In Blackjack, Which Cards Should You Always Split?

In Blackjack, Which Cards Should You Always Split? Basic strategy determines the mathematically optimal way to play every hand. This means that PGS168 if you follow basic strategy, the expected value of each bet will be maximized. This means that there’s only one correct decision for every situation in the game, and in the case of pairs, the rules for splitting are easy for some hands in particular. You should always split aces and eights in a real money blackjack game, regardless of what cards the dealer is holding. The reasoning behind this ought to be readily apparent, but in case it’s not, here’s an explanation. A pair of eights gives you a hard total of 16. That’s a total that’s unlikely to win, but it’s also likely to bust if you hit it. You’re much better off getting two new hands where the first card is an eight. If you get a 10 as your second card on each of those hands, you’ll wind up with respectable totals of 18 on those hands. A pair of aces gives you a soft total of 12. That’s not terrible because it’s impossible to bust. But you have more cards worth 10 in the deck than any other value. Since an ace can count as 11, getting a 10 on your next card gives you a potential total of 21 on your next two hands.