How hard is to beat the dealer?

[HiLoCount]

Hello. I just turned 21, and been interested in playing blackjack at a professional card counters level, like the MIT team (no I did not see the movie "21", I seen the Discovery Channel special some years ago). I been practicing my Hi-Lo count, I can run through a deck in like 40 seconds, and get the count right, though still not 100% though. Of course, I do this without any distractions, and out loud. I been thinking, becoming a master of the Hi-Lo count is all practice, right? It does not take any special gifts? Just practice and practice and practice. I can sometimes feel myself just knowing what the count is without even thinking as I go through the cards. So I got some questions.

1)How much practice does it take to be able to count decks (6 or 8) in Atlantic City? (With all noise and distractions).

2)Have any members here been thrown out of casinos?

3)If I play a minimum bet of $10 how much money will I win (expected) if I know my count and basic strategy in a few hours?

4)Are there any good ways to start becoming a serious blackjack player? My goal now is to master the Hi-Lo Count, after that learning basic strategy should be easy.

5)Are there modified basic strategies depending on the running count?

6)Is card counting and basic strategy sufficient to beat the dealer.

Note I do not have a desire to become rich, my main objective is to get the good feeling of knowing that I can beat the dealer. And I hope to maybe get banned from a casino, so I can tell this story to my friends and impress my parents.

 

[shadroch]

Hello. I just turned 21, and been interested in playing blackjack at a professional card counters level, like the MIT team (no I did not see the movie "21", I seen the Discovery Channel special some years ago). I been practicing my Hi-Lo count, I can run through a deck in like 40 seconds, and get the count right, though still not 100% though. Of course, I do this without any distractions, and out loud. I been thinking, becoming a master of the Hi-Lo count is all practice, right? It does not take any special gifts? Just practice and practice and practice. I can sometimes feel myself just knowing what the count is without even thinking as I go through the cards. So I got some questions.

1)How much practice does it take to be able to count decks (6 or 8) in Atlantic City? (With all noise and distractions).

DEPENDS ON THE PERSON. YOU OBVIOUSLY AREN"T THERE YET. GET TO WHERE YOU CAN COUNT DOWN TWO DECKS IN 60 SECONDS 10 TIMES IN A ROW WITH ZERO MISTAKES.

2)Have any members here been thrown out of casinos?
YES

3)If I play a minimum bet of $10 how much money will I win (expected) if I know my count and basic strategy in a few hours?
ONE AVERAGE BET AN HOUR IS A GOOD RULE OF THUMB FOR AN ADVANTAGE PLAYER

4)Are there any good ways to start becoming a serious blackjack player? My goal now is to master the Hi-Lo Count, after that learning basic strategy should be easy.
MOST PEOPLE LEARN BS FIRST

5)Are there modified basic strategies depending on the running count?

YES
6)Is card counting and basic strategy sufficient to beat the dealer.
TO BEAT THE DEALER,YES. TO GET RICH,NO

Note I do not have a desire to become rich, my main objective is to get the good feeling of knowing that I can beat the dealer. And I hope to maybe get banned from a casino, so I can tell this story to my friends and impress my parents.

Best of Luck

 

[moo321]

There's an FAQ section here on the site. I'd suggest getting some books, too.

 

[Harman]

Get beat the dealer by Ed Thorp if you haven't already, and also invest some time and money into getting a table and shoe, so you can simulate a real casino environment.

I think you should forget Hi-Lo for the moment and focus on getting BS as a second nature

 

[rollem411]

Hello. I just turned 21, and been interested in playing blackjack at a professional card counters level, like the MIT team (no I did not see the movie "21", I seen the Discovery Channel special some years ago). I been practicing my Hi-Lo count, I can run through a deck in like 40 seconds, and get the count right, though still not 100% though. Of course, I do this without any distractions, and out loud. I been thinking, becoming a master of the Hi-Lo count is all practice, right? It does not take any special gifts? Just practice and practice and practice. I can sometimes feel myself just knowing what the count is without even thinking as I go through the cards. So I got some questions.

1)How much practice does it take to be able to count decks (6 or 8) in Atlantic City? (With all noise and distractions).

2)Have any members here been thrown out of casinos?

3)If I play a minimum bet of $10 how much money will I win (expected) if I know my count and basic strategy in a few hours?

4)Are there any good ways to start becoming a serious blackjack player? My goal now is to master the Hi-Lo Count, after that learning basic strategy should be easy.

5)Are there modified basic strategies depending on the running count?

6)Is card counting and basic strategy sufficient to beat the dealer.

Note I do not have a desire to become rich, my main objective is to get the good feeling of knowing that I can beat the dealer. And I hope to maybe get banned from a casino, so I can tell this story to my friends and impress my parents.

1) You will know when you are ready
2) Not me, but yes
3) You need a bet spread, not just a min.
4) Read and learn and practice
5) Indices
6) Yes

I know of a quicker way you can get banned from a casino if thats the case :laugh:

 

[standard toaster]

Hello. I just turned 21, and been interested in playing blackjack at a professional card counters level, like the MIT team (no I did not see the movie "21", I seen the Discovery Channel special some years ago). I been practicing my Hi-Lo count, I can run through a deck in like 40 seconds, and get the count right, though still not 100% though. Of course, I do this without any distractions, and out loud. I been thinking, becoming a master of the Hi-Lo count is all practice, right? It does not take any special gifts? Just practice and practice and practice. I can sometimes feel myself just knowing what the count is without even thinking as I go through the cards. So I got some questions.

1)How much practice does it take to be able to count decks (6 or 8) in Atlantic City? (With all noise and distractions).

2)Have any members here been thrown out of casinos?

3)If I play a minimum bet of $10 how much money will I win (expected) if I know my count and basic strategy in a few hours?

4)Are there any good ways to start becoming a serious blackjack player? My goal now is to master the Hi-Lo Count, after that learning basic strategy should be easy.

5)Are there modified basic strategies depending on the running count?

6)Is card counting and basic strategy sufficient to beat the dealer.

Note I do not have a desire to become rich, my main objective is to get the good feeling of knowing that I can beat the dealer. And I hope to maybe get banned from a casino, so I can tell this story to my friends and impress my parents.

you want to get that count down to under 20 sec. thats what i did before i went to play at any casino

with a 10 min bet you will need $6000+ to begin

basic strategy is the absolute best thing to learn at your stage

playing in a casino and playing with distractions are very different things.
for some reason i can count with any distractions at home but i used to have a problem in the casino i couldent figure out what it was i just couldent remember the count

that stage is over now... mot people go through it gl and read around youll find lots of help dont start early

 

[HiLoCount]

What is a spread-bet?

To make my other question more precise. If I play minimum at $10 (I do not have much money) when the count is neutral or negative. And start playing $30 or $40 when the count starts getting higher, how long will it take me to win say $500 dollars from the casino.

 

[Kasi]

Note I do not have a desire to become rich

Dreams do come true. You won't.

...And I hope to maybe get banned from a casino, so I can tell this story to my friends and impress my parents.

Unfortunately, not all dreams come true.

But just lie anyway. Be convincing. Lots of details. Nobody can disprove a thing anyway and will be impressed and envious even if they don't actually admit it or appear to believe you. And you'll still have what little money you currently have.

That's what they call a win/win

 

[BJinNJ]

If you want a story about being banned...

you have to play somewhere besides Atlantic City.
Casinos can't ban a skilled player in Atlantic City. They can only make
the game unplayable for counters.

Stay curious about the game. Read a few good books.
Most of all keep practicing, practicing, practicing both Basic Strategy
and Counting. Build a decent bankroll of $5K-$10K, higher is better.

Recommended reading for Hi/Lo count...

"Blackjack Blueprint" by Blaine, "Professional Blackjack" by Wong and
"Blackbelt in Blackjack" by Snyder (Hi/Lo Lite)

GL2U

BJinNJ

 

[moo321]

What is a spread-bet?

To make my other question more precise. If I play minimum at $10 (I do not have much money) when the count is neutral or negative. And start playing $30 or $40 when the count starts getting higher, how long will it take me to win say $500 dollars from the casino.

Depends on the game. If you're playing single deck, yeah you could go up to a max bet of 3 or 4 times your original bet. If you're playing 6 deck shoes, you're going to need 1-10 at minimum, and probably more like 1-15.

 

[Sonny]

What is a spread-bet?

It is the ratio of your minimum bet to your maximum bet. For example, if you bet $10-$80 then that would be a 1-8 spread. Similarly, a $5-$150 spread would be 1-30. Most books will suggest different bet spreads for different games.

If I play minimum at $10 (I do not have much money) when the count is neutral or negative. And start playing $30 or $40 when the count starts getting higher, how long will it take me to win say $500 dollars from the casino.

Probably never. If you are playing a shoe game then a 1-4 spread will not give you an advantage. If you don’t have much money then you really shouldn’t be betting in neutral/negative counts anyway. Why would you give away your money when you know the casino has the edge? Just backcount until you find a positive count, play for as long as you have the advantage and Wong out when the count drops.

-Sonny-