Joining/leaving a game already started

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E-town-guy

Well-Known Member
#1
#1
If you come across a BJ game already started and want to join in should you wait till the dealer shuffles up or should you start counting from 0, thus neglecting all the cards already in the discard? I think I remember reading once that you should just start from 0 but I'd like to get others opinions. This sort of situation could apply to players trying to wong in and out of favorable shoes.

Now a similar question, lets say you leave early on in the shoe when the TC drops to -2 and go to the bathroom. You come back and there is still one deck to be dealt out. Should you join in again and start counting from 0 or just wait till the new shoe starts?
 
M

MadMax

Member
#2
#2
I can't see the benefit to starting a count in the middle of the shoe if you don't already know what has happened in the past. Doesn't that go against the basic philosophy of blackjack being beatable: the idea that what has happened in the past affects the future (until the end of the shoe or deck anyway).

From what I've read and just what sounds somewhat obvious, is that if you even choose to start a shoe midway, you should just flat bet until the end. If you came in and the running count was -18 and you start at 0, then over the course of a deck your running count jumps to +18 you have a big problem. Since betting should be in proportion to your advantage, if there are only 2 decks remaining and you are betting as if you had a true count of +9 when in actuality you have a true count of 0, then you are betting way beyond your advantage.

If you do wong out, I would think that you just happen to come out of the bathroom about the time that a new shoe (or deck for single deck game) is starting.

Max
 
zengrifter

zengrifter

Banned
#3
#3
E-town-guy said:
If you come across a BJ game already started and want to join in should you wait till the dealer shuffles up or should you start counting from 0, thus neglecting all the cards already in the discard?
Click to expand...
YES you can start, BUT you do not "neglect" the cards already in discard tray, you see those unseen cards as though STILL REMAINING BEHIND THE SHUFFLE CARD.

As a practical matter, depending on overall dealer pene, you should not use this tactic after more than a deck has been depleted. zg
 
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