betting spread

I just finished reading professional blackjack. it did not contain much information on bet spread. I will be using the high low system of counting. I am just learning so i will be playing at a $5 table. i was wondering how many units i should bet as the count increases. i do not want to "overbet" since wong says that that could work against you in the long run. what exactly is considered overbetting. what size of bets begin to attract attention from the casino staff at a table like this. i figure that only playing a $5 table they probably wouldnt even care if i was counting, but regardless i dont want to attract any attention.

Acceptable bet spread is base on number of decks.

1 deck 1 to 4
2 decks 1 to 6 up to 1 to 8
6 decks 1 to 12 up to 1 to 20

wantabe

i do not want to "overbet" since wong says that that could work against you in the long run. what exactly is considered overbetting.

What this means is that if you bet too much, you risk losing all your money. It would be foolish, for instance, to bet your entire bankroll whenever you have the advantage. Your expected value is high, but your risk is unacceptable. On the other hand, if you nothing, you won't win anything but your risk is 0. So the trick is bet the amount which maximizes bankroll growth while minimizing risk.

This is where the concept of optimal betting comes in. A simple formula is optimal bet = bankroll * advantage / variance (where the variance for blackjack is around 1.3). So for each true count, if you know your advantage, you can calculate your optimal bet. Note that the optimal bet grow proportionally to the advantage.

Using the above formula, you would bet 0 whenever you have a disadvantage. This may not be feasible in single or double deck games (they might notice this). You might get away with this for while in 6 deck games by wonging in and out. If you do play in negative advantage situations, the optimal bet calculation becomes more difficult because you have to take into account the additional risk. There are commercial programs such as QFIT's CVCX which perform the calculations for you.

Another issue to consider, since your bankroll may increase or decrease after each bet, you would have to recalculate the optimal bet. Also, the optimal bet is not likely to be an even chip size. Because of this, many players calculate a unit bet size that doesn't change unless their bankroll has a significant increase or decrease. You might read about 1/2 or 1/4 Kelly, which means the unit bet size is 1/2 or 1/4 of the optimal.

Finally, you might be in a situation where you not have a large enough bankroll to justify even betting the table minimum, but if you do lose your bankroll you can replenish it by doing real work. In this case, you might consider your bankroll to be the amount you would be willing to risk over your lifetime. You might have trouble convincing love ones about this.

If you are really interested in this subject, I would suggest reading Blackjack Attack. Also a bj21 greenchip membership gives you access the archives which has many discussions on this issue. MathProf, for instance, has written articles about the effect of taxation and trip expenses on your risk.

Panama Rick's response to your question is excellent.
I am going to add a few comments.

Firstly, I have been backed off spreading $100 to $1,000 and I have been backed off betting $5 to $20 I have even been read the trespass act. Avoiding the "tap on the shoulder" is crucial. Without playing longevity you'll soon have no opportunities to exploit. Your question is the most important one to ask as a newbie counter. Here's some practical advice:

It is best to play 2 deckers and spread in both directions. Bet $10 at ( (Hi-Lo)) counts of zero and +1; 2 units if you EXCEED + 2. Bet the True Count MINUS one above that up to a max of 6 units. If you are playing a deeply deck shoe game you will need to spread your bets much more aggresively, but if you can play 2 deckers, (even with S17 and NDAS) you will do better in the long run; just remember that there is less tolerance of advantage players at hand-held games. needless to say 6/5 BG is a rip-off. Never more than double your wager and avoid even that if you have just lost a hand. Nver split 10's or double soft 19. Learn the marginal plays that are correct basic strategy but are cheap enough to misplay, e.g. not doubling A-2 vs. 5 or A-4 vs. 4 standing on A-7 vs. Ace.

Understanding "Risk of Ruin" is absolutely crucial. You can be playing with perfect accuracy in a game with good penetration and good rules, but if you are betting too much you will have a R O R that exceeds 40% (not to mention that you will be surveilled more closely); if you underbet your risk of ruin will be low, but your expectd profits will make minimum wage jobs look positively inviting.

Two players, player A is a newbie using Hi-Lo with Sweet Sixteen basic strategy departures and he makes occassional errors. Player B is a veteran using Hi Opt II witrh 100 indices and no playing errors. If player A bets with great accuracy and player B bets too aggresively, long run results will loook like this: Player A will earn a few bux and wonder why he still needs a day job (L O L ) but he will have an engaging hobby. Player B will have wild fluctuations in his bankroll, often being dead broke, (as he periodically has been for decades.) At times his pockets are deep and he walks tall. He considers himself to be an unlucky, (but 'brilliant') person.