Blackjack Strategy: Dealer Hits on Soft 17
Blackjack has evolved over the years with several subtle variations of its basic rules to be found, however you will find that the majority of UK online casinos use one of two common rule formats, with the shoe housing multiple decks. This latter point is an assumption made in the discussion of the two basic strategies explained in this section.
The rule you will need to be aware of to decide which of the two strategies to use is how the dealer is obliged under the house rules to play a ‘soft' 17 – i.e. a hand value of 17 achieved by counting an Ace as 11 such as ‘Ace, 6' or ‘Ace, 4,2'. This page deals with the scenario that the dealer must ‘hit' on such a hand. The alternative rule that the dealer ‘stands' is covered here. [NOTE FOR DAVID: Link to second page ‘Dealer stands on soft 17]
The table below presents the classic Blackjack strategy, to give the player the best odds possible at this table when there is no way of assessing the potential distribution of cards still to be dealt from the deck (see our section on card counting for more on this).
KEY
| HT | = Hit |
| ST | = Stand |
| DB/H | = Double if game allows, otherwise Hit |
| DB/S | = Double if game allows, otherwise Stand |
| SP | = Split |
| SP/H | = Split if game allows doubling after, otherwise Hit. |
PLAYER HOLDS PAIR
| Dealer’s Face Up Card | ||||||||||
| Player's Hand |
2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | A |
| A-A | SP | SP | SP | SP | SP | SP | SP | SP | SP | SP |
| 10-10 | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST |
| 9-9 | SP | SP | SP | SP | SP | ST | SP | SP | ST | ST |
| 8-8 | SP | SP | SP | SP | SP | SP | SP | SP | SP | SP |
| 7-7 | SP | SP | SP | SP | SP | SP | HT | HT | HT | HT |
| 6-6 | SP/H | SP | SP | SP | SP | HT | HT | HT | HT | HT |
| 5-5 | DB/H | DB/H | DB/H | DB/H | DB/H | DB/H | DB/H | DB/H | HT | HT |
| 4-4 | HT | HT | HT | SP/H | SP/H | HT | HT | HT | HT | HT |
| 3-3 | SP/H | SP/H | SP | SP | SP | SP | HT | HT | HT | HT |
| 2-2 | SP/H | SP/H | SP | SP | SP | SP | HT | HT | HT | HT |
PLAYER HOLDS SOFT TOTAL
| Dealer’s Face Up Card | ||||||||||
| Player’s Hand | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | A |
| A-9 | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST |
| A-8 | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST |
| A-7 | ST | DB / S | DB / S | DB / S | DB / S | ST | ST | HT | HT | HT |
| A-6 | HT | DB / H | DB / H | DB / H | DB / H | HT | HT | HT | HT | HT |
| A-5 | HT | HT | DB / H | DB / H | DB / H | HT | HT | HT | HT | HT |
| A-4 | HT | HT | DB / H | DB / H | DB / H | HT | HT | HT | HT | HT |
| A-3 | HT | HT | HT | DB / H | DB / H | HT | HT | HT | HT | HT |
| A-2 | HT | HT | HT | DB / H | DB / H | HT | HT | HT | HT | HT |
PLAYER HOLDS HARD TOTAL
| Dealer’s Face Up Card | ||||||||||
| Player’s Hand | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | A |
| 17-20 | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST |
| 16 | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | HT | HT | HT | HT | HT |
| 15 | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | HT | HT | HT | HT | HT |
| 14 | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | HT | HT | HT | HT | HT |
| 13 | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | HT | HT | HT | HT | HT |
| 12 | HT | HT | ST | ST | ST | HT | HT | HT | HT | HT |
| 11 | DB / H | DB / H | DB / H | DB / H | DB / H | DB / H | DB / H | DB / H | DB / H | DB / H |
| 10 | DB / H | DB / H | DB / H | DB / H | DB / H | DB / H | DB / H | DB / H | HT | HT |
| 9 | HT | DB / H | DB / H | DB / H | DB / H | HT | HT | HT | HT | HT |
| 8 | HT | HT | HT | HT | HT | HT | HT | HT | HT | HT |
For players looking to play Blackjack in a real-world casino taking the time to learn these strategies will be time well spent – it may seem initially daunting to memorise these tables, but you will see there are patterns which can help with recall. Naturally using these strategies when playing a UK online casino is a much simpler feat, since you can have these tables open to reference in a separate browser window while you're at the casino's virtual table!
Remember that the aim of a good Blackjack strategy is to achieve close to ‘perfect play' to ensure you are keeping the house edge at its minimum. It does not guarantee success with every hand but will get you closer the mathematical ideal of an evens chance of winning against the house.
