Variations of Rules in Blackjack and House Advantage

Since blackjack is a very popular casino game, many of its rules and regulations are decided by the law but at the same time there are some rules which are designed by the casino itself and may be unique to that particular casino only. It is the second situation which causes a variation in the rules of the game and since these variations are not publicized it is up to the player to inquire about them from the authorities before commencing the game.

The ‘house advantage’ is the term which refers to the advantage enjoyed by the casino over the players and is normally expressed as a percentage. Therefore, if it is mentioned that the house advantage of the casino in a particular game is 5%, it is interpreted that the casino will win 5% of the initial bet which is placed by the player.

Some of the common variations in rules with regards to blackjack are mentioned as follows:

• The ’soft 17’ is a rule which is different in every casino and the rule followed by the casino in this regard is generally printed on the table. In case of a S17 the dealer has the choice of hitting or not hitting and it is this choice which varies from one casino to the other.
• The numbers of decks used for dealing during the game vary from one casino to another and this factor has a profound effect on the player’s chances of winning at the game. Single-deck dealing is considered to be more advantageous for the player while the multi-deck dealing is considered to be more advantageous for the casino and its dealer.
• The option of ‘surrender’ is offered by some casinos and this may take the form of early surrender or late surrender.
• The rule of splitting the pair of cards can be carried forward by re-splitting again and again till the player has a number of separate hands. The variation in this rule arises from the fact that while some casinos allow the player to re-split unlimited number of times, some others mention the maximum number of re-splits which can be utilized by the player.
• When a player decided to split aces there is a variant in the rule due to which the casino might allow the re-splitting of aces or might allow the player to hit the split aces.
• Some casinos allow the player to ‘double down’ on each of the two new card-hands after splitting where as some others do not permit this to be done.
• While the ‘hole card’ game is played in American casinos, a no ‘hole card’ game is played in non-American casinos meaning in such places there is no dealer ‘hole card’ every time blackjack is played.
• Insurance is a side-bet the value of which is half the original bet and is usually placed at the special end of the table and is normally permitted by all casinos which feature blackjack.