Double deck Blackjack strategy
To use the basic strategy look up your hand along the left vertical edge and the dealer's up card along the top. In both cases an A stands for ace. From top to bottom are the hard totals, soft totals, and splittable hands. The splittable hands have been divided into two groups depending on whether or not doubling after splitting is allowed. In multiple deck games doubling after a split is usually allowed and that rule can go either way in single deck. In the body of the chart are color coded cells that indicate the best play: H=hit, S=stand, D=double, P=split.
It should be noted that this strategy is applicable when the dealer stands on a soft 17, which is almost always the case in an 8 deck game. If the dealer hits a soft 17 the player should double on 11 against an ace.
Peter A. Griffin (1937–1998) was a mathematician, author and blackjack expert and is one of the original seven members of the Blackjack Hall of Fame. He authored The Theory of Blackjack, considered a classic analysis of the mathematics behind the game of casino 21.
Griffin was a native of New Jersey, one of three children, with a brother, poet...