Gambling Post

I like to play Blackjack. But I have pretty bad luck.
I can tell you all about stratagy (playing, betting....), but I almost always lose.

I always get delt between 12-16 and the dealer seems to always show a facecard.

Jason Mickela
ICQ : 873518
Excuse my speling.

Vallejo Punk
The V-Town Have-Nots
Eskapo

"I don''t have to take this, I''m going to where I''m appreciated, my mom''s house"

I make money at blackjack.

Dave Mark - President and Lead Designer
Intrinsic Algorithm - "Reducing the world to mathematical equations!"
RIPPL Sports - NFL Statistical Analysis and Prediction System

OK, InnocuousFox, overall, if you sum together my winnings and losings with Blackjack, then I can say:
I make money at blackjack.

But, I know I won''t make money everytime because the odds are in the houses favor. Are you saying you turn the odds into your favor? (ie, some card counting scheme?)

Just curious.

Nutts

Yep. I can count a 6 deck shoe. That takes you from the 1-2% loss of playing the basic strategy card up to a 1-2% gain or more depending on how much you are willing to vary your bet with the count.

Contrary to what the casinos would like you to believe, card counting is NOT illegal. However, as a business, casinos have the right to refuse service to anyone. If they catch you, they CAN ask you leave or even bar you from returning.

Dave Mark - President and Lead Designer
Intrinsic Algorithm - "Reducing the world to mathematical equations!"
RIPPL Sports - NFL Statistical Analysis and Prediction System

quote:

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Contrary to what the casinos would like you to believe, card counting is NOT illegal. However, as a business, casinos have the right to refuse service to anyone. If they catch you, they CAN ask you leave or even bar you from returning.

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Isn''t it true though, that in Atlantic City, casino''s can''t ban you or kick you out or something if they think you''re counting cards? I think I''ve read that somewhere, but they do have some kind of measure they take against card-counters. I don''t remember the specifics now, but there was some kind of lawsuit or legal action taken against Atlantic City casino''s, and the result was the casino''s couldn''t ban any players.

Not sure about that. I just know that in Vegas, you need to keep it under cover.

Dave Mark - President and Lead Designer
Intrinsic Algorithm - "Reducing the world to mathematical equations!"
RIPPL Sports - NFL Statistical Analysis and Prediction System

I just scam people out of their money with a fixed 3 card monte game.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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The tree is good cover.
The enemy tank is not good cover.

EXTREME MODERATOR COMPLIANCE!

That''s actually not a bad idea. You don''t have to worry about your supply chain running dry... there are stupid people everywhere.

Dave Mark - President and Lead Designer
Intrinsic Algorithm - "Reducing the world to mathematical equations!"
RIPPL Sports - NFL Statistical Analysis and Prediction System

How would a casino be able to suspect one of card counting? As far as I understand it, it''s all in your head, right?

The way you make money while counting cards is by varying your bet. You don''t change the way you play very much except in a few situations. What you do is, as the count goes in your favor, you raise your bet higher and higher over your "base" wager. As the count returns to 0 - or even negative - you would reduce your bet. They will look for these swings in wager amounts.

Also, they watch your eyes. Someone who is not talkative with the other players, yet is moving his eyes from hand to hand is a tip off. They will also look for things like your finger movements or mouth movements (you would have to be a real amateur to do that).

One thing they will do is try to frustrate you. They will have someone come down and sit next to you and throw numbers into the conversation like crazy... "Hey, when did you come in? I came in on the 12th and am leaving on the 18th. I got a great deal on that 4:15 flight for only $108. I''m up on the 23rd floor, it''s got a great view...." They will also ask you questions that would require a number answer. These people are supposedly players, but are in the employ of the casino.

You see, the hardest thing about counting cards is keeping the running count in your head. You have to be so completely automatic at playing basic strategy blackjack that you aren''t sitting there counting your hand. At no times do you even give a shit about what the dealer''s total is on a hand (or anyone else''s). You will know if you win or lose based on whether the money is coming toward you or moving away. The MAIN thing that needs to be in your head is that running count. The people who toss out the numbers left and right are trying to disrupt that count. The trick is to lock it away in some little chalkboard in the corner of your mind before you interact with anyone.

Dave Mark - President and Lead Designer
Intrinsic Algorithm - "Reducing the world to mathematical equations!"
RIPPL Sports - NFL Statistical Analysis and Prediction System

So, if you don''t mind me asking, what is your counting strategy?
Or, if you don''t want to tell, do you know any pages that explain good ones?

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Exume my speling.

LOL @ counting 6-deck blackjack.

quote:

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Original post by foofightr
LOL @ counting 6-deck blackjack.

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Do you doubt me, sir?

Dave Mark - President and Lead Designer
Intrinsic Algorithm - "Reducing the world to mathematical equations!"
RIPPL Sports - NFL Statistical Analysis and Prediction System

quote:

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Original post by griffenjam
So, if you don''t mind me asking, what is your counting strategy?

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The concept is really not hard at all. The main thing is keeping your "running count". 10s and Aces are -1 and 2-6s are +1. 7-9 are 0. The running count can therefore go up and down, above or below 0. When the count is high, that means that the deck is heavy with 10s and Aces. This is a good thing. The main reason for this is that, if the dealer has a "breaker" (12-16 hand), he HAS to hit. The higher the count, the more likely it is that he will break. On the other hand, if the count is NEGATIVE, there are more lower cards than normal and the dealer could take a 12 and actually hit a few times and creep into having a "winner" of 17-21.

Moving on... After each hand, you take the running count and divide it by the number of half decks remaining in the shoe. Obviously we start with 12. This is your "true count". If you have played through 2 half decks for example, and the running is +10, your true count would be 1.0 However, with that same running count of +10 and only 5 half decks remaining, the true count is 2.0!! The reason this is important is that, statistically, each deck MUST return to 0 by the end. The closer you are to the end, the greater the likelyhood that a count will head for 0. Since you are best off when the count is FALLING (after being positive), you would like to know when and how fast this is going to happen.

Now, based on your personal bankroll, you decide what your minimum bet is going to be and how much you are willing to scale your bets. Let''s say you are at a $5 table. You would start out with a base wager of $5 or course. That money is kinda like rent. You are paying for each hand in the hope that the count will rise... that''s where you really kick it in. As the count rises and falls, you vary your bet up and down with the count.

A lot of times, the one that I use is just $5 per half point of true count. So, as the true count gets to .5, I''m now betting $10. When it reaches 2.0, I now have $25 on the table. To give you a sense of scope, You won''t see a count above 2.5 very often at all so scale your wagers based on that. If you have more to play with, you can choose any scale that fits your budget. Obviously, the more that you can play on the higher counts, the better off you are. However, just because a count is 2+, doesn''t mean that you are guaranteed to win... just more likely than normal. Don''t blow all your cash on the first 2+ count you find. Winning money like this takes time.



Dave Mark - President and Lead Designer
Intrinsic Algorithm - "Reducing the world to mathematical equations!"
RIPPL Sports - NFL Statistical Analysis and Prediction System