yes it seams, that he is good AP player. Because of him, I find this chanel :-). But it was funny, that on one fun turnament sesion he make really big mistake at the end and show, that he do not undestand blackjack probability that well, which he also claim in one of his video (that he is glad, for using software for calculating betting spread) and also, be good at probability is not nessesary for being good AP :-). But i really like his vlogs, they are usefull and I even start to learn basic strategy because of him (otherwise it is too slow for me to figure out probabilities). And when I will hit my first 100% in basic strategy in 500 disitions, then I will start to learn counting :-).
My casino manager always said "the only people to blame for 6:5 blackjack are the players. Had they not played on those tables, when they first came out, the casinos wouldn't have them." He has the same belief about 000 roulette and actively tries to discourage ppl from playing it.
@@misterchubbikins this right here! I went to Vegas and never expected to see so many 6:5 games and just walked by them all. People were still there playing though. Poor folks..
Funny that you'd make this video, since it mirrored my experiences very well. Extremely difficult to find playable double-decks in Las Vegas entirely (I would list 8 if you include off-strip or Henderson etc.), which was so much easier in the past. On the strip, expect 100$ table minimums in the hi-roller lounges, and all of them will card you or back you off in no time. Visited the Strat under new management, and it turned out to have an excellent game with good penetration. Played 2 hours, crashed to sleep, got backed off 2 minutes into the first session next day. Good surveillance. I was really excited to finally get to LV again after the COVID shutdown, but it was probably the least enjoyable trip to LV that I ever had. Exorbitant costs for rental cars (70$ instead of 25$ in the past), a distinct shortage of comped rooms and only half of the restaurants/buffets actually open - will take a while before I will be back.
I just moved away from Las Vegas. Turned into a shithole with crime and homeless, and everything doubled in price. (Including my rent -- went from $1100 to $2500 in two years.) The pandemic broke it IMHO. Everything is understaffed, and everyone is stressed out and pissed off all the time. Not fun at all. Was still nice as late as early 2020.
A bunch of the casinos now won’t even serve you alcohol without a players card and there’s hardly any tables under $20 a hand. The casinos are completely under staffed and not taken care of one bit. The staff that is remaining are rude and treat you like total shit. The rooms and tables are falling apart. Floors don’t look like they’ve been swept in months and the carpets are stained to hell. The streets are full of needles and smell like bum piss. I feel like the pandemic exposed the true ratty side of Vegas that nobody really noticed.
I live in Vegas and play pretty regularly. Which is why I stick to the non strip casinos. Such as the Boyd and Station casinos. They all have cheap double deck blackjack.
You guys should be one of my inspirations for playing Blackjack the way it’s done, by you all. I can’t thank you enough for giving me great tips, solutions, strategys, and even laughs, too.
I'm binging this stuff lately, bought the app, been reading books and studying basic strategy charts. Really considering trying to attend a boot camp at some point. Keep making the videos, love 'em
@@BigTimeBruh Okay? I'm actually putting in a pretty decent amount of time into this, and I'm interested in learning more. What's wrong with that? You sound like someone who just got unlucky and is trying to blame other people for it 😂
@@donovansiers9422 keep practicing and going at it. I just recently passed the test out in the BJA membership site. Took me 8 months to do it but it was all worth it. Looking to do a boot camp too some time. Best of luck to you!
I'm making a stack in the stock market. It's a recession ... everything is going down! So I'm shorting everything, and making a mint. Far easier and more profitable than card counting!!!
The fact that Loudon can still get hours in on the strip amazes me!! 👏 I feel like he’s mastered the art of being subtle and not drawing attention to himself
Hey Collin! I just wanted to write a thank you comment. All of your videos + the articles/books you have shown made me obsessed with blackjack. A buddy and me have been training hard, even bought CVCX after trying low stakes; and I'm happy to say that after 250hours we have overcommed the variance monster! Thanks a lot, really! PS: Card counting in mexico is a thing, beatable games all around.
experience of backoff in Mexico? I played for a while in Cancun on some really good rules and had a blast, but I was a bit afraid to play for too long because I don't know my way around the legality, which made me a little anxious for the backoffs there.
I was in Tampa for my buddies bachelor party and we went to Hard Rock. They had a continuous shuffle machine and I think my buddies told me that it shuffles every time someone gets up or sits down so that it can favor the dealer.
No it continually shuffles, whenever a hand is dealt and the dealer takes the cards they are shuffled right back into the decks, it’s dramatically worse odds and you can’t count cards on it, so don’t play it
It's not the lack of opportunities that put me off going to Vegas … it's the ridiculous *Hotel Resort Fees* that put me off. Also, the restaurants are stacking Miami level fees on your food bill. *Vegas has become a clichéd rip-off capital of the world!*
LOL "Player's Edge Blackjack" has to be the ballsiest variation ever created. Can't fathom how many people see that sign and actually think it's in their advantage.
Buying in for a large amount and then betting table minimum hand after hand is a HUGE red flag. You can always buy in as you need to. Start out with the smallest possible buy in so you don't set off alarms.
hey colin love the vids keep em comin was wondering if u can do a vid goin in depth on BJ deviations i kno u got one but i mean a vid describing the different deviations and how they differ in a H17 vs a S17 game
@@Blackjackapprenticeship haha right on im not ready for that yet i been practicing on the app for about 5 months just speed counting and doing the training drills and studying the charts i recently played at the local casino and just played table mini $15 while trying to keep the count and play BS but man the distractions are unreal im def far from ready but i will be someday 💪🏽💪🏽💪🏽
From what I've observed, it seems to me that the Wonging approach would be effective, if they don't restrict you to table minimum, forbid mid shoe entry, or shuffle up. Visiting again on another session if you don't get caught helps too.
I never understood why casinos have very few 6/5 tables with $15 minimum, but then a bunch of $25 minimum tables. You see the $15 minimum tables completely packed with people waiting behind for someone to get up. Then you see the $25 minimum tables completely empty. They can't be protecting against card counters, because what card counter is playing 6/5? Wouldn't it be better to get a couple more $15 tables full with tourists. Than have a bunch $25 tables empty.
Omg …. The only time I ever played a 6:5 was a $5 single deck at the old O’Sheas and that was because of the cheap/free beer and hot dogs. ( yeah that was like 12 years ago now that I think of it … yikes )
Colin, I couldn't agree more with this video. I have been visiting Vegas since 1992 at least once a year mainly to play BJ. even just before the pandemic you could find good quality fare, cheap (min $10) games everywhere. BUT, on my return after the pandemic I was disgusted, demoralised and bemused to find how much Vegas casino's had changed their BJ games. My first day in Vegas I visited all my usual cheap min table stakes games from Mandalay Bay up to the new Mega resort and was amazed to see the amount of CSM's, $25 min, 6-5BJ, side bets that was around. I ended up playing most of my 10 day trip at TI, which still had good games. I even visited El Cortez and got some good game time in there. Will I stop going to Vegas!!! Probably not. I love the city and like to see all the changes and new hotels that get built. But I am truly disappointed in the total greed that has taken over. Steve.
If I were to count cards, it would definitely be some small casino on a reservation lol not a giant conglomerate in the middle of Las Vegas. Though, you're probably in more danger of getting hurt and bullied at a res casino 😂
Those minimums really suck which is why I always go downtown. The casinos are not as close as they seem. We found this out on our first trip to Vegas. (25 years ago.) I am able to count and I know the strategy but I really don't count anymore because I have issues with my brain from chemo and I am there to just have fun. I almost always end up winning at Blackjack. Not huge amounts but enough :-) Great video and think all this advice is relevant.
Back in October 2016 we were in Las Vegas for seven days during the Friday and Saturdays. We noticed at one of the casinos. The minimum bet for blackjack was $25 so we decided to stick with video poker and other slot machines or other table games, but it wasn’t until Sunday morning or that day, I seen a minimum bet of five dollars a day OK give it a shot see what it’s like but yeah that was my first taste of blackjack when I was on my first trip in Vegas
If you do go: Poker Palace has $3 3-2 games, plus you can double down on 3 cards, before or after splitting. Ellis Island has $5 3-2 games, plus resplitting aces. Downtown Grand has $5 3-2 games, plus surrender. Downtown Grand, Golden Nugget & Santa Fe Station have $1 3-2 video blackjack. Casino Wizard makes 3-2 stand on soft 17 machines, $2 at Downtown Grand and $3 at Orleans and South Point. Treasure Island offers 3:2 blackjack on two stadiums. The live dealer version also stands on a soft 17. Both games have a $1 minimum bet. Boulder Station, Green Valley Ranch, Red Rock and Sunset Station have 3:2 blackjack games available on stadiums. This game can be found with a $1 minimum bet by selecting the video multi-hand blackjack game. One to three hands can be played at a time. These could change any time, but avoiding ripoff games is what will get rid of them (From Vegas Advantage)
@@tomf5823 OK, kinda boring (math) but I found the answer. Some stats on rule advantages to the player. Double after splits is 0.13% Late surrender 0.06% Resplitting aces 0.14% Double more than 2 cards 0.20% So really, they’re offering close to the same deal as casinos offering surrender and DAS, which a few do. These are percent of percent differences for casinos that rake in plenty of money. Really, any of them could do a couple more advantages for the player, publicize and make more money, because most people play partially on hunch/instinct & even advantage players don’t gain much. Casinos did just fine when rules were a little better.
Vegas seems very playable with a good bet spread. I play table min to 2x250. So by no means super high stakes, but about 225 an hour. There are casinos off strip that have GREAT rules with .5 deck cutoffs. Surveillance is tough though. I was only there on a short trip and got backed off everywhere that had good rules. I would say I got in a solid 100h total. I have a couple of contacts that play in Vegas full time and they employ a hit and run strategy, but I doubt that generates any real EV.
My Bootcamp weekend (years ago) I was able to play $25/min DD 3:2 with good rules and good pen. My last trip that same casino only had CSM Blackjack 🙄.
Hey Colin, I came upon this video purely by chance, but I wanted to say thanks for using me in your video. That dealer is me. Now, just to clarify some things, we do offer 3/2 blackjack, not all our games are continuous shuffling machines and most of our 6/5 blackjacks are a $15 minimum. Thanks!
Concerning Free Bet Blackjack, as a dealer, I've seen several people behave like they're counters at that game. They'll sit and watch the cards for a long time then jump in and then leave shortly after, often times winning a lot of money, though not always. I wonder if there's a system where you can count the individual numbers to try to get more free splits that can beat the edge. If you're unfamiliar with the game, you get free splits on anything but 10s and free doubles on 9, 10 and 11, and so if there are a lot of low cards, you can end up with a lot of free splits and free doubles which, while your odds of winning go down playing normally, is basically like the casino loaning you money. Feels like a low count could be exploitable, or possibly just a different counting system could be used, but I haven't done the math on it.
Comments like this give me a little more faith in people's brains (especially when it comes to gambling channels). Can you imagine the nightmare of testing any possible +EV spots for something so obscure and with so many variables more complicated than standard BJ play?
When you say that you were backed off at ‘all MGM properties’ does that mean they have more than one casino is LV, or all casinos in the USA? Is there a list somewhere of which casinos are affiliated under the same parent? Seems like that should be part of a card counting trip - spreading your play across unaffiliated casinos
Some things are just common sense. When you have a 20 unit spread and suddenly bet 3 spots, yes, you are going to get backed off. I have a 6 unit spread and have never been backed off
Alot Of Blackjack Dealers&Poker Room Dealers-Deserve My Respect&TIPS!-For Being Good&Not Bad@All!-Raymond "Mike" Hong!&(When I See Them Again!-I'll TIP Them!-With No Hesitations From Me!-Mike!)😎👍!!!!!!!!!
Yes! There was a documentary made about our Card Counting Team based out of Seattle. I believe it is free to stream on Tubi & Pluto currently. It's called Holy Rollers: The True Story of Card Counting Christians
Love the video. All accurate statements, but as a card counter, you got to go to Vegas once. I'd love a video that did the opposite of this. Where are some great places to get good action?
The casino I deal at in Vegas does 8 deck shoes. Typically 15 min bet, but it gets knocked down to 10 on some tables during slow hours. Blackjack pays 3:2 The high limit room does have double deck BJ, but 100 min bet. There is a casino called downtown grand that has $1 BJ. I don't know all the rules other than Blackjack is even money instead of 3:2.
Colin, firstly love your book. secondly, as a beginner card counter when your EV was 5-7 dollars, did you still have a job? were you still only playing blackjack on the side until your bankroll was higher
Thankfully there’s casinos off the strip that have $5 min, at Ellis island , though this is from online research , they say 3:2 blackjack , anyone know if it’s a shoe or auto shuffler ?
He's right. The only lower limit games that are playable are mostly off strip - like the Boyd or Station properties or places like South Point. You need at least 50k to play on Strip, or better yet - 100k. I can't risk that much on blackjack these days.
How can you possibly utilize card counting at a rolling/continuous machine table? Forcing gamblers to play other games: 3 card poker,Baccarat,ultimate Texas Hold em,roulette,pai gow card poker. High minimums are also killing opportunity to make money.
By my tally there are currently over 140 tables of Double Deck, 3-2 payout & HE of 0.40 with $5-$10 minimums in Las Vegas. All off-Strip. You won't find that anywhere else.
While I'm on the South side of the strip, I'll play at Oyo and Ellis Island. Downtown, I'll play at El Cortez. I'm not a card counter, but 6-5 is bullshit and $25 min as well.
If you come to Michigan soaring eagle has 3/2 6 deck shoes. My dad is a regular dice controller there and they are super cool about card counting. They won't kick you out they'll just say That's enough.
What is a good bet spread for Vegas. By this I mean that you can generate a decent EV based in terms of units per hour and not get barred in a short time? Assume good rules Assume 6-8 decks Should you plan to hit and run. By this I mean play 1 or 2 strong count shoes and then leave the casino.
As we see newer / younger generations the gaming industry / casinos have become greedier and greedier. They're pigs 🤬 and in some ways I believe it costs them other business. The good ol' days of buffets that were reasonably priced and other food and drink.. it's become crazy! 🤯
People who come to casinos, want to feel the excitement of winning big and enjoy watching a player place and win big bets, and hope some good luck will rub off on them. It’s this excitement of watching a week’s wages being won in a few minutes that makes people want to open their wallets and play too. So seeing someone win big, I think, is the kind of advertising casinos can’t get in any other way. And just because an advantage player is betting $1000, his hourly win rate is a lot lower, so it’s not costing a casino that much for this kind of advertising. Whereas when people go to a casino and all they see is punters betting one or two chips only, it’s a kind of boring.
@@geoffpearce889 I've been playing Blackjack for about 32 years and my point was that many of the casinos have turned to CSM's and higher minimum bets and high-priced meals. I play many tournaments as well. AP's look for a good bet spread and don't like to spend $30 for a warm hamburger, $50 for a steak etc. They also have 6 to 5 Blackjack on multi deck shoe games which is more than a ripoff just as Colin said in the video. There are still some good games and clubs out there but you have to be careful in the search and the play. Good luck to ya!
Hey Colin, I bought the counting app and signed up for the course, I’m taking this seriously. Need bankroll first. I’m curious, do you always leave as soon as true count is at D1 no matter what, or sometimes wait it out?
Depends on your strategy. If you are Wonging with a low bankroll then yes. Also, get CVCX to calculate your risk of losing your bankroll. I don't play games with more than a deck penetration and I prefer 2 or 4 deck. Good luck!
No, if but you need to use betting software like our Pro Betting Software to calculate the cost of playing negative counts. If you can afford it and the risk is acceptable, you can play negatives.
STation casinos, el cortez, red rock, orleans, gold coast, suncoast, rampart, downtown, yes theres a lot but the problem is they will back you off quickly.
Well that’s not only in Las VEGAS, I’m from Colombia and almost all the casinos have these shuffle machines, counting cards is not as easy as in the early days basically because there are no places to play
Nevada doesn't allow any competition that will steal any of their profits. That is the reason why they continuously vote against having any lotteries in the state, they want all the money to go to the Casino's pocket. Card counters are also viewed as competitors, so prepared to be backed off alot in NEVADA.
Collin: a surveillence agent I know was telling me that they actually use videos from casino youtubers, including your channel, to improve their ability to keep up with advances in cheating and card counting methods. Do you feel that the increased amount of card counting info out there (even compared to just 5-10 years ago) as a result of youtubers such as yourself and others have resulted in an oversaturation of card counters and has contributed to the casinos implimenting all these measure to compete against them?
There's a ton of good blackjack games off the Strip though. The Strip also has tables with awesome rules (NH on S17 etc etc) but these have $100 minimums usually. If you're playing on the Strip to make money you're not doing Las Vegas right.
Covid losses caused this. I think they are getting the message about 3-2. I find it hard not to just play at casino in Glendale AZ near my home. It is 3-2, 6 Card Shoe, It has surrender, unlimited splitting aces and such with mostly $15 min. Decent rewards and never been backed off, BUT I only bet $100 when it is on my side.
NOTE: Excellent video and very informative with the ( truth )... Everything in Las Vegas has become ( expensive ), especially The Las Vegas Strip ! ! From the casino pit, slot machines ( hotel rooms + fees, including parking fee ), restaurants, drinks, bars, and nightclubs..., everything has gone up in price, and everything is ( expensive )... Tourists and residents beware..., as for "Customer Service" and hospitality is basically gone... Sad..., but true. " Semper Fi " Mike in Montana :)
Great video, Colin. The "better local options" really interests me as I'm in Colorado and only an hour drive from the casinos here. Have you (or anyone reading this comment) been to the Black Hawk area and played the casinos there? How was it?
No idea about backoffs since I don't really vary bets these days. Rules are standard - blackjack pays 3:2, six or eight decks in a shoe, dealer hits soft 17, lots of gimmick bets that always lose but they're optional. Minimums are usually 25, but 15 and 50 also exist, mostly depending on when you go. Roulette is 00, craps often has 20x or 100x odds. Black Hawk is more big glitzy strip style casinos, Central City is smaller, two card tables in the corner style. Even though the casinos in Central City are smaller, the terrain is steeper so walking is probably easier in Black Hawk.
They have to rent the shuffle machines from shuffle master. Shuffle machines remove ALL win runs. You'll consistently win a hand then lose two. REALLY boring for a normal player.
Most players, at least in the USA, don’t like playing against CSMs. They are superstitious and don’t trust that the machine isn’t spitting out bad cards on purpose. They are also expensive for the casinos to rent and require maintenance. So, at least for now, shoe games dominate in America.
@@NathanHedglin "Shuffle machines remove ALL win runs" - that's completely wrong lol. For a normal player it barely matters (in terms of odds/streaks) whether the deck is reshuffled or not. What it does affect, however, is the speed of play and superstitions. Both of which mean that casinos generate much more EV from gamblers than if they shuffled every hand.
Quit playing slots. Video poker is a much, much better option. A full pay video poker machine with a good comps program is pretty damn close to a break even game.
Imagine what it would be like if they could not refuse service to anyone. As long as youre not cheating, if your money is green, whether you are an ignorant vacationer or a skilled gamer you should technically be allowed to play. Its called cherrypicking what they do.
Okay Ive been practicing for about 2 months now doing research along the way and is a 1 to 5 bet spread good to keep risk of ruin low cant find any free calculators for this stuff anywhere I dont want to invest more than 500$ for my bank roll not looking to make a lot of ev even if its 2$/ hour any info would be great
A lower bet spread might cut your short term Ror just a little. But you're only playing a break even game or barely above. Thats ok for a hobbiest. $500 isn't even close to an adequate bankroll if wanted to get serious. Even if you found a playable $5 table on a Monday afternoon somewhere thats only 100 units. 1000 units would be desirable to feel more comfortable...because when push comes to shove, youve gotta push those large bets out there at the appropriate times...and you'll lose plenty of those bets too. Most low limit games are 10 or 15 dollars. So 10 grand would be a good starting point.
@@TheHunter0224 I don't remember off the top of my head. There are ror tables you could pull up online thru gugle images or whatever. My blackjack library has been boxed away in storage for a couple years. If you're interested in the mathematics of the game. I'd recommend acquiring the latest edition of Blackjack Attack by Don S. Lots of tables and calculations in that regarding Ror. But you gotta remember this: Winning is NEVER guaranteed. Rules, penetration and table conditions vary and are a constant moving target. The amount of small overall edge you might glean is never set in stone. And this is assuming you're playing and betting perfectly. The risk of ruin in blackjack is higher than if you were betting on a biased coin that lands heads 50.5% of the time and tails 49.5%. This is because the standard deviation in advantage play blackjack is much higher because of the bet variations required to gain the edge in the first place So blackjack is more volitile than coin flipping especially in the short term. Know this too: Losing streaks can be horrendous and longer lasting than you think. Read Burning the Tables in Las Vegas by Ian A. Great book - best ever written on blackjack IMO, although published more than 20 years ago . He describes both how good and bad it can be.
great play for 15 mins and have to change casinos. so you're probably playing 15 mins for every 45 mins of work between traveling casino to casino, cashing out etc.
