Here’s a first: I just got comped–against my will.
I arrived at the large tribal casino knowing I had been backed off here before. If I had any chance Read the rest of this entry »
Split Double Destroy! [Real-time dispatches from behind enemy lines]
February 18th, 2010Split Double Destroy! [real-time dispatches from behind enemy lines]
February 2nd, 2010
If there ever is an appropriate time to throw a tantrum—it is now.
When the new dealer stepped up I was betting two hands of $500 each at an advantaged count. She burned a card, waited for a player to finish fumbling with his bet, burned a card, and dealt out the round.
Catch that? Two burn cards.
I got a hard 13 and a hard 14. Dealer got an ace. Cue tantrum. Read the rest of this entry »
Happy New Years!
December 28th, 2009
Well 09 was a crazy year over here at Blackjackapprenticeship.com. We don’t like to brag nor am I a huge fan of new year’s resolutions but this can be a great time of year to pause and reflect on the previous year and set our sights on the next year. So here is what went down in ’09 at BJA:
- We completely re-designed our site so it doesn’t look like a piece of crap
- Lead a series of bootcamps in Vegas that we received massive amounts of positive feedback on.
- I don’t want to be too exact with the number but let’s just say we profited from clearing out more than 6 figures worth of $chips$ from casino racks. Read the rest of this entry »
Card Counting Darwinism- Learn to Adapt!
December 8th, 2009
A while back, I came across a casino with a great game. Good rules and INSANE pen. After walking around the casino floor to figure out my best option, I ordered a beer, sat down at a table, and started firing away. OK. Let me clarify. I ordered the beer for the “image” it would give, I actually stood at the table, and by “firing away”, I mean I was betting the table limit within the first 2 decks of the 6 deck shoe. I was high fiving players, asking the pit crew to comp me energy drinks, and doing whatever else I could to generate as much EV as I could before they caught on.
Next Vegas Bootcamp Coming up Soon!
November 5th, 2009Next Vegas Bootcamp- Nov 14!
Dear Soldiers in the BJA Army,
We’re less than a month away from our next Vegas Boot Camp! We wanted to give you guys the 4-1-1 on what to expect:
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1. Personal game evaluation. By the time you leave, you will know exactly where your game is at, what to work on and EVERYTHING you need to know to be a Pro Card Counter.
2. Comprehensive training. Whether it’s evaluating your advantage, secrets to increase your profits, or knowing what to do when a Casino tresspasses you. We have a collective 15 years of card counting experience, and have trained scores of people. We won’t hold anything back.
3. A pimp-@$$ suite on the strip in Vegas. We’ll be doing our training out of a high-roller suite. Where else do you think we’d want to spend a day in Vegas?
4. Personalized bet spreads. By the time you leave, you’ll have a bet spread that is customized for your bankroll size, games, etc.
If you’re ready to take your game from a hobby you hope to not lose money at to a source of income, this is your best option!
We hope to see you there!
For those who still don’t know why to Count Cards
September 22nd, 2009
I received this email last week, and thought I’d use it as an opportunity to break it down for those wondering “why do you keep a count of the cards“: Read the rest of this entry »
Goodbye Old Site!
September 22nd, 2009
Goodbye old site. All good things must come to an end. For those of you visiting, thanks for your loyal patronage. This site would have never gotten here without your feedback and devotion to the cause. Read the rest of this entry »
Gambling for 5th Graders
May 28th, 2009Many people have been asking…as promised here is the condensed lectures that I gave to a group of 5th graders about how gambling/casinos work. There’s not much, if anything, about card counting but understanding the big picture is always helpful for advantage players.
A few quick facts before we get on with it:
- The original lecture was one hour and included Q & A. I have condensed it to three 7 minute videos.
- I’m fairly new at using screen capture software combines with webcam so if you find my eyes wandering remember I’m a professional blackjack player not a broadcaster.
- oh, and I already got an email from a 5th grader asking if I would speak to his class in Georgia. My Answer “Probably not” but it never hurts to ask.
How Casinos Work – The Simple Explanation
May 21st, 2009I just made this video last week. It was created for a “lecture” that I have to a class of 5th graders about how casinos work. It’s funny how simple things get when you think about how to communicate it to 5th graders. Here’s the video. enjoy.
I’m going to post the longer version of the lecture next week because it has some interesting concepts that would be valuable for discussion here.
Mr. Ben
How to Practice Blackjack pt. I
April 10th, 2009
So a lot of people have been asking for tips on how to practice blackjack, so I’m going to start a blog series about what I’ve learned about training:
PART I:
Basic Strategy is the Foundation
A lot of people say, “I know about 95% of basic strategy. Show me the deviations, get me to a table, show me how to bet! I’m ready to have at it!” But if you are still either making Basic Strategy mistakes, or having to use large amounts of mental energy to make BS decisions, then you’re in trouble! I don’t care how well you can count and how many deviations you memorize… if you make Basic Strategy mistakes, you’ve just killed any potential advantage you could have over the casino.
And even if you don’t make mistakes, if there are situations that arise where you have to put mental energy into remembering the correct decision, you will have a really hard time adding the other elements: counting, deviations, betting decisions, etc. If, however, for every playing decision, the correct Basic Strategy answer comes instantly, and without energy, then keeping a running count, converting it to true count, and referencing deviations and bet decisions will be MUCH easier.
Ok. So how do I get better at Basic Strategy quickly?
1. I recommend talking through the entire chart every day, a few times a day. Start with Splits, and say “Aces always split. 10′s never split. 9′s split up thru 9, except against a 7.” etc. You should be able to effortlessly run thru the chart.
2. Make flash cards. Put every situation on a card, like “A,7 v. 2″ on one side, then the correct decision on the other side. There will be lots of decisions that are so easy, you can start removing them from the stack of cards, and before long, there will only be the 10-20 toughest decisions in the stack. Keep reviewing them until you don’t have to think thru the whole chart to access individual decisions.
3. Play Basic Strategy. Buy CVBJ or use an iPhone App (we have one we’re finishing up). Drill yourself on basic strategy decisions. Until you can play Basic Strategy perfectly, you shouldn’t get obsessed with counting or deviations.
4. Keep reviewing. Basic Strategy is sort of an abstract thing. So you won’t retain it if you don’t keep practicing and reviewing it. You might go 10 hours of playing blackjack without seeing some decisions. But when you DO see it, you want to know what to do instantly.
Bringing down the house since 2003,
Colin
