Playing blackjack Once the original hand of two cards is dealt, the player has several options. The player can Hit (take another card), Stand (stay with the current hand), Split (split a pair into two independent hands), Double (double your initial wager and take one and only one more card), Surrender (surrender half of your wager instead of playing out the hand), or take Insurance (a side bet allowed when the dealer has an ace to protect the player against a dealer blackjack).

 Not all casino blackjack games offer the double, surrender, or insurance options. The decision on which option to choose can be influenced by your hand value, the value of the dealer's face card, the number of decks in the game and even which cards have been played since the last shuffle of the stack.

The game of blackjack is one of the most popular casino games. It is played around the world, by gamblers from all walks of life, in live casinos as well as on the Internet.

Blackjack has a history that goes back centuries. The game has roots around the globe including in ancient Rome, Spain, and France with the popular French game of Vingt-et-Un. Blackjack made its first appearance in North America in the early 20th century and has grown to be one of the most-played casino games.

Blackjack game rules are simple. The game is played against a blackjack dealer with one objective-to obtain a hand worth a higher value than the dealer's hand without breaking a total of 21. There are a number of blackjack variations, however the basic rules and objective remain the same throughout all blackjack game variants.

Before receiving any cards players must place a wager. Then the players are dealt two cards face up. The dealer gets one face up, one face down. Each player in turn either stays or takes more cards to try and get closer to 21 without busting.

Players who do not bust wait for the dealer's turn. When all the players are done, the dealer turns up the down card. By rule, on counts of 17 or higher the dealer must stay; on counts of 16 or lower the dealer must draw.