Check out the Blackjack Man's free blackjack tips below. Note, these are only tips to bear in mind, they are not the "blackjack gospel". So in any given situation you should never discount your own gut feeling and gaming sense.

Never split two '10' value cards
Such a hand totals "20" and is an excellent hand. The objective in blackjack is to achieve "21" but if you've got "20" on the first two cards dealt to you then there is only one hand that the dealer can beat you with and that is "21". So it's hard for the dealer to beat your "20" and plain and simple, it's financial suicide to do that.

Never split two five's
Two 5's equal "10", so double down instead, and ask for "one card only, please". If you split the two 5's, and get two 10's, you made two bad hands out of a good hand, and would have had "20" if you doubled down.

Always split two 8's
No matter what the dealer has, even when showing an ace, split the 8's. Two 8's make 16, and that is the worst hand in Blackjack. By splitting the two 8's, you stand a better chance of at least one hand a winner, and thereby saving your money. If one hand wins, and the other loses, one pays the other and you lose nothing (assuming you bet the same amount on both hands which is normally a rule requirement). And if you draw a "10" to both hands, you've made two 18's, as opposed to one 16 - much better probabilities with this.

Always double down when you have ...
- A count of 11, do not hesitate if the dealer has a 10 or Ace showing.
- A count of 10 and the dealer's card is anything but a 10.
- A count of 9 and the dealer's card is between 2 to 8.
- Soft 13, 14, 15, 16, (Ace and 2, 3, 4, 5) and the dealer has a 6 showing.

For hard hands, if the player's cards amount to 12 or higher ...
- Hit if the player hand totals 12 through 16 and the dealer has a seven or higher.
- Stand on any hand totaling 17 or higher.
- Stand if the player cards total 12 through 16 and the dealer has two through six.

For soft hands ...
- Always draw to soft 17 or less.
- Only draw on soft 18 if the dealer has an eight, nine or ten. Doubling down is the main method by which a player can eliminate the house edge so it is very important to remember when to utilize this option.

For hard hands ...
- Double down when the player's cards total 11 and the dealer has a ten or less.
- Double down when the player's cards total 10 and the dealer has a nine or less.
- Double down when the player's cards total nine and the dealer has a four, five or six.

For soft hands ...
- Double down with a soft 13 and soft 14 when the dealer has a five or six.
- Double down with a soft 15 and soft 16 when the dealer has a four, five or six.
- Double down with a soft 17 and soft 18 when the dealer has three through six.

Splitting Pairs
- Always split a pair of aces or eights. A pair of aces totals either two or twelve but when you split them each card is worth eleven. When you split eights you are breaking up 16 which is the worst hand to have.
- Never split fours, fives or tens.
- Split twos and threes only when the dealer has four through seven.
- Split sixes when the dealer has three through six.
- Split sevens when the dealer has three through seven.
- Split nines when the dealer has two through six, eight or nine.