After all the players finish their hands, the dealer turns up the hole card and plays out the hand according to preset rules. If the hand totals sixteen or less, the dealer takes a hit and continues hitting until the hand totals seventeen or more. The dealer cannot split pairs, double down, or surrender. Most casinos specify that their dealers stand on soft seventeen, but at some places house policy is dealers hit soft seventeen. The dealer has no choice; the casino rules either specify a hit or specify a stand, and all dealers in the casino act in accordance with these rules.

After reaching seventeen or more, the dealer turns your cards face up. If your cards add up closer to twenty-one than the dealer's or if the dealer's total exceeds twenty one, the dealer pays you even money. If the dealer's total is closer to twenty-one without going over, you lose. In a tie, which is called a "push," no money changes hands. The dealer picks up the used cards and places them on the bottom of the pack or in the used-card tray.

Time for the next round. Put another offering on the sacrificial spot and pray again. This time the dealer does not shuffle, does not offer the deck for a cut, and does not burn a card. Rather, the next round is dealt from the unused cards.