8 Deck Blackjack

Blackjack is one of the most popular card games in the United States and globally. This casino game has existed since the 17th century, and it is still loved by new and veteran players. One of the reasons for its popularity is that this game has the best odds of winning than any other casino game. Also, players are free to use the blackjack strategy to maximize winning opportunities.

Additionally, with online blackjack games, you can play for fun or place real money bets. If you are a beginner, it is essential to understand that blackjack games can be played using 1 to 8 decks.

In this article, our main focus is on the 8-deck- blackjack game. We've shared the basic strategy you can use to lower the house edge in your favor.

Basic Blackjack Strategy

As we aforementioned, the advantage of playing blackjack is that you can employ a strategy to lower the house edge and boost your odds of winning. The best blackjack strategy works across all decks starting with single-deck games to multi-deck blackjack. However, you must understand the efficiency of each strategy depends on the number of decks and the house edge of the game.

The following are the best strategies you can use in eight-deck blackjack:

Surrender Strategy

This strategy requires you to:

• Always surrender a hard hand 16 but not a pair 8's against the dealer's Ace, 9, or 10.
• Always surrender a hard 15 when the dealer has a 10 card.

Split Strategy

This strategy requires you to:

• Always split your Ace and eight cards.
• Never split 5s and 10s.
• Always split 2's and 3's when the dealer has 4, 5, 6, or 7.
• Always split 6's when the dealer has 3, 4, 5, or 6.
• Always split 7's when the dealer has 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, or 7.
• Always split 9's when the dealer's card is 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, or 9. But never on 7.

However, you must understand that there are slight differences when it comes to split strategy. In case a double split is accepted, you may consider the following options.

1. To split 2's when the dealer has 2's and 3's.
2. To split 6’s when the dealer has 2.
3. To split 4’s when the dealer has 2.

Double Strategy

Doubling down strategy requires you to:

• Always double your hard 9 when the dealer has 3, 4, 5, or 6.
• Always double your hard 10, except when the dealer has 10 or an ace.
• Always double your hard 11, except when the dealer has 11.
• Always double your 13 or 14 when the dealer has 5 or 6.
• Always double your soft 15 or 16 when the dealer has 4 or 6.
• Always double your soft 17 when the dealer has 3 or 6.

Hit or Stand Strategy

With this strategy, you must do the following:

• To always hit hard, any hard 11 or less.
• To stand on your hard 12 when the dealer has 4, 5, or 6. Otherwise, you must always hit.
• Stand on your hard 13, 14, 15, & 16 when the dealer has 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6. Otherwise, you must always hit.
• To stand when you have a hard 17 or greater.
• Stand on your soft 18 but always hit when the dealer has 9, 10, or ace.
• To stand on a soft 19 or bigger.

Additional Rules to Blackjack Strategies

There are additional rules that may affect how some strategies work in blackjack. For instance, when the dealer hits on soft 17, the rules change as follows:

1. Always double soft 19 when the dealer has 6.
2. Always double 11 when the dealer has aces.
3. Always surrender 15, 8's and 17 when the dealer has an Ace.
4. Always double soft 18 when the dealer has 2.

Blackjack Strategy Chart - What is it?

Basically, a blackjack strategy chart has different moves for each specific hand. The strategy charts have information about the player's hole cards and the upright card of the dealer. The rows and columns of the charts have different options, like knowing when to hit or stand.

It is essential to understand that these charts follow different blackjack strategies with varying odds of winning. With the best strategy, you can reduce the house edge in blackjack to as low as 0.5%.

Note that there are some blackjack tables with varying odds for each hand. With these settings, you get better chances of winning and boosting your bankroll. In case you don't want to surrender with these hands, it is recommended to stay to avoid exceeding 21 or going burst.

Blackjack Strategy Chart - How to Read It

It's pretty simple to read a blackjack strategy chart when you understand the basic standards of playing. It is crucial to know how the hard hands don't have an ace. If you are dealt a hard 7, it may have 3 hearts and 4 clubs, while an H 12 has 6 clubs and 6 diamonds. Blackjack's soft hands have an ace card. The blackjack ace is highly valuable as it can be 1 or 11.

The dealer's exposed upcard is stated in every strategy chart. Align the dealer's cards on your hand on the charts to get the actions to make. Additionally, the charts tell you when to stop hitting in a game. This implies that you must follow the provided steps in the charts shown by the value on the three-hole cards.

How to Memorize Strategy Charts in Blackjack

It's not complicated to memorize a basic strategy chart. All you need to know is when to double down your cards. Once you know when to take this action, hit for each time when you get a hard 8 or lower.

Basically, to memorize charts, you need regular practice regularly. The good thing is that there are plenty of ways you can master blackjack strategy charts. It is recommended to start with the free blackjack games to learn the strategies and rules in general.

Many card counters avoid playing 8-deck blackjack because it's quite hard to count. Additionally, the shoe in 8-deck games reduces the opportunities of winning a natural hand.

Late Surrender Blackjack Strategy

Later surrender strategy is a common rule in blackjack games, but the rules vary depending on the number of decks. You should understand that early surrender reduces the casino house edge by 0.63% and 0.1% with the late surrender. Combining counting cards and a basic strategy give players better chances of winning.

Splitting in Blackjack

Splitting is one of the moves you can make when the cards are dealt in a blackjack game. For example, if you have two hole cards with the same value, you can split and get a hand for each hand. It is recommended to split aces in blackjack games to win more money.

The Bottom Line

Generally, 8-deck blackjack is a great game suitable for beginners and experienced players. Like other variations, this game is available in free mode and for real money. Employing a proper strategy will help lower the house's edge and boost your odds of winning. Remember to practice and master rules before playing any blackjack games.

8-Deck Strategy FAQs