BLACKJACK SWITCH

OBJECTIVE OF BLACKJACK SWITCH : The final goal of Blackjack Switch is to form a hand as close to 21 as possible.

NUMBER OF PLAYERS : 1 to 7 players

MATERIALS : A standard deck of 52 cards, casino chips or cash, and a blackjack table.

TYPE OF GAME : Card Draw Game

AUDIENCE : Adult

OVERVIEW OF BLACKJACK SWITCH

The game is a variation of common blackjack and differs in gameplay, in that, a classing cheating technique is allowed. The main goal of the game remains, however, and that is to get a hard hand valued at 21 or the closest to it.

Bets are accepted before the cards are dealt. Each player will have two hands in play, opposing the usual one. Any two-cards that score 21 will be considered a win over the dealer’s hand and be paid 1-1. The game can be played indefinitely, as long as there is an adequate bankroll with all players.

SETUP

After placing a bet in casino chips or cash, each player will receive two hands, each hand with two cards. Players will then take turns to draw from the shoe. Once everyone is happy with their cards, the dealer uncovers all the cards and compares them against his own. All wins are paid out and all losing bets are collected.

GAMEPLAY

The round starts with the croupier accepting bets from all players at the table. Once all bets have been collected, all players will be dealt a total of four cards. This constitutes two separate hands at play. The top two cards dealt to players can be switched with one another in the first round. Players will then be allowed to assess their cards and choose to either hit, stand, split, or double, or surrender, as the game progresses.

The dealer then compares the cards and pays out wagers as prescribed in the game’s rules.

GENERAL RULES OF PLAY

  • All rules of Switch are based on the original blackjack, unless specified.
  • Cards are dealt from a shoe of 4-8 52-card decks.
  • Cards are dealt face up.
  • A dealer hits at a soft 17, usually. In some regions, dealers are allowed to stand at a soft 17.
  • To begin, the player must wager in equal size on both starting hands.
  • Dealers peek for a blackjack with an Ace or 10. Any such blackjack causes players to lose, while a player with blackjack of any kind will be pushed and have their bet returned.
  • If a player switches and lands on blackjack, it counts as 21 points.
  • Players can double on any 2 cards
  • Players can choose to double after splits
  • Players can re-split to a total of four hands.
  • Winning blackjacks pay 1:1
  • A dealer with 22 pushes any player with 21 or less.
  • Players with blackjack will trump a dealer’s 22, always.

VARIATIONS

In Russian Switch, all rules are the same with the exception of an early surrender. Dealers also do not take hole cards and are allowed to stand on soft 17s.

STRATEGIES

In terms of strategies for Switch, they vary greatly in comparison to the common strategies for blackjack. This is mainly due to the ability of players to switch cards between hands, which lands more possible winning combinations. The following are the main three strategies in Switch.

LAS VEGAS RULES

Source : wizardofodds.com

ADVANCED SPLITTING

Source : wizardofodds.com

SIMPLE SPLITTING

 The simple splitting technique is based on the following order of card hand hierarchy, in order of strength going downwards :

  • 21
  • 20
  • 19
  • Ace & Ace
  • 11
  • 10
  • 9
  • 18 or 8
  • 8,8 with 2-8 up

The goal is to achieve the highest valued hand in this list, depending on the dealer’s cards. When a dealer has a 7 or an 8, hit until your weaker hand reaches any of these in the list. For a dealer card that is not 7 or 8, use your stronger hand instead.

If the list above cannot be achieved, make card hands as below, in order of strength going downwards.

  • 7 or 17
  • any hand that can or should be
  • any 12
  • any 13

There are a few exceptions for when to split for Aces, which are as follows :

  • A,A + 3,8 – Do not split aces
  • A,A + 2,8 – Do not split aces
  • A,A + 2,9 – Do not split aces if the dealer has a card anywhere between 2-6

HOUSE EDGE

  • House edge is at 0.58%
  • Using eight decks the house edge is 0.60%
  • Switch blackjack leaves the house edge at -0.40%
  • Switched blackjack automatically wins: -0.40%
  • Blackjack winners have a house edge of -0.21%
  • Dealers standing on soft 17 brings the house edge to  -0.30%
  • The house edge for the Russian Switch variation is 0.20%.

SIDE BETS

Super Match Side Bet

Source : wizardofodds.com

C4 – 6 Decks Only

Source : wizardofodds.com

END OF GAME

At the end of the game, any player with blackjack is paid out. A dealer with 22 pushes all players except the one with a blackjack. Pushed players will have their bets returned.

Nakoa Davis
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