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[Automatic Monkey]

Do you use letters to sidecount aces? If so, you may find the process of converting letters back to numbers and reconciling them with the number of decks left to be onerous and an unappreciated additional task at the table, especially with shoe.

The title of this message is a mnemonic that can help. Each letter capitalized represents a letter which is a multiple of 4. D=4, H=8, L=12, and so on. When you hit one of these letters you can look at the discards and see how many decks left and more quickly calculate the density of remaining aces.

Of course, X is 24 so this will only take you up to a 6 deck shoe. If you play 8 deck with good pen you'll need to add something to this.

 

[john]

off-topic but here it goes.

Automatic,

I think you are a pretty down-to-earch guy so what do you think about doubling a soft 20 vs 4-6

Wong's Basic Hi-LO says to do it given a high enough TC.

Have you ever doubled a soft 20? I can imagine the ploppy responses from this. I had one get mad at hitting a soft 18 vs a 10.

 

[Abraham de Moivre]

I've done it. The counts are about the same as Splitting 10s (something I don't normally do.) And yes, I have felt wrath from the other players at the table, sometimes I am able to turn that around and get them on my side.

Just double on the soft 20 with a "I FEEL LIKE GAMBOOWLING!" and then they started rooting for me to get an ACE or FACE on the hand.

 

[Automatic Monkey]

Well, maybe. You do what the count says unless you think it will be too much of a giveaway as a counter. You have to use your judgment on that: kind of environment, kind of stake, how much heat, what are other players at the table doing.

There's just a little more to it than that however. When deciding what doubling or splitting indexes you want to play, you have to determine how much more money you will make playing the index and decide it is worth it to put an extra bet out on the table. Let's say your sims calculate that you will make an average of 10 cents more by DD a soft 20 at a certain count with a certain betting unit. But to do this requires you to put out an extra $150 bet. Do you want to risk $150 to make $0.10? Of course not! That is why I use a very limited number of double and split indexes, and there are no A9 among them. A8, yes, those are worthwhile because they pay decently and you do it at counts where you don't have a big bet up. Splitting 10's I do- there is always a big bet up when you do it but they are among the more lucrative of playing indexes.

 

[Rob McGarvey]

In the here and now you either win or lose 150 or 300. In a million decisions you could lose a million dimes. That is 666 double downs. You may have a devil of a time making your mind up to play in the hear and now, or play like you will be playing for an eternity. ;> You can use your intuition, or trust the math. Do you trust your intuition to tell you when you are being watched by the eYe, or your intuition about the random possibility that the next card could be..........

The Ace of Spades