One of the most common blackjack hand rankings is called the “7-card stud” layout. In this hand ranking, the dealer deals seven cards face-up on the table, one at a time.
The first two cards are face-up, then two through five are face-down and the sixth card is also face-down. The object of blackjack is to score as close to 21 as possible by taking any of the cards as your own and adding it to your hand total.
The rank of a card is important in blackjack because it can help you determine how much to bet. For example, if you are playing against a dealer who is dealing from a 7-card stud layout, you would want to bet more when the card is ranked high (e.g.
, an Ace) than when it is ranked low (e.g., a Two).
In general, higher cards (Aces and Tens) are worth more than lower cards (2s through 5s). When playing against a dealer who is dealing from a 7-card stud layout, it is important to keep this in mind because the value of each card can affect how much you should bet.
Some casinos also offer “8-card stud” layouts in which the dealer deals eight cards face-up on the table, one at a time. The rank of a card in 8-card stud differs from its rank in 7-card stud in that 2s through 10s are both used instead of just Ace and Ten.
This can make understanding how to play blackjack against dealers who deal from an 8-card stud layout slightly more complicated, but not difficult.
