So, especially if you are new to the game, make sure to learn the basic blackjack rules including the concepts of soft hands and hard hands, before you start betting real money. In this article, we will explain the types of hands, the main difference between them, and how they apply to the basic blackjack strategy. We want to help you explore your potential and get you a step closer to becoming the winning blackjack player at online casinos that you are supposed to be.
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What is a Soft Blackjack Hand?
For example, let’s say that you are dealt two cards in your starting hand, and you receive an ace and a 7. The value of your hand, if you’re counting an ace as 11, would be 18. However, if you count the ace as 1, the value is only 8. You then receive a third card, but there’s no card worth enough points to get you over 21.
Aside from the ace, the highest-ranking cards in blackjack are 10 and the face cards (jack, queen and king), all of which are worth 10. You can get a blackjack (a 21) after starting with a soft hand: if you receive a 10 and an ace, then receive another 10, you’ll end up with 21 (counting the ace as 1, of course). A soft 17 is a hand that’s made up of an ace (counting as 11) and a 6. Likewise, a soft 13 would be made up of an ace and a 2. Blackjack soft hands strategy ultimately makes it impossible to lose your hand when you have an Ace. If you are playing blackjack online and you have an Ace, it will automatically be counted as 1 if your hand goes over 21.
What is a Hard Hand in Blackjack?
There are two types of hard hand in blackjack: those without aces, and those with an ace. If a hand has an ace, it’s classed as a hard hand when the ace counts as 1. This rule applies so you don’t risk to go over 21. For example, if you have a 10, a 3 and an ace, the hand is hard. Let’s break it down. If your ace counts as 11, the value of your hand would be 24 (10+3+11) and you would “bust” or be out of the game because you would go over 21; but, if your ace counts as 1, your hand value would total to 14 (10+3+1), meaning that you are still in the game. At this point you can decide to “hit” (you are dealt another card) or “stand” (you end the game and wait to see if the dealer can beat your 14 or if you beat the dealer).
An example of a hard hand without an ace is a 10 and a 6, which would make a hard 16. This is one of the trickiest hands in blackjack, because your chances of winning are drastically reduced. But no hope is lost! Make sure to look at the rules of a hard 16 hand to learn what you should do in this situation, and turn the game back in your favour.
So does it mean that every time you are dealt cards without an ace you have a hard hand? The answer is no. Your hand is not considered hard if you can add another card to your hand without going to bust. This happens when you have low value cards in your hand, such as a 2 or a 3. You then decide to hit and no matter what your third card is, you won’t be going over 21. Hard hands, are hands where there’s a risk of an extra card making you go bust. If you don’t know what to do when you are dealt a hard hand, make sure to check our article on blackjack strategies where you can find helpful information and game history on how to overcome this situation. Ultimately soft hands are probably more favourable as a blackjack hand.
Blackjack Strategy with soft or hard hands
There are two types of hard hand in blackjack: those without aces, and those with an ace. If a hand has an ace, it’s classed as a hard hand when the ace counts as 1. This rule applies so you don’t risk going over 21. For example, if you have a 10, a 3 and an ace, the hand is hard. Let’s break it down. If your ace counts as 11, the value of your hand would be 24 (10+3+11) and you would “bust” or be out of the game because you would go over 21; but, if your ace counts as 1, your hand value would total to 14 (10+3+1), meaning that you are still in the game. At this point, you can make the decision to “hit” (you are dealt another card) or “stand” (you end the game and wait to see if the dealer can beat your 14 or if you beat the dealer).
