Learning Blackjack in Under 5 Minutes.

If you have ever been to a casino, you have likely seen tons of people enjoy their time playing blackjack. Do you know how to play? If not, this article is perfect for you. I'll teach you how to play blackjack in under 5 minutes.

Blackjack is one of the most popular casino games because of it's simplicity. You always play against the dealer, and whoever comes closest to 21 points without going over wins the hand. It doesn't matter to you if the other players beat the dealer as well. Therefore, it's a great game to play in a group because everybody can win at the same time. The only thing you really have to know when playing blackjack is how to calculate point values. In addition, you should learn more about the decisions you can make in each blackjack hand.

The point value is calculated by adding the points of the cards you hold. All number cards have their usual number value (i.e. 4 counts as 4 points), face cards count as 10, and an Ace counts as either 11 or 1, whichever is better for the player.

At the beginning, the dealer deals 2 cards to everybody, including himself. Both cards of the players usually show, while the dealer only shows one of his cards. Should any of the players have 21 points, they will immediately win their hand, unless the dealer also has 21 points with his first 2 cards. The players that don't have 21 points then need to decide if they want to hit, meaning they would get another card, of if they want to stand, which means that their hand is complete. Should the player hit and the total point value of the hand exceeds 21 points, the hand is automatically lost.

After every player has made their decision, the dealer will play his own hand. The dealer usually has a set of rules to follow, which include that he needs to draw when he has 16 or less points and needs to stand when he has 17 or more.

Once the dealer has played his hand, all the players that have a hand value greater than the one shown by the dealer win their hand. Should the dealer bust, all players that didn't bust have won their hand. When the players win their hand, they get paid at 2 to 1, i.e. for every dollar bet, they will receive 2 dollars back ($1 in winnings and the $1 back that was bet). If the player has hit 21 points with his first 2 cards and gets blackjack, he will usually be paid at 3 to 2. However, more recently, some casinos have started to pay blackjack at only 5 to 3.

Now that you know the basic rules of blackjack, you can easily play blackjack at the casino the next time you go.