Blackjack at Mr Green

Online Blackjack

One of the main reasons why blackjack remains such a popular online casino game is its simple rules. At the blackjack table, you don’t have to worry about any other player’s hand other than the dealer’s – and your own, of course. All you must do is reach a score of 21 or lower with your hand that’s higher than the dealer’s hand.

At Mr Green, you don’t just get 24/7 access to state-of-the-art online blackjack games, you get the full land-based casino experience on tap. Our live dealer blackjack tables transport you to a casino studio that looks and feels like you’re playing in the real thing. You can interact with the dealers and the other players at your table, as well as experience all the visuals and audio that create an exhilarating online casino environment.

Our RNG-based online blackjack tables are available to play at too. Once the game loads on your desktop, laptop, or mobile device, you’ll get access to your own exclusive table with no other players. This is ideal for beginners, allowing you to learn the rules of blackjack and play at your own pace before hitting the live tables.

Blackjack games

If you are new to playing blackjack online, it’s a good idea to get started with our standard RNG-based online blackjack tables. This gives you a good grounding in the basics of blackjack, before sampling our blackjack variants.

The original version of blackjack is said to have stemmed from French casinos in the 18th century. The game then spread rapidly to North America thanks to French colonists, gaining huge popularity among American casino-goers from the early 19th century. The game was called “21” stateside when it was first fully legalised by the US state of Nevada in 1931.

In the 1950s and early 60s, a series of mathematicians and statisticians discovered the ability to adopt a betting strategy that helped players gain an edge on the game. Edward Thorp is the founding father of card counting in blackjack, equipping players with a system for maintaining a running count of the card values left in the dealer’s deck. Although card counting has become less accessible due to the advent of RNGs and the use of multiple decks in a dealer’s shoe, the system still fascinates blackjack players today looking to maximise their betting bankrolls.

How to play blackjack

If you are unfamiliar with the game dynamics at the blackjack tables, read on as we explain the basic dos and don’ts. At the start of each game, the dealer will deal each active player two cards, as well as two to themselves. The cards are valued at face value, except for Aces which can either be one or 11 depending on what improves your hand most. Face cards (Jack, Queen, and King) are worth ten.

The dealer only shows one of their cards face up to the rest of the table. This is known as their ‘up card’. If the dealer’s up card is showing an Ace, players will be asked if they want to make a side bet, also known as an ‘insurance’ bet. This pays out at odds of 2/1 in the event the dealer’s second card is a face card. An Ace and a face card is the best possible hand in the game, known as blackjack. If you land a blackjack in a game, you will be paid at better than even money odds of either 6/5 or 3/2 – games that offer the latter are most worthwhile.

When the dealer deals your first two cards, you will have the option to hit, stand, double down, or split, depending on the value of your cards.

Increase Your Chances of Winning with a Blackjack Strategy 

Unlike slot games, where the outcome is purely based on luck, you will notice that blackjack is a game of skill – which is why it’s such an immensely popular casino game in Ireland. When you incorporate an optimal blackjack strategy with a game of skill like blackjack, you can reduce to house edge to an attractive 0.1%!

The skill required to play blackjack with an optimal strategy basically revolves around mathematics. You will essentially evaluate the two cards that have been dealt to you along with the single exposed card in the dealer’s hand. These two evaluations will give you the necessary information to choose between standing, hitting, splitting and doubling down.

However, it’s worth mentioning that there are certain truths you need to keep in mind when using a blackjack strategy. For instance, you should be well aware that 6 is the worst possible face-up card for the dealer when the face-down card is a 10. This is because the dealer will more than likely exceed 21 on the third card drawn. With that being said, if the dealer’s face-up card is a 6, we recommend that you stand if your hand total is 12 or above as this will eliminate the opportunity to go bust when the dealer is already on their way to exceeding 21.

With that in mind, let’s take a closer look at a basic blackjack strategy which will give you valuable insight into which decision you should make depending on the dealer’s face-up card and the two cards in your hand.

• Hit: Take another card after you have been dealt your initial hand. You can keep doing this until you hit or exceed 21.
• Stand: Take no more cards and ‘stand’ with the hand you currently have.
• Double-Down: Double your initial wager and then be dealt another card.
• Split: If both cards in your initial hand each have the same value, you can ‘split’ these into two separate hands and play a double round of blackjack. 
• Insurance: If the house has an ace card in their hand, you can place an insurance bet. This is simply an additional side bet on whether or not the dealer will have blackjack (a score of 21).

When you calculate the mathematics behind this basic blackjack strategy, you will notice that the player will win 44% of the time, while the dealer will win 48% of the time. The remaining 8% indicates hands that result in a draw (push).

Every single casino game comes equipped with a house edge, including blackjack. A perfect example of this is that the player needs to decide what happens to their hand before the dealer is required to draw a second card to their hand. Thankfully, the house edge can be reduced with a blackjack strategy. However, it greatly depends on the game rules of blackjack.

For instance, some blackjack variants will give the dealer the freedom to hit on a soft 17 (a hand that includes an Ace) to give the casino a bigger house edge, while other blackjack variants will require the dealer to stand on 17 which will reduce the house edge of a casino. You will also find that some variants will allow you to double down on any hand value, while others are restricted to only certain hand values.

Popular blackjack games

Wondering which blackjack games are most popular among our Ireland-based punters? We’ve put together a list of the tables that attract the biggest player traffic from the Emerald Isle:

• Mr Green Exclusive Blackjack
• Mr Green Exclusive Blackjack 2
• Mr Green Exclusive Blackjack 4

We’re pleased to offer online blackjack games that deliver a first-person perspective. These tables are powered by our trusted partners Evolution, bringing you state-of-the-art RNG blackjack action on any device.

The RNG-powered blackjack games provide slick 3D rendering and animation to create an immersive casino experience. Meanwhile, our HD-quality live dealer blackjack tables are only a click away from our first-person RNG blackjack games, allowing you to switch between authentic virtual blackjack and live dealer games when you are ready to play at real tables. This is thanks to our partnership with Evolution tables and their sophisticated GO LIVE, which makes switching between live and virtual as easy as clicking a button.

Aside from our dedicated tables that carry the iconic Mr Green branding, we also have VIP tables like our Salon Prive Blackjack and Mr Green VIP Blackjack tables. Both of which carry higher maximum bets, creating exclusive gaming environments for those with the deepest of pockets.

Our portfolio of blackjack tables is also bursting with scalable tables like Free Bet Blackjack, Infinite Blackjack, One Blackjack from Pragmatic Play, and Power Blackjack, all of which offer creative side bets and varied game dynamics, and an unlimited number of players.

Play blackjack on your mobile at Mr Green

If you own an iOS or Android smartphone or tablet device, you can also join in the online blackjack fun at Mr Green on the go. Our native iOS and Android apps make it easy to load up an RNG or live blackjack table, providing you have a stable 4G or Wi-Fi connection.

Every single blackjack table at Mr Green is fully responsive, ensuring you get as close to the action as possible, regardless of your screen size.