Vegas Heat

In playing double deck in Vegas, one on one with the dealer, in the high limit room at 9AM on a weekday, I was doing well with a low count so I doubled my bet (consider it cover if you like). The pit boss saw this and picked up the discard pile and shuffled through every single card. I assumed he was checking the count to see if I was swinging my chips with the count. I found this an extremely easy way for a pit boss to check to see if a player may be counting. Has anyone else experienced this?

On another note, I found that the double deck at the Riviera (thought I would go there since they are going to implode it very soon) had strict rules AND a 50% penetration. When I mentioned it, the dealer told me it is casino policy to cut the deck in half. Wow, talk about thwarting card counters! It was a fun night, even though I ended up just gambling (and winning).

I'm surprised the floor checked the discards for only doubling your bet (unless your bet was already somewhat substantial, but I doubt it since you said it was a low count). My guess is that you probably looked and seemed like a counter. For one, you went to play in HL, and two, it was one on one at 9am on a weekday so there was probably no one else around and therefore attention can be focused on you. Most recreational players don't go alone to play DD in HL in the early morning. Remember to try to blend in.

50% penetration is still beatable, but nowhere close to the hourly EV of games with better penetration. Have never played at Riviera, so I don't know the rules, playing conditions or dealing procedures. My suggestion is to spread to two or three hands on a positive count when you know it's about to be the last hand, then make sure to use correct play variations if needed as the TC will be slightly greater than RC after a deck has been removed in DD.

Yep, you called it. I was just playing the minimum, but I had the room to myself, ordered coffee, and had a 2 day stubble. Wasn't my best appearance! The fact that I was up probably didn't help either. Thank you for the advice on the pen!

Most pit people who do this cannot count a deck and are just watching you to see if you react (or worse leave). Ignore them, the only thing it shows is that they are sweating your action. It doesn't show anything else.

Here's a story about the heat I experienced at the MGM around 10 years ago.

I was alone at a $5 table at around 10am, sitting at 1st base. The table was full. I had been sitting there for 45 minutes betting the minimum in low counts, not saying a word and looking like some kind of introverted accountant or something. Suddenly about half way through the 6-deck shoe, the count goes way up. I raise my bet to $10, then $20, then $50. For about six hands I win then lose then lose then win. Suddenly with $50 out I hit a BJ. I clap my hands and yell "Yes, finally!". Then I get hot and win several more hands before the shoe ends (they were doing about 75% pen). I won around $200 for the shoe.

So I'm sitting there counting my chips, putting them in neat stacks, and waiting for the dealer to finish shuffling.

Then it occurs to me that a female floor person is standing one foot away from me, facing my direction. I don't look that way and just try to play it cool (MISTAKE: I would have been better to turn to her and engage her in conversation. Like a gambler would). I decide to put out a $10 bet to start. She has a clipboard in her hand and bends over it to make a little jot on some paper. I lose that and put a $5 bet out. She makes another jot. This goes on for about 3-4 more hands and I certainly know what she's doing. She does not know if I'm a counter. But I look the part. I was sitting around quiet as a mouse for 45 minutes betting $5 while the rest of the table is joking around. Then suddenly I'm the big better and making noise. Her actions made me nervous, which was the point. Not wanting to escalate, I decided discretion is the better part of valor.

I played another few $5 hands and then cashed in. For a little extra cover, and some fun, I walked over to the nearest Craps table and played for a while. Then I cashed in my chips and headed to the next place.

-Jeff

I described the heat I got at MGM in my previous post, now let me compare it to the weird heat I got at Gold Coast. This is also around 10 years ago.

Around that time I started making annual trips to LV with a college buddy of mine. He had been counting since the late 80's, using a level-3 Ken Uston system. I was using the level-1 Hi-Lo count. Back in the 80's analysis showed that more complex (level-2 and level-3 systems) got slightly better results, so my buddy learned that. In recent years I've subscribed to the theory that a simpler system reduces errors and therefore actually gives a better result. I've been using KO for around 8 years. But I can't argue with my buddy since he knows his system well and it works. He also keeps an Ace side count. An advantage of traveling with a friend that uses such a different system is that our bets do not perfectly correlate.

Anyway, that day we were going all around town spending a hour or so in each casino. Once again we were not playing high stakes; we were at a $5 table, just the two of us. We catch some high counts and start showing 1-5 or 1-7 type spreads. After a half an hour or so of these spreads, I'm looking around, bored, between hands and notice a guy standing 10 feed behind is, in a sports coat, looking right at us with his arms crossed.

We keep playing some more and I whisper to my buddy to take a look at this guy. After another few minutes we decide to switch tables.

So now we go around the pit to one of those short tables designed to accommodate a person in a wheelchair. We start betting $5 at the beginning of a shoe. After ten minutes of at most 1-2 spreads, I look up between hands and there is this burly 300 lbs guy, once again in a sports coat (but not the same guy), staring at us with his arms crossed. But this one is towering over us because he's closer (a half step behind and next to the dealer) and we are sitting in these short chairs. After about another 3-4 hands of flat betting we decided to get the heck out of dodge. But not before we had a nice meal in the casino restaurant and had a good laugh about our experience. :*)

-Jeff