Sitting out hands

#1
I am pretty much a noob when it comes to counting and I have been practicing and reading a lot of material. I am almost done with BlackJack Bluebook II and am going through the lessons on this site. Lots of info here!!!

A question I have is about sitting out hands while staying seated at the table. How do you do this? Do you just stay seated and tell the dealer you are sitting out for awhile? I have played at the casino in the past but never knew you could do this.

Also, wouldnt this be an indication of AP behavior as you would sit out hands when the count gets negative and then start playing when the count becomes favorable?

Thanks for any answers. I can just about count a deck down in 30 seconds and have been practicing the counting 2 cards at a time from 3 decks of cards. I can definitely tell I am getting much faster and the first time I ever went to the casino was just over 2 months ago and I didnt even know basic strategy then. So much to learn, but I am ready and am questioning everything I see that I done understand.

Thanks guys.
 

HsiaoDi

Well-Known Member
#2
Go to bathroom if the count if just terrible, go to next table start anew if there are enough tables for you to "wong out". Say something in the effect of the flow is terrible. Say I haven't won any hands in a while, maybe I should sit out for a while.... Any of those will do just fine...
 
#4
You need to sit out sparingly. When situation allows a comment associated with it you can say:
1) I've lost enough hands for a while if you have been losing.
2) What's the point when all you (the dealer) gets is 20 or 21. I will wait until your run of good cards is over. (If dealer has been making his hands)
3) I have reached my lose limit on this shoe.

The problem is the eye in the sky and the PB are the ones you have to convince and keep from looking to close. Cell calls, bathroom visits, smoke breaks or straight out table hoping are better choices. Use each tactic sparingly enough that it looks reasonable.
 
#5
Gamblor said:
You've played at casinos before and never seen anyone sit out a hand? BS.
I have been to the casino about 5 times in my area, which would be 5 times in my life lol. I guess I have seen people get up and leave for awhile, and the dealer will save their spot, but I was questioning how to go about sitting out hands.

Sorry about the misinformation.
 
#8
Sitting

Stopping play and then resuming in the same shoe, when you are an AP will eventually lead to the "Kiss of death".

When you pull out stay out till the next shoe or better yet move on.

Any tactics like cell call, pee break etc. are well known to the eye who read these boards.

CP
 
#10
Avenger

blackjack avenger said:
No need to fake bathroom or call. Actually, do them.

Happy belated birthday? CP. A birthday is a celebration of making it another year!
Thanks for the B-Day wish, me and the wife had a great time, truly did, in fact just got home, made some money too:cool::)

CP
 
#11
Wong around round round I Wong around
Wong around round round I Wong around

I Wong around
All round the town
When the count goes down
Don't wanna stay around

There's no sense in playing when the count is so weak
That's when you get up and take a leak

I Wong around
All round the town
When the count goes down
Don't wanna stay around

And if the count keeps dropping don't mess with it
That's the right time to take a... hit.

I Wong around
All round the town
When the count goes down
Don't wanna stay around...
 

Lowrider

Well-Known Member
#12
IMHO there is nothing more shady than repeatedly wonging out and in at the same casino. If you are jumping ship and hitting a bunch of stores that's fine. Or if you're only playing for a couple of hours at one place...then Wong your ass off..

It looks incredibly shady to me and I've noticed that the PIT absolutely hates having to retrace players that hop tables in the system. Can't imagine a better way to stand out on the radar.
 
#13
Stakes and NMSE

There's a little something being left out here and that is the stakes involved. Today's modern games have lower stakes games in which you can sit out and jump back in and any games with higher stakes more often than not have NMSE. Non-AP's sit out quite often, depending on whether they are winning or losing or if there's a half-moon tonight and if their cousin's birthday falls within 3 months of the time they are playing at the casino, etc.

Most casinos are not too very concerned about (AP) action at their $5-$10 minimum games, which anymore are the only games that you don't have NMSE. Maybe Laughlin? It's just not very profitable for the AP and not any sort of threat to the casino. On top of that, the rules at the lower stakes games that do not have NMSE are such that increased HA makes it a tough ballgame for even the best of AP's to turn any profit! In essense, you can sit in and out of low stakes games all day long and not get much of any reaction from the pit. It's not like they are concerned that some AP is going to whack them for anything substantial at these low stakes tables that permit sitting in and out due to the crappy rules. They're not concerned about it because it's not a likely event. They make quite a nice haul from these low stakes tables with the crappy rules and a novice counter on a shoestring bankroll playing them doesn't stand a chance.

This is all something that would be worth worrying about (on the part of the casino) in 1988, not 2011. The rules with increased HA at lower stakes MSE tables more than compensate for that concern. Sit in and out all you want and don't worry about it.

 
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gothic

Well-Known Member
#14
Automatic Monkey said:
Wong around round round I Wong around
Wong around round round I Wong around

I Wong around
All round the town
When the count goes down
Don't wanna stay around

There's no sense in playing when the count is so weak
That's when you get up and take a leak

I Wong around
All round the town
When the count goes down
Don't wanna stay around

And if the count keeps dropping don't mess with it
That's the right time to take a... hit.

I Wong around
All round the town
When the count goes down
Don't wanna stay around...
...have I mentioned I write/play/record music? Mebbe time to press an EP :laugh:.
 
#15
creeping panther said:
Stopping play and then resuming in the same shoe, when you are an AP will eventually lead to the "Kiss of death".

When you pull out stay out till the next shoe or better yet move on.

Any tactics like cell call, pee break etc. are well known to the eye who read these boards.

CP
What about players who play online?
 
#16
I like to tell people that the 'flow of cards is bad, and that it needs to be changed up' and Ill sit out. This typically sounds like something just an average gambler would say, and doesnt draw much attention at all.

Only thing Ive noticed is, A LOT of ploppies end up blaming me for the next couple hands (which are absolute ****) because I sit out at around a true -3/-4 so when the count is that bad, typically the next couple hands are gonna be rough for the players, and the people who dont know what Im doing get angry and blame my sitting out for the dealer flipping a 6 card 21. This can cause some attention as people are shouting off about how 'the dealer would have busted if I hadnt of sat out' :rolleyes:

Of course when you sit out and someone hits a blackjack or the dealer busts, you can say something like 'see your welcome! I changed up the flow for you guys' if the count is good now, you can use this 'flow is good again' to hop back in lol
 
#17
S2krazy03 said:
I like to tell people that the 'flow of cards is bad, and that it needs to be changed up' and Ill sit out. This typically sounds like something just an average gambler would say, and doesnt draw much attention at all.

Only thing Ive noticed is, A LOT of ploppies end up blaming me for the next couple hands (which are absolute ****) because I sit out at around a true -3/-4 so when the count is that bad, typically the next couple hands are gonna be rough for the players, and the people who dont know what Im doing get angry and blame my sitting out for the dealer flipping a 6 card 21. This can cause some attention as people are shouting off about how 'the dealer would have busted if I hadnt of sat out' :rolleyes:

Of course when you sit out and someone hits a blackjack or the dealer busts, you can say something like 'see your welcome! I changed up the flow for you guys' if the count is good now, you can use this 'flow is good again' to hop back in lol
The problem is the eye and usually the PB can't hear you and the dealer usually doesn't care.
 
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#18
reports

Tarzan said:
There's a little something being left out here and that is the stakes involved. Today's modern games have lower stakes games in which you can sit out and jump back in and any games with higher stakes more often than not have NMSE. Non-AP's sit out quite often, depending on whether they are winning or losing or if there's a half-moon tonight and if their cousin's birthday falls within 3 months of the time they are playing at the casino, etc.

Most casinos are not too very concerned about (AP) action at their $5-$10 minimum games, which anymore are the only games that you don't have NMSE. Maybe Laughlin? It's just not very profitable for the AP and not any sort of threat to the casino. On top of that, the rules at the lower stakes games that do not have NMSE are such that increased HA makes it a tough ballgame for even the best of AP's to turn any profit! In essense, you can sit in and out of low stakes games all day long and not get much of any reaction from the pit. It's not like they are concerned that some AP is going to whack them for anything substantial at these low stakes tables that permit sitting in and out due to the crappy rules. They're not concerned about it because it's not a likely event. They make quite a nice haul from these low stakes tables with the crappy rules and a novice counter on a shoestring bankroll playing them doesn't stand a chance.

This is all something that would be worth worrying about (on the part of the casino) in 1988, not 2011. The rules with increased HA at lower stakes MSE tables more than compensate for that concern. Sit in and out all you want and don't worry about it.

We have reports on this sight of red chippers being backed off. So erring on the side of caution even a red chipper should be wary.
 
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