moraine said:
Thank you for your detailed response to a real life betting situation. I used the example of $30,000 bankroll at a $10-to-$500 table to illustrate the possible shortcomings of the traditional "bet-spread/betting ramp" approach. Under that traditional approach, the player will probably bet $10 or 15 at Hi-Lo TC 1 or below, and increase by about $100 or $125 per every increment of 1 TC until the table max of $500 is reached at TC 5. The bet spread is then 1-to-50, not 1-to-12 or even 1-to-18 that people normally assumed for blackjack shoe games.
Is a 1-to-50 bet spread totally infeasible/insane? NOT REALLY. I have seen players (may or may not be card counters) got away with something even wilder, that is, either the table max or the table minimum: POLE VAULTING ONLY, NO BETTING RAMP AT ALL.
What a peculiar post. Pretty much demonstrates a
complete lack of understanding of how the game within the game of card counting and casino tolerance and evaluations works.
You say you have seen players who may not be card counting get away with wild spreads upwards of table max.
But of course! Likely an evaluation was done determining that they are not solely moving money with the count, in which case these players are not only welcome, but the casino loves them. You haven't seen players that you know an evaluation was done and failed that evaluation "get way" with what you describe though have you?
Secondly, unless a player sits and plays a long session, any heat and countermeasures from an evaluation usually occurs on subsequent visits. It is often the next or a subsequent visit that the player sits down plays about 3 hands, and gets the tap before even raising their bet. So unless you have witnessed a player spreading wildly, that you believe was moving money with the count and followed him on follow up visits, don't tell us about anybody "getting away" with anything. You have no idea what is happening.
Look, I don't know what kind of player you are, professional, semi-professional, serious recreational, or just a recreationally red chip player. From the knowledge you are showing, I am guessing not professional, But whether a player is a recreational players with a couple local casinos that he plays, or have a greater number of casinos in his regular rotation, or even is constantly traveling to new games, A player is just not going to survive long in this day and age, with a 1-50 spread,
as you describe. Casinos will do an evaluation with those spreads and even if a player has a large rotation of games (as I do) or travels a lot, that information (and backoffs) will follow him.
You will note, the highlighted "as described" above, because it is possible to play with a large spread, and achieve some sort of longevity, if that large spread is the result of spreading both ways, which I have already discussed. Then it becomes harder to see the full spread in one sitting. But to just use the old traditional spread of say sitting down at a table and betting $10 and spreading up to a max bet of $500....it isn't even that you will have a short career, you won't really have a career....it will be that quick. (and I use "career" not meaning full-time player, just you blackjack playing career, at whatever level you are trying to play).
One of the problems with a 1-50 type spread, is that you are always spreading 3-4 different colors chips and that gets noticed. A very successful player once told me only spread 2 colors and that has severed me well for my 12 years living and playing in Las Vegas. So if I am max betting at $400 or so as I talked about earlier, I spread $25 or $50 to $400. That is two colors! If I am playing a higher max like $600 or $800 bet where they will pay me in purple, I start out with a first bet of $100. That is a spread of 2 colors! And even if I spread both ways and drop my wager to $50, later spreading to $800, that is 3 colors, BUT someone (pit or EITS) would need to see both ends of spread (negative counts to max bet) in the same shoe to see all 3 colors and like I said, that rarely happens.
But that is just me....what do I know. Please spread your 1-50 through 3-4 colors and tell us how that goes as far as longevity.