Bootcamp Survey Results and Feedback - Blackjack Apprenticeship

Bootcamp Survey Results and Feedback

 

*Updated 7/23/18

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If you’re interested in beating casinos at blackjack, the highest level of training is going to be an immersive, hands on experience.

And that’s exactly what our Blackjack Bootcamp is.

But is it worth the cost?

We’ve always wanted to be completely transparent (which can be rare in the casino/gambling world).

So in order to help you decide if a Bootcamp is right for you, we’ve created this page (and update it regularly) to share what to expect from a Bootcamp, as well as unedited feedback from our past Bootcamps.

What to Expect at a Bootcamp

The Bootcamp is broken into two types of training sessions:

  1. Lectures/Discussions – This is the best of the best of ways to make as much money as possible at the tables. These are the training we’ve used to help our teams generate the highest levels of EV, avoid detection, prolong trips, manage betting and risk, and anything else you can think of. Every talk ends with Q/A time, where we leave no question unanswered. Seriously, no question unanswered. We also have several guest lectures at every Bootcamp (more on past guest speakers below).
  2. Dealing sessions – This is where you can have your game evaluated by a professional. Not only will you discover the weaknesses in your game, we will give you a clear path to correct those mistakes so they never happen again.

Past Guest Speakers

I am incredibly thankful to any of our guests who has taken the time to share from their vast experience and expertise to pay it forward to our Bootcampers. These are some of our previous guest speakers

Loudon Ofton – The most successful card counter on the Church Team, Loudon was once known as “the most feared card counter in Las Vegas.” Sharing from a vast career, Loudon shares his personal tips and advice on how to have a long, successful career as a card counter.

Joe748 – BJA Pro, Joe748, is one of the most successful card counters I have ever trained, having approached 7-figures in profits from casinos. But he doesn’t just keep his success to himself. He has spoken at several bootcamps to share how he has done it, mentally, physically and emotionally, for such huge hours and profits.

JCnote – BJA Pro, JCnote, started out at a Bootcamp many moons ago, but has gone on to be a professional Advantage Player for over 5 years. He’s great at explaining concepts, and can dive deeply into things that even I don’t understand.

Spartan – BJA Pro, Spartan, once attended a Bootcamp, but over the past few years, he’s beaten multiple casino games for large profits. He shares from his experience at trip planning, maximizing your financial goals, and much more.

Tommy Hyland – One of the biggest highlights for me as been to have Tommy Hyland stop by to give a guest talk. He was a huge inspiration to me and how we ran the Church Team and it was such an honor to have him share what he’s learned and how he continues to take casinos for loads of cash. 

T. Dane – T. Dane is the author of  the now out of print book, “Behind the Black Dome“. He’s also one of the top AP surveillance experts in Las Vegas and he’s a rad dude to talk with! He has shared insight and answered questions to help bootcampers protect their blackjack careers and have the upper hand against the cat and mouse game with the casinos.

Ultimate – BJA Pro, Ultimate, shares from his experience at card counting outside of the US. Having played in much of Europe, as well as the Caribbean, he’s willing to share what to expect, where to play, and where to avoid.

Russ Fox – Russ is a certified accountant and the leading expert in tax law for professional gamblers. I know tax law may not sound that sexy, but if you’re looking to count cards for a living, his input can be the difference between huge tax bills and manageable ones.

Survey Results

Blackjack Bootcamp Survey ResultsBlack Bootcamp Recommend Survey

Bootcamp Member ResponsesBootcamp Attendee Feedback

This is unedited feedback from former Bootcamps.

Colin and the BJA staff were professional, thorough entertaining and fun.  The weekend was well worth it and it teaches you that you don’t know what you don’t know. Many valuable nuggets of wisdom.

– Coyote

I had lots of apprehension about the boot camp prior to attending. I wasn’t sure if it was a scam or if I was even ready for it since I’d only started card counting two weeks prior. Once I arrived though, I was blown away with the casual yet competent pros that I met and learned from. These guys are great. If you can count through a deck in a minute or less, they can definitely help you progress from there. Talking with fellow attendees is fantastic too. It’s no scam and it will definitely give you a better insight into the life of a card counter. I also gained the confidence to walk into a casino and stand behind players while back counting and talking to the Pit Boss. DO IT!

(FYI, this person didn’t want to share his name or username)

Hi, my screen name on the BJA site is “Bucky”.

I’m brand new to the game of blackjack as well as the BJA website, and I’m here to say that my blackjack bootcamp experience was great.

I wanna start off by saying that the hosts of the bootcamp were ALL very friendly and laid back, they gave off great vibes. Ben even brought one his daughters along, and even her presence (running around and drawing pictures) contributed to making the whole bootcamp experience not seem tense.

Now, for the price that these guys charge to attend this bootcamp is well worth it. Snacks and hearty dinners were provided. The hotel that they chose for the bootcamp was swanky. The guest speakers gave crucial information about the game of blackjack, they also shared some of their experiences and exploits as card counters, very useful stuff. The presentation that was given about “E.V.”(Expected Value) was definitely the highlight of the whole weekend for me. The presentation really takes you “down the rabbit hole” so to speak, as to what E.V. is and how it works. Learning about E.V. is prevalent if you plan to take playing blackjack seriously. As the attendees played hands of blackjack at the bootcamp, we were laughing, making jokes, and just having a good time. We were also being showed where our weak points lied. (I had quite a few weak points), but I’m glad that they were addressed by professionals. The more we played, the more the pros kept dropping invaluable nuggets of knowledge on us that I doubt you’ll find in any book about blackjack. When I was being evaluated, (in the advanced bootcamp), I realized I didn’t even know “basic strategy” as well as I thought I did. (Ouch!) This let me know that I had a lot more practicing to do. In conclusion, I want to say that for anyone who would like to take card counting seriously, this course is worth the trip and the price. But I must warn you, the course in ONLY A GUIDE!!!! If you want to count cards at a professional level, YOU have to put in the hours of STUDYING and TRAINING, these guys just show you the proper way to do so. This course isn’t “Learn How to Card Cards In 3 Easy Steps”, there’s a lot of work involved. Anyway, I received some criticisms from the pros that I’m not taking lightly. With that being said, I’m back to the grindstone working on my game looking forward to being evaluated again.

Thanks again BJA,
“Bucky”

The dealing session I did with Colin was very focused. We played quickly and checked ourselves out on a lot of different situations. The sessions with Loudon Often lacked the intensity and focus on training that Colin’s table offered. So I’d suggest that Colin train whoever deals at the other table. It might be useful to employ a second professional at each table to keep the count and to record errors. It also might be good to play a few hands and then stop to make corrections, rather than checking RC and TC all together and announcing correct bets — and correcting plays — as we go.

The best way to know if you’re ready to play this game to make money!
The stories and from Ben, Colin, and other professional players made me understand the way Advantage players have to think. Thanks, guys!
-AboutEven

Great experience to actually MEET the people that have taken millions from the casinos. The best part is that everyone running the camp have such different personalities and styles that it’s cool to know there is not ONE way to do it. Of course they all have one thing in common, their blackjack games are perfect and they understand the concepts of what gives a player an advantage fully, after that it’s up to you how you want to make the $$$.  If you have mastered the game and want to understand some more concepts, this is the way to go.

-TheWalrus

My name is CJ and these are my feelings about Colin’s bootcamp after attending it this past weekend. Bootcamp is a must for any person serious about advantage play as a business! Get ready to be comfortable with not only the setting in the house but the humility and kindness of all the pros! These guys are wide open to help you one on one and in a group! There is more than enough time to ask anything you want to any of them! When you leave you will have answers to every question youve had about advantage play and answers to questions ya hadnt even thought of. These guys seem to have something that really makes ya comfortable and ready to learn. They even hired a chef for both days! Not only is this guy a great cook but unlike most chefs was always smilin and believe it.or not also an advantage player.  We had more than enough food and drinks with help yourself to food and snacks and drinks all day long too. This bootcamp is professionally run with everything thought out and planned to get us the most learningbas possible all the while interacting with a bunch of pros and many other aps!   

I’m the first to admit that card counting isn’t for everybody. But if you are serious about becoming an advantage player, or furthering your AP skills, a Blackjack Bootcamp might be an invaluable opportunity.

To find out when our next Blackjack Bootcamp will be held, or put your name on the waiting list, check out the Bootcamp page…

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*I use SurveyMonkey to gather anonymous feedback from attendees.