| HOW TO COUNT CARDS Contrary to what you may have heard, counting cards doesn't help you win any more hands than you'd win otherwise. What it does do is tip you off when you are slightly more likely to win or slightly more likely to lose on the next round, so you can vary the amount of your bet accordingly. You'll still lose more games than you win, on average - there is no way to change that- but you'll win more money on your winning hands than you lose on your losing hands, and you'll slowly come out on top. Here's how it works. Because the dealer has to hit everything short of 17, the greater the ratio of high cards (10 through Ace) to low cards (2 through 6) left in the deck, the more likely he is to go bust. Card counting is just a matter of keeping track of whether more high or more low cards have been played, so you know what's left in the deck and can bet higher when the cards are favourable. Best of all, you only have to keep one number in your head. Count this way: Cards 2 through 6 are worth 1 point each, 10's, face cards and aces are worth negative 1. (ignore 7's, 8's and 9's). Start from a base of zero, and as each new card is flipped over, add or subtract from that base. At the end of each round, if the number in your head is positive, bet big (more low cards have been played, so the deck is rich in high cards and bad for the dealer). If its negative, bet the table minimum, or even sit around. That number becomes the base for the next round, and so on until the cards are reshuffled, when you begin at zero again. And that's all there is to it. Of course, if you haven't mastered basic blackjack strategy, card counting won't help you. Also, try and sit in the 'first base seat' - the first hand the dealer distributes in each game - which will give you a solid block of time after playing your hand to leisurely count cards before you have to place a bet. One last tip: Don't vary your bets too much. A casino that catches you card counting will bust your thumbs (or at least kick you out). |
• how to read a bluff
• best bets at the casino
• how to cheat
• the history of poker
• types of poker player