Many people these days prefer to stay at home and play online blackjack when starting out because it’s less intimidating. But the more you fall in love with the game, the more likely it is that you’ll want to play blackjack in a land-based casino. This being said, here’s a quick look at the basics of playing casino blackjack.
Getting Started
Once you’ve found a blackjack table with the appropriate stakes, you can sit down at one of the empty seats and buy-in. In order to buy-in, lay your money out on the table, and wait for the dealer to pick up the money (do NOT hand it to him). When your cash has been exchanged for chips, take a look at the chips to make sure you recognize the value of each one. In most cases, red chips equal $5, green chips equal $25 and black chips equal $100.
Placing Bets
When placing a blackjack bet, you need to put your chips into the circle in front of your space; when doing so, make sure all chips are visible to the dealer, and put the biggest chips at the bottom of a stack. After a bet has been made and the cards are being dealt, don’t touch your chips because the casino might think you’re cheating. Depending on if you won or lost, the dealer will either remove your chips or give you more chips for winnings. After the dealer is finished, you can then remove winnings and place your next wager.
The Cards
Whenever all players have finished placing their bets, the dealer will start dealing the cards face-up. Just like with bets you’ve placed, you’re not to touch cards in face-up games because, again, the casino might view this as cheating. Once all players have received cards, the dealer will give each player a chance to either hit (ask for another card), stand (keep your hand the same), double down (double your bet and receive one more card) or split (break your hand into two hands if dealt pairs). Once all players have finished forming their hand, the dealer will then finish dealing to himself, and make payouts or take losses from each player.
Leaving the Game
When you’ve finished playing blackjack, wait until your final hand is over, pick your chips up, and head over to the cage/cashier to exchange the chips for money. Alternatively, if you plan on playing more blackjack later that day or the next day, you can always just walk out with the chips and bring them back.