Double Exposure Blackjack adds an interesting twist to the blackjack game. As the name suggests, it requires the dealer to deal both his cards face up, which gives the player an almost unfair advantage over the casino.
Don’t think you can beat the casino, though, in order to neutralize the drastically reduced house edge, the casino has implemented a set of rules that will bring back the odds in their favor.
For example, instead of paying 3:2 for a natural blackjack, this blackjack variant pays even money. Ties result in a losing bet and there’s no insurance or surrendering available. This is the way the casino ‘fights’ the player’s advantage which stems from the dealer’s face-up cards. Depending on where you play it, this blackjack variant might also be called Dealer Disclosure or Face-up Blackjack in some casinos.
Rules
Aside from the fact that this is the only blackjack variant where both of the dealer’s cards are exposed, Double Exposure Blackjack has a few more rules which differ from the traditional game. Players can split only once (subject to terms and conditions), blackjacks pay even money, and all the ties are won by the dealer except in case of a natural. The other rules are quite similar to traditional blackjack and vary from casino to casino.
As we already mentioned, in this blackjack variant, the dealer doesn’t offer the insurance bet. The push rule remains the same, just like the rules for busting. And, while it may seem like Double Exposure Blackjack may be a sure-fire win for the player, you actually need a good strategy to beat the dealer. Of course, it also depends on the rules which differ a bit in different casinos.
Double Exposure Blackjack is actually a very challenging game. For example, if you have 18 and the dealer has 20, you will obviously either hit or stand. This presents you with 2 chances – either you land blackjack which is not very likely or you go bust and lose your bet. Even a tie in this blackjack variant results in a lost bet, so as you can see, Double Exposure Blackjack may look easy to beginners, but it’s actually far more complex.