One decision you will be faced with when playing Blackjack is called “Doubling Down” this is simply placing another wager on your hand which is equal to your initial bet, and for this wager you will receive another card.

As usual with so many Blackjack variants in play you should fully familiarize yourself with the house rules, these are displayed on a small sign at the side of the dealer and will let you know when you can double down your hand.

The most common double down rules will dictate that you can double down either on ANY first two cards, or on a 9, 10 or 11 valued hand.

Now you may think that doubling your initial wager is a good move and a novice player will soon find out to his cost, that not every hand should be double downed on, there are only certain situations when this move is a good strategic move and we shall now take a look at these situations.

When you have been dealt a hand totalling eleven then it is a very good move to double down, even if the dealer is holding an Ace. Should the  Blackjack game be a dealer peeks game then you will already know he isn’t holding a Blackjack hand.

Another common situation to double down is when you have a pair of fives, you should not be thinking of splitting them even if the dealer appears to have a week up card, you should double down this hand unless the dealer is holding a Ten or an Ace.

When you are holding a nine you should take a good look at the dealers up card as this will give you an insight into the correct move you should make, in single deck Blackjack you should be considering doubling down this nine when the dealer is holding a 2, 3, 4, 5 or a 6.

With you having the option to double down you should always bear this in mind when you are placing your initial wager, there can be no worse feeling than being dealt a hand which should be double downed on but you not having enough cash or chips on you to make this move!