One of the most important blackjack rules is that you should never split 10s. This is because a pair of 10s gives you two strong hands, while splitting them into two weaker ones will decrease your chances of winning both hands. The only time it might be a good idea to split 10s is in a few very rare situations.
One instance when you should consider splitting your tens is when the unplayed cards are rich in 10-value cards. This will make it more likely that you will draw a 10 value card to each of your split tens, giving you two hands of 20. This can be a very advantageous situation, especially if the dealer’s upcard is a 5, which makes it very hard for the dealer to beat you with an Ace or a 10.
Another scenario in which you should consider splitting your tens is in a game of Face-Up 21. This blackjack variation requires that the dealer show both of his cards, and this can make it very difficult to predict what kind of hand you might have. In this situation, it might be a good idea to split your tens in order to increase the probability of drawing a high-value card that will help you beat the dealer’s upcard.
However, you should always remember that even in these circumstances it is still very difficult to beat the dealer’s upcard. If you split your tens in this situation, you will still lose more often than if you simply stayed on your original hand of 20.
It is also possible that you will want to split a pair of 10s in blackjack tournaments where the goal is to win more chips than other players after a certain number of hands have been played. Skilled tournament players will sometimes split their tens in these scenarios, because they know that this will improve their odds of overtaking the current table leader in the final hand.
In general, you should not split a pair of 10s in any other scenario. Unless you have the knowledge and experience to count cards, it is very unlikely that you will be able to tell when the deck is rich in high-value cards. Therefore, you will most likely be better off by simply standing on your original hand of 20, which will give you a chance of winning 85% of the time, or $14 more for every $100 you wager. This is a much better outcome than the 64% that you would be expected to win if you split your tens. This is why the majority of experts will tell you that you should never split your 10s in blackjack.