The Real Deal

By Carl Van Eton

Image courtesy of Big Game Blackjack

Sadly, most people's opinion of card counting comes from watching Hollywood blockbusters.  In
these dramatized acconts, the wily card counters, who are either portrayed as MIT grad students or autistic savants, are out to walk away with millions of dollars in profits.  Along the way, they are forced to contend with pit bosses who are only too happy to drag these threats to the casino's bottom line into the back room where they can be taught a painful lesson.  The movies, while entertaining, have taken so many liberties with card counting that I thought I would devote a blog to busting some myths.

Have Ca$h, Will Travel

         by Jena Cauley, Esq.

   

(Since many players like to play abroad, I asked Customs attorney Jena Cauley to pen this week's blog that details what can happen when you travel to foreign shores with cash.)

Image courtesy of flickr

As you enjoy your casino experience, remember to be mindful of how you transport your cash whenever you travel internationally.  You may recall that uncomfortable time when the flight attendant or cruise director distrubuted Customs forms among the passengers who are either entering or leaving the United States.  In addition to reporting requirements for any purchases you make while abroad, Customs requires you to report the transportation of $10,000 or more in currency.  While many people are aware of this requirement, most citizens are not aware of the penalties that may occur if this law is violated.  Furthermore, you may be in violation of this law even when you are transporting less than $10,000 in cash..  

There's No Such thing as a FREE Lunch

By Carl Van Eton

While it doesn't hurt to deposit $5,000 or so in the cage and draw marker after marker, contrary to popular belief, you don't have to be a high-roller to get comped. Getting your fair share of complimentary services (rooms, food, show tickets, front row seats, limos) is not reserved exclusively for black action ($100) players. Green and even red action is sufficient to get you some of the goodies if you know how to work the pit boss. (That's right, kiddies, just like the difference between a tinhorn and a professional card player, there are indeed more than a few tricks to milking the pit for comps.)

Tricks of the Trade

Image courtesy of commons.wikipedia.com

Comped players, like blondes, invariably have more fun. However, unless you are prepared to sit at a table for hours on end grinding out those quarter ($25) bets until the cows come home, don't be surprised if the pit boss looks down his bulbous nose at you after accessing your rating only to inform you that "Your play does not warrant" that dinner for two, or those fight tickets you had your heart set on. Depending on which part of the country you frequent, comp policies vary from town to town and even from casino to casino.

Boot Camp for Blackjack

By Carl Van Eton

Image courtesy of commons.wikimedia.org

Okay, troops, so you think you got what it takes to be a Player? I don't mean no sniveling, bed wetting, mama's boy of a GAMBLER! What I'm talking about is a tough as nails, never say die, lean, mean card counting machine. Well, you better get one thing straight, recruit. If you're going to make the grade and get your stripes you're going to have to live, eat, drink, and breathe this game. You're going to have to make this the single most important thing in your life. Because when the artillery is pounding and the bullets are flying, there's only one thing that's going to stand between you and defeat. And that one thing is D-I-S-C-I-P-L-I-N-E. What did I say? I CAN'T HEAR YOU!

Why do Bad Players Make You Angry?

By Carl Van Eton

Image courtesy of flickr.com

In a perfect world, every player that sits down at a blackjack table either knows perfect basic strategy, or at least has the common sense to bring along a mathematically correct basic strategy card. Unfortunately, if you have spent more than ten minutes at a blackjack table, you know that this is not  the case.  The playing public, by and large, has either missed the briefing regarding basic strategy, or else they didn't realize that such knowledge exists. 

Can You Beat the Casinos at Their Own Game?

by Carl Van Eton

Image courtesy of commons.wilimedia.org

The title of the world's first card counting book was called "Beat the Dealer."  It was written by Edward O.Thorpe who wasn't a professional player by trade.  What he was when he wrote the book in 1962, was a mathematician.  That means he was smart enough to realize that the only way anyone could overcome the house edge at 21 was by using math.  He realized that unlike nearly every other game in the house (the exception being poker), every time a card was drawn from the deck, the odds changed.  But what really made blackjack a worthy research project was the fact that sometimes, whether players realized it or not, the edge was not with the house.  Sometimes the odds in blackjack favored the player.

Back to the Scene of the Crime

By Carl Van Eton

Courtesy of  Public Domain Pictires

Having played blackjack for a living for more than 20 years, it never ceases to amaze me when I meet a player who upon learning that I both use and teach card counting asks me, "Isn't card counting illegal?"  My response is usually one of, "I have yet to see a casino post a sign that reads, "Please Check Your Brain at the Door."

Since when is learning how to master a game a crime?  While professional poker players are treated like rock stars nowadays, card counters are given all the respect of cockroaches.  Granted, the casinos don't like it when the public tries to do to them what they do to everyone else, which is exploit a mathematical advantage.  But to treat any player like dirt just because they exhibit skill...in my opinion, that should be considered a criminal act.