I'm not sure I'm suited for this
- Thread starter JulieCA
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daddybo said:
:laugh: I'm kinda/sorta that way too...It's more crowds with me instead of strangers. (IB agoraphobic). Tough up and go get 'em. 
Slick said:
Hehe I just wanted to make a generalization, crowds freak me out too! But I dont want to get in a debate over who is more freaked out over every day normal stuff
My experience is that the fluctuation is a lot larger than the small theoretical EV. I am slowly getting to the point mentioned in a recent post by CP that wild betting spread was the killer for a lot counters.
Based on my sim, in the game I play, the chance of winning at TC5 (that does not happen a lot) is less than 52%. One still faces a fefty 48% chance of losing even at such a high TC. So far I definitely lose more at high TCs.
Based on my sim, in the game I play, the chance of winning at TC5 (that does not happen a lot) is less than 52%. One still faces a fefty 48% chance of losing even at such a high TC. So far I definitely lose more at high TCs.
I like this post
It can be being competitive for money or just being a competitive person who when they take up a sport, blackjack, or a job has a personality that drives them to be as successful as they can. This kind of person, given just average intelligence, can be a winning blackjack AP. AS others have said, you do not really need real math ability as long as you can add, subtract and divide a bit.
As your ability improves you will realize that crowded conditions and playing with a bunch of girlfriends will cut significantly the amount of money you can make, but those kind of conditions (crowded tables), are alright while you are learning.
You play less hands, so till you eventually play with an advantage, you lose less money.
You should, if you go to the casino, keep your bets very small but practice your counting.
ihate17
It can be being competitive for money or just being a competitive person who when they take up a sport, blackjack, or a job has a personality that drives them to be as successful as they can. This kind of person, given just average intelligence, can be a winning blackjack AP. AS others have said, you do not really need real math ability as long as you can add, subtract and divide a bit.
As your ability improves you will realize that crowded conditions and playing with a bunch of girlfriends will cut significantly the amount of money you can make, but those kind of conditions (crowded tables), are alright while you are learning.
You play less hands, so till you eventually play with an advantage, you lose less money.
You should, if you go to the casino, keep your bets very small but practice your counting.
ihate17
Again, thanks everyone.
Nothing is as easy as people want to think it is. There is no such thing as getting rich quick. I've seen a lot of people chase the next big scheme - they never get good at any one of them and then they wonder why they fail.
Me - I'm a single-minded chaser. I might not be the best, but I will certainly pursue something until I'm quite sure I've mastered it to the best of MY abilities.
My purpose in starting this topic was to find out from the experienced folks here if someone whose math skills aren't exactly great can still succeed. I think the question has been answered and I'm feeling better about it today.
More reading, more practice, more watching.
Thanks again. The folks here have been really great.
Nothing is as easy as people want to think it is. There is no such thing as getting rich quick. I've seen a lot of people chase the next big scheme - they never get good at any one of them and then they wonder why they fail.
Me - I'm a single-minded chaser.
I might not be the best, but I will certainly pursue something until I'm quite sure I've mastered it to the best of MY abilities.My purpose in starting this topic was to find out from the experienced folks here if someone whose math skills aren't exactly great can still succeed. I think the question has been answered and I'm feeling better about it today.
More reading, more practice, more watching.
Thanks again. The folks here have been really great.
Just another opinion.
Absolutely no math skills are necessary, except, perhaps, adding and subtracting "1" from a whole number.
Forget that "7+5" on your fingers if, by that, you meant counting the value of your first 2 cards.
First of all, you can either ask the dealer what your hand total is or use as much time as you need with your fingers as the dealer is paralyzed until you tell him what you want him to do.
Just use a BS card in the meantime if you must play for real money. Plenty of free softwares out there to measure the accuracy of your chosen counting system while costing you nothing.
Of course your husband can probably count, in your opinion, if he chose too, which, apparently, for some reason, likely borne out of insecurity and ignorance, he doesn't choose to, while, apparently playing BJ and laughing at your finger counting or something.
The game is not measured by who wins the most money.
No matter what your attiitude or skill level may be, Lady Luck will always do her thing.
If you don't think that, maybe, going out with your girlfriends, say, in Atlantic City at an 8D full table, while flat-betting $10 every hand at a full table, where that "EV" stuff you may not fully understand yet (although if you can multiply you can understand it) would say you and your girlfriends are expected to lose $3/hr.
That's really cheap fun.
How much would you spend in 3 hours doing something else with your girlfriends?
Did I mention drinks are free in Atlantic City?
Do what I do - make sure you drink at least $6 of the wholesale cost of alcohol/hr and it's cheaper than drinking in your room lmao.
Stick with beer because they can't dilute it a Corona. Mixed drinks are beyond pathetic they are so watered down.
Have you any opinion yet as to whether your husband can even play perfect Basic Strategy?
Absolutely no math skills are necessary, except, perhaps, adding and subtracting "1" from a whole number.
Forget that "7+5" on your fingers if, by that, you meant counting the value of your first 2 cards.
First of all, you can either ask the dealer what your hand total is or use as much time as you need with your fingers as the dealer is paralyzed until you tell him what you want him to do.
Just use a BS card in the meantime if you must play for real money. Plenty of free softwares out there to measure the accuracy of your chosen counting system while costing you nothing.
Of course your husband can probably count, in your opinion, if he chose too, which, apparently, for some reason, likely borne out of insecurity and ignorance, he doesn't choose to, while, apparently playing BJ and laughing at your finger counting or something.
The game is not measured by who wins the most money.
No matter what your attiitude or skill level may be, Lady Luck will always do her thing.
If you don't think that, maybe, going out with your girlfriends, say, in Atlantic City at an 8D full table, while flat-betting $10 every hand at a full table, where that "EV" stuff you may not fully understand yet (although if you can multiply you can understand it) would say you and your girlfriends are expected to lose $3/hr.
That's really cheap fun.
How much would you spend in 3 hours doing something else with your girlfriends?
Did I mention drinks are free in Atlantic City?
Do what I do - make sure you drink at least $6 of the wholesale cost of alcohol/hr and it's cheaper than drinking in your room lmao.
Stick with beer because they can't dilute it a Corona. Mixed drinks are beyond pathetic they are so watered down.
Have you any opinion yet as to whether your husband can even play perfect Basic Strategy?
My husband has a bachelor's degree in mathematics, a master's in taxation, another master's in business accounting, and had a perfect score on the math section of the SATs. He thinks calculus is fun. One time when I was calculating the value of inventory consisting of about 150 items of different prices, he kept the running total in his head.
I think if he wanted to, he could easily master both Basic Strategy and counting. If I can get him to drill me, I am positive he'll know the counts before I do!
He's more than happy to play poker with a bunch of friends. I get the feeling he had a bad experience with a poker addiction before we met/married and now he won't gamble in a "house" game at all. He also says he doesn't need any more addictions. :grin:
For years, he's gone to a meeting of financial people in his field that's held in Vegas. All these accountants were thrilled when single deck made a comeback. They were leaving the meetings and making several hundred dollars at the blackjack tables every night - not as much as a professional would make, but a lot for accountants attending a meeting. It's all numbers, right? He refused to engage, even though I gave him a couple hundred dollars (which he kept) because I was going to O'Shea's (before Harrah's ruined it completely) and made $1K playing BJ before I even memorized BS.
The girlfriend who first taught me how to play now won't play with me. She's a "gut" player and insists that basic strategy puts her off her psychic abilities. She always loses when we're playing together.
I think if he wanted to, he could easily master both Basic Strategy and counting. If I can get him to drill me, I am positive he'll know the counts before I do!
He's more than happy to play poker with a bunch of friends. I get the feeling he had a bad experience with a poker addiction before we met/married and now he won't gamble in a "house" game at all. He also says he doesn't need any more addictions. :grin:
For years, he's gone to a meeting of financial people in his field that's held in Vegas. All these accountants were thrilled when single deck made a comeback. They were leaving the meetings and making several hundred dollars at the blackjack tables every night - not as much as a professional would make, but a lot for accountants attending a meeting. It's all numbers, right? He refused to engage, even though I gave him a couple hundred dollars (which he kept) because I was going to O'Shea's (before Harrah's ruined it completely) and made $1K playing BJ before I even memorized BS.
The girlfriend who first taught me how to play now won't play with me. She's a "gut" player and insists that basic strategy puts her off her psychic abilities. She always loses when we're playing together.
I don't know. Based on what you said I'm not entirely convinced that you can become a counter. My honest opinion is that despite what people on here thus far have said, you do have to be quick with numbers as not everyone can add +1 -1 -1 -1 -1 +1 -1 +1 +1 +1 and calculate the TC and make index plays on the fly with a fast dealer and still not make it look obvious that they're counting. It is really good that you will strive your best to conquer this, but I warn you, this is not a quick thing. It's like learning a new way to think for someone who isn't mathematically inclined already. In addition there will be plenty of distractions. Good luck though. At the very least, you should be able to master basic strategy.
daddybo said:
As far as card counting goes... It's mostly memory, practice and concentration. An OCD personality is usually pretty good at it. You don't need anything beyond basic math skills to be an accomplished card counter. (adding subtracting and dividing.) Read the "good" books to learn the methods and let the math guys do the hard math. . A strong math background helps in squeezing more out of the game and assessing risk in all casino games, but you can usually find the info without having to do all the math.
After a while you will be counting in your mental "background". Heck, I find it hard to play and not count. I'll even be playing other games sometimes realize I'm counting. :laugh:
. A strong math background helps in squeezing more out of the game and assessing risk in all casino games, but you can usually find the info without having to do all the math.After a while you will be counting in your mental "background". Heck, I find it hard to play and not count. I'll even be playing other games sometimes realize I'm counting. :laugh:
))...I think the hard part of counting cards is ignoring the ladies in the cages @ the Taj Mahal or the Borgota waitresses...because I'm still young enough to get those ladies unlike some guys on here))
Booooooo humbug !
Sometimes, for the sake of raising people up, you shouldn't be so honest. People need to believe in themselves and that they can do it. I can see why your forum handle is Thunder - a bolt from the blue followed by the pouring lots of cold water.
I'm glad you're not my daughter's singing coach.
Sometimes, for the sake of raising people up, you shouldn't be so honest. People need to believe in themselves and that they can do it. I can see why your forum handle is Thunder - a bolt from the blue followed by the pouring lots of cold water.
I'm glad you're not my daughter's singing coach.
Matador AP said:
Well if you watch the movie "The Hangover." You have to do algebra equations while counting cards))...I think the hard part of counting cards is ignoring the ladies in the cages @ the Taj Mahal or the Borgota waitresses...because I'm still young enough to get those ladies unlike some guys on here))
))...I think the hard part of counting cards is ignoring the ladies in the cages @ the Taj Mahal or the Borgota waitresses...because I'm still young enough to get those ladies unlike some guys on here))
Matador AP said:
Well if you watch the movie "The Hangover." You have to do algebra equations while counting cards))...I think the hard part of counting cards is ignoring the ladies in the cages @ the Taj Mahal or the Borgota waitresses...because I'm still young enough to get those ladies unlike some guys on here))
))...I think the hard part of counting cards is ignoring the ladies in the cages @ the Taj Mahal or the Borgota waitresses...because I'm still young enough to get those ladies unlike some guys on here))
But that's just one more reason to be a good AP, right?
Right now my biggest problem is smoothly counting backwards from a negative count. Practice makes perfect, right?
I did switch from Hi-Lo to Red 7s. I was completely in the weeds trying to calculate the TC. Someone from the forum suggested Red 7s might be better for me and I think as a starter, that was probably spot-on advice.
I was up late last night following a call from someone who works for me and while I was taking care of her problem, my son started practicing the count. I may soon corrupt everyone in the family.
Thankfully, pretty girls aren't a distraction for me.
I did switch from Hi-Lo to Red 7s. I was completely in the weeds trying to calculate the TC. Someone from the forum suggested Red 7s might be better for me and I think as a starter, that was probably spot-on advice.
I was up late last night following a call from someone who works for me and while I was taking care of her problem, my son started practicing the count. I may soon corrupt everyone in the family.
Thankfully, pretty girls aren't a distraction for me.
Ease of counting?
I have somewhat of the same problem that you do julieca when it comes to math skills. I will tell you that the Ko count is one of the easiest to use so go by the book by Olaf and Van curen. The count is adjusted to zero and your ease of dealing with negative is mostly eliminated since we don't play in negative counts. This task is not easy but it does take practice and once you learn it gets easier. I have alot of professional people that think that it is crazy to try to count cards. I think you are prefect for the job and are compulsive enough to excel in it. Alot of people thought including my wife that I would never be able to achieve the level of play that I now enjoy, Welcome to the site and practice your butt off, feel free to ask any question but please read some books first.
I have somewhat of the same problem that you do julieca when it comes to math skills. I will tell you that the Ko count is one of the easiest to use so go by the book by Olaf and Van curen. The count is adjusted to zero and your ease of dealing with negative is mostly eliminated since we don't play in negative counts. This task is not easy but it does take practice and once you learn it gets easier. I have alot of professional people that think that it is crazy to try to count cards. I think you are prefect for the job and are compulsive enough to excel in it. Alot of people thought including my wife that I would never be able to achieve the level of play that I now enjoy, Welcome to the site and practice your butt off, feel free to ask any question but please read some books first.