What Is a Soft 20 in Blackjack?

A soft 20 is a blackjack hand that includes an ace counted as 11 points and any other combination of cards totaling nine points. The name “soft” comes from the fact that the ace can be counted as 1 or 11, giving the hand more flexibility.

A soft 20 is a strong hand against most dealer upcards, with only a few exceptions. For example, you would always hit a soft 20 against a dealer’s upcard of 6 or less, but you would stand if the dealer showed a 7 or higher.

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The main reason to hit a soft 20 is because of the possibility of improving your hand. For example, if you hit and are dealt a 9, you now have a hard 19 (ace counted as 1) which is a much better hand than a soft 20.

PRO TIP:When playing blackjack, a soft 20 is a hand with an Ace and a 9, where the Ace can count as either 11 or 1 depending on what would be best for your hand. The advantage of having a soft 20 is that you can’t bust if you hit – no matter what card you draw, your total will remain between 11 and 21.

There are some situations where you might stand on a soft 20 even against a dealer’s weak upcard. For example, if you have a lot of chips and are feeling lucky, you might choose to stand on your soft 20 in hopes of the dealer busting.

Or, if you’re playing in a tournament with fixed rules, you might be required to stand on any hand totaling 20 or 21 points.

In general, though, hitting is the best play when you have a soft 20 in blackjack.