Blackjack : Soft Seventeen used carelessly by blackjack players

Every blackjack player knows that it's best to stand when you have a strong 17, no matter what upcard the dealer has. But with the soft 17, the 17 combined with an Ace used as 11, the situation changes. There are many possibilities: Stand, Double down, Hit, and many don't know when, and which one to use.

The 17 is a weak combination because it brings more losses then wins. When the dealer has a 6 as a faced up card the situation might be in your favor, but even in this situation you might win only once in 100 hands.

There is a reason why most players stand on a strong 17, even if the hand is weak. There are 13 different cards one might draw in this situation: Four of them (30.8%) can improve your situation but not necessarily bring you a win. The remaining nine cards (69.2%) will make you bust and lose the hand.

When you have a soft 17, use any alternative except standing. A double down means placing a second bet, equal or less than the original one after you have seen your hand, but with the possibility of receiving only one card. The basic strategy presents two situations when you should double down:

1. Double only when you have higher chances of winning than losing
2. Double only when the advantage over the house is more than half of the hitting advantage

You should double down in these situations but only when the dealer’s faced up card is a three, four, five, or six. These are the odds for each of the three situations when the dealer faced up card is a four:

• Stand: In this situation the odds are against you because you will win 39.45%, tie 13.05% and lose 47.50%, meaning that you are disadvantaged by 8.05%.


• Double or Hit: In this situation the odds are in your favor because you will win 48.9%, tie 8.0%, and lose 43.1%, meaning that you are advantaged by 5.8%.

Both of the situations mentioned above are respected: the advantage over the house is more than half of the hitting advantage, and the chances of winning are higher than the ones of losing.

If the dealer's faced up card would be a 2 or seven through ace, you would no longer be in advantage, because the first situation would not be respected.

You won't stand in on a soft 17, and you will double down only when the dealer's faced up card is 3, 4, 5, or 6; that means that on the remaining situations you must hit.

By hitting an Ace through 4, or a 10, you will improve your position to 30.8%. The remaining 38.4% will reduce the total to 12 through 16, but you can still win.

Hitting on soft 17 will put you in an inferior position, but it's still better than standing, because you still have some winning chances. We have presented you the situations, and even if they seem simple to remember now, it will be more difficult to do so when you actually play the game and risk losing money.

In this case you can use a basic strategy chart which will help you make the decisions. Most of the casinos allow them, but be sure you ask a dealer or another player first.