exactly the same as insuring the hand. Many people will argue that it is not the same. They are wrong. I will not clutter up this book with an explanation — you can find one in Wikipedia.

Ø  Insure Blackjack only – Some casinos in Europe, and in particular the UK, allow insurance bets only when the player has a Blackjack. This is not referred to as insurance but “even money” in the UK as insurance is not defined in UK rules. The rule greatly harms the player who is counting.

Ø  Insurance for full amount – This unusual Blackjack rule allows an insurance bet equal to the value of the original bet instead of the usual half-bet. It is a good bet for card counters.

Ø  Insure against Ten – Here you bet the dealer has an ace in the hole. The payoff varies.

Ø  Late Surrender – The common form of surrender. The player can surrender a hand (throw it in) for half of the bet after the dealer has checked for Blackjack. If the dealer is not allowed to peek and does not know if there is a dealer Blackjack, then the surrender occurs only after the dealer checks for Blackjack and finds that it does not exist.

Ø  Early Surrender – This less and less available rule allows surrender of a hand before the dealer checks for Blackjack. If you can find a casino that allows it, this is one of the most valuable options in the game. Advantage is about .6-.7. It can be found in Africa, some places in Eastern Europe, for a time in Moscow, a couple of casinos in Vancouver and a handful of casinos in Western Europe. In rare cases, you will find a dealer that allows this because she does not understand the late surrender rule.

Ø  Early Surrender vs. 10 – Allows a surrender if the dealer has a ten-up Blackjack. Only available with no dealer hole card.

Ø  Macao Surrender – This, currently obsolete, rule allows surrender of an unbusted hand with five cards.

Ø  Surrender any number of cards – With this rule, the player can surrender a hand after any number of draws.

Ø  Surrender after Double – A new rule that allows a surrender even after you have doubled down. Also called Double Down Rescue. The dealer takes the double portion of the bet, and the player retains the original bet.

 © 2009 Norman Wattenberger