El Cortez, and the 'art' of 1D play...
Posted by zengrifter on 22-Oct-2002 15:16:36 (#147)
Speaking of the El Cortez, the following communique between a well known counter and I emphasized a combination of tactics that I have succesfully used for MANY hours of EC 1D play - the "xxxx casino" referred to in the communique IS the EC and I regulary play to win/lose $1000+ there - I have previously stated that IF you can play green at EC you can play black anywhere. zg
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The 'ART' of 1D PLAY...
bbbb wrote:
Mr. Grifter Hows things been going. I keep wondering when Barfakel is gonna have another Ratpack dinner...but in the meantime I'm planning a trip to [LV] right now for early May and have never played at your xxxx hangout. If my usual max bet is $200 bucks what approach would you suggest that I use for playing thatgame (or is that too rich for playing there a first time?)
Hey bbbb!
You CAN pull it off, and its a good test for anyone's act-strategy. Here's some suggestions -
1. Days and grave have the best pene, whereas swing is crowded and shorter pen regardless. Start with early day shift - arrive near the end of grave looking grubby and 'up all nite.' Start small with greens 1-4 posi-progresion (non-count-related) with an occasional 100 bill 'money plays' (count-related) - order drinks, Malibu rocks is good because it looks hard but it isn't.
2. 15-30 minutes of progression play as the shift changes will get you into position - move tables a couple of times, demonstrating that you want to be left alone -
3. (Grifter's Gambit) Heads up'' compulsively' throw out 3 hands of $50 off the top, if the count tanks south bet the 3x $50 again and again oblivious to the neg-count. If the count goes posi, bet 1x $125, win bet $150, etc., lose bet $200 'steaming.'
4. (Sklanksy's Gambit) Bet $150 off the top, win bet $150 again regardless if count tanks, and again, etc. Lose and count tanks bet $50, win bet $75, then $100, etc.
5. (Opposition Gambit) Bet $75 off the top and count soars bet $100, count tumbles (still posi) bet $200.
6. Ask for a $25 min game (you may or may not be granted) - Alternate between 3-4-5 above. (3 is strongest)
7. IMPORTANT - Make some incorrect plays - mostly stand on A7 v T/A, stand 16v T in neg count, split TTv 7 (neg count, small bet), etc.
8. IMPORTANT - Place an occasional $25 RMatch bet - xxxx has the better 3-10 payoff so you wont lose much by it - and if the 1st round or two passes without a particular suit showing up the RM is probably a posi-expectation.
9. You will feel that the PCs are sweating the action at first - they are NOT (they are sweating the dealers) - they watch the dealers very carefully because they are mostly break-ins - if the dealer makes an error that hurts you, pretend not to notice until the PC fixes it, then thank the PC. On days the main boss is wwww (bald, very sharp and likable), #2 guy is cccc. Once you're in with wwww on days you are in on grave too.
10. Lastly, when you are down to your last round or two you can "force" the shuffle by spreading again to 3hands.
Have fun with this and you can get a pretty wide spread with 66%-85% pene. xxxx typically gives the boot to $5 counters within 15 min, whereas you can play as described above for hours (best to limited your play to 2 hr with a meal break in the middle). Return in 24-48 hours on mid-grave and repeat performance ending shortly AFTER shift change into days. Use sparingly.
I will be in in early May as well, let me know dates and maybe we can hook up.
Regards, ZG
