Wouldnt I be better off taking my chances of not busting, since the chances of busting are much higher when hitting with a 16?Ī player standing on 16 or less can only win if the dealer busts. I realize that the strategy ONLY calls for a player to draw if the dealer is showing a 7 - ace but that’s 61.5% of the time that I’ll be hitting on 16. If I hit on a 16 I have less than a 38.5% chance of improving my hand. That leaves 8 out of 13 cards (61.5%) which will bust my hand! Only five cards (ace - 5) can improve a 16. Just like, mathematically, buying insurance on a dealer ace doesn’t make sense because it pays 2-1 when the odds of the dealer drawing a 10 are only 3-1, can anyone explain how hitting on 16, as recommended in “basic blackjack strategy” makes sense when the chances of busting when hitting on 16 are 61.5%?
