Thinking About Moving On to Halves?

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SammyBoy

Well-Known Member
I feel like I have mastered the Hi/Lo count. I've been using it for almost a year successfully, but it took about a year of practicing before I became good enough to use it successfully in the casino. The sims I've run show that I can gain about another .3% (maybe more with indices) using halves over Hi/Lo. I'm wondering how long it will take for me to become as comfortable with halves as I am with Hi/Lo? Is it worth it? I believe it is, but I believe I would have to stop playing until I've practiced enough and know it well enough to take on the casino. I can see myself getting confused and really screwing up the count.

I also like to play third base (pitch games). The biggest problem with this is it is often hard to see the cards as the dealer turns them over. Some dealers use a technique where they can shield you from the cards (have you seen this?). Many times I feel like a damn giraffe with my head stretched out looking at the first basemans cards.

I guess what I'm really asking for is advice from players that have switched from a basic count to a more sophisticated one. Thanks.
 
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BradRod

Well-Known Member
Re: ........ Moving On........

I have changed count systems 3 times. Currently using UBZ11. And that is a change that I have just gone through in the last few weeks.

I noticed errors that I was making in implementing the new count. In spite of these errors my approach and advice to you would be get into battle with the new system as soon as you are able to count a deck down in under 30 seconds. You probably will make mistakes too at first but, I think it is the best way to learn and get comfortable with the system under playing conditions.

It would be prudent at first to select the most favorable games available to you . Lower stakes are always better to learn and it would be most helpful if you can find a dealer with a slow hand.

I had been very focused on finding cards to neutralize to make the counting easier. In Hi-Lo terms say T's and 6's net out to zero so no need to count either card. In multi tiered systems as I imagine 1/2's are (UBZ11 is a 2 level system)this is a bit harder because you have to find like level cards to neutralize each other.

The intense focus i needed to apply, I thought, would be offset by my ingrained familiarity with basic strategy so I can focus concentration on the count and implementing the new system.

Then 2 things happened that shook my complaceny

1. In play - the dealer makes his hand. I take another look at mine to see if i was getting paid or not. NOT. my hand was 15. I took another look at what the dealer up card was..... an 8. I thought i had blacked out or something.. I asked the dealer why she let me stand 15 v 8. She said " you seemed quite sure when you waved it off. Other players chimed in "why'd you do that. I was looking at you couldn't believe you waved off a card."

After a bit I realized what happened. I had a 5 and a T. I took a quick look at my hand, neutralized the count values of the cards and mentally waved it off, waved it off actually and moved on with the count.

The other thing that happened. -----I noticed at the shuffle that the dealer -- shaken up by a player dispute in the previous shoe, set the shuffle card about 3/8 deck from the back. 93% pen.. : )

I was not going to let anything interrupt my count during this very promising shoe. As I was hoping, the shoe got rich and held.. I was making large bets 8 -10 units. The dealer had A up and I was making my counts.. by the time it occured to me to take insurance, the dealer flipped over the T. I kicked myself for not taking the insurance and realized this was due to the new rythm that I needed to apply to my new counting system. I still did quite well on that shoe though.

My conclusion is: you will make mistakes with any new count but, these are mistakes that could not have occured in sims. I think you need to go through this to internalize any system.

Positive deviations to you

Brad
 
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Rob McGarvey

Well-Known Member
With the difference between the values of the 2 3 4 5 6 7 cards it just made sense to use a count that recongnized their values. I found the Hi Opt II easier that Uston's APC and have stuck with that for the most part. I use High Low for play decisions for onLine playing, although there must be better PE counts for one deck?
 
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Adam N. Subtractum

Well-Known Member
Halves vs. Hi-Lo...

...from Wong's PBJ, the "bible" for these two inparticular count systems...

-6D, Benchmark-

system_WR__SD_
Hi-Lo__$16_$415_
Halves_$17_$426_

-SD,Benchmark-

system_WR__SD_
Hi-Lo__$48_$482_
Halves_$50_n/a*_

*Wong didn't include this figure.

So in 6D, Halves scores 3.50% better than Hi-Lo. See recent threads on a couple forums showing the gains from adding an ace sidecount, in this situation it could provide approximately 10%-13% increases, adding no extra indices.

Unfortunately, for the 1D case, either I overlooked, or SW doesn't include a SD figure for 1D, so we can't make a risk-adjusted comparison. Halves has a Win Rate 4.16_% higher than Hi-Lo in this (perhaps unfair) comparo. You see the above figures, and I'm sure deduce the serious gains achievable in 1D.

ANS
 
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Adam N. Subtractum

Well-Known Member
clarification...

...on my last line:

"You see the above figures, and I'm sure deduce the serious gains achievable in 1D."

...by adding an ace sidecount to level-1 rather than stepping up to level-II.

Sorry,

ANS
 
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T-Hopper

Well-Known Member
Re: What is Bushido Advanced?

It's a system I developed that is similar to the Zen. Bushido Intermediate is more like the UBZ.
 
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SammyBoy

Well-Known Member
Re: What is Bushido Advanced?

How can I get more info on it? The link on that page did not work.
 
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T-Hopper

Well-Known Member
Re: What is Bushido Advanced?

If you clicked on the "Order Form" link, then yes, that is down until further notice. Otherwise, please email me with details about which link is not working.
 
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