The game; 6 dks. dealer stands on soft 17, double after splits, split up to four times, split and resplit aces, double down on two, three, four or five cards. Early surrendered and late surrendered, that is you can surrender against an ace. European no hole card.
I am using simple plus-minus. I very my bets from one dollar to 2 hands of $60 each. I bet two hands of one dollar on minus and zero accounts and then go up $20/hand per true count point. Wong�s blackjack analyzer says that this gives me a 0.4% edge with basic strategy and 1.8% edge when I count.
I was a recreational counter in Las Vegas for 20 years. My wife and I played as a team where she kept the count and I did all of the other calculations. We ended the year ahead 18 of those 20 years, and that is not counting hundreds of free paid vacations. I always knew how to count but she just had a better headed for it. She passed away suddenly and now I travel world and am living in Eastern Europe. I had given up blackjack completely but renewed my interest when I saw this excellent game. No one knows basic strategy over here and the players are really, really terrible!!! I have only located this one small casino that offers these extremely liberal rules. I play six days a week for three hours a day. They are all friends there now and they trust me completely. I do not believe that they believe counting is possible, or maybe they do not even know that it exists. Anyway, they don't care at all about the bet spreads. I buy them little gifts once in awhile and they appreciate a patron who is not drunk and abusive.
I only have one problem. This year I have played for 140 hours. And I am exactly $400 up! The blackjack analyzer tells me I should be pulling in over $40 an hour. That is an expected win of $5,200 in the first six months of this year.
What am I doing wrong?
They are not cheating. I have examined the shoe. At least three times a week they lay out the cards in front of me and I check that all six decks are complete. These are simple and straightforward people. I don't win against all dealers and all shifts. They never do anything suspicious. Plus I had befriended several of the dealers. I have given them opportunities to tell me if something was going on. They look at me blankly and ask me what I'm talking about.
So, what am I doing wrong?
I use matrix numbers from minus one to plus eight. Of course, I know basic strategy and my matrix number changes perfectly. I have adapted my strategy, using Wongs book, for the rules that are presented. This includes changes in matrix numbers and doubling/splitting because I of the split on more than two cards, rule. I never double or split (except A-A versus 10) against a dealer 10 or ace. I have gone back and reviewed my matrix numbers, betting strategy repeatedly. But I do not find answers to my lack of production.
Advanced thanks for any of your help.
I was a green chip subscriber until I started to travel. I may have met some of you from the old days.
Sincerely
BigRed