Spanish 21: An Interesting Blackjack Variation
There is a common variant of the regular blackjack game and it is called Spanish 21. In the game of Spanish 21, all the Ten-value cards of the deck are removed except for the Jacks, Queens, and Kings.
There are some rules in Spanish 21 that are totally advantageous for the players. Players of Spanish 21 are allowed to hit, surrender, and double down any time during the game and not just during the initial two cards. If ever you double down in Spanish 21 and the cards dealt to you are not good, you can back out from your double down by availing the double down rescue. This playing option in Spanish 21 allows players to surrender one of the bets while the other bet is being pulled back.
Spanish 21 also has a rule that unless the dealer has a blackjack, the player who has 21 will win even if the dealer has a multiple card of 21. It is not like in the standard blackjack game where the situation will become a no-win push.
In addition to the advantageous rules of Spanish 21, there are also special payouts in Spanish 21 for specific card combinations of 21. They are the following card combinations in Spanish 21:
- A five-card combination of 21 has a payout of 3:2. - A six-card combination of 21 has a payout of 2:1. - A seven-card combination of 21 has a payout of 3:1. - A six-seven-eight mixed suits combination has a payout of 3:2. - A six-seven-eight same suit combination has a payout of 2:1. - A six-seven-eight all spades combination has a payout of 3:1. - A seven-seven-seven mixed suits combination has a payout of 3:2. - A seven-seven-seven same suit combination has a payout of 2:1. - A seven-seven-seven all spades combination has a payout of 3:1. - A seven-seven-seven same suit combination with the dealer's up card of any seven has a payout of $5,000 for a $25 bet or more and a payout of $1,000 for bets between $5 and $25.
The usual number of playing decks in Spanish 21 is six or eight and the dealer will have to sit on soft 17. The only big disadvantage in Spanish 21 is the lack of Ten-value cards. If ever you have a hand of 11 and you wish to double down in Spanish 21, just remember that the Ten-value cards for each deck in Spanish 21 are only 12 rather than the usual 16 for every deck of cards.
Spanish 21 is a very interesting game variation of blackjack and you will experience the excitement of the game once you have understood the playing rules of the game.
