Atlassino Academy · Blackjack · Lesson 7
A second bet that buys exactly one card: the one total these rules let you double, when the chart asks for it, and what each call costs.
A double is a second bet for exactly one more card. At Córdoba tables you may make it on one hand only: two cards that make 11.
You hold a 6 and a 5: hard 11, the one total you may double here. The dealer shows a 10. Do you put the second bet down?
Double 11 against a 2 to 9, and take the card against a 10 or an ace. A 10, a 9 or anything else takes no second bet at these tables: the rules do not allow it. Against a 10 or an ace the dealer’s second card is turned over after you play, and a dealer blackjack takes the double too, which is why the chart keeps the money back there.
Leoformer dealer · rules and maths
Doubling is the only move that asks you for more money, so people play it on feeling: some never double at all, others double whenever the hand looks pretty. At these tables the chart’s answer is short, and it has one surprise in it.
No single card can take a hard 9, 10 or 11 over 21, and a 10 — the commonest card in the shoe — turns them into 19, 20 and 21. At Córdoba tables only the 11 may carry a second bet.
No card can take 11 over 21, and the commonest card in the shoe, a 10, makes 21. Against a 10 or an ace the chart takes the card instead: the dealer’s blackjack, turned over after you play, would take the second bet too.
A 10 makes 20, and at many tables elsewhere this is a doubling total. Here the rules allow a double only on 11, so a 10 is simply hit, against every dealer card.
A 10 makes 19. With no double on offer, a 9 is hit against every dealer card: one card cannot take it over 21.
Eight decks · the dealer stands on every 17 · double on 11 only · the dealer’s second card is turned after you play
| Hard | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | A |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | H | H | H | H | H | H | H | H | H | H |
| 10 | H | H | H | H | H | H | H | H | H | H |
| 11 | Dh | Dh | Dh | Dh | Dh | Dh | Dh | Dh | H | H |
And no other total. Never on 12 or more: from 12 a 10 takes you over 21, and a hand that can go over is not a hand to put more money on. Every other hard total is a hit-or-stand decision, and those rows are in the previous lesson.
Leoformer dealer · rules and maths
Look at the row for 11. It doubles against the weak cards and the middle ones, then stops at the 10. That is not caution. It is the dealer’s face-down card, and the next section is about it.
The dealer takes a second card face down at the deal and turns it over only once every player has finished. If it makes a blackjack, the dealer’s blackjack takes every bet on your hand: the first bet and the double. A dealer showing a 10 has blackjack on 7.7% of hands, and a dealer showing an ace on 30.8%.
So on an example bet of 10 units, 11 against a 10 is worth +0.32 units a hand on average if you take the card, and +0.09 units if you double. Against an ace: −2.09 units for the card, −5.36 units for the double. The second bet would ride on the strong card and would also be there to lose when the blackjack is turned up. A plus sign here is an average over many hands; any one hand can still lose, and over all hands the house keeps its edge.
Not every rulebook in the country settles a dealer blackjack the same way, and the chart for 11 moves with it: how the rulebooks differ is a lesson of its own.
Leoformer dealer · rules and maths
The two mistakes run in opposite directions. Keeping the second bet in your pocket on a hand the chart doubles feels careful; putting it down against a 10 or an ace feels bold. Both have a price, and standing on 11 costs more than either.
What each call gives up on average, per hand, on an example bet of 10 units
Three bars, each the average cost of one call against the chart’s play. Standing on 11 against a 10 is by far the longest.
Amounts are for an example bet of 10 units: double the bet, roughly double the amount. Amounts are in betting units, not pesos: a unit can stand for any amount, and the arithmetic is the same at any scale.
each time you take the card on 11 against a 6 instead of doubling. On 11 against a 2 the same habit costs 2.37 units; on 11 against a 9, 0.70 units.
Fix: on 11 against a 2 to 9, put the second bet down. It can still lose, and over all hands the house keeps its edge.
each time you double 11 against a 10, and 3.27 units each time against an ace: the dealer’s blackjack, turned over after you play, takes the double with it.
Fix: against a 10 or an ace, take the card and keep the second bet.
The house keeps its edge; the chart only makes the edge smaller. Play every row of the chart and these rules still leave the house 2.08% of every bet with the full chart. Doubling where the chart asks lowers the price of the evening; it does not turn the game round.
Mayaformer floor supervisor · manners, money and breaks
Doubling is the one move where more of your money goes down in the middle of a hand, so it helps to know what the rules let you change and what they do not.
Mayaformer floor supervisor · manners, money and breaks
A double is a second bet, and an evening with several doubles is an evening in which more money went onto the felt than you counted at the door. Decide the limit first, and count the doubles inside that limit.
A losing double is not a reason to bet larger on the next hand. If the money starts to feel like money you need, stop and call one of the lines below.
If gambling stops being entertainment, help is available. Minimum entry age: each province sets its own. Where we found the rule or regulator that sets it, we cite it on the page; those we found set it at 18. More on responsible gaming.
If you are thinking about suicide, call 135 or 0800 345 1435 from anywhere in the country
The practice table is the same one as in the previous lesson, and it keeps your place: level 1 is hard 12 to 16, and the double comes in on level 2, where every hard total is dealt. Its rule selector starts on the rules these figures follow, the ones published for Córdoba tables. Decide with the buttons or the keys H, S and D; the table tells you what the chart says, why, and what each choice costs on average, for an example bet of 10 units unless you pick another one — an example, not a suggested bet. Only your first move on each hand is scored, and when a level’s squares are full the next level begins by itself.
Rules differ by province. Pick the rules closest to the table where you play; this table then answers by the chart for those rules. The bet is only an example for the amounts shown, not a suggested bet.
Dealer
You
Progress stays in this browser; nothing is sent anywhere.
The practice table needs JavaScript. Here is one hand from it, with the answer.
Dealer shows a 7
You hard 16
The chart says: Hit.
Hard 16 against a 7: The dealer card is strong: standing on 16 loses whenever the dealer finishes on 17 or more, 73.8% of hands against a 7.
Average result per hand on an example bet of 10 units (a minus means money lost): stand −4.77 units · hit −4.10 units. Standing instead costs about 0.67 units more each time.
One strip, no rounds. Every square on the strip is one hand of this lesson, and they are all there from the start. The square keeps your first move on that hand; later moves in the same hand are still checked and explained.
Levels. Level 1: hard 12 to 16 against every dealer card. Level 2: hard 5 to 19, doubles included. Level 3: hard 9 to 16 against every dealer card; the clock is optional.
Amounts. The figures are averages for the example bet you pick: 5 units, 10 units or 25 units. There is no balance, and nothing adds up from one hand to the next.
Dealing. Cards come from a shuffled 8-deck shoe with a fresh seed each visit. A hand that does not belong to the level is set aside unseen. The correct play is the chart’s cell for the table rules you pick, and the averages come from the same engine as the chart above.
Mayaformer floor supervisor · manners, money and breaks
Five quick ones. Pick an answer, then check it. No timer, no points: just whether it stuck.
18+ under each province’s rules · Play responsibly · the helplines are further up this page
Rules. The figures on this page follow the rules published for Córdoba casinos: at least eight decks (the figures take exactly eight), the dealer standing on every 17, blackjack paid 3 to 2, a double only on a two-card 11 with one card dealt face down, and a dealer’s second card turned over after the players, whose blackjack takes every bet on the hand. It is a preset for learning, not a statement about any one casino: the room settles anything its rulebook leaves open.
Numbers. Every figure is worked out when the page is built, by our blackjack engine. A mistake’s cost is the average result of the chart’s play minus that of the mistake, per hand, for an example bet of 10 units, with each average rounded to the hundredth first. Against a 10 or an ace the averages include the hands where the dealer turns up a blackjack. The house edge assumes the full chart, soft hands and pairs included, and cards shuffled after every hand.
Hosts. Leo and Maya are illustrated characters. Their backstories, a former dealer and a former floor supervisor, are written for the course: neither is a real person, and neither speaks for any casino. The rules and numbers on this page come from the sources it cites, not from their experience.
No promise. Blackjack is played against the house. The chart lowers the price of playing; nothing on this page removes that price, and nothing here tells you how an evening will end.
Doubling at Córdoba tables
El jugador que ha logrado con sus dos primeras cartas la suma de Once (11), puede doblar su apuesta requiriendo una sola carta que se le entregará cubierta.Free translation: A player who has reached a total of Eleven (11) with his first two cards may double his bet, requesting a single card, which will be dealt to him face down.
Section Otras apuestas, 1) Doblar apuestas
Lotería de Córdoba · Reglamento del juego «Black Jack» · read
The desafío stake
puede desafiar al pagador que la segunda será una figura ( K, Q, J o 10 ), para lo cual deberá colocar otra apuesta igual a la mitad de la postura original fuera del casillero, si acierta gana en proporción 2 por 1Free translation: may challenge the pagador that the second card will be a face card (K, Q, J or 10), for which he must place another bet equal to half of the original stake outside the box; if he is right he wins at odds of 2 to 1
Section Otras apuestas, 4) Desafío o seguro
Lotería de Córdoba · Reglamento del juego «Black Jack» · read
A dealer blackjack at Córdoba tables
dará una segunda carta descubierta para cada una de las apuestas y una para sí cubierta.Free translation: will deal a second card face up for each of the bets and one face down for himself.
Una vez determinados los puntajes de los apostadores, el pagador definirá el suyo de acuerdo con las siguientes reglasFree translation: Once the bettors' scores have been determined, the pagador will settle his own according to the following rules
Descubrirá su segunda carta y efectuará la sumatoria de ésta y la primera.Free translation: He will turn up his second card and add it to the first.
Cuando el pagador finalice con su juego, descubrirá la carta tapada del jugador y comparará el puntaje obtenido con el suyo, valiendo para la definición lo establecido en el punto catorce (14) del Desarrollo del Juego.Free translation: When the pagador has finished his play, he will turn up the player's face-down card and compare the score obtained with his own, the provisions of point fourteen (14) of the Game Procedure applying to the settlement.
Section Desarrollo del juego, 8), 12) y 14); Otras apuestas, 1)
Lotería de Córdoba · Reglamento del juego «Black Jack» · read
Doubling at Córdoba tables
El jugador que ha logrado con sus dos primeras cartas la suma de Once (11), puede doblar su apuesta requiriendo una sola carta que se le entregará cubierta.Free translation: A player who has reached a total of Eleven (11) with his first two cards may double his bet, requesting a single card, which will be dealt to him face down.
Section Otras apuestas, 1) Doblar apuestas
Lotería de Córdoba · Reglamento del juego «Black Jack» · read
One card after a double
DOBLAR APUESTAS : El jugador que ha logrado con sus dos primeras cartas la suma de Once (11), puede doblar su apuesta requiriendo una sola carta que se le entregará cubierta.Free translation: DOUBLING BETS: A player who has reached a total of Eleven (11) with his first two cards may double his bet, requesting a single card, which will be dealt to him face down.
Lotería de Córdoba S.E. (portal) · Reglamento del juego «Black Jack» · read
Cada vez que las dos primeras cartas del apostador sumen 11 (once), éste podrá hacer una nueva apuesta (doblar la apuesta) igual a la original, a cambio recibirá una carta tapada que será descubierta en el momento de definir su mano.Free translation: Whenever the bettor's first two cards add up to 11 (eleven), he may place a new bet (double the bet) equal to the original; in return he will receive a face-down card that will be revealed when his hand is settled.
IAFAS Entre Ríos · Black Jack / Juegos Tradicionales de Casinos (DOC-H8-GCA-CSJ-001 V00) · read
DUPLICAR LA APUESTA: Se conforma esta variante cuando el Apostador, sumados sus dos primeros naipes, obtiene un puntaje de diez (10) u once (11), pudiendo duplicar la apuesta original; recibiendo una carta cubierta.Free translation: DOUBLING THE BET: This variant arises when the Bettor, adding his first two cards, obtains a score of ten (10) or eleven (11), and may double the original bet, receiving one face-down card.
Section Capítulo 9, Black Jack modalidad carta descubierta: Reglamento del Juego (9.1 a 9.14)
Doubling at Córdoba tables
El jugador que ha logrado con sus dos primeras cartas la suma de Once (11), puede doblar su apuesta requiriendo una sola carta que se le entregará cubierta.Free translation: A player who has reached a total of Eleven (11) with his first two cards may double his bet, requesting a single card, which will be dealt to him face down.
Section Otras apuestas, 1) Doblar apuestas
Lotería de Córdoba · Reglamento del juego «Black Jack» · read
Doubling at Córdoba tables
El jugador que ha logrado con sus dos primeras cartas la suma de Once (11), puede doblar su apuesta requiriendo una sola carta que se le entregará cubierta.Free translation: A player who has reached a total of Eleven (11) with his first two cards may double his bet, requesting a single card, which will be dealt to him face down.
Section Otras apuestas, 1) Doblar apuestas
Lotería de Córdoba · Reglamento del juego «Black Jack» · read
Doubling down: the move
DOBLAR APUESTAS : El jugador que ha logrado con sus dos primeras cartas la suma de Once (11), puede doblar su apuesta requiriendo una sola carta que se le entregará cubierta.Free translation: DOUBLING BETS: A player who has reached a total of Eleven (11) with his first two cards may double his bet, requesting a single card, which will be dealt to him face down.
Lotería de Córdoba S.E. (portal) · Reglamento del juego «Black Jack» · read
Cada vez que las dos primeras cartas del apostador sumen 11 (once), éste podrá hacer una nueva apuesta (doblar la apuesta) igual a la original, a cambio recibirá una carta tapada que será descubierta en el momento de definir su mano.Free translation: Whenever the bettor's first two cards add up to 11 (eleven), he may place a new bet (double the bet) equal to the original; in return he will receive a face-down card that will be revealed when his hand is settled.
IAFAS Entre Ríos · Black Jack / Juegos Tradicionales de Casinos (DOC-H8-GCA-CSJ-001 V00) · read
DUPLICAR LA APUESTA: Se conforma esta variante cuando el Apostador, sumados sus dos primeros naipes, obtiene un puntaje de diez (10) u once (11), pudiendo duplicar la apuesta original; recibiendo una carta cubierta.Free translation: DOUBLING THE BET: This variant arises when the Bettor, adding his first two cards, obtains a score of ten (10) or eleven (11), and may double the original bet, receiving one face-down card.
Section Capítulo 9, Black Jack modalidad carta descubierta: Reglamento del Juego (9.1 a 9.14)
Only on the first two cards
DOBLAR APUESTAS : El jugador que ha logrado con sus dos primeras cartas la suma de Once (11), puede doblar su apuesta requiriendo una sola carta que se le entregará cubierta.Free translation: DOUBLING BETS: A player who has reached a total of Eleven (11) with his first two cards may double his bet, requesting a single card, which will be dealt to him face down.
Lotería de Córdoba S.E. (portal) · Reglamento del juego «Black Jack» · read
Cada vez que las dos primeras cartas del apostador sumen 11 (once), éste podrá hacer una nueva apuesta (doblar la apuesta) igual a la original, a cambio recibirá una carta tapada que será descubierta en el momento de definir su mano.Free translation: Whenever the bettor's first two cards add up to 11 (eleven), he may place a new bet (double the bet) equal to the original; in return he will receive a face-down card that will be revealed when his hand is settled.
IAFAS Entre Ríos · Black Jack / Juegos Tradicionales de Casinos (DOC-H8-GCA-CSJ-001 V00) · read
DUPLICAR LA APUESTA: Se conforma esta variante cuando el Apostador, sumados sus dos primeros naipes, obtiene un puntaje de diez (10) u once (11), pudiendo duplicar la apuesta original; recibiendo una carta cubierta.Free translation: DOUBLING THE BET: This variant arises when the Bettor, adding his first two cards, obtains a score of ten (10) or eleven (11), and may double the original bet, receiving one face-down card.
Section Capítulo 9, Black Jack modalidad carta descubierta: Reglamento del Juego (9.1 a 9.14)
A dealer blackjack at Córdoba tables
dará una segunda carta descubierta para cada una de las apuestas y una para sí cubierta.Free translation: will deal a second card face up for each of the bets and one face down for himself.
Una vez determinados los puntajes de los apostadores, el pagador definirá el suyo de acuerdo con las siguientes reglasFree translation: Once the bettors' scores have been determined, the pagador will settle his own according to the following rules
Descubrirá su segunda carta y efectuará la sumatoria de ésta y la primera.Free translation: He will turn up his second card and add it to the first.
Cuando el pagador finalice con su juego, descubrirá la carta tapada del jugador y comparará el puntaje obtenido con el suyo, valiendo para la definición lo establecido en el punto catorce (14) del Desarrollo del Juego.Free translation: When the pagador has finished his play, he will turn up the player's face-down card and compare the score obtained with his own, the provisions of point fourteen (14) of the Game Procedure applying to the settlement.
Section Desarrollo del juego, 8), 12) y 14); Otras apuestas, 1)
Lotería de Córdoba · Reglamento del juego «Black Jack» · read
One card after a double
El jugador que ha logrado con sus dos primeras cartas la suma de Once (11), puede doblar su apuesta requiriendo una sola carta que se le entregará cubierta.Free translation: A player who has reached a total of Eleven (11) with his first two cards may double his bet, requesting a single card, which will be dealt to him face down.
Section Otras apuestas, 1) Doblar apuestas
Lotería de Córdoba · Reglamento del juego «Black Jack» · read
Your bet after the deal
No se permitirá ninguna modificación de apuestas, ya sea para aumentarlas, disminuirlas o retirarlas, que las contempladas en el presente Reglamento.Free translation: No modification of bets shall be permitted, whether to increase, decrease or withdraw them, other than those provided for in these Rules.
Lotería de Córdoba S.E. (portal) · Reglamento del juego «Black Jack» · read
Who decides
Las decisiones de los apostadores, ya sean montos a apostar, o en alternativas de juego- como valores de cartas, doblar, asegurar o abrir juego- serán estrictamente personales, no teniendo ninguna validez las indicaciones que efectuaren otros jugadores o personas del Público.Free translation: The decisions of the bettors, whether the amounts to bet or the playing options (such as card values, doubling, insuring or splitting), shall be strictly personal, and any indications given by other players or persons from the Public shall have no validity.
Lotería de Córdoba S.E. (portal) · Reglamento del juego «Black Jack» · read
No se admitirá a persona alguna, aconsejar a éste, acerca de sus decisiones en el desarrollo del juego, ni efectuar manifestación alguna al respecto.Free translation: No person shall be allowed to advise the player about his or her decisions during the course of the game, or to make any comment in that regard.
Section Capítulo 9, Black Jack modalidad carta descubierta: Reglamento del Juego (9.1 a 9.14)