The objective of Black Jack is to total two cards as close to 21, without going over. The exception to this rule is the dealer can go over 21. Black Jack is played with one or two decks of 52 cards. Cards 2-10 are worth their face value, the King, Queen, and Jack are each worth 10, and Aces are worth 1 or 11.                  

Played at an arc table, Black Jack has up to seven players in addition to the dealer. The best outcome of the game is to get Black Jack, or two cards equaling 21. The game pays out 3-2, but if the dealer and player both have Black Jack, or the hand pushes or ties, the player will get back his or her original bet.

To play, each player places a bet on the table. Once the bets are made, each player is dealt two cards. During a single or double-hand game, the cards are facedown. Players may pick up their cards with one hand. The dealer has one card dealt up and one down. The dealer has a couple of options to play his hand. If his or her cards add up to 16 or less, the dealer must draw, if the cards equal 17 or more, the dealer has to stand.

As far as options for the players, the player must choose one of the following; hit, stand, double down, split or insurance.

Hit– When you take one more card to get closer to 21. If you go over 21, it is a BUST and you lose the hand. The sign for this option is to scratch the table with the cards, as there are no verbal signals in Black Jack.

Double Down-This is when you want to double your original bet. You will receive one more card and you have to take the amount of chips equal to your original bet, place it next to the original bet, and then you must turn both cards face-up.

Split– When you have two cards that are the same value, you can place a second bet that is equal to the first bet you placed and you can split the pair. Each card is played as a separate hand. When dealt the second card, you play the hand out as you would any other hand.

Insurance– When the dealer’s face-up card is an Ace, you can take “insurance” which is a bet that the dealer has 10-value card facing down for Black Jack.

Although there are variations of Black Jack, this should get you started on becoming a pro!

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For An Instructional Video on how to play the game CLICK HERE