Love your videos steven and colin! Inspired me to start my ap career at 22. Just had a profitable session where at a true count of 15-20 bet black chips for 3 rounds (risk I think was like 4% eternal but counts that high are too rare for me not to try to get that ev and it worked out). Pit boss standing right over my shoulder. Dealer gave me a side eye and said damn, you must’ve been feeling REALLY lucky to go from $10 to $100 dollar bets right at the end of the shoe, other players were clueless and said damn, good timing, it was great😂 insurance deviation goes hard.
I think it would be hilarious to watch casino management react to Colin & Steven playing at the same table. Outstanding video. Keep up the good work gentlemen! Much respect for what you have given the AP community.
@@KozzPlay no no no they definitely care. the longer a card counter plays at the table the most money the casino loses. they probably just didn't know.
Speaking of miscalculations... I once flew to Philadelphia to exploit a keno game. There was a promo that paid a bonus for certain jackpots that made the game very strong. But when I actually went into the casino, the paytable I had been given was wrong. Someone I worked with regularly had played the promo and won, but he did the math wrong and so just got lucky. So here I am in Philadelphia (from Vegas) with no reason to be in that dung heap of a place all because a guy I work with cannot do basic keno math. To be fair, he did do his best to make it up to me. Good guy, good times, but I did ALL the math after that.
Love this channel, just started watching and just took a notion recently to try and become a Blackjack AP - have a new casino opening a few minutes from my house in just a couple weeks. QUESTION: obviously anything is possible depending on many factors, but realistically what is the shortest time frame one should give themselves to become perfect with strategy, counting, deviations, and bankroll mgmt and then once actually sitting in a casino to be able to still do it?
Strategy and counting are the easy parts tbh. It's the rest of it that makes it tough and it's worse at a real casino. I started playing online during lockdown just for funsies and picked up basic strategy within a week. Counting online is basically impossible but i can count irl. My main issue is doing everything all at once while still appearing normal on the outside. Keeping up a conversation with the dealer/other players, keeping the count, managing your bet spread, knowing deviations, all at the same time is just a huge headache. I can do all separately but cannot do them together. Folks like Steven and Colin are a rare breed for sure
Such a pleasure to listen to a conversation between two engaged, respectful and competent parties. Recently the podcasts I’ve been listening to have just been so empty and shit but something as simple as a friendly constant convo between two polite intelligent people really shines 😊 thanks guys, love from Margate ~
I don't think the average person understands how different requiring ID to get cashed out is from requiring ID to play, or to get alcohol etc. People were mad when they were required to show a COVID card at the door. Imagine if they let the person play and then before cashing them out they required them to get their covid shot right there. "Sorry Sir, but before we'll cash you out you'll have to get an injection from our nurse over here." Like one is consensual and one is coercion, COMPLETELY different.
“Not trying to throw grenades at each other, I’m going to try to take your money!” 😂 I laughed so hard at this. I also wonder how many times Steven has sat down at a table with the cards spread out and as the dealer starts their shuffle he sees 6 to 5 on the felt 😂 I’m so guilty of this
I would imagine not very often. A lot of research goes into where to play for the best odds and honestly, not playing at all is more profitable than 6:5. If there's literally nothing else and no other options it may be considered but most teams won't touch it with a 6 foot bargepole
I love the Law part of this. From Gaming's rules (Law) the Casino *must* cash the chips to which the Casino adds Policy to *ask* for ID. "Ask" is simply that; they can only *ask* because if they require ID, that puts them in violation of Gaming's rules. Too often workers believe "ask" mean must, yet i ask for somebody's hand in marriage/matrimony, i do not must somebody into marriage/matrimony. Any "ask" requires the Asker to aquire Consent, but does not stop the *must* of cashing chips.
The "must" cash the chips does not mean under any and all circumstances. It could also mean "must cash the chips" when certain requirements are met. You need to rest of the wording, not just cherry picking one word to suit your case.
@@TripDadLife I do not dispute there are circumstances where chip cash prevention is acceptable; i assume fraud or unlawful possession is part of said circumstances. However, within this video's context, the person who won the chips lawfully wishes to cash his Chips but is met with an Ask outside the Casino's duty to cash those Chips.
@Allan Zabrecky nah brah. Casino chips are not actually legal tender. They are casino property ultimately no matter what you say. Hate it or love it that's America.
@BrowningAndMortimersCow if that is your belief, Creator-speed. Correct, Chips are not legal Tender as other businesses will not accept them as forms of payment; one does hand over legal Tender to exchange for said Chips as evidence of debt(s) that the Casino owes the holder, thus, making a contract with the Holder to use the Casino property and requiring said Casino to settle this debt upon presentation of Chips.
Ive been watching you guys forever! Love your content! Tonight i find a great h/c game.....i run up QUICKLY! I get so nervous i begin to lose focus, cant count, shaking uncontrollably. Cure??
18:36 is my question! Steven, you've literally just made a list of a bunch of my favourite games! Super interesting to hear that the two of you seem to enjoy social deduction and co-op games to math and gambling games. I really have to recommend "Blood on the Clocktower" to you and your friends Steven. It's a great iteration of Mafia/Werewolf were dead players can keep playing and some interesting special powers based on seating arrangements. If you're ever in Toronto, maybe let me know and I'll run a game or two for ya!
@@stevenbridges Haha! Yes! For my birthday every year I rent out the party room in my building and invite 30ish friends over for Two Rooms and a Boom! (Although Covid messed up the last few and we did online games instead). Love that you recommended it! I really liked how well your games answer meshed with your answer about picking people for an AP team. I suppose the best way to get a good vibe about who to trust and who not to comes from practice!
My 2 favorite blackjack player to learn from.....I played online blackjack using the basic strategy and Bet 50 in my currency , got a BlackJack and won 125....I'm still learning but I'm loving this game
What if you're recording for your own safety? As Steven said he thinks that he sometimes gets treated better because they think he may be recording. This seems like a massive benefit, not to mention you have evidence if anything serious happens.
Great Video! I do have a question. When you feel the need to cash out everything after a back-off, why don't you do the limit below ID required & then just walk out with the remaining chips? They can easily be cashed by someone else on you team or friend the next day, etc, right? What am I missing?
@@robertocamacho7134 Right. I wasn't referring to the limit & I am familiar with the 10K rules. I was stating from the video, he mentioned getting 5K then had another 800.00 & they wanted an ID. Couldn't anyone just walk out the door with the chips & then have someone else come back the next day, or whenever, & cash them?
@@deaconfrost6229 probably 2 reasons. 1) If they did do what you're suggesting, it's a crime and they probably wouldn't promote that action on TH-cam. 2) They may have already decided not to return to the casino in question in which case handing over their ID before cashing out is not a big deal.
I like that you brought up the difficulties with joining a team/recruiting members due to trust. I wish there was a system to get on teams easier but sadly when it involves large amounts of money that doesn’t seem very feasible. I’m a rather experienced and proven player myself but have always played solo because I couldn’t manage to get any friends who wanted to learn to count then join me and was unable to join a team myself due to no connections.
My casino I work for just walked a guy for winning 5 straight sessions. Player may or may not have been a counter. But winning is tracked. As a Dealer, I want you guys to win cuz then it increases my chances of being tipped and making more than $4/hr. Just warning players if you win too often they can refuse service whether you're counting or just lucky. Throw a losing $100 game in every now and then so it doesn't show 5 straight winning sessions. That would make it harder to catch cuz it would show Red and Green sessions instead of just 5 straight Green seasions
@@timekiller6163it’s not tracked lmao , 99% of the time when you buy in they don’t even care and they sure as hell don’t know who you are unless you tell them
@@timekiller6163last crazy run buddy and I had we were betting 90$ each hand for the dealers only male hot females were taking every hand so we would back off from 1000-2000$ limit hands to 50$. Dealers were extremely greatful saying we were going to change there life. I was taking handfuls of 1000$ chips and putting them in my pockets as we played to not show everyone started with 1000$ hand when i went to bathroom Do a quick count was up over 40k after about 5 hours my buddy the same we weren’t counting we just couldn’t loose we would max bet 2k two three hands then back off one or two max again if we won the dealers won. There were dealers getting ready to come on the floor standing around watching hoping to get to deal our table
Get a friend that you trust. Let him play basic strategy and you count. Use signals to alert him for variances and increasing his bet. If successful don't leave the table together. Split the winnings elsewhere.
A question to an accomplished card counter - could you step up to a real cash game and just play for fun (such as flat bet, if lose 3x then increase your bet 3x to ‘win back’ etc - are are you unconsciously counting and hitting at 25/200 bet spread?
No, if your assumption is during high counts you win more hands and during low you lose more so after losing a few hands the count is likely up, this is incorrect. You still lose more hands than you win during high counts. The positive ev comes from the 3:2 payout for naturals, doubles, splits and an accurate insurance bet.
@Follow Me sorry, misreading one line killed me so my bad. Could I personally? Probably but i also probably wouldn't play a negative game. A little funny anecdote I sometimes watch poker and when I see the cards I say the count in my head for some reason, no thought just on instinct. I was watching a movie recently and a character was looking at a deck and I had the count after he kinda thumbed through the deck, again just kinda on instinct.
Holy crap, I'm from Louisiana and have been training to count, and while I haven't tried counting in the casinos yet, I had no idea that Louisiana casinos cannot back off players! Good to know! Thanks!
On the other hand, I know the MS casinos share intel a lot. Get barred in one, they all probably know you. That probably happens in LA too. As Colin said. They can still mess up your game.
To put it simply, if you have a blackjack and the dealer has an Ace up, if you decide to take insurance, you will wind up with a profit of the original amount you bet. For example, if you have a $10 bet with a dealer A, insurance is $5. If the dealer has a blackjack, then you push the hand and win $10 on the insurance bet. If the dealer doesn't have a blackjack, you lose the $5 insurance but win $15 on the blackjack for a profit of $10. So even money is just casino shorthand for taking insurance on a blackjack
Colin is spot on with his Covid take. I went to Vegas in February of 2020 and there was no shortage of playable games and cheap minimums even at Strip properties like Paris, I went back in September of 2022 and The Strip is all but unplayable unless you’re high rolling even Downtown is bad now. The worst l saw was $100 6:5 game at the Venetian and people were playing at it.. couldn’t believe it. If you want a playable game nowadays you have to go all the way to North Las Vegas.
When I was a young boy, probably around 6-7, learned from my grandmother how to play several card games. She taught me the rules and the goal to Gin ,Gin Rumy, Hearts, Spades,and also Solitaire and the many ways one plays Solitaire. This was very beneficial for my early use of math and the instinct to calculate and numbers. I also learned cribbage at an early age. At some point I learned 5 card draw and Stud,7 card draw or no peek. The problem with the way I learned was my older cousin was changing the rules as it pertained to him losing or winning. So when I found that he was cheating me out of winning hands or making cards wild and saying that they weren't wild when I had them. So when there was others around to call out any foul play, I took all his money and me being like 10 and him 14, I had made a mental note that if in a pinch I could play cards and have a good chance to make some easy money.
Ed Thorp was asked in an interview if the casinos were losing after his book came out, he said "As a result of an influx of new players, blackjack became the most popular casino game... The casinos might have had a thousand or so blackjack players who made $100k to $200k a year... but on the other hand they might have had 1 million players who thought they could win when they couldn't."
I think it's interesting how you talk about accent/voice. I feel Munchkin has a very unique voice and have wondered if that has ever outed him? I might feel that way though because I love listening to him talk.
as someone who knows cage workers, the easiest no hassle way to cash chips when you have a large amt, is to split it up. even over a couple of days, if you are coming back.
I wonder how often do you meet other AP players randomly, I.E. come to a table and find another player there that you do not know, and figuring out that they are working on playing an advantaged game?
Quite a lot from my friends' experiences but you'll rarely play with them as AP etiquette is to leave the table if another AP is already seated (once you figure out they are AP obvs, you're not expected to be a mind reader)
Surprised casinos haven’t developed a multi deck shoe to be machined shuffled after every hand. They could play with two or more machine shufflers so that pace of play was not slowed down.
I think the exposure helps the casino. More players play without discipline and lose more money than the ones that actually do the work. I think the casinos are still winning on this front.
He said call gaming committee before you walk out do not walk out of the building before you call gaming committee before you before you walk out the building
it is private property and so the casino can request for you to not film. And if you refuse to stop filming they can legally kick you out. But no, you can't get arrested for doing it unless you don't leave when they ask you to leave.
Theres plenty of resources available for Casino personnel to use to identify advantage players. Remember as well that they don’t have to count perfectly to identify someone. A lot of casinos back people off well before they should either by incorrectly identifying or from backing someone off that isn’t skilled enough to be a threat.
There are less and less skilled dealers and floors out there now and with gaming expansion it will continue to decline so card counters and cheats will thrive
AP's can never exceed a very small minority of players. And if skilled basic strategy players(non AP's) exceed...say 1 in 3 players, that'll be it. Another threat to the game is if more laws pass where the casinos can't back off card counters. That'll just force countermeasures.. The only hope is that stupid players and problem gamblers persist as they succumb to hunches, superstitions, gamblers fallacy and side betting. Of course the casinos take most of that revenue, but the AP's reap a small percentage of that These guys are inspiring more good players. All I can say is take advantage while you can..
@@tomf5823 I believe your statement is correct. But I'm not sure if the general overall quality of players improve or not with all this smart phone tools and knowledge.
Colin said 99% of wannabe card counters fail, so it's unlikely APs will be more than a very small percentage of players. Most players don't even know basic strategy. And yes, poor players and those who throw away money on side bets are an AP's dream, because they keep good-rules BJ games profitable for casinos.
Expected Value. So with card counting you’re not going to win every hand right? So we think in terms of how much we’re likely to win on average per hour. Whereas AV (actual value) is what you win or lose. Professional gamblers trying and focus on EV as that’s the factor within their control
It should illegal for casino feom banned people that can bet them Gambling cause do much people to loss everything So when table are turned they need to be forced to take these people's money and let them gamble 👆
If this truly were the case, players could just bankrupt a casino and therefore no casino would ever want to exist. There would be no reason for a person to want to own a casino, because they'd just be giving all of their money away. So at that point, not only would card counting not exist but gambling at all wouldn't exist.
22:39 our policy, the ammount of times people fall for this niscence baffles me, ive won money back off banks because i looked u some documents, and ive proved to them what they are doing is wrong, ive done it lots of times for other people too, if i can look up legal documents being so dyslexic i couldnt even write forwards for 3 years in school you guys can easy !
I'd guess You Tuber. One thing for sure on his trip was that the collection of footage was primary. And any profits he happened to get from advantage play was secondary to him.
Some do and some don't, it's an individual decision to play rated or not. I'm not sure we have videos on TH-cam discussing it but it comes up frequently on our podcasts .
Casinos really need to be prosecuted for illegal behavior. But does it ever happen? Or do they pay the right people protection money to leave them alone
Thanks for having me Colin! Had a great time hanging!
🙌
I watch your videos. Make more videos on Card Counting and show us the figures of wins and losses.
Love your videos steven and colin! Inspired me to start my ap career at 22. Just had a profitable session where at a true count of 15-20 bet black chips for 3 rounds (risk I think was like 4% eternal but counts that high are too rare for me not to try to get that ev and it worked out). Pit boss standing right over my shoulder. Dealer gave me a side eye and said damn, you must’ve been feeling REALLY lucky to go from $10 to $100 dollar bets right at the end of the shoe, other players were clueless and said damn, good timing, it was great😂 insurance deviation goes hard.
STEVEN I NEED MORE BEAT THE ODDS
Why do you think casinos do not ID everyone coming through the door 🤔 😉
I think it would be hilarious to watch casino management react to Colin & Steven playing at the same table. Outstanding video. Keep up the good work gentlemen! Much respect for what you have given the AP community.
We played in the same pit for about an hour before filming this. They didn't identify either us.
do you think that’s because they don’t know or don’t care?
@@KozzPlay no no no they definitely care. the longer a card counter plays at the table the most money the casino loses. they probably just didn't know.
absolutely love this! I started watching your channel and stumbled across your card counting videos and even signed up for the free mini course! :)
Oh wow! Collab of the year!! These interview style videos have been a nice change of pace!
Glad you've enjoyed them.
Yes! Been waiting for the next video. Keep it up.
Stellar podcast. Need more of these two together and discussing!
Great interview 👍👍. Thank you Steven and Colin.
Great to see Steven again on TH-cam we would love a season 3 of beat of the odds lovely content thank you so much great interview ❤
Love the Collab Collin. Great vid!
Love Stephen Bridges, one of the best series ever on TH-cam for sure!
He lost 300 pounds playing poker? Damn, how big was he before he played?
Underrated comment😂
Quick question. From what I'm reading using a half-deck divisor vs full deck amounts only adds about 5% to your edge. Is this true?
Part with coupon cards was hilarious 😂
Great interview
Thank you Ben Crawford, Colin, BJA, and Steven Bridges!
my two favourite card counters meeting again to make a banger of a vid! Inspired me to start learning, starting young to master it
What a superb video interview
36:05 "we can have policies too" KILLED ME 😂
Speaking of miscalculations...
I once flew to Philadelphia to exploit a keno game. There was a promo that paid a bonus for certain jackpots that made the game very strong. But when I actually went into the casino, the paytable I had been given was wrong. Someone I worked with regularly had played the promo and won, but he did the math wrong and so just got lucky. So here I am in Philadelphia (from Vegas) with no reason to be in that dung heap of a place all because a guy I work with cannot do basic keno math. To be fair, he did do his best to make it up to me. Good guy, good times, but I did ALL the math after that.
You didn’t tell us, did you lose?
I don't think he played at all. Keno has a very large house advantage, so no reason to play without exploit.
Love this channel, just started watching and just took a notion recently to try and become a Blackjack AP - have a new casino opening a few minutes from my house in just a couple weeks. QUESTION: obviously anything is possible depending on many factors, but realistically what is the shortest time frame one should give themselves to become perfect with strategy, counting, deviations, and bankroll mgmt and then once actually sitting in a casino to be able to still do it?
Strategy and counting are the easy parts tbh. It's the rest of it that makes it tough and it's worse at a real casino. I started playing online during lockdown just for funsies and picked up basic strategy within a week. Counting online is basically impossible but i can count irl. My main issue is doing everything all at once while still appearing normal on the outside. Keeping up a conversation with the dealer/other players, keeping the count, managing your bet spread, knowing deviations, all at the same time is just a huge headache. I can do all separately but cannot do them together. Folks like Steven and Colin are a rare breed for sure
What a cool interview location!
Such a pleasure to listen to a conversation between two engaged, respectful and competent parties. Recently the podcasts I’ve been listening to have just been so empty and shit but something as simple as a friendly constant convo between two polite intelligent people really shines 😊 thanks guys, love from Margate ~
Omg such a fast fast fast click. Like the moment I see the betting odds for the week have been posted.
I don't think the average person understands how different requiring ID to get cashed out is from requiring ID to play, or to get alcohol etc. People were mad when they were required to show a COVID card at the door. Imagine if they let the person play and then before cashing them out they required them to get their covid shot right there. "Sorry Sir, but before we'll cash you out you'll have to get an injection from our nurse over here." Like one is consensual and one is coercion, COMPLETELY different.
That Gaming Commission guy at the end was getting greased by the casino 100%
what about the continuous dealing machines, how does effect card counting ?
Great stuff
Colin and Steven in the same upload let’s goooo
“Not trying to throw grenades at each other, I’m going to try to take your money!” 😂 I laughed so hard at this.
I also wonder how many times Steven has sat down at a table with the cards spread out and as the dealer starts their shuffle he sees 6 to 5 on the felt 😂 I’m so guilty of this
Worse is not realizing it's a 6 to 5 game until you get a blackjack and get the short payout.
I would imagine not very often. A lot of research goes into where to play for the best odds and honestly, not playing at all is more profitable than 6:5. If there's literally nothing else and no other options it may be considered but most teams won't touch it with a 6 foot bargepole
I love the Law part of this.
From Gaming's rules (Law) the Casino *must* cash the chips to which the Casino adds Policy to *ask* for ID. "Ask" is simply that; they can only *ask* because if they require ID, that puts them in violation of Gaming's rules. Too often workers believe "ask" mean must, yet i ask for somebody's hand in marriage/matrimony, i do not must somebody into marriage/matrimony. Any "ask" requires the Asker to aquire Consent, but does not stop the *must* of cashing chips.
The "must" cash the chips does not mean under any and all circumstances. It could also mean "must cash the chips" when certain requirements are met. You need to rest of the wording, not just cherry picking one word to suit your case.
@@TripDadLife I do not dispute there are circumstances where chip cash prevention is acceptable; i assume fraud or unlawful possession is part of said circumstances. However, within this video's context, the person who won the chips lawfully wishes to cash his Chips but is met with an Ask outside the Casino's duty to cash those Chips.
@Allan Zabrecky nah brah. Casino chips are not actually legal tender. They are casino property ultimately no matter what you say. Hate it or love it that's America.
@BrowningAndMortimersCow if that is your belief, Creator-speed.
Correct, Chips are not legal Tender as other businesses will not accept them as forms of payment; one does hand over legal Tender to exchange for said Chips as evidence of debt(s) that the Casino owes the holder, thus, making a contract with the Holder to use the Casino property and requiring said Casino to settle this debt upon presentation of Chips.
@@allankahn1980 like any contract there are stipulations and you are ignoring that part.
Great video.
Casinos are crazy and so are the gamblers. Whole casino environment is crazy
Good shit!
Ive been watching you guys forever! Love your content! Tonight i find a great h/c game.....i run up QUICKLY! I get so nervous i begin to lose focus, cant count, shaking uncontrollably.
Cure??
Been waiting for this!
18:36 is my question! Steven, you've literally just made a list of a bunch of my favourite games! Super interesting to hear that the two of you seem to enjoy social deduction and co-op games to math and gambling games.
I really have to recommend "Blood on the Clocktower" to you and your friends Steven. It's a great iteration of Mafia/Werewolf were dead players can keep playing and some interesting special powers based on seating arrangements. If you're ever in Toronto, maybe let me know and I'll run a game or two for ya!
Thanks Dale! It’s on my list of games to play 😃
You may enjoy Two Rooms And A Boom. It’s a fun one
@@stevenbridges Haha! Yes! For my birthday every year I rent out the party room in my building and invite 30ish friends over for Two Rooms and a Boom! (Although Covid messed up the last few and we did online games instead). Love that you recommended it!
I really liked how well your games answer meshed with your answer about picking people for an AP team. I suppose the best way to get a good vibe about who to trust and who not to comes from practice!
I wish I had the mental capacity of remembering to learn card counting
“The 21 Effect” LMAO
Great video Colin! Hope all is well. Your student, -Black_Jack_Bauer
great interview...i'm documenting my BJ Travels as well!...it's wild out there!
What is the logic of not shuffling chips at the casino, I’m starting out and shuffle always cause I come from a poker back ground. Thought?
Bridges rocks, cool to see this
My 2 favorite blackjack player to learn from.....I played online blackjack using the basic strategy and Bet 50 in my currency , got a BlackJack and won 125....I'm still learning but I'm loving this game
This had me cracking up because it's so true. "Being a card counter, is being a professional loser." -Steven Bridges
You’re either a counter who’s seen some losses or someone running a casino lol
What if you're recording for your own safety? As Steven said he thinks that he sometimes gets treated better because they think he may be recording. This seems like a massive benefit, not to mention you have evidence if anything serious happens.
Great Video! I do have a question. When you feel the need to cash out everything after a back-off, why don't you do the limit below ID required & then just walk out with the remaining chips? They can easily be cashed by someone else on you team or friend the next day, etc, right? What am I missing?
If it's above 10k that's a crime called structuring
@@robertocamacho7134 Right. I wasn't referring to the limit & I am familiar with the 10K rules. I was stating from the video, he mentioned getting 5K then had another 800.00 & they wanted an ID. Couldn't anyone just walk out the door with the chips & then have someone else come back the next day, or whenever, & cash them?
@@deaconfrost6229 probably 2 reasons. 1) If they did do what you're suggesting, it's a crime and they probably wouldn't promote that action on TH-cam. 2) They may have already decided not to return to the casino in question in which case handing over their ID before cashing out is not a big deal.
Do you ever purposely blow a few hands to throw off any detection
In general, no. It would have to be a very specific situation where I thought I was actively being assessed based off whether I was playing basic
Anyone have a link to that gaming conference?
when is the right time to bet on card counting?like +5 or something?sorry for dumb question.
You start to have an edge at +1 true count
Colin, how so we email you questions?
Aw dang, I wanted to get into the art of back counting.
when is the next season of Beat the Odds?
How do you sit down at a table and start counting if the cards are already played im confused
When you sit down you ask for new deck or shuffle if not wait until the deck is finished
I like that you brought up the difficulties with joining a team/recruiting members due to trust. I wish there was a system to get on teams easier but sadly when it involves large amounts of money that doesn’t seem very feasible. I’m a rather experienced and proven player myself but have always played solo because I couldn’t manage to get any friends who wanted to learn to count then join me and was unable to join a team myself due to no connections.
My casino I work for just walked a guy for winning 5 straight sessions. Player may or may not have been a counter. But winning is tracked. As a Dealer, I want you guys to win cuz then it increases my chances of being tipped and making more than $4/hr. Just warning players if you win too often they can refuse service whether you're counting or just lucky. Throw a losing $100 game in every now and then so it doesn't show 5 straight winning sessions. That would make it harder to catch cuz it would show Red and Green sessions instead of just 5 straight Green seasions
@@timekiller6163it’s not tracked lmao , 99% of the time when you buy in they don’t even care and they sure as hell don’t know who you are unless you tell them
@@timekiller6163last crazy run buddy and I had we were betting 90$ each hand for the dealers only male hot females were taking every hand so we would back off from 1000-2000$ limit hands to 50$. Dealers were extremely greatful saying we were going to change there life. I was taking handfuls of 1000$ chips and putting them in my pockets as we played to not show everyone started with 1000$ hand when i went to bathroom
Do a quick count was up over 40k after about 5 hours my buddy the same we weren’t counting we just couldn’t loose we would max bet 2k two three hands then back off one or two max again if we won the dealers won. There were dealers getting ready to come on the floor standing around watching hoping to get to deal our table
Get a friend that you trust. Let him play basic strategy and you count. Use signals to alert him for variances and increasing his bet. If successful don't leave the table together. Split the winnings elsewhere.
How long, on average, does it take to be able to confidently go into a casino and count/bet at the table?
Three years minimum
Yall need to come down to west wendover nv. got plenty of casinos here. 😅
Did you guys record this at Rio? Yikes better burn your clothes after sitting on that couch, hahaha.
A question to an accomplished card counter - could you step up to a real cash game and just play for fun (such as flat bet, if lose 3x then increase your bet 3x to ‘win back’ etc - are are you unconsciously counting and hitting at 25/200 bet spread?
No, if your assumption is during high counts you win more hands and during low you lose more so after losing a few hands the count is likely up, this is incorrect. You still lose more hands than you win during high counts. The positive ev comes from the 3:2 payout for naturals, doubles, splits and an accurate insurance bet.
@@DwazeHoer haha, that’s exactly what I meant - can’t you turn off your counter brain and just enjoy some low stakes play
@Follow Me sorry, misreading one line killed me so my bad. Could I personally? Probably but i also probably wouldn't play a negative game. A little funny anecdote I sometimes watch poker and when I see the cards I say the count in my head for some reason, no thought just on instinct. I was watching a movie recently and a character was looking at a deck and I had the count after he kinda thumbed through the deck, again just kinda on instinct.
Holy crap, I'm from Louisiana and have been training to count, and while I haven't tried counting in the casinos yet, I had no idea that Louisiana casinos cannot back off players! Good to know! Thanks!
They can still limit you by shuffling on you or changing table limits.
On the other hand, I know the MS casinos share intel a lot. Get barred in one, they all probably know you. That probably happens in LA too. As Colin said. They can still mess up your game.
@@Blackjackapprenticeship yeah shuffling every time you bet big in six decks... very mean
Colin, please do a video on taking even money on a blackjack when being offered insurance. I would like a clear explanation of this situation.
To put it simply, if you have a blackjack and the dealer has an Ace up, if you decide to take insurance, you will wind up with a profit of the original amount you bet.
For example, if you have a $10 bet with a dealer A, insurance is $5. If the dealer has a blackjack, then you push the hand and win $10 on the insurance bet. If the dealer doesn't have a blackjack, you lose the $5 insurance but win $15 on the blackjack for a profit of $10. So even money is just casino shorthand for taking insurance on a blackjack
I answer it in this video! th-cam.com/video/X_s0l_wxVr8/w-d-xo.html
Colin is spot on with his Covid take. I went to Vegas in February of 2020 and there was no shortage of playable games and cheap minimums even at Strip properties like Paris, I went back in September of 2022 and The Strip is all but unplayable unless you’re high rolling even Downtown is bad now. The worst l saw was $100 6:5 game at the Venetian and people were playing at it.. couldn’t believe it. If you want a playable game nowadays you have to go all the way to North Las Vegas.
Ellis island has $5 minimum 3/2 blackjack just a block away from Paris/Flamingo. Took a trip there from my stay at Excalibur
@@robertolebron2296 is it double deck? face up???
@@awful999 6 deck
When I was a young boy, probably around 6-7, learned from my grandmother how to play several card games.
She taught me the rules and the goal to Gin ,Gin Rumy, Hearts, Spades,and also Solitaire and the many ways one plays Solitaire.
This was very beneficial for my early use of math and the instinct to calculate and numbers.
I also learned cribbage at an early age.
At some point I learned 5 card draw and Stud,7 card draw or no peek.
The problem with the way I learned was my older cousin was changing the rules as it pertained to him losing or winning. So when I found that he was cheating me out of winning hands or making cards wild and saying that they weren't wild when I had them.
So when there was others around to call out any foul play, I took all his money and me being like 10 and him 14, I had made a mental note that if in a pinch I could play cards and have a good chance to make some easy money.
37:12 Ed Thorp answered this question when his book "Beat the Dealer" came out in the 1960s
Ed Thorp was asked in an interview if the casinos were losing after his book came out, he said "As a result of an influx of new players, blackjack became the most popular casino game... The casinos might have had a thousand or so blackjack players who made $100k to $200k a year... but on the other hand they might have had 1 million players who thought they could win when they couldn't."
Wear a suit… and meet me in France! 😂😂
“There’s occasionally egos at play in the magic community”
😂
That’s the polite way of putting it.. 😉
Great video chaps 👍🏻
I think it's interesting how you talk about accent/voice. I feel Munchkin has a very unique voice and have wondered if that has ever outed him? I might feel that way though because I love listening to him talk.
Yeah, I've heard him say that he avoided talking much at the tables. And he didn't start GWAE until very late in his AP career.
@@Blackjackapprenticeship he also hasn't played blackjack in decades in the US.
was that interview at the Rio?
No comment
as someone who knows cage workers, the easiest no hassle way to cash chips when you have a large amt, is to split it up. even over a couple of days, if you are coming back.
No hassle way to go to jail lmao
Yeah i mean you're guaranteed to get paid out once they take you to jail for structuring
@@CraftyWitch1990 based wiccan fren
Once you have a qualified AP … always do a background check. Like a credit check. That’s prob a good basis to have a teammate
My aunt has great credit and I wouldn't trust her with 5 bucks!
I wonder how often do you meet other AP players randomly, I.E. come to a table and find another player there that you do not know, and figuring out that they are working on playing an advantaged game?
all the time man
You meet a lot of so called “card counters”, but very few true blue card counters, if that makes sense.
Quite a lot from my friends' experiences but you'll rarely play with them as AP etiquette is to leave the table if another AP is already seated (once you figure out they are AP obvs, you're not expected to be a mind reader)
I remember one time I had a hard 16 and the dealer had an ace up. I jokingly said "Even Money" and got paid.
Woooo. I'm from AR and I think this may be the only positive thing said about my state online lol
A month or so ago I got backed off by someone I graduated high school with. She backed me off like half a shoe in
Were you counting
@gabe440 yes it was just funny I sat down played no more than half a shoe and was walking back out the door.
Casinos know that antagonistic backoffs... do stop some card counters from going there.
Surprised casinos haven’t developed a multi deck shoe to be machined shuffled after every hand. They could play with two or more machine shufflers so that pace of play was not slowed down.
They try it but it messes with the flow.
I think the exposure helps the casino. More players play without discipline and lose more money than the ones that actually do the work. I think the casinos are still winning on this front.
Colin would make a great George Mcfly
Gaming enforcement doesn’t have a 911 line, they aren’t set up to respond promptly to real time events
He said call gaming committee before you walk out do not walk out of the building before you call gaming committee before you before you walk out the building
There are probably no laws against using a camera but casinos don't have to allow it obviously.
it is private property and so the casino can request for you to not film. And if you refuse to stop filming they can legally kick you out. But no, you can't get arrested for doing it unless you don't leave when they ask you to leave.
43:49 What was he doing?
Is Bj really easier then just saying blackjack
What’s stopping a casino owner from purchasing BJA and figure out how you’re beating casinos
Theres plenty of resources available for Casino personnel to use to identify advantage players. Remember as well that they don’t have to count perfectly to identify someone. A lot of casinos back people off well before they should either by incorrectly identifying or from backing someone off that isn’t skilled enough to be a threat.
The back office in the harassment is so bad it’s not even about blackjack anymore you can’t play
My favorite part of visiting the South...
Leaving.
I've been in the south 38 years. Am finally leaving in 2 months for way up north. Hopefully you are right.
The house is an advantage player.
There are less and less skilled dealers and floors out there now and with gaming expansion it will continue to decline so card counters and cheats will thrive
AP's can never exceed a very small minority of players. And if skilled basic strategy players(non AP's) exceed...say 1 in 3 players, that'll be it.
Another threat to the game is if more laws pass where the casinos can't back off card counters. That'll just force countermeasures..
The only hope is that stupid players and problem gamblers persist as they succumb to hunches, superstitions, gamblers fallacy and side betting. Of course the casinos take most of that revenue, but the AP's reap a small percentage of that
These guys are inspiring more good players. All I can say is take advantage while you can..
APs will always be a super small percent of players.
@@tomf5823 I believe your statement is correct. But I'm not sure if the general overall quality of players improve or not with all this smart phone tools and knowledge.
Colin said 99% of wannabe card counters fail, so it's unlikely APs will be more than a very small percentage of players. Most players don't even know basic strategy. And yes, poor players and those who throw away money on side bets are an AP's dream, because they keep good-rules BJ games profitable for casinos.
What does EV mean
Expected Value. So with card counting you’re not going to win every hand right? So we think in terms of how much we’re likely to win on average per hour.
Whereas AV (actual value) is what you win or lose.
Professional gamblers trying and focus on EV as that’s the factor within their control
We have a video about it here: th-cam.com/video/m3clIoygKNg/w-d-xo.html
You guys are legends in my eyes
Why not leave and give the chips to a friend to cashout later ?
It should illegal for casino feom banned people that can bet them
Gambling cause do much people to loss everything
So when table are turned they need to be forced to take these people's money and let them gamble 👆
If this truly were the case, players could just bankrupt a casino and therefore no casino would ever want to exist. There would be no reason for a person to want to own a casino, because they'd just be giving all of their money away. So at that point, not only would card counting not exist but gambling at all wouldn't exist.
22:39 our policy, the ammount of times people fall for this niscence baffles me, ive won money back off banks because i looked u some documents, and ive proved to them what they are doing is wrong, ive done it lots of times for other people too, if i can look up legal documents being so dyslexic i couldnt even write forwards for 3 years in school you guys can easy !
Cash out under 10k however many times needed never been an issue I’ve had or friends
Commenting for the algorithm
I wonder if Steven has made more money as a card counter our being a TH-camr?
TH-camr. I'd wager it 😅
I'd guess You Tuber. One thing for sure on his trip was that the collection of footage was primary. And any profits he happened to get from advantage play was secondary to him.
@@stevenhelgason8190 true the videos themselves I imagine made him more money than the trips lmao
Does a counter use a player reward card?seems like no,being I don't want to become Identified
Some do and some don't, it's an individual decision to play rated or not. I'm not sure we have videos on TH-cam discussing it but it comes up frequently on our podcasts .
It’s George Mcfly
If you only knew what I know you would never play again Colin ........ Sometimes casinos stack the deck, or remove cards.
@@present3348 People don't always get a fair game my friend...... If you believe , the casinos then you are not only stupid but naive.
Casinos really need to be prosecuted for illegal behavior. But does it ever happen? Or do they pay the right people protection money to leave them alone
That, or more likely, those people already have their beak in the water