• A player who is dealt a hand totaling 12 to 16 when the dealer is showing a low value card (2 to 6) should stand. There is a high probability that the dealer will bust and the player will then win.
• A player who is dealt a hand totaling 12 to 16 when the dealer is showing a high value card (7 to Ace) should take a card. There is a low probability that the dealer will bust and the player should try to improve his hand in order to win with a higher total.
• If the player is dealt a hand totaling 17 to 21 he/she should stand, the probability of busting on a hit is high.

Soft Hand Rules (Ace counted as a one OR an eleven)
Most casinos allow an ace to be played as either a 1 or 11, whichever value is most beneficial to the holder. When a player has an ace that is being used as an 11, it's referred to as a "soft hand". These hands are played differently as the player cannot draw to a soft hand and bust (the player just revalues the Ace to count as 1 instead of 11).

The basic strategy for playing soft hands is to double down when the dealer has a high probability of busting (low value face-up cards).

In the event that you are dealt a card that changes your hand from a soft hand (Ace = 11) to a hard hand (Ace = 1) then change strategies to the hard hand rules discussed previously.

Doubling Down Strategy
Doubling down allows you to put more money on the table when the odds of winning are good, and you should always bet the maximum amount allowed in these situations. Doubling down should only be done when the player has a better chance of winning than the dealer, or when you stand to earn more profit by doubling down than by hitting the hand.

Casinos have different rules for doubling down; usually you can only double down after you receive your initial two cards and before you draw a third card, but some casinos only allow the option on certain hand values (usually 9, 10 or 11).

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