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The GameThe MovesHard TotalsSoft TotalsPairsSurrender & RulesLive HandCard Counting

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Lesson 1 · Pairs

AA and 88 — Always Split

Aces and eights should always be split, against any dealer card.

AA: each hand starts from 11 — extremely strong. 88: hard 16 is the worst hand, splitting is always better.

Examples

AA vs A
A♦A♦A
A♦A♦A
YOU
VS
A♠A♠A
DEALER
✓ Split

Always split — even vs the dealer's ace, two hands starting from 11 are better.

88 vs 10
8♣8♣8
8♣8♣8
YOU
VS
Q♥Q♥Q
DEALER
✓ Split

Always split — hard 16 vs 10 is the worst situation, two separate 8s are better.

Common mistake

Refusing to split 8s against a 10 because 'sixteen twice is suicide'. Sixteen is the worst hand in the game — two hands starting from 8 lose less. And aces are never played as a soft 12.

Guided practice

Try 8 hands from the category you just studied before the quiz.

Pair
A♣A♣A
A♦A♦A
YOUR HAND
VS
Dealer
5♦5♦5
DEALER

Quiz

Answer 8 out of 10 correctly to continue.

Check this hand on the full chart →