2015 - Blackjack Apprenticeship

Archive: 2015

  1. Interview with Philip Reed, Author of “Wild Cards”

    Comments Off on Interview with Philip Reed, Author of “Wild Cards”

    Wild Cards400Just this month, author Philip Reed published his latest book, “Wild Cards: A Year Counting Cards With a Professional Blackjack Player, a Priest, and a $30,000 Bankroll.” It chronicles his introduction to card counting by an ex-MIT team member, his struggles with mastering card counting, and the philosophical lessons learned about money, gambling, and fear.

    If you’re looking for high-flying adventure with million-dollar bankrolls and high stakes cat-and-mouse action between card counters and surveillance, this isn’t the book for you. But if you’re looking for an authentic story of the ups and downs of low to medium stakes card counting, Wild Cards is worth checking out. It reads well and Philip’s perspective is uniquely relatable for the hobbyist card counter.

    I had the opportunity to read the book and interview Philip about his book and dig deeper into some of my favorite quotes, sections, and lessons. Check out our interview below!

    For those interested in checking out Phil’s Book, “Wild Cards”, it’s available here on Amazon

    What’s the backstory to the book? What compelled you to write it? Who’s the audience you had in mind when you came up with the idea?

    philipreed_las_vegasPhil: I was writing a novel called The Fraud Triangle, about a CFO investigating a scam in his own company. My idea was that he would be very corporate from Monday to Friday and then go to Vegas and count cards on the weekends. The problem was, I didn’t know anything about card counting. Soon after this, my friend Jaacob (correct spelling Jaacob) Bowden, a professional golfer, who created www.swingmangolf.com, met with Bill in Las Vegas to give him a golf lesson and saw him play blackjack. When he came to visit me he said, “You have to do a book on this guy!” He also gave me a tattered copy of the MIT Blackjack manual. I read it and thought, “Hmmm, I think I could do this.” I called Bill and the rest, as they say, is history.

    I always saw this book as appealing to both blackjack players and a mainstream audience. I wrote it as a beginner so readers would relate to my fears and share in the challenge.

    One of my favorite parts in the book is when you tell the story of a multimillionaire who’s biography you helped write. “Often, Funt would speculate about much of an advance we might receive for the publication of his biography… Then I realized that it wasn’t the *having* of money that he desired but the *getting* of the money. When the money went from someone else’s possession to his… the flow, if you will, turned him on.”

    One of the odd effects of being a card counter is that you’re constantly dealing with large amounts of money flowing back and forth between you and the casinos. How has card counting changed your view on money? Do you see it simply as a tool, or does it hold a stronger power of you?

    Phil: On one level the book was an investigation of my relationship with money. In the beginning, when I lost $700 in a short, painful session, I equated that to the cost of a new set of golf irons, something I would keep and use for years. In fact, in the beginning, I brought a $1,500 bankroll in $20 bills. Later, I became comfortable carrying larger amounts of cash on $100 bills. And the money became just a tool to winning at blackjack. You have to put your money on the table — at risk — if you want to win.

    I would like to say that money doesn’t hold power over me, but it does. I feel crappy when I lose and I feel elated when I win. I actually believe that people’s ideas about money, including my own, is one of the most flawed perceptions about life.

    In the book, you say “[Casinos] intentionally attempt to confuse people in the casino areas by reversing design principles in an attempt to increase time (and therefore, money) spent. However, the principles of good orientation design are applied to shopping areas in order to facilitate more efficient shopping. It’s all about money!”

    After your time in casinos, are there any other observations you’ve had about the negative affects or tactics of casinos?

    Phil: Casinos exploit a basic human weakness and it has ruined many people’s lives and destroyed marriages and relationships. Casino owners know that their customers will lose, often more than they can afford. And yet, if a card counter uses skill to win what is, to them, a small sum, they are treated like cheats and criminals.

    That said, casinos are made of many low-wage workers who are themselves victims of a corrupt system. I met many dealers who seemed like nice people and I always tried to treat them with respect even though they were, in a sense, working for the enemy. And, I’m a little ashamed to say, I grew to like some casinos and prefer them over others. But it is important to know what you are dealing with and always be wary.

    One of the things that was interesting to me was the struggle between trying to be an advantage player and gambling tendencies (E.G. You played a 6:5 game, even though you knew it was a bad game; you would leave in the middle of the shoe based on wins sometimes, rather than simply playing according to the count; you seemed more interested in your win/loss after a single shoe rather than just trying to generate EV and letting the math work itself out over time). I’ve found that, in many ways, I end up putting as much energy into helping people stop *gambling *as helping them become card counters. Where are you at now? Do you consider yourself a gambler who keeps the count or a stone cold advantage player?

    Phil: I sometimes hear my wife tell people: “Phil likes to go to Las Vegas and gamble.” When she says that I wonder who she is talking about. I’ve never thought of myself as a gambler even though I make many of the same mistakes gamblers make. I wouldn’t even consider playing blackjack unless I had at least a small advantage.

    In terms of my skill level, I practice every day and I’m still getting better. I adapted the KO system so I don’t have to deal with negative numbers and I use 18 indexes. I try to play only two-deck games so I can get a positive count more quickly without slogging through four decks before getting an advantage. I’m good at keeping the count but I want to get to the point where it is completely automatic so I can do a better job disguising my plays. Also, when I have an advantage, I’m still reluctant to fully exploit that edge, mainly because I’m playing from a small bankroll.

    You detail how difficult your training process was. I have a friend with adult ADD, so I understand what a challenge that can be. But it also seemed that your training process wasn’t very well outlined by Bill (your card counting mentor). You were playing with your bankroll before you had basic strategy memorized or could keep the count. (I died a little bit inside when I read that, because we’ve seen so many people put their bankroll at risk before they have the skills to protect their investment.) What advice do you have for people getting into card counting, based on your training experience?

    Phil: Yes, Bill brought me along very quickly, perhaps because he had a higher opinion of my abilities than I did. Also, there is a tendency for people who have mastered a difficult skill to underestimate what is, to them, easy. I suggest that people treat blackjack as a long-term project. I see people playing solitaire on their iPhones so I tell them, why not play blackjack and eventually make some money? Once they feel ready to play in a casino, I recommend that people proceed with extreme caution. Winning easily might be more dangerous that losing. There is also a tendency for people to revert to a gambler’s profile and suddenly go “all in” on a hunch, thinking that is the right way to play.

    You quote the book Don’t Forget!, a book on the link between fear and memory loss as saying “You can expect memory lapses when your emotions take over and when the situation does not allow you to sustain attention.” Do you feel like you’ve been able to overcome this? How? We got to a point in our Blackjack Team where we could predict if a recruit had what it took to be a card counter simply by how they handled stress and how emotional they were. Do you think that, similar to air traffic controllers, there’s a type of person who can or can’t handle card counting based on how emotional they are and how they handle stress?

    Phil: Figuring out how to deal with stress became a major part of my learning process. The simplest way to handle it is to start small and build up gradually. You use the air traffic controller analogy but I often think of pro golfers standing over a 4-foot putt that is worth $200,000. Most of the pros have been playing tournaments since they were teenagers, so there is an imprinting process which might carry them through. However, others get the yips and leave the game.

    Another way of dealing with stress is to understand how you react to it. Once you see how you perform you can look for ways to improve. In most cases – blackjack or golf – the stress is largely mental so sometimes mind tricks which can help you. In fact, if you form a different perception of what stress is, you can overcome it. Playing blackjack you might lose a lot of money. But the air traffic controller is holding peoples’ lives in their hands so that is a whole other level of stress.

    One thing that helped me is that I’m very consistent. I knew this from a variety of other sports and activities I’ve performed in my life. This helped me to follow a plan and look for results in the long run, not the short term.

    On the “Gambling With an Edge” podcast interview you did, you mentioned that you and Bill adjusted the split of profits based on his higher level of EV. What did that look like?

    Phil: In most cases we contributed evenly to the bankroll and had a 60/40 split with Bill getting the larger share. This usually worked out fairly and we didn’t have disagreements about the results. And, as I said in the podcast, there were times when I was a significant contributor.

    You talked about bet spreads and deck penetration, but not much about avoiding negative counts. Did you guys play through negative counts?

    Phil: In most cases we tried to play two-deck games so the negative counts didn’t last more than a few hands. If we were at a six-deck game, with other people at the table, and the count was very low, I might fake that I had a phone call and step away from the table until the count rose again. Either that or I took a bathroom break, leaving my chips on the table, and came back for the next shoe.

    You raise a good point, though. Every successful counter has to learn to minimize negative counts and capitalize on the high counts.

    Out of curiosity (and if you’re comfortable sharing), how has card counting gone for you since you finished the book? Hours? Units won?

    Phil: Since I finished the book I haven’t played as much. However, I still practice almost every day. I’m also looking for ways to improve my play and gain more of an advantage. Since I’m in Southern California, I usually wind up in Las Vegas once every few months.

    I feel more confident at the tables but I can’t say my winnings have increased dramatically. I’ve tried to find a level where I can enjoy the game but still make real money. If I had a bigger bankroll, or more time, I would concentrate more on the game. Perhaps in a few years, when I retire, I will return to it with more energy. By then, I expect that keeping the count will be automatic. I hope there are still good games to play. There is a terrible trend to 6:5 blackjack payoffs which might kill the game for me.

    I haven’t been backed off recently but I’m a conservative player and I play short sessions. Bill has gotten very busy with his investment business so we haven’t connected recently. We are always in touch, though, looking for time to meet in Las Vegas or Biloxi.

    I think my favorite part of the book is just how card counting was a vehicle to you tackling your fears. Can you speak into this some more? What has been the fruit of those lessons?

    Phil: I’m glad you liked that part of the book because, for me, that was the biggest lesson I learned. Almost every year I set a goal of overcoming fear. And I’ve never really done it. But I do know that managing fear has a direct impact on your enjoyment of life and your success. Looking back on this project, there were so many times when I had to face my fears and move forward. That’s the key. You can’t eliminate fear, but you can move forward anyway. And, as I say at the end of the book, when you move toward your fear, there seems to be a force that works with you to overcome obstacles. This sentiment has been expressed in many forms. For example, the expression, “Fortune favors the bold” says it nicely.

    Any other stories or things you’d want to share?

    Researching Wild Cards, I came to enjoy reading about blackjack and watching any documentaries I could find, such as the “Holy Rollers.” I quickly began to see that it is a small, tightly knit community of smart people.

    My favorite book became, “Burning the Tables in Las Vegas” because of the approach that Ian Anderson takes.

    That’s awesome. “Burning the Tables in Las Vegas” was required reading for people joining our blackjack team (though I don’t recommend using any of his cover plays because they cost too much EV).

    Thanks, Phil, for answering some questions for us and I hope you are able to create many more stories through your card counting endeavors!

    For those interested in checking out Phil’s Book, “Wild Cards”, it’s available here on Amazon

    card counting mini-course iphone screencap

    Start the FREE card counting mini-course

  2. Profile of a Card Counter: BJA Member “The Phoenix”

    Comments Off on Profile of a Card Counter: BJA Member “The Phoenix”
    Profile of a Card CounterWe had the opportunity to ask BJA member “The Phoenix” about his blackjack journey. He’s been to a couple bootcamps, played on a larger scale team, and won a good amount of money from card counting. It’s probably the most cryptic interview we have, so the answers are short, but hopefully you still learn from and enjoy his responses! (more…)

  3. The Griffin Book

    Comments Off on The Griffin Book
    The Griffin Book and Casino Surveillance

    The Actual Griffin Investigations Website

    Many blackjack players live in fear of “The Griffin Book” and other databases that offer similar “counter catcher” information, like the Oregon Surveillance Network and Biometrica.

    But what is the Griffin Book, and should we really be afraid of it? (more…)

  4. Profile of a Card Counter: BJA Member “mark_k”

    Comments Off on Profile of a Card Counter: BJA Member “mark_k”

    Profile of a Card CounterWe had the opportunity to ask BJA member mark_k about his blackjack journey. These are the questions we asked him and his responses. Enjoy!

    1. How did you get into card counting?

    I listened to a radio program on “This American Life” about blackjack that featured “The church team”. After listening to the program I searched for the Holy Rollers on Netflix and after that I looked up BJA on the internet. I read most everything I could from the site without being a member and decided to join. I figured I had wasted a lot more money than that playing craps.

    2. How long have you been counting cards?

    I joined BJA February 2014 and attended boot camp the following June and went live July 2014.

    3. How long did it take you to trust your skills? How do you know you’re any good?
    mark_k's results graph

    mark_k’s results graph

    It took me about 6 months before I trusted myself. As far as if I’m any good my wife used to tell me good luck when I would go to play, now she tells me not to come home until I win. Seriously though, it was after about 60 hours of live play I looked back at my win/loss record and realized my hourly win rate was within about $5 per hour and each time I hit a new high point I get knocked down but I continually come back to hit a new high point within 2 to 3 weeks.

    4. What are the biggest challenges you’ve faced/had to overcome?

    I would say the biggest challenge is patience and what I mean is to stick to your plan that fits your ROR and bankroll. In my case I’m seeing my bankroll increase at a rate of about $25 an hour and the thought keeps creeping in my mind, Wow if my betting unit was a black chip I could be up in the low 5 digits, but in reality a few bad sessions could wipe out my entire bankroll.

    5. Any advice you would give to others? Anything you wish you would have known?

    The best advice I can give is this, don’t become complacent. Stay on top of your game. I still practice 1 to 2 hours per day. I wish I had known how rough the emotional roller coaster was going to be, what a ride !

    6. Any highlights of your career so far?

    Meeting Ben and Colin at boot camp. Boot camp was a great experience meeting like minded people.

    7. What’s your favorite thing about being a card counter?

    The best thing about being a card counter, knowing I have the advantage over casinos.

    8. What’s the most you’ve ever won/lost in a day? How did that feel? How did you respond?

    My biggest win (so far)  59 units and biggest loss 38 units. Like everyone says, the loss is more memorable. After that loss I felt like puking, I drove home the whole time questioning my playing ability, the math, thinking I should quit while I’m still ahead. Later that day I got back on this site and re-read the parts about emotions and losses, that its all part of the game.

    9. Any memorable story(stories) you’re willing to share?

    I was playing heads up $25 double deck. Immediately the dealer is destroying me even with positive counts, no matter what I do I can’t win a hand. I have a 20 he draws to a 21, I have a pair of 8’s he has a 6, I split the 8’s draw another 8 split again draw a 10, another 10 and 7, yep he draws to a 19. It feels like this goes on for an eternity and he’s practically begging me to quit playing, tells me I should go play the $5 table. By now I’ve blown thru $750. He finally gets tapped out to go on break, the tide turns and now I can’t lose. Within 40 minutes I leave with a $250 win. This stands out to me because I’m sure he thought I was the typical ploppy and he was trying to give me sound advice but I knew I was playing correct and I would eventually come out on top although it may have not been that day.

    10. What’s your favorite advantaged play have you done in your life that didn’t involve blackjack or casinos?

    My family owns two businesses, one of our companies had a fair amount of excess cash on hand and about 5 years ago we took the opportunity to do some financing for a rent-to-own company. We let the income continue to roll over for 3 years and now we are drawing out the investment. By the time we have completely drawn out all of our money in another year, for every $1 invested we are getting $4 in return.

     

    Hope you guys enjoyed reading mark_k’s blackjack journey. If you enjoyed this you might also check out the forum post that mark_k won the Post of the Month Award for: “Rookie Lessons Learned Along the Way.”

    card counting mini-course iphone screencap

    Start the FREE card counting mini-course

  5. What You Need For Blackjack Training

    Comments Off on What You Need For Blackjack Training

    Blackjack Training KitIf you’re just starting out learning blackjack it can get a little overwhelming knowing what you’re going to need to hone your skill at home.

    We want to take the guesswork out of it for you, so before you go unload a bunch of coin decking out a slick home practice setup, read this list of training tools and their importance.

    We’ve broken everything into 3 categories. Things you absolutely must have in order to practice beating this game, things you could survive without for a while, and things you just don’t need.

    Pro Tip: before you fork out a small fortune to Amazon, we have Blackjack Training Kits in our store.

    Bare Necessities:

    1. A Six-Deck Discard Tray. Blackjack Training kit shoeThis is probably the single most important piece of equipment you will own as a card counter. You will need it to practice deck estimation. Most of card counting is a mathematical or mental skill, but in this case you will be practicing a visual skill as well. All the games you will be playing will have a discard tray so you will need to practicing looking at one and estimating the number of decks left so you can calculate the true count. You’ll need at least a six-deck tray but an eight-deck tray will give you more versatility.
    2. Six Decks of Cards. Blackjack Training Kit Decks of Cards“Why not 1 deck? Or two decks?” Glad you asked. Single and double deck games are not as common as 6 deck games and in a lot of ways they are a little more challenging to beat than six-deck, and far less forgiving on mistakes. That’s why we teach you how to beat six-deck games first. Once you’ve mastered the six-deck you can learn the other variants. Since you’re going to need to practice six-deck you’ll need the cards (all 312 of them). Many casinos (not all) will give out their used decks for free or they will sell them in their gift shop.
    3. Printed Strategy Charts. Blackjack Training Kit ChartsYou will need to have your charts handy as you’re dealing cards to yourself and practicing. basic strategy cannot become second nature overnight. Keep a chart in your desk at work. Keep one in your car. It will take some time to master it. Even if you can commit it to memory overnight it will take a significant amount of practice to make it fluid. If you are not checking your accuracy on your charts you may be reinforcing bad habits.

    Significant Training Improvements:

    1. Blackjack Felt.Blackjack Training Kit Felt There is a reason casinos deal games on a felt. If you haven’t already discovered this, you will quickly learn that cards don’t like to be picked up off of perfectly flat surfaces. If you deal the cards on a felt, it serves as a spacer between the cards and the table. The tiny fibers slightly elevate each card above the table, just enough to allow another card to slip under or to allow your fingers to grasp the cards and sweep them up easily. This mitigates endless frustration. You can simulate the same effect with a bath towel, blanket, or table cloth. The other advantage of a real felt is that it has betting circles and the full blackjack layout printed already so you can more accurately simulate a real game.
    2. Deck Ruler. Blackjack Training Kit Shoe Desk EstimatorWhen you’re practicing deck estimation it can help to have a ruler you can use to check and see if you are estimating the correct number of decks remaining. You can get one in our store or you can easily make one with a pen and an index card. The important thing is that you don’t want to write marks directly on the tray itself. If you write on the tray itself you’re not really training your brain to estimate decks, you’re just training your brain to read a ruler. This is why having a separate ruler to check your answer comes in handy and is much better for your learning process.
    3. Chips. Blackjack Training Kit Chips on FeltMany people will use chips to keep score on how well they are doing in home practice. We don’t recommend using chips for that. Chips are good for practicing placing correct bets and getting familiar with what odd blackjack payouts should look like in chips. Chips aren’t absolutely essential to a home setup but can add another layer of practice. If you plan to practice with a friend, chips can come in handy to test each other on correct payout knowledge and proper betting deviations.

    Not essential:

    1. Cut Card. Blackjack Training Kit Shoe Cut CardThat little plastic card the casinos use to cut decks off the back of the shoe can be used in practice but is not really that necessary. It’s more of a novelty for a practice scenario. The dealer will decide where the card goes in a real game and there is no skill to cutting the shoe before the start of a game, so a cut card is really just there to make you look cool for having casino stuff in your house. Not essential.
    2. Dealing Shoe. We thought about adding a 4th category for this item because we recommend intentionally avoiding this purchase. Just trust us. It’s a waste of money. Even dealers in casinos hate them. They constantly get clogged and they are totally unnecessary for a home training setup.
      better use for a dealing shoe

      [a much better use for a dealing shoe]

       Casinos use them because dealers cannot physically hold six decks in their hands while they are dealing. The shoe provides an organized way to keep the cards in order, on the table, and in view of the cameras. None of those things apply at home. At home you just grab a stack and start dealing the cards from your hand. Trust us; if you buy a dealing shoe you will quickly abandon it. That’s why they don’t come in any of our training kits.

     

    That’s all you need to know about home training tools. If you haven’t already picked up the essentials, we recommend checking out our Kits in the BJA Store when you’re ready. The casino’s money is waiting!

    If you have a cool home training setup you’d like to show the community send it to [email protected] with subject line “Check out my kit.”

    card counting mini-course iphone screencap

    Start the FREE card counting mini-course

  6. Profile of a Card Counter: BJA Member “SmurfAP”

    Comments Off on Profile of a Card Counter: BJA Member “SmurfAP”

    Profile of a Card Counter

    We recently had the pleasure of asking one of our Bootcamp Alums, “SmurfAP,” about his blackjack journey. He had some great nuggets of wisdom to share with the community so without further adieu, here are his answers to our questions:


    Blackjack Training Kit

    SmurfAP’s training setup + some winnings

    1. How did you get into card counting?

    My buddy and I have always sought to be business minded. We’re barbers by trade and, since cosmetology school, we’ve always thought ahead to how we can invest our money like the rich, while also starting up our own small business.

    One day my buddy kind of jokingly told me he found a great investment but he was pretty sure I wouldn’t approve because I come off as a conservative guy. He told me it was beating blackjack through card counting and to his surprise I responded with great enthusiasm. I’ve always been mesmerized by movies and shows where people can outsmart casinos and others through playing cards, but I failed to learn because of how obscure resources were in learning the craft. With the movie 21 portraying young geniuses, the endeavor seemed impossible.

    During my first blackjack lesson, my friend had to first teach me how to even play blackjack, let alone count. When he showed me basic strategy and how to count everything made complete sense and I knew that it was profitable. We had a few practice sessions together and headed off to the casinos with a few hundred bucks and of course lost most of it. After that day I made the commitment to not lose any more money to casinos until I was fully prepared to beat blackjack.

    My friend was skeptical to paying for a Blackjack Apprenticeship membership and didn’t think it was worth it since he already made a good amount of money with the information he already knew, but I had to find out as much as I could even if a scam was waiting for me at the end. I started out paying for one month of membership, soaked it all up, and couldn’t get enough of it. I then bought CVBJ and the training kit and shared whatever knowledge to my friend. We invested into full membership, Bootcamp, CVCX and have been taking down casinos ever since.

    2. How long have you been counting cards?

    I’ve been playing professionally for 1 year

    SmurfAP's performance chart

    SmurfAP’s performance chart

    3. How long did it take you to trust your skills? How do you know you’re any good?

    Nine months. I had intense preparation; practicing 8 hours a day. I got myself to a level where I made no mistakes on CVBJ and playing heads up with my friend many nights til 4am. At the blackjack Bootcamp we tested out with 1 mistake each.

    4. What are the biggest challenges you’ve faced/had to overcome?

    Cut off half the time from my job to play blackjack and not withdraw any money from the bankroll. Scheduling and sleeping patterns differ so much each half of the week.

    5. Any advice you would give to others? Anything you wish you would have known?

    Have a perfect game, learn CVCX, trust the math. Do not expect to win money overnight. Just because you win hundreds, thousands, and get kicked out of a casino doesn’t make you an AP. Being in the positive after thousands of dollars in losses and hundreds of hours will tell if you are beating the game. Ben an Colin give solid advice.

    SmurfAP Performance Chart

    SmurfAP’s 2-man team performance chart

    6. Any highlights of your career so far?

    Before being introduced to card counting I didn’t even know the rules of how to play blackjack nor set foot in a casino. In a year I’ve been to countless casinos in 5 different states, Vegas twice, backed off from several properties multiple times, and trespassed by a chain.

    To date my investment has reached a 1000% return. My wins alone make about 60% of the current team bankroll.

    7. What’s your favorite thing about being a card counter?

    Being able to see money as just a tool; a means to an end. Having the mindset of trying to see the true value of things.

    8. Whats the most you’ve ever won/lost in a day? How did that feel? How did you respond?

    Biggest win $4100 in half an hour. I felt real slick but paranoid. I’ll explain with a story for the next question.

    Biggest loss $5000. I felt suspect of my game, a little embarrassed, but not despaired. My brain was fried from outside stresses from home, but I still wanted to make sure my skills weren’t slipping. I believe I took a little break from blackjack and had my teammate retest me when it was time to come back.

    9. Any memorable story (stories) you’re willing to share?

    I’m really eager to close off the bankroll and I’ve been putting in more blackjack hours than I have before on top of my normal job. I’m going through the most amazing streak of my short blackjack career and it’s the last session of the week. I should prepare myself for a loss.

    I’m playing in a casino that I previously had a pretty messy backoff but the shift I decide to play had no idea and the workers on that shift are pretty chummy with me. I found a perfect heads up table with no mid shoe but as I buy in the dealer informs me the minimum is $100 because the previous player changed it up; it’s usually a $25 minimum pit. No big deal, I start scanning for the next open table but the pit boss insists I stick around so she can call upstairs to change the minimum on the table, so I stick around.

    After the first round boom, the count heats up. I end up having to play two spots of $100 anyway. “Black action”, “go ahead”. Boom 2 x $200. Pit raises brows. “Splitting 10’s!” Pit boss walks conspicuously over to my side. I end up splitting 10’s 4 times on one side then splitting 7’s and doubling on the other on the same hand. BUST.

    SmurfAP Cash Out Security

    SmurfAP being cashed out and backed off with a security escort

    The pit boss heads straight for the phones. Uh-oh they should have my picture, I gotta hurry up. 2 x $300 an there’s still about four decks left to be played. Oh man do I look like a scumbag, I make the pit call to lower the minimum and I bet several times over that anyway. Every time they look away I stuff the chips in my pocket because the last time I got backed off they held my chips as I was coloring up unless I showed them ID.

    The shoe finally hits a running negative. I ask the dealer to hold the 2 spots for me so I can head for the door, stuffing handfuls of blacks into my pocket. The dealer is about to ask me to color and the pit leans in to imply the same. I reach my phone for a fake call ranting hysterically like I had a mini emergency yelling aloud “You did what!? Why!? Why would you do that!? I’m here at the corner! At the back! I’ll be right there! I’m coming!”

    After all the smiles and excitement on their end there’s now an empty table, two reserved spots, no tip. Before scurrying out to the parking lot and skipping the cage I decided to round my way back and look from afar. Dealer’s heading hanging low and pit confounded. I chuckled my way home. hahah

    10. What’s your favorite advantage play that you have done in your life that didn’t involve blackjack or casinos?

    I’m actually having a hard time thinking of one. I probably have had a few AP moments in life but maybe its more true that I usually got the bad deal of things; mostly so I wouldn’t be accused of taking advantage or cheating somebody. Boy how things have changed.


    Thanks for Sharing your story with us, SmurfAP! Keep generating EV!

  7. How to Start a Blackjack Team

    Comments Off on How to Start a Blackjack Team
    Bankroll_Dinner

    Church Team Bankroll Dinner

    We get a lot of emails from people who just watched the Holy Rollers documentary, which tells the true story of the blackjack team we ran for several years. Naturally we get asked the question, “Do you guys still play and can I join your team?”

    The Church Team officially disbanded at the end of 2011. Some former members of the team do play on their own from time to time (including Ben and Colin), but not in a large-scale, organized fashion.

    Usually when people hear this response, the next question we get asked is, “How do I join/start a team?” We will get into some practical things you can do to start or join a team, but first you have to consider WHY you want to start a team. Typically there are 3 legitimate reasons for people to play on a team. (more…)

  8. “My First Thousand Hours”

    Comments Off on “My First Thousand Hours”

    by “Joe748”

    I wanted to share with you guys my personal outlook and advice based on my first 1,000 hours of card counting. First and foremost I am very much up for my 1,000 hours & my hourly rate is fairly close to my EV.

    The Lifestyle: 
    In order to make a living off blackjack you have to travel a lot. It’s just unavoidable if this is your sole source of income. Everyone asks if it gets lonely, but I can honestly say there’s not much time in my head to get lonely while I’m on a blackjack trip, between driving from casino to casino playing, and sleeping there’s not much downtime to dwell on things if you’re a lone wolf. Personality wise I’ve never had a hard time doing things “alone” but at the same time I’m pretty personable so I’ve met and hung out with a lot of cool people while being on the road. I love the freedom blackjack can give you because you can take a week, or two weeks, off any time if you want. And what other freelance work can you point your finger on the map, fly there, and just start working? You don’t have to spend any time acquiring clients or advertising to find work. You just pack up and go.

    The Game:
    After playing at many places and having a wide range of session playing time & back offs it always comes back to the same mindset. Play as aggressive and as long as you can until they say its time to go. There have been more than a few times when I was getting heat (phone calls, half shoe’ing) and I just kept playing. Usually it leads to a back-off but there have been sometimes when I get many hours of play in after some serious heat. Sometimes casino personal are feeling you out and it’s worth it to me to just keep playing until they make you stop. I would have missed out on a lot of hours if I got scared and left the casino after I saw or experienced heat. I was playing at a place with another counter and once we experienced heat he left because of it. I kept playing for 20 hours over the next two days, so I’ve always just let the trip end when they say it’s over. That way I have no regret about the hours I may have missed out on.

    (more…)

  9. Profile of a Counter: BJA Member “Bubba”

    Comments Off on Profile of a Counter: BJA Member “Bubba”
    We recently had the pleasure of interviewing BJA member “Bubba” on his blackjack journey. Here are the questions we asked him and his responses.

    bubba1. How did you get into card counting?
    I came across the documentary one night before going to bed, at first it sounded too good to be true. The scene came on where Ben explains how simple the concept is, and then he proceeds to say you have to memorize like 2 or 3 charts, do some calculations, etc. At that point I was thinking, forget about it. A few weeks later I was on a trip in Vegas when I recalled the documentary. I was in my room bored so I decided to look up how to count cards. What do you know, right there on top of the search was the guys from the documentary. Something felt right about it so I went ahead and bought the subscription, loved the videos, signed up for a year membership, and never looked back.

    2. How long have you been counting cards?
    My first day to the casino as an AP was just about 4 months ago. At this point I didn’t know any deviations. I shouldn’t have gone out there that early but I thought I would be moving away from where I am now so I might not have the opportunity to visit some of my home casinos with this much ease. It wasn’t until the deviation drill came out on the site that I really got them down, which was around my 3rd or 4th outing. 5 months ago I didn’t even know what a double down was. I guess I’ve made my way pretty quickly. Wow, I didn’t even realize this until just now.

    3. How long did it take you to trust your skills? How do you know you’re any good?
    It took me about 3 1/2 months before I built up some confidence in my game. I made a few mistakes almost every session, I’m very fortunate that I was aware and quickly learned from them. When you strive to be perfect the mistakes burn deep and you make sure you tell yourself it’s not going to happen again. I test myself all the time with different drills, I recently got tested out by Ben which was a great feeling, Because I knew he shows no mercy in his test outs and I did way better than I expected. (more…)