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Should you double soft 19 against a 6?

Double. If you can't double, stand. The book doubles soft 19 against a 6 and stands against the rest.

Why

Soft 19 is a fair hand to stand on, and the book stands on it against every dealer card but a 6. Against a 6 it doubles instead.

The double isn't about building a better hand. It's about having twice the bet out when the dealer goes over 21, which with a 6 showing is 43.9% of the time. And a soft hand can't break on one card.

When the answer changes

At the app's table (six decks, the dealer hitting soft 17, double after split and late surrender) the book doubles soft 19 against a 6. With two, six or eight decks and the dealer standing on soft 17, the book stands instead. Every other rule set plays it the way the app's table does.

The full basic strategy chart for six decks, dealer hits soft 17, with every other rule set a tap away.

The same chart with the dealer standing on soft 17.

Questions

Should you double soft 19 against a 7?

No. Against a 7 the book stands on soft 19. A dealer showing a 7 goes over 21 26.2% of the time.

Does the answer change if the dealer stands on soft 17?

Yes. At the app's table with the dealer standing on soft 17, the book stands on soft 19 against a 6.

More hands

Guides

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