Glory of the Game Can Be Yours with Proper Card Counting Training

There are different ways to win in any card games. The most popular card games that the casino goers enjoy is blackjack. If you can perceive the card counting methods, you will find the game more exciting. The calculations and its results will help you to alter the bet and change your strategy for playing. You can go for card counting training if you are not aware of the methods. You will know how to assign a point value to the cards and keep track of the total cards.

Downloading The Simulator

There are two types of cards, the high value and the low value cards. You must keep a keen eye on the cards that have been played and then you can find if the remaining cards are good for you to win the game. You will find this helps especially if you are playing online games. There are many sites from where you can download the card counting simulator. Then you can use it to find out the count of cards already dealt.

Match Your Count for Better Practice

You will simply choose the settings so that the cards are counted as they come up. You also keep a count yourself. At the end of the game, you can check the count with your own results. This can be the best way you can keep improving your skills of card counting. You are now going to enjoy the game and keep the count on. The exercise will help you when you are physically present in the blackjack table too. You can keep a stone face and still keep counting the cards. You will bring in precious changes in betting in the game.

You must count cards in poker to improve your betting and to win the game. The counting can be positive or negative. The betting should be changed as per the result of the count. When you have understood how to count cards in poker, you can start using this method. You will be able to bet accordingly in different games. The large bet will be for games where the count is positive. The proper way of calculations can bring in better results and larger bets. Get the feel of the way the game. Once you have gotten the idea of the cards, start going for larger bets.

Further Reading:

1. Card Counting Simulator at CardCountingTrainer.com

Blackjack Counting Card Strategy- A Brief History on a Mathematical Trick

Did you know that the popular trick called blackjack counting card has been around for a few decades? Enthusiasts and serious blackjack players wanting to score a fortune in casinos have been using the strategy for years.  The game of blackjack may be straightforward, where the players and the dealer aspire to score a 12 or at least near that number. The initial arrangement is that players get two cards, but they will be given the chance to add more in the hope of scoring a 21. If the dealer (casino) holds a lower hand or goes over 21 and your cards add up to 21 or close to it, you win in the game. The counting and comparison are easy to do, but predicting the values of the cards in the deck and making the appropriate wagering decision is the difficult part. This is where hi lo card counting comes into the picture, a system design and inspired by a UCLA Professor Edwards O. Thorp.

From a Scientific Paper to the Blackjack Tables

It all started in 1956 when Thorp read a statistics paper published in a journal. Inspired by the thesis of the paper, Thorp immediately initiated an inquiry on blackjack patterns. He later initiated a scheme that is now familiar to many players who want to learn to count cards. What he did was to examine the cards from a deck and come up with a system that can determine the remaining variations after some hands have been played. The idea behind the system is that if you are tracking the cards that have been dealt, then you can make a guess if the remaining card values will be favorable to you or the dealer (casino). With this system, he later published a book called ‘Beat the Dealer’ in 1962, now the must-own for those learning how to count cards.
Many consider this seminal book as a complex take on blackjack counting card strategy. The system may be complex and hard to understand, but there’s no denying the fact that this is an original system that inspired many to study blackjack in the hope of beating the dealer.




Further Reading:

1. Blackjack Counting Card at CardCountingTrainer.com
2. 3 Ways to Count Cards at WikiHow.com

Hi-Low System- Most Popular Card Counting Blackjack System

Different blackjack players and enthusiasts have their own likes and preferences when it comes to the counting systems they use to beat the dealer. But of the many systems use, the Hi-Low system is considered by most as the most popular and effective on the table. This card counting blackjack system works by assigning a value worth +1, 0 or -1 to the card given to the players on the table. Each card on the deck will assume a specific value. For example, the 10s (from King to Queen) including the Aces will assume a value of -1. The cards with face value of 7, 8 and 9 will assume a counting of 0. And the cards with face value of 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 will get a count of +1. In hi lo counting, the idea is for the player is to mentally keep a running total of all the cards that have been dealt in the table. Based on the running total, the player will then make the necessary adjustments on the wager.


Pointers to Remember in Hi Lo Counting

The kind of wagering decision and the amount to be risked will depend on the actual running total. If there is a high plus count, then this means that there is a high concentration of aces and ten-point cards waiting to be dealt. This will work for the player, thus a player should move to increase the bet on the blackjack table.
If the running total for the card counting blackjack system is zero, then this reflects a neutral score. This means that the player and the dealer are of equal footing, and no one carries the advantage.
But if the running count is on the minus side, then the dealer holds the advantage.  This means that there is a high concentration of ‘stiff cards’ left in the table. If the player is faced with this scenario, then there’s two popular options available- reduce the wager or leave the table.

Following table shows various ranking system for counting cards using hi lo method, though many other system exists:

The main advantage of hi lo counting is that this becomes more credible as the card counting progresses, thus a player can easily change the wager depending on the predicted cards available on the deck. For many experienced counters, a count of at least +2 then it’s best to increase the wager. Also, when using the system it’s best to still learn the basic strategy in the game of blackjack. Remember, the counting system should only serve as a complement to the basic blackjack strategy.

Video Tutorial on Hi-Lo Card Counting

Further Reading:

1. Card Counting at Wikipedia.org [Click Here]
2. Hi-Lo Card Counting at Wikipedia.org [Click Here]

Blackjack Card Counting- An Intelligent Approach to Playing Blackjack

When most casino and instant win games are anchored on the concept of random wins and games, blackjack on the other hand offers you a chance to ‘tweak’ the results and increase the chances of winning. The great thing about playing blackjack is that you don’t need to worry about the Random Number Generator (RNG), the technology at the heart of slots and scratch card games that promote randomness of results. In the classic card game, you only need to worry about the values of cards that are dealt and make the necessary betting decisions. The process of tracking the card values and making the corresponding change in wager is called blackjack card counting. When you play the game, you are no longer at the mercy of the RNG. If you want to increase your odds, consider the value of counting in blackjack. How to count cards in this classic card game will serve as your ticket to potential winnings. But keep in mind that this is not an easy task to do. In fact it takes a lot of concentration, memory learning and quick thinking for you to take advantage of this strategy. These are the main reasons why many enthusiasts and observers call card counting strategy an intelligent approach to playing blackjack.

The strategy is an intelligent casino strategy because this involves counting, tracking, monitoring of expected advantages and coming up with a reliable betting scheme. There is a great amount of details in this strategy of blackjack card counting, thus many players rely on simulated plays and the use of computers. Also, based on the availability of high-value cards and low-value cards in the deck, you also need to make betting decisions.

Card counting is not for the faint of heart or for someone who cannot sustain his attention on the quick shuffling and dealing of cards. At the end of the day, this strategy is a mind game with the intent of actively monitoring the card value even in the face of common casino distractions.

A Video Intro to Card Counting at Blackjack

Further Reading:

1. Random Number Generator at Wikipedia.org

2. Blackjack at Wikipedia.org

3. Image Courtesy to CardCountingTrainer

Movie ‘21’ Helped Bringing the Concept of Card Counting for Blackjack to the General Public

At the height of the popularity of a system called card counting for blackjack, the practice was only known to a few people and groups. Group members of the MIT Blackjack Team (and its other splinter groups), statisticians and eager enthusiasts were the only individuals who were in the system and the idea of beating the dealer. But with the publication of many books focused on the best ways to learn how to count cards, the idea of card counting slowly became popular. And the popularity of this blackjack strategy reached greater heights when a number of films were made that were inspired by the system and the exploits of many who want to beat the blackjack dealer. One popular film made that was influenced by the exploits of the MIT Blackjack team was ‘21’, a 2008 American movie that starred Jim Sturgess, Kevin Spacey and Kate Bosworth.

21 Movie Trailer

From University Classrooms to Blackjack Tables

The film tells the story of a young university student aspiring to snag a medical school scholarship who was invited to join a team of students who are into card counting for blackjack. The members of the group are trained to know the best tricks on how to count cards black jack and work as a team in order to get the best winnings. In the movie, the system of card counting explained in great detail the process of tracking the values of the cards that have been dealt and the remaining values of the cards still available in the deck. In mastering the ways on how to count cards in blackjack, the idea is to act on an opportunity when there is a high concentration of high cards of cards bearing 10s and aces.  The group is normally divided into two- the ‘spotters’ who do the actual counting and the ‘big players’ who provide large wagers as soon as the count on the blackjack table as soon as the count becomes favorable.

The release of the film may not be well-received by the critics but it brought card counting into mainstream consciousness.


Reference:

1. 21 (2008 Film) at Wikipedia
2. Card Counting at Wikipedia
3. Card Counting Training at CardCountingTrainer.com