Blackjack is not a game for the faint of heart. While the game isn’t the most complex of beasts, it’s one that will always leave you asking yourself questions, questions that could very easily win or lose your stake money in a matter of seconds. 

In many ways, that is the reason players keep going back to the blackjack table. It’s the sprint of the card-playing world, and it takes a great deal of courage to push on with efforts to come out as a winner.

For the uninitiated, the aim of Blackjack is to secure a Blackjack, or 21, and then hope that the dealer gets a lower hand than yours. It’s that simple, but it’s also that devilish, and whether you should stick or hit when on 16 is a debate that rages on within the gaming community.

It’s generally considered worthwhile hitting on 16, and statistical analysis backs this up. If you hit on 16, you have a 62% chance of going bust, which seems very high indeed. However, the odds of winning when on 16, and therefore not having hit, your loss rate is up at 70%. 

The need to hit will, of course, increase if the dealer is showing an 8,9,10 (or face card) or even an ace, as then the chances of 16 being enough are very low indeed. 

If you have 16 and the dealer’s card is a ten, you are in a very precarious position indeed, and your chances of success are slim. If you choose to stand in this situation, you have a 77% chance of losing, and therefore taking another card isn’t even a calculated risk; it’s pretty much your only hope to beat the dealer.

If the dealer has less than seven showing, then you have some room to breathe and could consider your 16 to be a decent place to be.