Card Counting If you have mastered basic strategy and are looking for a way to further decrease the house odds you could consider card counting. The reason that card counting works is that unlike other casino games where the game play does not affect the outcome of subsequent plays, the discarding of cards in blackjack can alter the outcome of each round. If there was a way to keep track of what cards are out of play and what cards are left in the deck, then a blackjack player could greatly lower the house edge. If there is a higher than normal number of tens and aces remaining in a deck then it is more likely that a player will get blackjack. Since, blackjack pays 3 to 2 then this is to the player's advantage. Although it is also just as likely that the dealer will get blackjack, the dealer only wins 1 to 1. When the deck has more cards of a lower value it is more likely that the player will bust. Although the dealer is also at the same risk of getting a bad hand, when the player busts, the dealer wins, even they also bust, because the player must play their hand first. The house advantage in blackjack is fairly small to begin with. If there is a high number of tens and aces, the player can expect a good chance of winning the next hand. If a player can keep track of when there is a positive expectation and when there is a negative expectation, they can adjust their betting amounts to take advantage of the situation. The hard part is remembering which cards have been played and discarded. Most card counting systems assign a positive, negative and neutral value to certain cards. Usually low value cards are assigned a positive number and high value cards are assigned a negative number. Different card counting methods assign values in slightly different ways. A card counter keeps a mental running tally of cards. However, for this to be a true representation of “good” cards remaining in the deck, the running tally must be divided by an estimate of the number of cards left in the deck. Good card counters can gain from 1 to 1.5% advantage. Casinos normally frown on card counters. Therefore you’ll want to ensure you hide your strategy from casino staff. Most card counters will lose money through errors. If you are noticed by casino staff, they will watch you to see I if you are winning and may employ measures to counter this strategy. The most common system assigns a value of -1 to tens and aces, a +1 to 2 through 6 and a 0 to 7, 8 and 9. Casinos have their own defenses against card counters. Shoes with 6 to 8 decks of cards are the most common ones. Card counters will also lose their advantage to frequently shuffled decks. Casinos will also frequently shuffle the deck, but frequently shuffling reduces the playing time of non-card counting players and therefore potential profits of the casino. Some casinos employ shuffling machines and many blackjack players boycott casino that use Continuous Shuffling Machines that allow the dealer to return cards to a shoe to be shuffled without any interruption in play. It isn’t illegal to count cards. However, casinos are private property and many card counters have found themselves banned. In fact, casinos go to great lengths to identify and track card counters. Their sophisticated surveillance equipment combined with security, casino staff and outside firms allow casinos to defend themselves against card counters. Some even employ facial recognition software to find those attempting to disguise themselves.

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