with card counting,so who cares about scrutiny? I never heard of using cover plays at tournaments,this would be ridiculous. Are you a card counter or do you even play blackjack?
In a tournament you have a very small number of hands in which anything could happen. Card counting gives you a very small edge in the long run which you certainly won't reach in 20-30 hands of play so it won't really help you. I played in my first tournament a while back and for some reason the dealer was leaning way over on the table, obscuring the cards. I had to do some odd neck craning to see the cards as I was at third base, if I didn't get made with that behavior then I don't know what they could possibly be looking for. For ease of view I think I'll sit at second base next time.