Cheat Sheets at the table?

So I'm playing at one of the larger casinos in Colorado. While the dealer is shuffling, the player next to me pulls out his basic strategy chart and sneaks a peek. Dealer says to him, "no problem, you can keep it out while you play." The pit boss walked by, didn't say a word.

A couple of questions:

1) is allowing cheat sheets at the table "standard practice" in Vegas, Atlantic City, etc?
2) might it be a good strategy for an AP to put his cheat sheet on the table, as a decoy, to give the impression he is an amateur?

Other comments?

4CC

1) is allowing cheat sheets at the table "standard practice" in Vegas, Atlantic City, etc?

many casinos allow it. things that give suckers the impression they might get an edge over the casino are often encouraged by the house. things that actually can deliver that edge are not allowed. this is why you're allowed to take notes at the roulette table and will even be provided with a sheet and a pen for that purpose, but if you try this at blackjack they'll freak.

2) might it be a good strategy for an AP to put his cheat sheet on the table, as a decoy, to give the impression he is an amateur?

i have seen it done.

...The majority of folks that have them at the table don't follow them anyway. Someday, when I'm away from my home turf, I would like to bring a "composition-dependent" chart to the table just to see if I get any reaction from the floor people or dealers ;0)

Cobbson

Usually $1.98 for the single credit card size wallet strategy card in the gift shop. There are multiple panel strategy cards that most casinos also allow on the table. See the BJ21.COM store.

to buy a dozen or so and give them out to players who have no clue how to play the game. But alas I am too cheap.

What the ignorant players really need is a book that provides tables showing the EV hitting, standing, splitting, doubling or surrendering as permitted for each hand and dealer's upcard and a general reasoning for basic strategy, e.g. with a pair of 8s against a dealer's 10 you are damned if you do and damned if you don't for hitting, standing, splitting, doubling or surrendering, but least damned if you split. This would cost more than $1.98 and would require time spent reading and understanding basic strategy.

Our trade is largely based on the fact that most players are ignorant. So educating the ploppies is the last thing we need to do.
We all know that their bad play doesn't really hurt us, but if everybody played well, the casinos simply couldn't afford offering this game.

Francis Salmon

Information that would make the average blackjack player better is available at the gift shop, on line and in countless books. The casinos sell these cards for a couple of bucks because they already know that very few get sold and many who buy them just ignore the strategy on them. If these people do not care about helping themselves, I see no reason to help them. I also believe that if enough of them began to play basic strategy the effects on casino profit would be reduced and the game offered would just get worse.

Add to that the act of actually giving these folks a basic strategy card might bring extra casino attention to you. Finally, you give the guy a card, the count goes up or down enough that you apply a few indice plays and the guy throws the card away because the guy who gave it to him does not use it himslf,

I would hate to be the person who destroyed blackjack.

The casinos are destroying blackjack fast enough.

If more ploppies knew something about the game the 6:5 tables might be a little less busy. The number of complaints about H17 tables could also rise. It has been posted many times on this board that one factor in the decline of playing conditions is the average player of today knows less about the effect of rules than the average player of 20-30 years ago.

Telling people about rule effects is one thing but instructing them how to play is another.
A further point is that the management doesn't appreciate at all when you tell ploppies how to play. Just lately when I left my local joint with a good win, the director came running after me saying "You told that guy to split the sevens, you shouldn't do that! I will see what steps I can take against you."
This sounds a bit ridiculous but he obviously meant what he said.

Francis Salmon