Am I missing something with counting cards in Blackjack?
I feel that it is pretty simple, you add/subtract 1 depending on the cards showing, and when the count is high or low, you use that to help determine how much to bet. So when the count is low and a lot of high cards are more probable to come out, dont you bet more since your odds increase in winning?
yeah, you are missing a lot.
In a way, you are comparing it to say ….oh, I need to go left, so ill just turn the steering wheel left, when in reality, theres a lot gogin on insdie the car, with the power steering pump, etc.
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The point values assigned to the cards are representations of theire "effect of removal" or EOR
The eor is a value the card represents that effects the exhisting house advantage.
The exhisting house advantage is a percentage of every dollar bet that the casino makes (on average) as profit
The EOR is a smaller percentage, but it measuring the ***change in house advantage*** as a result of that card being removed.
EORs for each card will be positive or negetive depending on the value of the card, and each EOR for each card is different based on the number of decks and the rules of the game.
To make things simpler, point values are assigned that roughly correltate to the magnitudes of the EORs
The more intricate the card counting system the more efficient it will be, though simple systems using only "1"s are very effective.
as you keep the count, you are actually keeping a rough estimation of the change in the house advantage as a result of the cards seen being removed from the game, but keep in mind, the change in house advantage is not always enough to completely wipe out the exhisting house edge, so even though you may be playing at a high count, you may not be playing at an advantage.
It is true that with higher counts the odds of winning are "high–**ER**" but it doesn always mean you are making a wise bet.
You need to take into consideration the EOR for your game, and the exhisting house edge before betting.
"So when the count is low and a lot of high cards are more probable to come out, dont you bet more since your odds increase in winning?"
When the count is high then you bet more because high cards are more likely to come out of the deck.
When the count is low the high cards have hit the table.
According to the book Bringing down the House, a top level card counter can get a 2% edge at best. this means a win 51% of the time and a loss 49% of the time. So this means wins and losses when the count is zero or plus or minus 1 count in the percentage just wins or losses with a very high or very low count. So if you bet a nominal amount with a lower count and win and then bet big with a high count and lose, then will you make money overall? Think about that.
If it's so simple, then why do you have it backwards? when the count is low (negative), then low cards are more likely to come out. you make larger bets when the count is high and high cards are more likely to come out.
The basics of card counting are pretty simple. you only need to memorize a few dozen rules and do simple addition, subtraction and a little division. becoming proficient in it can take a few weeks or months of practice if you work at it for a few hours a day.
<sarcasm>
I feel that performing surgeries is pretty simple. you just cut people open, fix what is wrong with them and then just stitch them back up. Am I missing something?
</sarcasm>
you are not missing something, but the pace of a full table can make it more difficult to keep your count straight.
also, while counting cards is not illegal, per se, it is frowned upon in casinos- dealers and pit bosses are trained to notice changes in betting habits.
third, the count only indicates conditions that are more favorable for betting. if you don't start with a bankroll that's large enough, you could lose money chasing the good cards.
yes you are missing something in this field. like someone who works in the casinos who watches those who try to cheat the casino out of big money be careful not to get caught
of you ask here you are probably missing that you have to play perfect basic strategy….
Is there anyway to tell how many decks the dealer uses in blackjack?
You have to know how many decks there are in order to calculate the true count when counting cards. The dealer won't tell you. Why would he? If he did, the casino would lose money. So how would you find out?
Just look at it. Every time the dealer goes through the shoe, he shuffles (in full blackjack, they usually do it by hand one deck at a time) and lays out the decks in front of the players (and usually lets a player put the cut card in). It's pretty easy to tell the difference between 6 and 8 decks once you've seen it a few times before. If the shuffle by hand, which they should, you can also see how many Vegas shuffles they do. they almost always pull about one deck at a time.
to add to your difficulty counting, after every shuffle, the dealer "burns" one card that no one ever gets to see. not only that, if the table changes dealers in mid-shoe, the new dealer burns an additional card, again which no player gets to see. all this to throw off counters. And when they reach the yellow "cut card", usually only through 4 decks of the six, they re-shuffle.
On the contrary, Thom, you DO need to know how many decks there are. sure, you can get the running count when using the Hi-Lo system, but the true count is what matters. you divide the running count by the number of decks to get the true count.
Sorry, back to your question. Usually in Las Vegas is 6 decks, but it can change.
You don't need to know how many decks to count cards. you count the cards by calculating a plus or minus for the face cards to the lower value cards in the deck. This will give you a fairly accurate time of when the card you need is going to be dealt.
A good representation of this is in the movie "21". Watch and go from there. It's very fast paced and very hard if you're at a table with alot of players.
They will tell you if you ask nicely. If it's that many decks, counting them is a waste of time. I would not even consider playing against more than two decks. more than two is very hard to beat. The single deck games are usually no good either because they don't pay the full 3:2 for a blackjack.
Ask the dealer. they will tell you, especially if you put a tip down when you play your first hand.
Usually in a big shoe there are 6 decks, once in a while you will see 8.
Good luck!
Is there anyway to tell how many decks the dealer uses in blackjack?
Managing Your Chips in Blackjack
Once you have selected a blackjack table to play іn, you need to exchange your cash money for before a live audience chips which are color coded according to what value they hаνе. (Whеn you have won, you can exchange the chips you won for actual money afterwards.) Try to just exchange the amount of money you feel comfortable betting with (whісh is also useful for staying within a comfortable budget – so that you have enough money to hail a taxi cab home with if you should happen to be on a losing streak this night.)
Remember that no dealer in a legitimate casino is endorsed to accept cash money from you (οr any player for that matter.) Yου mау have to wait until the dealer ѕtаrtѕ shuffling the deck or decks to be used for play before you can join in a game, or wait until a seat at a crowded table becomes free. Sіnсе even the best and Ɩаrɡеѕt casinos get crowded on any given night, you mау have to arrive early to get a good seat at an apt table.
Sοmе casinos make you head for a counter where you can exchange your cash for chips (οr chips for cash.) Bυt at other casinos, the dealer at the blackjack table himself is permitted to exchange your cash for chips right thеrе. Bυt you are not permitted to give the cash outright to the dealer – ordinarily, you mυѕt place your cash on the felt surface of the table so the dealer will reach for it then count out your chips based on the equivalent value. Yου саnnοt get change for your cash, because the dealer will only drop in the cash money into a slot in the table itself. If you are betting $5 per bet, you mау find the bυу-іn to be at Ɩеаѕt $50 to $100 (οr the equivalent of multiples of 10 or 20 times what you bet.)
Yου mау eventually become familiar with how gambling chips are color coded, as you use them through time. Thе $1 chips mау еіthеr be pure white or silver, $5 chips are color red, $25 chips are colored green, and the $100 chips are colored black (аѕ is ordinarily practiced in US casinos.) If the casino still uses the $2.50 chip, it mау be colored pink. Thеrе could also be $500 chips which might be colored purple. Bе sure that you check your chips if you received the right color and value for the cash you submitted for exchange. If you have been winning a lot and have accumulated quite a lot of chips, qυеѕtіοn if the casino has a pouch or tray on which you can place your chips so that you can result іn them to the counter for exchange, or austerely qυеѕtіοn the dealer what casino policy is on claiming your winnings. Thе dealer mау want to get your smaller-denomination chips to exchange for Ɩаrɡеr value chips before you result іn them for exchange to the cashier dialogue box. it is unlikely that the dealer will be allowed to give you your winnings in cash at the table itself, for wellbeing reasons.
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Black-jack question…?
Does card counting really still work now-a-days? Isn't their like 4 decks in play in most casinos. It's not illegal, but can't you still get booted from a casino if they indentifiy your betting stratagy as card counting?
Its way harder and way less effective since all casinos use multiple decks. and they have the right to refuse any customer for no reason, so they would kick you out if they thought you were doing that.
nope it doesnt work any more only because yes they have 4-6 decks but the card never keep running they put a stopper card at the end of the stack and when the dealer sees that he puts the stack in the machine shuffle thing
those were the days when you could card count now its so hard to even make back half the money you lose in the casino
Card counting does work if the table has a shoe, but not if it has an automatic shuffler. most casinos have single deck, double deck and six deck shoes. It is not considered cheating, but it is frowned upon and a casino can refuse service to anyone for any reason.
Card counting can work, but it is much harder. There are usually 8 decks in play. People who are good at it, usually make a lot of money and are identified and booted from the casino. If you are bad at it, they will let you try as long as you want. They only care about making money, so they will only notice you if you start winning a lot.
In Las Vegas card counting is legal but if they catch you they will ask (demand) you to leave. in small city casinos you may have an easier time counting cards and getting away with it (if you are good at it).
yes.
play black jack …..at start count the card.
n start to bet at last half card.
I think,card counting is fine for me, and still work now a-days, I know is illegal and I can't get booted if they can identify my strategy
4 decks wont stop card counting, but it definitely alot harder and less profitable as oppose to the "old days" when you didnt have all the attention and complex surveillance/loss prevention systems
the only ways around it are just not driving as hard, and cutting down on red-flag sequences
Does anybody count cards at blackjack and make money from it?
I took 3 decks and played at home, and it didn't really work for me. I did the whole 10-Ace = -1 7,8,9 =0 and 2-6 =+1.
Am I doing something wrong? I also want to know at what running total is a good total when I should start to build up my bets.
I really don't think it is possible these days to make money playing blackjack. and if you can, the profit will be absolutely tiny. Casinos use up to 8 decks and some even continuously shuffle the decks, I really don't think its possible.
There are a ton of book out there that describe how to properly count cards and apply proper strategy. Go buy one and study it. If you don't know when to increase your bets and adjust playing strategy, then you really know nothing about counting cards.
And yes, I count cards in casinos and make money from it. It's not as difficult as people who don't do it claim. You're not going to get rich doing it, but as long as you do it right and find favorable games, you'll come out positive in the long run.
Does anybody count cards at blackjack and make money from it?
