N00b Counter advice required please :)

[Lucky_7]

Hi guys new member, new to Blackjack counting too (Im more of a poker player) anyways i have a n00bie question to ask you guys if i may.

At the casino i play at they use 6 or 8 decks, the dealer shuffles the cards and before placing them in the shoe he will put a cutting card roughly in the middle of the cards. The cards are shuffled again once they reach this approx half way through does this not make card counting a lot less effective since all cards are not used?

 

[aslan]

Hi guys new member, new to Blackjack counting too (Im more of a poker player) anyways i have a n00bie question to ask you guys if i may.

At the casino i play at they use 6 or 8 decks, the dealer shuffles the cards and before placing them in the shoe he will put a cutting card roughly in the middle of the cards. The cards are shuffled again once they reach this approx half way through does this not make card counting a lot less effective since all cards are not used?

It makes card counting virtually impossible.

 

[assume_R]

Search around for the term "penetration" on this site, as that's what the cut card represents. The % through the shoe is the amount of penetration through the shoe before shuffle.

The more cards you play per shoe, the more information you have regarding the remaining cards, and the less you divide by when you're converting the running count to the true count (see the blackjack school link on the left). Therefore, penetration is a good indication of how much of an advantage you can get. Good penetration can overcome shitty rules, and poor penetration can destroy a game with otherwise good rules.

The exact numbers differ between AP's, but 50% (or, placing the cut card halfway through the shoe) is almost always unplayable (unless you get early surrender or something else great). Usually 75% (or, placing the cut card 3/4 through the shoe) is playable, but there are plenty of others who wouldn't consider this playable and would rather scout around for a table with better penetration before playing a 75% game.