Counting More Cards

[golfcoach]

I'm preparing for a trip to Minden, Nv. for 3 nights next week. The Casino has only SD BJ. For the last 4 weeks I've been practicing about 500 to 1000 hands per day on this site's "BJ Trainer". I'm HiLo'ing and keeping an A's count.

Several days ago (I remember like it was a minute ago) I had a 14 vs 14 about mid deck. All of a sudden, it came to me that only 3 two thru six's had come out. I hit for a 5 and the dealer hit a 3 for my win.

I've now been paying attention to this situation ever since and it seems to come up at least every 3 or 4 decks (13 vs 13 thru 15 vs 15). All I have to do is pause for a couple seconds and I'll remember how many neg's have come out. I'll estimate that I make a hand between 60 & 70% of the time.

Now, two questions for the Pro's. It goes against Basic Strategy to make this move, but with the number of neg cards known, is it an acceptable play?
2nd, to those of you with thousands of hands of experience, is this sub-conscience information common amoung long time players? (By-the-way, I do not consider myself to have an execptional memory)

Thanks in Advance.

 

[Unshake]

From the FAQ sticky at the top of the forum:

" Q. If I am counting cards, should I sometimes deviate from basic strategy because of the composition of the remaining deck?
A. Yes, if you know what you are doing...
Basic strategy is the best way to play a particular hand off the top of a freshly shuffled deck or shoe. If you are counting cards, you can detect situations where changes to basic strategy are appropriate. An example might help illustrate this:

Assume you are dealt 12 against a dealer 2. Basic strategy says to hit this hand. However, if you know the remaining deck is packed with tens, sometimes you are better off standing. If you are using the common Hi-Lo count, you should stand with 12v2 if the true count is +4 or higher. If the true count is +3 or less, you should stick with basic strategy and hit.

The "+4" number here is called an index number, and these index numbers can be derived for each decision. They are specific to a particular counting system of course, and can also vary depending on the rules of the game.

Q. Which index numbers are most important, and what are they?
A. Blackjack luminary Don Schlesinger published an article in Blackjack Forum long ago, where he pointed out that a relative handful of index numbers can deliver most of the possible gain from strategy deviation for a card counter. He dubbed these most important decisions the "Illustrious 18".

If you using the popular Hi-Lo counting system, here are the index numbers for the Illustrious 18. These numbers refer to True Count.

Insurance: Insure at +3 or higher.

Stand/Hit:
12 vs 2: Stand at +3 or higher, otherwise hit.
12 vs 3: Stand at +2 or higher, otherwise hit.
12 v 4: Stand at 0 or higher, otherwise hit.
12 v 5: Stand at -2 or higher, otherwise hit.
12 v 6: Stand at -1 or higher, otherwise hit.
13 v 2: Stand at -1 or higher, otherwise hit.
13 v 3: Stand at -2 or higher, otherwise hit.
15 vs T: Stand at +4 or higher, otherwise hit.
16 v 9: Stand at +5 or higher, otherwise hit.
16 vs T: Stand at 0 or higher, otherwise hit.

Double/Hit:
9 vs 2: Double at +1 or higher, otherwise hit.
9 v 7: Double at +3 or higher, otherwise hit.
10 vs T: Double at +4 or higher, otherwise hit.
10 vs A: Double at +4 or higher, otherwise hit.
11 vs A: Double at +1 or higher, otherwise hit.

Split/Stand:
TT vs 5: Split at +5 or higher, otherwise stand.
TT vs 6: Split at +4 or higher, otherwise stand.

Note that the ten split indexes are often ignored, because they are considered to draw too much attention from the pit personnel.

Schlesinger's book Blackjack Attack covers this topic and many more in detail. It's must-reading for a serious player."


Thanks Ken!
__________________

 

[Kasi]

I'm HiLo'ing and keeping an A's count.

Several days ago (I remember like it was a minute ago) I had a 14 vs 14 about mid deck.

I'm no expert that's for sure - I guess you are not using indexes maybe?

You mean 14 vs 4 or 13 vs 3? Assuming a 10 underneath maybe? If so, it's a -count anyway and min bet will be out probably anyway so not maybe a huge difference to overall results if you don't do it very often lol. On the other hand, maybe it's cheap camo lol.

Anyway, in general, why not stick to the plan(s) lol?

You have some semi-specific betting plans? Or will you bet the same way with 26 card pen as you would with 31 or more cards kind of thing. Maybe know what to do in same pen level if you decide to change from 1-3 to 1-2 spread, etc. Maybe a few diff Basic Strategies even if you encounter a few diff rule sets like LS or H17 or S17 etc. How much money to take for how long you plan on playing, etc. If you aren't using indexes, maybe learn a few. More important in SD I think. If you've been playing 1000 hands a day, what are you "practicing"? If just BS or count accuracy, you're probably there or close enough. Who knows - maybe you'll find a DD game?

Or, just have fun, flat-bet min alot, is always good for me lol. Don't know what you want to accomplish or expect.

Don't mind me or let me spoil your fun - just crap to think about if you want.

Have no sims - best I could do is send you spreads from BJAIII tables for SD. You'd have to figure out the underlying assumptions lol. Might be a starting point anyway. Basic Strategy tables too if you want them. Hi-Lo index numbers if you want.

In exchange, give me a golf swing that actually hits the ball :grin:

Good luck!

 

[Kasi]

Insurance: Insure at +3 or higher.

Stand/Hit:
12 vs 2: Stand at +3 or higher, otherwise hit.
12 vs 3: Stand at +2 or higher, otherwise hit.
12 v 4: Stand at 0 or higher, otherwise hit.
12 v 5: Stand at -2 or higher, otherwise hit.
12 v 6: Stand at -1 or higher, otherwise hit.
13 v 2: Stand at -1 or higher, otherwise hit.
13 v 3: Stand at -2 or higher, otherwise hit.
15 vs T: Stand at +4 or higher, otherwise hit.
16 v 9: Stand at +5 or higher, otherwise hit.
16 vs T: Stand at 0 or higher, otherwise hit.

Double/Hit:
9 vs 2: Double at +1 or higher, otherwise hit.
9 v 7: Double at +3 or higher, otherwise hit.
10 vs T: Double at +4 or higher, otherwise hit.
10 vs A: Double at +4 or higher, otherwise hit.
11 vs A: Double at +1 or higher, otherwise hit.

Split/Stand:
TT vs 5: Split at +5 or higher, otherwise stand.
TT vs 6: Split at +4 or higher, otherwise stand.

No big deal - those index numbers might be for multi-deck, not SD like coach was talking about?

 

[golfcoach]

Thanks for the offer Kasi...I have all the BS tables and used them for the 1st few weeks of practice. I'm pretty sure I have them down pat. I really appreciate the "Indice" list for Single Deck, I had never seen it before. I will memorize it during the next 9 days before my trip.

As for your Golf Swing....Not knowing your game I'd tell you that the harder you swing, the more you'll mis-hit the ball. Sam Snead once said "When I want to hit it extra far, I swing extra easy." Hitting it solid is the key to playing well.

Thanks again.

 

[Kasi]

I really appreciate the "Indice" list for Single Deck, I had never seen it before.

Sam Snead once said "When I want to hit it extra far, I swing extra easy."

PM me - I just have the inexes from Wong's book for SD. Maybe one for H17 and one for S17. They don't include the LS indexes. They are based on flooring the TC's I believe.

I did see "Slammin' Sam" hit a ball once at Oakmont. I think it was a 5-wood. Maybe 1960 or so? I really don't remember where or when.

Absolutely beautiful. Never forget it. I can still see it today.

A game that absolutely proves BJ is a piece of cake with no variance :grin:

You gonna pay those hidden fees for your clubs? lol.

Some nice courses out there.