Card
Counting in Blackjack is somewhat a thing of the past. And for the most part
people feel that card counting is old school and were only a benefit when
casino's and backroom parlors used one or two decks. Now day's players are
faced with 6-8 decks. As discussed in an early article we touched briefly on the
card counting aspect.
This
article will break down the basic concepts; anyone can become a card counter.
The most important aspect is concentration and you also have to have a decent
grasp on mathematics.
The
Hi-Lo count system assigns simple values to a group of cards. The following
values are given to the cards.
Low
Cards 2-3-4-5-6 receive a value of
{+1}
No
Count Cards 7-8-9 receive no count
{0}
High
Cards 10-J-Q-K-A receive a value of
{-1}
Now
let's have a look at the groups:
Low
Cards are not good for the player. Low card's turn bad totals into good hands:
i.e. dealer has 12-16 a low card can turn those into 17-21 rather easily. There
is nothing worse than a dealer drawing to 15-16 and then nailing a 6 or a 5 to
bust everyone.
No
Count Cards- a lot of people ask me why not count the 7-8-9, simple answer is
that these cards do not help the dealer nor the player so are assigned a zero.
High
Cards -These cards are great for the player but not so for the dealer. High
cards aide in achieving your 21 and also help bust the dealer.
So
the cards are dealt, when you see a low card you add a point, for every low card
that comes off, you gain an advantage over the dealer. When this number gets
high, we know that we are going to get a streak of good cards very soon and
should bet accordingly. The opposite when the card count is in the high negative
People
often ask, what makes it easier for the player when there is 1 deck compared to
6-8 decks? Simply put casinos implemented additional decks to the shoe in order
to scare off card counters. Early
on this did diminish the edge the counter had, however professional counters
began working in teams to get around the increase in the number of cards per
shoe. Casino's further complicated the process by what is known as 'deck
penetration'. This is basically a percentage of the shoe that it dealt before
it is re-shuffled. Most casinos' use a cut off card and deal anywhere from
60-75%.
If a player can concentrate and maintain the count there is still
a profitability edge to the player. This is based on the number of decks in the
shoe, the percentage of cut off.
So you have all the information you need.
All that is left for you to do it practice the method. Take a few decks
of cards and simulate a black jack game. Keep track of the count. It is very
important that you try to get good at the count as well make it look like you
are not trying to count. This can be difficult. Have fun.
