No harder than to count with a single deck, but there is an added wrinkle that makes it appear superficially harder. What you simply call “the count” for a single deck game becomes the “running count” for multiple decks. You have to remember that. Pontoon – the best hand you can get in this variation is Pontoon, which includes a face card (J, Q, K) and an Ace. After that comes blackjack, but the strongest hand is when you are holding five cards without going bust. These both pay 2:1. The rules are liberal since you can double down, split, and re-split.

1. How To Win At Blackjack Without Counting Cards
2. Is It Possible To Win At Blackjack Without Counting Cards
3. Blackjack Counting Cards Values
4. Can You Win Blackjack Without Counting Cards Games
5. Counting Cards In Blackjack Strategy

You’ve likely seen movies where card counters make big profits. Although such film scenes are unrealistic, they at least show that skilled counters do win money.

But one thing you never see in these movies is somebody sitting at home and making thousands of dollars through online blackjack. In fact, it’s widely assumed that card counting doesn’t work at online casinos.

You may be surprised to find out, though, that card counting actually is possible at gaming sites. However, the real question is if it’s profitable.

I’m going to cover the stigma against online card counting and why it’s feasible in certain cases. I’ll finish by discussing if the profits make it worth your time to be an internet card counter.

What Are the Basics of Card Counting?

The very essence of card counting is to determine when you have a stronger chance of getting a natural blackjack. Assuming you’re playing at a table with favorite rules, then you’ll receive a 3:2 payout on your original bet (some tables only offer 6:5).

Your chances of getting a natural blackjack increase greatly when the shoe has a larger percentage of aces and 10s compared to other card values. You’ll theoretically gain more value by increasing your bet size at this point.

Of course, you won’t naturally know when these situations are present. But card counting gives you a tool for figuring out when the shoe is rich in aces and 10s.

How To Win At Blackjack Without Counting Cards

The Hi-Lo offers a happy medium between accuracy and ease of use. But the jest of the Hi-Lo is that you assign values to each card that comes out. Here are the point values for each type of card:

• Aces, face cards, and 10s (high cards) = -1
• 7, 8, and 9 = 0 (neutral)
• 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 (low cards) = +1

You want fewer low cards in the shoe, which is why your positive count increases when they come out.

The Hi-Lo also calls on you to account for how many decks are left in a shoe with a “true count.” You do this by dividing your “running count” by the estimated amount of remaining decks.

Here’s an example:

• Your running count is +6.
• You estimate that two decks are left.
• 6 / 2 = +3 true count

You can increase your bet size as the positive true count grows. A simple way to do this is by:

• Flat betting with a count of 0 or +1.
• Increasing your minimum bet 5x with a count of +2.
• Increasing your minimum bet 10x with a count of +3 or higher.

Why Online Card Counting Usually Doesn’t Work

One more aspect to card counting in blackjack that I haven’t discussed is deck penetration. This term refers to how many decks a casino deals before reshuffling the shoe.

Here’s an example:

• You’re playing at a table with an eight-deck shoe.
• Five of the eight decks have been dealt.
• 5 / 8 = 62.5% deck penetration

You want higher deck penetration, because this allows you to place bigger bets with more confidence. A +2 or +3 true count is much more accurate when only one deck remains, versus five or six.

Of course, many casinos reshuffle before this point in order to thwart card counters.

Other casinos allow more deck penetration, because they don’t want to slow down games by constantly reshuffling. They figure that lost hands are most costly than simply giving a few counters a bigger advantage.

Online casinos don’t have to worry about lost hands when reshuffling decks. Their software-based (a.k.a. virtual) tables can automatically reshuffle a shoe with no time wasted.

Online gaming providers program their blackjack games to reshuffle with very little deck penetration. You have absolutely no chance to gain an advantage in these cases.

Of course, you could slightly improve your odds if a casino allowed, say, 25% penetration. But this amount isn’t enough to count with any confidence and swing the odds in your favor.

The low deck penetration in online blackjack games is why card counting doesn’t work at virtual tables.

Some Live Dealer Casinos Allow More Deck Penetration

Many online casinos offer live dealer blackjack, which features a human dealer and real cards. These tables operate just like a normal land-based casino would, with the exception that the action is being streamed through your internet device.

Assuming the conditions were perfect, live blackjack would be the best way to count cards. After all, you could sit at home and count without drawing as much suspicion from pit bosses and floor supervisors.

Of course, online casinos aren’t dumb. They know their live tables are susceptible to being beaten through card counting.

Dealers are instructed to shuffle shoes before too much deck penetration is allowed. They’re not going to deal through 75% of the shoe and give you an easy chance to count.

Some live dealer casino games allow up to 50% deck penetration before reshuffling. You can theoretically gain a tiny advantage in these situations.

I mentioned earlier that at least 75% penetration is ideal. But 50% is just enough to where you can earn a little money over time.

You can visit different live dealer casinos and watch their games to figure out the deck penetration. Take notes on the different percentages in order to find sites that are more susceptible to counting.

What Is the Profitability of Live Dealer Card Counting?

The problem with counting in the aforementioned live blackjack games is that it’s just not very profitable. At best, you’re looking at earning a small amount of profits over time.

You also need to be able to use a large “spread,” which is the distance from the minimum bet to your highest wager.

Here’s an example:

• You’re playing at a table with $5 minimum bets.
• You increase your wager to $75 with a true count of +3.
• 75 / 5 = 15
• Your bet spread is 1-15.

Pro counters generally use between a 1-10 and 1-15 bet spread. But they must be careful, because such large spreads are a telltale sign of a counter.

You need to thoroughly research which land-based casinos allow this type of action without immediately tossing you. Some Las Vegas casinos are more lenient than others.

Gaming sites with live blackjack are generally very lenient with bet spreads. After all, they’re not allowing enough penetration to where you’ll gain a big advantage.

But you need around a 1-30 spread to get an edge with just 50% penetration. If the table minimum bet were $5, for example, you’d be betting $150 with a +3 true count.

Some online casinos might allow this. Others may eventually ban you if they monitor your play and deem you to be a bad customer.

You can of course “wong in,” which involves counting while sitting out and entering games at favorable points. “Wonging” prevents you from having to play unprofitable hands until detecting a positive count.

Another problem is that you’ll have to dedicate a lot of time for such little payoff. Online card counting is nothing more than a low-paying hobby in the long run.

Conclusion

Counting cards at live dealer casinos can result in minimum profits with 50% deck penetration. But you’ll never make any serious money with this practice.

You might be lucky to earn a few dollars an hour, even with a 1-30 bet spread and wonging. These tiny profits hardly seem worth the effort.

Live dealer counting can be a fun hobby. It’s also a nice way to prepare for counting cards at a brick and mortar venue.

Just be aware that you won’t be able to use such large spreads at a land-based casino. You might even attract suspicion at some live dealer tables for doing so.

Also, wonging isn’t permitted at most brick and mortar establishments. Casinos have a “no mid-shoe entry” rule to prevent this from happening.

Nevertheless, land-based casinos are better for profitable card counting. Live dealer sites, meanwhile, are just fun places to hone your counting skills while potentially earning a little money.

Most winning blackjack players rely exclusively on, or at least started their playing careers, counting cards. But counting is not enough. A card counter has to be able to get away with it in a casino. That’s what this article is about.

You probably are trying to win as much money at blackjack as possible. You want to win as much per hour as possible, and you want to keep open the option of playing more hours.

One thing that is important is to develop your own style. Be a one of a kind. This forces casino bosses to figure out what you are doing by watching you in action, which gives you more playing time than if they know what you are doing before you win your first bet.

Every casino has employees who know that blackjack can be beaten, but few casino employees actually know how to beat the game. Playing blackjack is like a war in which the casino employees are the enemy, while you are a spy behind enemy lines who must hide your true identity at all times. Some of the enemy are on the lookout for card counters. They think that they know what a card counter looks like: The garden-variety card counter wins and does so with varying bet sizes. A person who exhibits this behavior is observed intently.

When casino personnel are positive that they have spot ted a card counter, they will take an action to your disadvantage, such as ordering the dealer to shuffle more often than normal.

Is It Possible To Win At Blackjack Without Counting Cards

Of course you must hide your ability. Do not look like you are counting cards. Do not look like you are trying to recall a number from a table. Do not carry any written tables with you. In many jurisdictions, most notably Nevada, you may be barred from play if you are identified as a proficient player. Elsewhere you might find the shuffle point moved up on you. Some casino employees become belligerent, abusive and may even physically harm you. Yes, casino patron abuse still occurs. Some employees might wrongfully accuse you of cheating!

Bet size makes little difference. A $25 bettor who is recognized as a card counter will be subjected to countermeasures, while the careful $100 bettor can continue to play indefinitely.

Keep the dealers and pit critters ignorant of your ability and they will be happy. Never, never let on that you are playing any sort of a winning method. You will be asked in a conversational way if you count cards or have read any books on blackjack. Do not admit to anyone that you are counting cards. (You might pretend that you think counting means adding the indexes to find the hand total.) Do not admit to having understood any book on blackjack. You can act stupid, lucky, un lucky, drunk, sleepy, or whatever, but do not act like you know that you are playing a winning method or you will find the welcome mat withdrawn.

Blackjack Counting Cards Values

Casino personnel notice small bettors who are big winners and big bettors whether they win or lose. This exposure is unavoidable but relatively harmless because many gamblers bet big and many gamblers have winning streaks. Casino owners who are inhospitable to all winners and big bettors lose more by turning away gamblers than they gain by turning away professional blackjack players.

Except for winning more often than losing, you must look like a gambler if you want to preserve your potential for income from playing blackjack. A gambler who plays blackjack daily for week after week eventually runs out of money. If you play daily in the same casino for week after week, you will eventually lose your credibility in that casino. If you want to play fifteen hours per month in one casino, it will look more natural to cram all of those hours into a two-day period than to play thirty minutes every day for thirty consecutive days. Try to spread your playing among all three shifts -- casino staff put in eight hours a day just like most other working people.

Can You Win Blackjack Without Counting Cards Games

Excerpted with permission from the e-book version of Professional Blackjack by Stanford Wong.

Counting Cards In Blackjack Strategy

Please log in or register to leave a comment