Card counting

Using your own memory to count cards is not a crime in the United States, the United Kingdom or any other jurisdiction we are aware of, provided you use no device. Using an electronic aid is a crime in Nevada and elsewhere. What counting is, in most places, is grounds for the casino to refuse your business: as private businesses they may ask you to stop playing blackjack or leave. New Jersey is the notable exception, where a court ruling prevents casinos from barring counters, so they use shuffling and betting restrictions instead. Read more →

Hi-Lo assigns +1 to each 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6, 0 to each 7, 8 and 9, and −1 to each ten-value card and ace. You add the values of every card you see to keep a running count that starts at zero after a shuffle. A positive count means more high cards remain, which favours the player (more naturals, better doubles, more dealer busts). To use it you divide by the estimated decks remaining to get a true count, bet more when it is high, and sit at the minimum when it is not. Read more →

The true count is the running count divided by the number of decks still to be dealt. A running count of +6 means something quite different with five decks left (true count just over +1) than with one deck left (true count +6), because the surplus of high cards is concentrated in fewer cards. In Hi-Lo each point of true count is worth roughly half a per cent of edge to the player, so a true count of about +1 cancels the house edge and higher counts justify larger bets. Read more →

Published estimates for a skilled Hi-Lo player in a six-deck game with decent rules and penetration are roughly 0.5% to 1.5% of the average bet, depending mostly on how widely you spread your bets and how deep the dealer deals. That is an average of perhaps £1 to £3 per £100 bet, earned through swings that are many times larger. It needs a bankroll of several hundred maximum bets to keep the risk of ruin low, which is why counting is a grind rather than a windfall. Read more →

The Illustrious 18 is Don Schlesinger's list, from his book Blackjack Attack, of the eighteen strategy deviations that capture most of the value available from changing your play with the count in Hi-Lo. The most valuable are taking insurance at a true count of +3 or more, standing on 16 against a 10 at 0 or higher, and standing on 15 against a 10 at +4. Each entry is an index number: above it you deviate from basic strategy, below it you do not. Learn them only after basic strategy and the count itself are automatic. Read more →

Back-counting means standing behind a table, counting the cards without betting, and sitting down only when the count is favourable, then leaving when it drops. It is named after Stanford Wong, who popularised it. It raises a counter's average edge because they never play at a disadvantage, and it lets them use a smaller bet spread, which attracts less attention. Many casinos counter it with "no mid-shoe entry" signs that bar new players from joining until the next shuffle. Read more →