays a player should make to maximize their average gain or expectation playing one hand against a complete pack of cards. Consult basic strategy charts to determine the proper plays for all table conditions.

3. Play at tables offering the most advantageous conditions
The players expected win rate using basic strategy depends on the casino’s blackjack rules and the number of decks being used. Some of these variations favor the house and some favor the player. Consult favorable and unfavorable charts to determine which tables to play.

4. Surrender when necessary
Some casinos offer the ability to surrender or turn over your hand after your original two cards without playing it for half of your wager. There are two types of surrender, early and late. Early surrender means surrender before the dealer checks for a blackjack. Late surrender means surrender that is allowed only after the dealer checks for blackjack.

The option of early surrender increases the players expected win rate by .7 percent while late surrender increases the rate by .06 percent. Always look for tables that offer early surrender.

5. Play with the fewest decks possible
Compared to a single deck, a two-deck game handicaps your play -0.35%, four decks, -0.48%, six decks, -0.54% and eight decks -0.58%. As you can see, it is always to your advantage to play on a game that offers the fewest decks.

Also note, the house edge goes up substantially when you go from one deck to two, but the change is less dramatic as you add more decks. How much is this costing you in dollars and cents? If you were to play 100 hands per hour at $5 per hand, each -0.1% would cost you approximately 50? per hour. Playing on a game with two decks versus one deck will cost you $1.75 per hour, with each additional deck costing you increasingly more.

6. Know When To Stay
When your hand adds up to 13-16 and you don’t know whether to stay or to hit, these two rules generally apply:

a) If the card the dealer shows is a 7, 8, 9, 10, J, Q, K or Ace, then hit.
b) Otherwise, stay. Chances are the dealer will “bust.”

7. Beware of twos
Think carefully before standing when the dealer shows a 2 - while it’s possible that he’ll pull two pictures and bust, it’s more likely that he’ll end up with 19, 20, or 21. To the dealer, a 2 is almost as good as an ace.

8. Stand on 16
The correct plays on 16 are to stand vs. a dealer 2/3/4/5/6, hit vs. a dealer 7/8/9/10/A. Always split 8’s against any dealer up card. This is of course not taking into account surrender (if applicable).

9. Never split a winning hand
If you are dealt two nines, tens or face cards - stay! What you are doing if you split them is increasing your chances of losing by drawing. Keeping the 18 or 20 increases your odds of winning that one hand.

10. Practice
The Web site GoldenTigerCasino.com is a great way to practice! You can either play for free or bet with real money