Hi. Going to make a trip next week. May check out both, but which one offers better rules/games for BJ? If it is about even, which one has a better "vibe" for lack of a better term. Loose dealers maybe? Thanks.
Hi. Going to make a trip next week. May check out both, but which one offers better rules/games for BJ? If it is about even, which one has a better "vibe" for lack of a better term. Loose dealers maybe? Thanks.
Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun have the same rules with the exception of Mohegan Sun forbidding the splitting of face cards.
The difference is in penetration.
That difference is NOT slight.
It is huge.
At Mohegan Sun you will only rarely see less than 2 decks cut off.
If you are a low stakes player - go to The Rainmaker Casino at F.W.
If you play high stakes go to The Newport Room or to the M.G.M. Grand's High Limit pit.
Make sure that you have at the least memorized the correct Late Surrender Basic Strategy.
Flash is right--no contest that FW wins. However, the last time I was in the Newport room, pen was 50%. I just watched and left.
OK, did a spur of the moment thing and went to Foxwoods. Wish I could say I won, but I didn't (Lost about $100 in 3 hours). Which is fine. I went there to begin my journey as a pro BJ player in a real casino environment. Used the KO count.
Went to the Rainmaker first. Lowest limit was $10. Place was packed for a mid week day. Couldn't believe it. No free tables.
Went over to the Grand Pequot. Same thing. Finally found a $10 table. Bought in for $100. The dealer was dealing super fast. I mean REALLY fast. Nice person though. Even knew to not even ask me for my decision when I had like 19 or higher.
I tried my best to keep count but what was throwing me off was that I had to add up my hand. Yes, this threw me off. Here I am trying to count cards with the fastest dealer in the east, and when it came time for me to make take a hit on my hand, it took me awhile to add up my hand.
The cards got high in count and I even stayed on 16 and took insurance a few times with success. Penetration was pretty good. Only 1 deck back from the end. 8 deck total. Dealers changed every 20 minutes, but the fastest hands dealer kept coming back.
He even was helping by saying things like "This shoe is hot", making hints on when to switch up, and more. I think he was counting too.
All and all, not a bad experience for my first time playing BJ in a casino. I've been to casinos many times, but never played Blackjack with a goal and purpose of counting.
Few questions for you pros. How do I count without making it obvious? I could just picture the pit boss seeing my eyes dart from hand to hand counting the cards. I tried the pair/canceling thing, but I still have to dart my eyes to each hand.
Also, how can I add up my hands so that it doesn't screw with my count and slow my game. Is it just good old fashioned practice?
I really take this Blackjack thing seriously. I am VERY motivated to make this work. I read this message board like 98765 times already. Any tips or anything you can offer would help me alot. I am ambitious, and want to take this to the best level possible. I know it will not happen overnight. I am willing to work at it and do whatever it takes. Thank you.
I'm not a pro...but the more you play, the more comfortable you will get. All the practice in the world in your kitchen with the TV blaring and your wife walking around in lingerie asking if you want to fulfill your sexual fantasies can not duplicate the casino experience. For now, avoid the really fast dealers. FW is very good at table management, so the tables are often crowded. Stay at FW and avoid Mohegan Sun. The BJ is much better at FW from every perspective.
1) Choose third base.This leaves you more time after the initial deal to get your count straight before you have to play your own hand.
2) Count the cards as soon as they hit the felt.
3)During the initial deal,you should count in steps of two (only even numbers).Wait to see whether two cards cancel each other out or whether it's +2 or -2. Simply ignore neutral cards.
4) Try to count in a foreign language in order not to get confused when adding up your points in English.
Francis Salmon
#1 Yes, this may give you a little more time, but being new and uncomfortable, you will feel the pressure of all eyes on you since your decisions will directly impact the card the dealer gets (although, in reality, every decision impacts that card, you will still be blamed (but rarely credited) for your decisions. Just take your time, make your decisions. Most hands are really pretty easy; some soft hands, splits, and doubles may be hard in the beginning, but you will get better as you play more. If you sit in the first seat, it may take you awhile to make your decision, but then you can count the rest of the cards on the table when eyes are off you. They can't move on without your decision, and it will make you look like a novice if you take a long time (which is good). The downside here is that after a bad bust or drawing five cards, you may lose the count. Again, playing time is the key.
#2 This may have some validity, but it will increase your head bobbing and following the cards with your eyes.
#3 This makes no sense and complicates matters.
#4 How does counting in a foreign language simplify things?
Thanks for defending my ideas. Not counting the cards as you see them would be like playing with a handicap.Remember that very often you need to make strategy adjustments and for this the count has to be up to date.The cancelling-out-method is far faster than counting the cards one by one and the only way to keep up with a fast dealer.
The language question is easily resolved:Very often the dealer announces card totals, so the local language should be reserved for adding up points.If you keep the card count in another language you won't get mixed up.
Francis Salmon
If you wait to see all the cards on the table before counting,how does that stop you from making an informed decision? I fully support the idea of canceling plus and minus values, but if you wait for the following cards to appear 10, 10; 10, 6 (my hand, of course); 3, 7;
5, 4; and dealer's 10, a swift glance at the table shows you minus 2, still minus 2, minus 1, plus 1, zero and then you add whatever cards are drawn. I think it's much harder to take the first 10 as minus 1, next ten as minus 2, 3 makes it minus 1, etc. (if that is what you are advocating, really not sure what you are saying). As to your last point, what if you don't know the local language? (plus I don't think many of us are pros traveling all over the world to play BJ)Also, if you are not ready to play with a fast dealer, go to another table. (I know, the fast dealer has the best pen in the place and you will be able to get 5 more hands in per hour, and that will increase your EV by .000032.
Of course, because we play like robots, we will only be playing three shoes at this table, because we can not be pegged as a counter by staying at one table/pit/casino too long.
If you are 1st base (and I think that's what you're advocating)you cannot wait to see all the cards before starting to count because you have to play immediately and still gazing at the other cards would be VERY suspicious.So you would have to play without knowing the count yet.
My way:Look at the cards as they fall (that's perfectly natural)but don't change the number in your head before you have seen two cards (or even more when neutral cards are involved).Either the count won't change (cancelling out) or it will change by two.With this technique one can keep up the pace with the fastest dealers.
Fast dealers will allow you to play double as many hands as normal.So your win rate per hour will also double.It would be a pity to miss that opportunity.
Not knowing the local language is no problem at all. You can still use two different languages for counting and for adding up points.
Francis Salmon
My Powerful Card Counting Practice Method:
Carry a deck of cards in your pocket and do this at frequent intervals during your day. e.g. During commercial interruptions on T.V.; while waiting at long stop lights; upon arising and before going to sleep; while your coffee is brewing, etc. Use your imagination to employ otherwise 'dead time' during your day to polish your skills.
Remove a random 2 cards and set them aside face down.
Run through the deck face up.
[No point in having to flip them over.]
Run through them one card at a time.
Predict the hand that was removed.
When you can do this quickly and accurately proceed to doing them 2 cards at a time.
Predict the hand that was removed.
When you can do this quickly and accurately proceed to doing them 3 cards at a time.
Predict the hand that was removed.
When you can do this quickly and accurately proceed to doing them 4 cards at a time.
Your goal should be nearly perfect accuracy with 20 second countdowns.
If you cannot achieve 99% accuracy in less than 30 seconds, keep working.
Spend several minutes practicing this, (in your car or in your hotel room or rest room), immediately before taking a seat at a blackjack table.
You will soon develop the skill to scan an entire table full of dealt cards and know the count - even with a Level Two Count - quickly and accurately.
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"All of Life is 11 to 10 Against" ... Damon Runyan
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