Hole-carding.

Some recent heated discussions have got me very interested in hole-carding. I think I get the basic concept. You look for a sloppy dealer in a hand-held game and catch a glimpse of the dealers hole-card. I also understand you have to use a special basic strategy.

I was wondering a few things about it though. Is the actual act of seeing the card hard to do? Can anyone do it with enough practice, or can only a select few skilled people do it? What things should you be looking for when finding a dealer that exposes his hole-card. How do you best exploit those weaknesses? Where do you sit at the table, does it matter how tall you are, at what point in the deal is it best to see the hole-card, etc.

I've never hole-carded before and have only the basic understanding of what it is, so any and all information on the subject will be greatly appreciated.

Probably some of the pros here can give you better answers (if they’re willing to talk) but I’ll get this thread started. I’ll try to tackle these one-by-one.

ScottH said:

You look for a sloppy dealer in a hand-held game and catch a glimpse of the dealers hole-card.

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There are also times when you can hole card a shoe game. It is very rare but you should be aware that it is possible.

ScottH said:

Is the actual act of seeing the card hard to do?

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Yup. It may only be visible for a split second in a shaded area of a dark casino. I’ve found a few flashing dealers that I couldn’t read because I’m not fast enough yet. It also takes a while to identify cards by their pips.

ScottH said:

Can anyone do it with enough practice, or can only a select few skilled people do it?

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I’m sure anyone can learn to do it to some degree. Those with more practice and better eyesight will be able to find more opportunities.

ScottH said:

What things should you be looking for when finding a dealer that exposes his hole-card.

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Watch the dealer from the second he touches the deck to the time his hole card is tucked. There are several opportunities to catch a glimpse. Different dealers will have different weaknesses. Also, look for very tall/short dealers and females with small hands or long fingernails.

ScottH said:

How do you best exploit those weaknesses?

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Ken Uston talks about a hole carding team that had a few methods of encouraging the dealers to show their hole cards in M$BJ.

ScottH said:

Where do you sit at the table, does it matter how tall you are, at what point in the deal is it best to see the hole-card, etc.

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Each dealer will be somewhat different so you never know. Watch the dealer for a while and find out where they might be flashing their cards. Maybe they flash the card to first base as it comes off the deck. Maybe they flash it to the 6th seat when they are tucking it. Maybe they are flashing center field as they tip the card forward. Keep your eyes open and select a seat accordingly.

-Sonny-

Hey Scott,
Catching a glimpse of the hole card is like anything else in this game. It requires practice. You need to be able to identify a card from just a momentary flash. A good exercise to do to help with this is to take a deck of cards, turn one card over and put it in the middle of the deck and the riff through them quickly with your thumb. Try to identify the card you turned over. All you really need to identify is the card value, but i'd push myself to be able to identify suit as well - the better you are at home en all.
Different dealers have different weaknesses and being short will always be an advantage. The shorter you are the more natural a body position you can maintain while watching the flash. You find that different seats are better for different dealers.
This is not a subject that i'm widely versed on - playing in games with no hole card - but i thought 'Advantage Play for the Casino Executive' by Bill Zender was an excellent look at this topic.

RJT.

ScottH said:

I also understand you have to use a special basic strategy.

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Is there anywhere to find the BS deviations if you can hole-card? Perhaps a book? If there is somewhere it would be nice to know, but I don't want to just be given the info if you have worked on getting it yourself.

person1125 said:

Is there anywhere to find the BS deviations if you can hole-card? Perhaps a book?

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Here you go:

http://www.blackjackinfo.com/bb/showthread.php?p=9592

-Sonny-

I'm very ignorant on the subject as well, but I thought Million Dollar Blackjack had a very good primer on it, including drills to recognize cards from the pips.

(I thought the counting section of Million Dollar BJ was frightfully outdated and confusing)

Sonny said:

Here you go:

http://www.blackjackinfo.com/bb/showthread.php?p=9592

-Sonny-

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thanks sonny

front loading is the same as hole carding??

person1125 said:

front loading is the same as hole carding??

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Yeah, it's just a different term for the same thing.

-Sonny-

I also found this chart for an exposed hole-card :

EXPOSED HOLE CARD BASIC STRATEGY



note: I don't know if this chart is correct I'm just assuming it is.

Back in the old days, u had half a chance of seeing the hole card if u had a friend standing behind the dealer and signalling u. Back when they didn't have the mirrors and had to flip the card a little. Guess that's why they invented the mirrors lol.

I guess that would be cheating if someone else can see it and signal u? But if u see it, it's OK lol?

I still look at a dealer's face when he checks his 10 - some of them look so disappointed they don't have a pat hand or so happy they have a 20. Not that I bet alot of money on it lol but sometimes it seems there's a correlation.

Kasi said:

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I still look at a dealer's face when he checks his 10 - some of them look so disappointed they don't have a pat hand or so happy they have a 20. Not that I bet alot of money on it lol but sometimes it seems there's a correlation.

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so in this case the dealer would know if his hole card is a ten or not correct?
since if he has an Ace up he'd need to know if there was a ten in the hole when checking for a blackjack right?

sagefr0g said:

so in this case the dealer would know if his hole card is a ten or not correct?
since if he has an Ace up he'd need to know if there was a ten in the hole when checking for a blackjack right?

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Well u might be right - maybe when he checks a 10 all he knows is whether it's an Ace or not but does not know the card value if it's not an Ace.

Likewise maybe if he checks an Ace all he knows is whether it's a 10 or not.

I guess that makes sense assuming all they do is mark the corner of Aces and 10's and all they can see is that marker or not.

But, maybe like u say, he would still know if he had a 20.

So, on further thought, lol, I guess they would have to mark Aces and 10's separately.

Or is all they can see is whether the light turns green or red like the rest of us?

All of which makes me glad I never bet alot on the dealer's expression :grin: