Quick Strategy Question For a Newcomer

[johnnybravo1296]

Hey all,

I've been studying BJ for about 2 months now and I feel I'm finally able to start putting all the pieces together (i.e. counting while playing with BS). I've noticed however that it can take awhile to get a high enough TC to make some real money and in the mean time I lose quite a bit playing with just BS.

I was wondering if any of you have considered playing progressively in the mean time while waiting for the count to move up. For example:

1st bet= 1 unit
2nd bet= 2 units
3rd bet= 4 units
4th bet= 8 units

... and so on until you win and then knock the bet down to 1 unit again. I've found that when paired with basic strategy, I can make some good money. Just seeing if anyone has any insight into this or if you or anyone has tried this and had poor results.

 

[assume_R]

Welcome! When the count is low you need as minimum $$ on the table and hence progressives will only hurt yo. Not worth it for cover either.

 

[Sucker]

If you've been having good results with this, then all that means is that you've been very lucky (so far).

This is what's known as the "Small Martingale" system. It's older than the game of blackjack itself. It's been proven to NOT work so many thousands of times that I'm falling asleep just THINKING about it.

The fact is, when the odds are in the houses' favor; The odds are in the houses' favor. There is NOTHING that you can do about THAT; so the ONLY correct thing to do is to ALWAYS put as LITTLE money on the table as you can get away with.

ANYTHING else WILL fail in the long term.

 

[rmar6408]

If you've been having good results with this, then all that means is that you've been very lucky (so far).

This is what's known as the "Small Martingale" system. It's older than the game of blackjack itself. It's been proven to NOT work so many thousands of times that I'm falling asleep just THINKING about it.

The fact is, when the odds are in the houses' favor; The odds are in the houses' favor. There is NOTHING that you can do about THAT; so the ONLY correct thing to do is to ALWAYS put as LITTLE money on the table as you can get away with.

ANYTHING else WILL fail in the long term.

so what betting spread would you recommend for a starter?

 

[FLASH1296]

Presuming that you are using Hi-Lo in a mediocre shoe game,
bet the True Count MINUS ONE — in units — where the units are your minimum bet.

.

 

[rmar6408]

Presuming that you are using Hi-Lo in a mediocre shoe game,
bet the True Count MINUS ONE — in units — where the units are your minimum bet.

.

so if the tc was +4 it would actually be +3?

 

[FLASH1296]

If the T.C. is +3 betting 2 units will suffice for a beginner.

If the T.C. = +6 bet 5 units. If the T.C. is less than Zero, take a walk and find another table. Pretend to be superstitious, etc.

Your unit is the table minimum permissible bet. e.g. $5 or $10.

This is a weak bet spread but as a beginner just "getting your feet wet" it suffices.

 

[rmar6408]

ah, okay got it, so minimum table of 10 dollars and you bet 10 dollars, that's a unit right?

 

[johnnybravo1296]

If you've been having good results with this, then all that means is that you've been very lucky (so far).

This is what's known as the "Small Martingale" system. It's older than the game of blackjack itself. It's been proven to NOT work so many thousands of times that I'm falling asleep just THINKING about it.

The fact is, when the odds are in the houses' favor; The odds are in the houses' favor. There is NOTHING that you can do about THAT; so the ONLY correct thing to do is to ALWAYS put as LITTLE money on the table as you can get away with.

ANYTHING else WILL fail in the long term.

Would you happen to know of any online literature about the EV of the Small Martingale system that I could take a look at?

 

[moo321]

Would you happen to know of any online literature about the EV of the Small Martingale system that I could take a look at?

Well, there's no "EV". The EV is negative, so the longer you play, the more likely you are to lose.

I guess you could multiply your bets by the house advantage and figure out how quickly you should lose.

 

[Sucker]

Look up in the right hand corner of your screen. There's a dialog box called "Search Blackjackinfo". Type "martingale" into that box & hit your "enter" key.
You'll then be able to review all of the numerous threads on this subject that have been discussed on this site.

 

[Sonny]

Would you happen to know of any online literature about the EV of the Small Martingale system that I could take a look at?

The sticky threads at the top of the Voodoo Forum give info on all the major progression systems.

-Sonny-

 

[assume_R]

Average bet * house edge * hands played per hour

is how much $$$ you'll lose per hour. Why do you want to know, though?? it's negative.