Blackjack Bets
Once you have the basic rules of blackjack down pat, there are several other bets you can use to help maximize your advantage and minimize your losses. These bets are a little more advanced in nature but they aren’t super difficult. The following blackjack bets are offered at almost all casinos.
Double Down
If you like your cards, you may double your original bet. The catch is that after doubling down, you must hit exactly one more time. In other words, you must take exactly one more card and then stand.
Surrender
If you don’t like your cards, you can surrender by forfeiting half your bet and quitting the hand. This option comes in handy when your hand is so bad that you are happy to just keep half your original wager. There are two types of surrender: early and late.
Early surrender is the most advantageous because it allows you to surrender before the dealer checks for blackjack. With late surrender, the dealer checks for blackjack before you have the option to surrender. If the dealer has a blackjack, you cannot surrender.
Splitting
Any time you are dealt two cards of equal value, you have the option to split your hand into two separate hands. You then place a second bet next to your new hand and play two separate hands against the dealer.
Resplitting
If you split your hand and a third card of that value appears, you can separate the new card and play it as an individual hand. This is just like splitting except it is allowed after you have already split once.
Some casinos only allow a certain number of resplits, others don’t allow resplits at all and yet other casinos allow unlimited resplitting. Every time you split your cards, you place another wager next to the new hand and play it as a completely separate blackjack hand.
Insurance
Any time the dealer’s up card is an ace, the players may take insurance to protect against the dealer having a blackjack. To get insurance, you place an additional bet equal to half your original wager on the table near your first bet. You will then be paid 2:1 if the dealer does indeed have a blackjack. If not, you lose the insurance bet.
Insurance is a bad idea because the house advantage on the bet is huge. Nevertheless, insurance is a popular bet for players who are worried about the dealer having a blackjack.