Quick Question

Hey guys. I still haven't gotten much time to practice my counting, though in the little time I've had I think I have improved by doing a mix of counting down decks and playing hands to myself. Anyway, I just had a quick question so that I could put away the answer as a mental aside to myself before decidedly picking up the rate of my learning. Is there such a game where a hundred dollar bank roll could feasibly make any money what-so-ever? Just curious. ;)

maybe a $1 or $2 game, even $5 is risky. just put $50 on the first hand (allowing for double or split)and then ramp down from there.

Yeah... I kinda figured that. But I am definitely your typical starving college student. If I went to a casino it would be to sample the atmosphere and games and to garner a little experience with actually counting in a casino. Why do you suggest starting by putting down 50 and ramping my bets down?

I think if I just had $100 in my pocket, and wanted to play awhile, I would back count $10 tables, jumping in with a $10 bet at positive counts. Understand that losing the entire $100 is a real possibility.

starting out with only $100 and betting only a dollar or two per hand (if you can find such tables)can't be too much fun. so start with a big bet where you have close to a 50/50 chance to win and increase your bankroll...or lose half or all of it (on a double down) I understand you're not looking to get rich...just have a little experience.

Go down to the El Cortez around 6 AM. The single deck 3/2 tables (2) should be empty or near empty. Buy in for red chips and bet 5-20 per hand, depending on count. Do not worry about disguising your bet changes ie. appearing to parlay. Spread to two hands of $10 or $15 each when many Aces remain to be played and there is a concurrent decent positive 10 count. Win 100 or lose it all and then go eat some pancakes and review your play. Good Luck!

for a few hands but you won't be able to make any money with $100 bucks. You're guaranteed to bust out.

As others have said, your your best chance to double $100 is to bet it all on one hand. If you want to make money (side-income) you'll need a bigger bankroll than $100. You'll either need a game with much lower risk and a much bigger advantage OR you'll have to gamble a bit and hope you catch some positive flux (i.e., The Hail Mary Bankroll...see the link to the left).

If you're just out to have fun...then your $100 is the same as if you'd spent it at a club or movie theatre...just flat bet $5 a hand and hope your money lasts long enough for you to get a lot of free drinks and maybe a comped meal. Often times the comps from low limit play can exceed your expected loss at certain casinos. (casinos don't make much money from each low limit gambler so if you really take advantage of everything the casino offers you in terms of comps you might be getting an edge that way).

Thank you for the clarification. And it really would just be a trip with the guys to have a little fun since none of us have had a chance to actually play in a casino. It would definitely be a "just for the experience" trip. Also, who can beat free pancakes? I pay for the experience and the fun of it, gain a little wisdom and eat free pancakes while I'm at it. Sounds good.

Playing 5-20 at a Single Deck table will not guarantee a bust out/loss!
One year I started this way and got a streak from the first hand. Won 250 and never looked back, playing 10-50 a hand and pocketed over 1,500 for the year!

the other possiblity is to loose 10 hands in a row.

i am in college too and am a novice counter
and let me tell you from first hand eperience

go to ralphs and buy some food so you are not 'starving"
spend more time studying the material from your classes and get your degree.

the return on investment is way better than at any table game in any casino.

and that's if he finds a good single deck game. He'll be lucky if he lasts three shuffles with $100.

At 6 hands a shuffle that's 18 hands. To bust out $100 at an average bet of, say, $12 would mean winning 5 hands and losing 13! That happens but is fairly rare. Please try and think clearly!

Just on the off hand that you took me seriously, I'm not really starving. I work a part time job and do college full time and I eat fairly well. Loans suck, but they aren't starving me, considering I don't have to pay on them yet and school always comes first. I immediately saw this as a fun past time activity and not a way to make serious income. So, if I do blow a hundred bucks, it won't kill me. I'm saying that I could afford that hundred bucks as entertainment. I will most definitely do some form of the Hail Mary Bankroll and just see what happens. Maybe I'll get lucky, maybe not. If I come up positive, having earned a little extra, I'll just add it to the hundred bucks and save it for next time. It's not like I'm choosing this over my degree, folks. ;)

Well then I guess this eventual trip will just be an experience and gambling trip then, as much as I don't really like the idea of gambling it may be worth it for the experience and the fun to be had with friends. And pancakes. I need to get off the running pancake gag before I make someone sick.

. . . A 90% chance you'll lose $100 session stake betting 5-20 in just 18 hands played?
That is ridiculous. That would mean, assuming an average bet of $12 per hand, you would win 5 hands and lose 13, disregarding pushes.
Such a pathetic outcome for a 10 minute session is rare, maybe occurring 15% of that time. Not 90.

Please try and think clearly!!

Where did you get your 15% figure from? Losing 13 out of 18 hands isn't rare at all.

i ran a sim with very liberal rules (SD S17 DA2 Ro8) for this $100 bankroll and a 1:4 spread in red.

Ave bet was only $8.60 and RoR was a whopping 80.5%

Adjust that to common rules and pen and 90% seems right. An RoR that high might as well be 100%