Yvette Jones

I mentioned in an earlier post that the easiest and most widely used method of card counting is one called the Hi-Lo method. The Hi-Lo is probably the most used but there are some other methods I discovered that are probably even easier to master.

The Easy OPP System

This was developed by Carlos Zilzer.  OPP is an ancronym for One Per Person.  Mr. Zilzer did thousands of simulated tests with the system and has documented the highly effective results he garnished with it. He has actually defined two different methods, with each being simple to understand and easy to master. Let’s go over them:

• Method One – Number of Hands
  • First, make sure you start at the beginning of a shoe, so sit at a table that has just completed shuffling.  The running count is started at +6, so the count will rarely get to negative numbers, which can be confusing in keeping a running count of cards.  Immediately subtract the “number of hands” (thus the name) being played, including the dealer’s hand, from the running count.  With 2 players at the table, each playing one hand, the initial count would be +3. (+6-3=3) Remember to add a hand if a player is playing 2 spots.  Then, as the cards are dealt, simply add the total of low cards (2’s – 6’s) to your count, with each low card valued at +1.  At the end of the round, you have a running count.  Determine your next bet size based on the running count at the end of the round.  The higher the running count. the higher the advantage is to the player, the bigger your bet should be.
  • What’s great about this method is that the only subtracting you have to do is at the beginning of the next round, when subtracting the number of hands being played.  After that, you add 1 to the count for every low card that is dealt.  You can just look at the table and quickly count the total number of 2’s-6’s, you see. Take that total and add it to the running count number in your head.  Addition is so much easier than subtraction, which is the beauty of this system.
• Method Two – Value of the Hands
  • First, wait for the first two cards to be dealt to all players, including the dealer, then determine the value of each hand by the following parameters:
    • A hand with no low cards (2’s-6’s) = -1
    • A hand with one low card = 0
    • A hand with two low cards = +1
    • A hand with 3 low cards = +2, and so forth, (4 low cards = +3)
    • Split hands are considered new hands (value of the original hand is not counted)
  • The total number of cards in a hand doesn’t matter.  For instance, the following hand of “Ace, Ace, 3, 4, Jack, 2” has a value of +2 because it has 3 low cards.
  • As with method 1, your running count should start at +6 when you sit down at the beginning of a shoe.  The only subtraction is if there are no low cards in a hand and that’s just a -1.

Betting with the OPP Method

As with any counting method, the higher your running count, the more you want to bet, because at that point, the shoe is deemed favorable to the player.

There is definitely a more detailed chart you can look at if you research this system, but basically:

• Increase your bet under the following situations:
  • For a two-deck game – running count should be +8
  • For a six-deck game – running count should be +12
  • For an eight-deck game – running count should be +14

Remember this is a very simple system (either method), and your count may never get to the higher value, for several shoes, so be patient and stay conservative to stay profitable.  Play disciplined, play long!

The Red Seven Count Method

This system was developed by Arnold Snyder, a well-known professional gambler, author, and blackjack expert who has written numerous books on blackjack. In fact, I suggest checking out a couple of his books: “Blackbelt in Blackjack-Playing 21 as a Martial Art” and “The Big Book of Blackjack” for a thorough look into the ins and outs of playing blackjack for a profit and counting methods.

With this method, the high cards (10’s-Aces) are given a value of -1, and the low cards (2’s-6’s) are valued at +1.  The 8’s & 9’s are considered neutral and valued at zero (0). The red 7’s are valued at +1, like a low card, but the black 7’s are valued at zero (0), so considered neutral. Obviously this would create an imbalance in the count, which is what makes the count work. And of course, it really doesn’t matter if you switch it around and value the black 7’s at +1 and the red 7’s as neutral.  The developer of the system, Arnold Snyder, chose red, and therefore, The Red Seven Count. As a note, if you practice this method by running through a 52-card deck, your final count will always be +2

The running count starting number for this method is determined by multiplying the number of decks in play by -2.  So if you’re at a table using 6 decks, your start number is -12 (6 x -2).

Betting with the Red Seven Count Method

As always, the idea is to bet bigger when you have an advantage over the house, and if the advantage grows, bet even bigger.  When the house has the advantage, keep your bets to a minimum.

• Increase your bet under the following situations:
  • for a 2 deck game – running count should be +4 before increasing from minimum
  • for a shoe game (4 or more decks) – running count should be +6 before increasing from minimum

The Red Seven Count system is considered to be a professional level system that is both powerful and easy to use.  Check out the book “Blackbelt in Blackjack” for a more in depth understanding of this system.

Mastering Card Counting – Practice

Being able to count fast is the secret to using card counting to beat the casino at blackjack. The best card counters actually count cards in groups of at least two cards at a time.  In many pairs of 2 cards, the values actually cancel each other out, so they can be tossed or disregarded.  Once you can quickly run through a deck of cards at a single card pace, practice, practice, practice even harder to become proficient at counting pairs of cards.  Being able to quickly recognize “cancelling pairs” will make the difference in counting at a professional level or not.  The top professional card counters can actually count in groups of 3 or 4 at a time. That’s my goal!

With that in mind, don’t work on speed of count until you’ve perfected your accuracy.  It won’t matter if you’re fast, if your count is wrong.  It’s a fact that most professional counters can easily count down a deck in less than 30 seconds.  You can imagine that a goal like that involves a lot of practice, but if you can get to 30 seconds or less, you should do just fine in most casino blackjack games.

When you feel ready to take your card counting skills to the casino for the first time, don’t actually sit down and play, practice counting while just watching.  This way you can get a feel of the speed of play and determine whether or not you can count at a pace that keeps up with the game play.

Conclusion

Of course there are many other counting methods to choose from, but these are definitely 2 of the easiest to learn.  You can absolutely use either one to make a nice profit at beating the casino at blackjack.  You can make more money with a simple system because you’ll make fewer mistakes. Mistakes in card counting can be costly very quickly. Pick a simple  card counting system and give it a go.  Card counting can be easy!

 

 

 

 

Learning to count cards for blackjack will greatly enhance your chance of a profitable session of playing blackjack and beating the casino for the evening.

Is It Legal

Though it might be hard to get the big winners to admit to card counting, you can bet that they all use some sort of card counting system if they say they can regularly win at blackjack Card counting makes such a big difference in winning or losing that people do question the legality of it. While it is NOT illegal, casinos definitely watch for card counters and will kindly ask a card counter not to come back. They may let you enjoy the rest of the casino, but you will be banned from the blackjack tables. So, actually the hardest part of card counting is not to get caught so you don’t get banned. Try not to make dramatic changes in bet sizes, so as to alert pit bosses. Even if the card count is a high positive number, control your increase in bet size so you don’t draw attention to yourself. It’s better to be able to come back to a casino on a regular basis, winning a reasonable amount each time, as opposed to having one killer night and being asked never to return because you won too much!

As in basic blackjack strategy, card counting is easy to learn, but difficult and time-consuming to become proficient at and master. That being said, if you take the time to do just that, it can make your blackjack sessions highly profitable for the most part.

How is it done?

With card counting, you are basically keeping track of the ratio of low cards to high cards that are left in the shoe. Contrary to popular belief, it does not involve memorization. The player’s advantage is heightened when there are more high cards (10’s-Aces) remaining in the shoe, so that’s what a player needs to keep track of and know.

Why does it work?

If there are more high cards played in a round, that means there are more low cards left in the shoe. If that is the case, the dealer has the advantage because it is more likely that he will be able to “hit” his cards and not bust because he’ll probably get a low card. If the opposite occurs, and there are more high cards in the shoe, there’s a better chance that the dealer will bust if he has to “hit” his hand because he’ll probably get a high card…advantage player!

What is basic card counting strategy?

The easiest and probably most used system is known as Hi-Lo. First, you want to assign a value to every card. Within the Hi-Lo system, card values are assigned as: 2-6=+1, 7-9=0, 10-Aces=-1. So as each card is dealt, you keep a running total based on the card’s assigned value. With each card dealt, you either add 1, subtract 1 or do nothing if it’s a 0 card (7-9). You do make sure you include the dealer’s cards in the count as well. When the running count becomes positive or favorable, you’ll want to increase your bet size.

True Count for Multi-deck games

With the use of multiple decks, the running count can be deceiving in terms of what is the actual ratio of high cards to low cards left in the shoe. True count is determined by dividing the running count by the number of remaining decks in the game. This is probably the most tricky part of card counting, because it does involve basic math..division! If you’re at a table playing with 6 decks and you have a running count of +4 with 2 remaining decks, your true count would be 4 divided by 2, which is +2.

Using Card Counting Effectively

A card counter must watch all cards played, even the dealer’s cards, to keep a running count in mind. The count is continued until a shuffle occurs or end of round. Once a shuffle has occurred, the count starts back at zero. The higher the positive count, the bigger the counter’s edge, and therefore the bigger the bet size should be. With a negative or neutral running count, keep the bets minimal. Proper money management is also an integral part of profitable blackjack sessions.

Final Points

Card counting is just the ability to figure out when it is most advantageous to make bigger bets and win more money. It just makes you a more skilled player than the person next to you. A card counter won’t win every time, but will win more often than not. Really good money can be made with card counting because you’ll be winning with larger bets and losing with smaller bets, if done properly. You don’t have to be genius to learn it either. Anybody willing to put in the necessary time to master card counting can beat the casino at blackjack.