Betting On Blackjack: A Non-Counter's Breakthrough Guide to Making Profits at the Tables

by Frits Dunki-Jacobs

Overview

In Betting on Blackjack, expert Fritz Dunki-Jacobs reveals his strategies for consistent winning at blackjack--from how to pick the right place to play to knowing when to stop. With Dunki-Jacobs's proven system, players can win repeatedly by knowing the probabilities of the game and analyzing the betting strategies and attitudes connected with achieving ongoing successes at the tables.
Betting on Blackjack shows you how to maximize profit by:

• establishing achievable goals in realistic time frames
• choosing a casino that has the most favorable rules
• spotting the right table and sitting in the most advantageous position
• employing mathematically proven betting strategies
• overcoming the belief that the house always comes out ahead
• adjusting your strategy for single and double deck versus multiple decks
• recovering any losses quickly
• and more

Betting on Blackjack also shows you how to apply these betting techniques to blackjack's popular offshoot, Spanish 21, as well as baccarat. With this book in hand, you're sure to come away from the table a winner!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781440519123
Publisher:	Adams Media
Publication date:	01/16/2004
Sold by:	SIMON & SCHUSTER
Format:	eBook
Pages:	224
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

An Adams Media author.

Read an Excerpt

Chapter 12

What Is the 46% Rule and the Casual Count?
The 46% rule
Since we were talking about card counting, here's a revelation that is not so obvious to most folks. Did you realize that 46% of the cards in the deck are "high value" cards? It's true. Check this out: 9, 10, Jack, Queen, King, Ace. We know that there are 52 cards in a deck, therefore 6 high cards times four suits equals 24 cards right? Twenty-four in relation to fifty-two cards is 46%. By that simplistic analysis we can determine that we should look at the cards coming out as dealt to determine our play and betting. For example, if you are at a double deck game and have yourself and one other player at the table, here's the deal:

Status Action Card Action Card Action
Player 1: K, 3
Player 2: 2, 7
Dlr-UpCard: 8
So, what are looking at here? Five cards have been shown, and only 20% of them are classified as high ones. What do you do? Because it's a fresh shuffle, it's still hard to tell with so few cards out, but this should be the play:

Status Action Card Action Card Action Player 1: K, 3 Hits 5 Stand
Player 2: 2, 7 Hits 7 Hits 6 Busts
Dlr-UpCard: 8 Flips Q Stands
So let's analyze what we have here. Two high cards and seven low cards, or two of our nine cards shown, which equals around 22% high cards shown thus far. What do you bet that the next sequence gets more higher cards than lower cards? Let's see on the next deal:

Status Action Card Action Card Action
Player 1: 9, A Stands
Player 2: 3, 3 Splits
Dlr-UpCard: 6,

What do we have here to analyze before decision time? Four high cards and ten low cards, or four of our fourteen cards shown or 28%, have been high cards still well below the 46% average of what it should be. How does this information help us? We know we haven't seen the dealer's "hole" card, the card the dealer has under its visible card, so what do you think are the chances the dealer has a ten value card under there? Pretty high, right? So, what does Player-2 need to do then? He realizes that there hasn't been too many ten-value cards coming out so should he really split the 3's here? Even though the strategy cards say to do it, why would you? The possibility has presented itself that there is a high likelihood that Player-2 would split to two ten value cards and have two 13's against the dealer's 6; not bad, but why take the chance? Why not just hit the 3's, and let the dealer break his potential 16? Here's what happens:

Status Action Card Action Card Action
Player-1: 9, A Stands
Player-2: 3, 3 Hits 10 Stands
Dlr-UpCard: 6 Flips Q Hits 8 Busts

Casual Counting

The above is called casual counting-looking casually at the cards coming out, not assigning point values as in regular card counting. All you have to do is count the 9's, 10's, and Aces versus all the cards that you've seen. In the above example, after all the hands have been played, we have some serious information about the cards left in the shoe or in the dealer's hand. In this example, the final tally is 6 out of 16 cards or roughly 38% have been high cards. As you can see, having this information is helpful in doubling and splitting hands against whatever the dealer may be showing and estimating what his "hole" may be if the count is really low, meaning there have been fewer high cards seen than low cards. An important note along these lines is if the percentage is low then we now know that the chances that higher cards will appear in the next sequence is high, therefore, we can now adjust our betting accordingly because the chance of getting 19's, 20's, and 21's is very high, and that, my friends, is why we "casual count". There was no brain strain, no fatigue factor, just a simple way of tracking the high cards as they are dealt, getting the information on what the composition of the unseen cards are, and go from there.
By the way, it is easier to "casual count" with more players at the table than going head to head against the dealer. Generally when going "head to head" the cards are being dealt so quickly that you are forced to make playing decisions quickly and that's tough enough besides now having to "casually count" the high cards. If you are going head-to-head against the dealer, the deal should be pretty even in winning hands, therefore, using the CLB betting strategy makes sense; it's difficult to lose more than three to five hands in a row against the dealer going head-to-head.
Again, having this very simplistic information and mentally just doing ratios, counting the number of cards that have come out versus all the high cards that have been seen rather than assigning point values does give you, the player, an exceptional advantage, especially when trying to make decisions on double downs, splitting pairs, and taking insurance against the dealer's ace. It is also important to note that when playing with a friend at the table, he or she can count the high cards, you simply count all the cards that have come out, do the simple division to obtain the ratio and voila'-we have information! Or, if you are playing alone, when buying in for chips ask for dollar chips, about thirty to forty of them, and create little stacks in front of your session money to assist you in tracking either the high cards seen, all the other cards, or even both. You can use this same method in tracking the number of wins and losses in any given series as well.

Table of Contents

Introduction
Chapter 1. A Bit of Philosophy
Chapter 2. Can You Really Win Playing this Game?
Chapter 3. Choosing the Right Playing Environment
Chapter 4. Single Deck and Double Deck Versus Multiple Decks
Chapter 5. Playing Strategies for Standard '21'
Chapter 6. Probabilities of Winning and Losing Consecutive Hands
Chapter 7. Establishing Your Stake and Session Money
Chapter 8. Profit Goals: Knowing When to Leave, Or How Much Is Enough Anyway?
Chapter 9. The "CLB" Betting Strategy - Profits While Winning or Losing
Chapter 10. Advanced "CLB" Betting Strategies and Other Variations
Chapter 11. What Is the House's Edge Anyway?
Chapter 12. The 46% Rule - Let's Talk About The "Casual Count!"
Chapter 13. A Few Words on the Game of "Spanish 21": My Personal Favorite
Chapter 14. Playing The "Match Play" In Spanish 21
Chapter 15. Great Tips to Stay "In and With the Game!"
Chapter 16. Blackjack Tournaments: A Great Proving Ground for Yourself and These
Chapter 17. The Readiness Review: Your Checklist for Success
Chapter 18. Casino Comps: Making You Play - Pay!
Chapter 19. The Difference Between "Recreational Play" And "Professional Play"
Appendix A - Using "CLB" Strategy For Baccarat