Blackjack Basic Strategy is quite simple to learn and will decrease the house's advantage to less than 1% over the long run. What follows is an introduction to Basic Strategy that will take the beginner only a few days to master.

Practicing Basic Strategy consists of hitting, standing, doubling down, or splitting based on just two factors. Those two factors are:

1. The 2 Cards You are Dealt

2. The Dealer's Up Card

In any game of Blackjack there are only about 250 combinations that you can encounter. 250 combinations sound almost impossible to learn, however, the use of a graphical chart makes it a lot easier. I learned using a chart (the one that can be found in the resource section of this article). However, a chart is not necessary. Below is a list of the most common combinations you will find, along with the proper action to take.

1. If your 2 cards added together equal between 5 and 8, you should always hit.

2. If your 2 cards added together equal 9, you should always hit, unless the dealer's up card is a 3, 4, 5, 6 or 7 in which case you would double down.

3. If your 2 cards added together equal 10, you should always double down, unless the dealer's up card is a 10 or an Ace, in which case you should hit.

4. If your 2 cards added together equal 11, you should always double down, unless the dealer's up card is an Ace, in which case you should hit.

5. If your 2 cards added together equal 12, you should always hit, unless the dealer's up card is a 4, 5, or 6, in which case you should stand.

6. If your 2 cards added together equal 13, 14, 15, or 16, you should always hit, unless the dealer's up card is a 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6, in which case you should stand.

7. If your 2 cards added together equal 17 or greater you should always stand.

Those rules may seem confusing at first, but stick with them and they will prove to be very effective. I always recommend to my students that they use the same chart I learned with (the one that can be found in the resource section of this article) if they want to make the process quicker and easier.

In addition to the above rules, there are special rules for when you are dealt two cards of the same value (such as 10, Queen or 9, 9 or 5, 5). There are also special rules for when your hand includes an Ace (such as Ace, 5 or Ace, 2). To learn these special rules you would need to use a chart.

Blackjack Basic Strategy is quite simple to learn and will decrease the house's advantage to less than 1% over the long run. Above was an introduction to Basic Strategy that should take the beginner only a few days to master. However, I highly recommend learning the special rules outlined in a basic strategy chart, because learning those rules is the only way to reduce the house advantage to less than 1% over the long run.

Author: Jason Hendrix Website for Basic Strategy Chart: http://www.bjStrat.com