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Thread: HOLLYWOOD: I'm really annoyed by this

  1. #1
    HOLLYWOOD
    Guest

    HOLLYWOOD: I'm really annoyed by this

    and it's not the first time it happened.

    I'm sitting at a table and i'm getting beaten up pretty bad. Just waiting for my turn. Finally the count goes my way and I start my bet escalation. I was flat betting $100.00 and i'm now up to $500.00. The dealer gives me a pair of 9's against her 6. Using KO, the count is plus 6. I split the 9's and get an ace on the first one for a total of 20. With a count that high I wanted to double on that.
    The dealer never gave me a chance to give a hand signal. Without hesitation she hit the 2nd 9 with a 10. So i'm sitting with a 20 and 19 the dealer pulls 21 and the rest is history. A $3000.00 swing. (if i'm allowed to double)

    I was really upset and didn't feel I could do anything about it.

    WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE DONE?

    Hollywood

  2. #2
    Bettie
    Guest

    Bettie: Re: I'm really annoyed by this

    > WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE DONE?

    In the past, I have yelled (well, not yelled, but calmly said VERY loudly) "Stop! I wasn't done!" and immediately called the pit boss over to complain. In your situation, the pit boss is definitely going to wonder why you're doubling a 20 against a 6, but your losses give you the excuse that you were losing so badly, you wanted to take every available chance to put money on the table to try to win it back. He might think it's weird, but he'll probably just think that you're a hothead chasing your losses.

    Because I'm a cordial player and always spend time joking with the bosses, it usually works in my favor. The boss will have the dealer redeal, rearrange the cards, whatever, in order to accommodate me. Not just because I'm a woman, either, as I've seen this work with male players, too - as long as the boss likes you. They don't want to upset players who spend money (and lose), and they don't want the downtime that the stopped table has.

    At any rate, I ALWAYS stop the dealer immediately and call the pit boss over.

    Bettie

  3. #3
    Pro Player
    Guest

    Pro Player: Gotta be quicker...

    in this sicheation have the chips ready and shovem out there before dealer hits your other nine

  4. #4
    Cyrus
    Guest

    Cyrus: Protest

    There's no way you should leave that stand, having that big a bet in jeopardy. You should call over the supervisor and try and get your appeal heard. (Don't worry about the dealer's goodwill from that point on, even if you had cultivated a good relationship with him, for some reason. Now is the time to cash out that goodwill, for better or worse.)

    There are players who will intentionally leave their intentions vague in instances such as the one you describe, with obvious intent. But, in these elevated environs, I'm not going as far as recommending such techniques. I would only suggest that, had the hand turned the other way, you would have been correct to have followed a different standard and kept mum.

    --Cyrus

  5. #5
    ET Fan
    Guest

    ET Fan: No way!

    There is simply no excuse for the behavior of this dealer! But if you didn't protest, preferably before the dealer played her own hand, then you have no one to blame but yourself.

    Doubling A9 v 6 isn't that unusual a play, even for a ploppie. Dealer must wait for a signal. Now a really well trained pit boss is NEVER going to allow cards to be backed up, IMO, unless he decides you are a big loser on the hook, nor would he ever allow changes after dealer's total is determined (except for correcting mistakes). So the right time to protest is right when the mistake happens.

    I don't know enough about KO to know whether you still wanted to double after the ten appeared on your second nine. Either way, I would still have made a fuss, if only to get the dealer in the habit of waiting for my signals. If the dealer won't do that, and the pit backs her up, then I would never play in that casino again. And I'd warn all my friends to stay FAR FAR AWAY.

    ETF

  6. #6
    MathProf
    Guest

    MathProf: What I would do

    This Happens

    This type of thing does happen. Dealers are under pressure to make hands per hour. If they know you are a BS player, or an approximation, they will sometimes not wait for a signal from you.

    There are players who attempt to pull various scams in this situation. We see a lot of them in Detroit. Since the casinos are relatively new, they push the envelope against what they see inexperienced personnel. The casinos know that these are scams, and this type of behavior will draw more heat than counting.

    Now let us the specifics of your situation. If I understand correctly, the RC was +6 after the 99 vs. 6 had appeared. Does this mean 2 above pivot? I am not an expert on KO indices, but that strikes me a weak double. This is a lot of gain to be made doubling A9 at counts that are very high, but this is probably marginal. With a big bet, the Certainty Equivalent may even be negative (in other words, the RA-index may be higher.)

    In my opinion, doubling A9 is a very High profile play. Up there with splitting 10s. For cover reasons, this is a play that I avoid. I certainly not do it in a marginal situation. In addition to everything else, you are also eating an additional card in a high count situation.

    Once the 10 came out, your RC is even lower, and the play is more marginal. Now if you protest here, I do not think that they will give you the 10! They may want to burn the 10. This would be a disaster, and something to avoid. If the dealers hole card is not exposed, they will probably allow to take the next card for you double-down.

    However, this is going to draw a lot of attention to your play! No matter what happens, the game will slow to a crawl because the dealer will wait for VERY clear, and obvious signals from you. The boss is likely to stand right there to make sure that this does not happen again. Plus, you have announced that double on 20! They may figure you are a card-counter, or a cheater who is trying to advantage of the house, or a counter who cheats, which is the worst possible image to have.

    In your case, I would have not protested this particular play. If it was a different play, I would do otherwise. If it were 16v10 and the dealer hit me and busted the hand, I would have said "I don't want that card." and forced them to take it back.

    > and it's not the first time it happened.

    > I'm sitting at a table and i'm getting
    > beaten up pretty bad. Just waiting for my
    > turn. Finally the count goes my way and I
    > start my bet escalation. I was flat betting
    > $100.00 and i'm now up to $500.00. The
    > dealer gives me a pair of 9's against her 6.
    > Using KO, the count is plus 6. I split the
    > 9's and get an ace on the first one for a
    > total of 20. With a count that high I wanted
    > to double on that.
    > The dealer never gave me a chance to give a
    > hand signal. Without hesitation she hit the
    > 2nd 9 with a 10. So i'm sitting with a 20
    > and 19 the dealer pulls 21 and the rest is
    > history. A $3000.00 swing. (if i'm allowed
    > to double)

    > I was really upset and didn't feel I could
    > do anything about it.

    > WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE DONE?

    > Hollywood

  7. #7
    williwong21
    Guest

    williwong21: Re: What I would do

    You're to blame.Whenever I play at high counts I'm always ready for those plays and say stop immediately.You don't have time to put out more chips.However when I'm to slow I certainly don't complain after the dealer draws to 21.Put it behind you and move on.Willi.

  8. #8
    Don Schlesinger
    Guest

    Don Schlesinger: Re: I'm really annoyed by this

    You've gotten excellent advice from all the posters.

    Bottom line: NEVER allow the dealer to play your hand for you. Give a signal EVERY time, no matter what your total is. If you ever, once, permit the dealer to just pass you by, because you have two tens and he has a four showing, then it's your fault. Give the signal EVERY time!

    Then, when he passes you, you jump all over him, and say, "I didn't give you a signal; please DO NOT play my hand for me."

    And, you never just sit there and watch the scenario play out. You stop the play before it's too late.

    Every time I have A,7 v. 9->Ace, I inch my hand out closer to the cards, to be ready to give the hit signal, the moment the dealer reaches my hand.

    Don

  9. #9
    Double21
    Guest

    Double21: Re: I'm really annoyed by this

    It's happened to me so many times that I don't think twice about the damn hands anymore! If you play good games and play them well, winning will take care of itself. Either you believe in the math or you don't---and if you don't, or have any doubts about it, then find another game. Frankly I think this is the only way to approach the game.

    Another suggestion which someone posted a while back that makes alot of sense to me is to view every session a winning one amounting to the time played times your hourly expected win rate. If you pick good games and play them well, in the long run this is where you'll wind up!

  10. #10
    MathProf
    Guest

    MathProf: But there is an Important Point

    I am not quite sure what you mean by "Never let a dealer play your hand."

    A dealer who is playing your hand for you is an advantage situation. You will get at least 1 "second chance" play. That is, there will be one time when she gives you a card you didn't want, and you can "Send it back".

    Suppose you have a 16 v 10 that you are going to stand on. Dealer gives you a 2 before you waive off. Do you take the card, or do you say "don't play my hand for me." I hope it is clear that keeping the card is better mathematically. Of course, if you break, then you should definitely point out that you didn't want the card.

    Now personally, I don't lie. If I have a 15 v 6 and the dealer passes me without signal and the next card is a 5, I don't say "I wanted to hit." If I had 12 v 7 and a paint card came out before I asked for it, I wouldn't say "I was going to stand." But I will correct an error that favors the house.

    Now after you insist on the dealer waiting for a signal, you have taken away this advantage. My point is that shouldn't do that for a marginal gain.

    I always give a signal. I agree with that. If I have a double/split coming, I get my chips ready it is my turn. But if a dealer is too impatient to wait for the signal, then I don't have a problem exploiting the situation.

    > You've gotten excellent advice from all the
    > posters.

    > Bottom line: NEVER allow the dealer to play
    > your hand for you. Give a signal EVERY time,
    > no matter what your total is. If you ever,
    > once, permit the dealer to just pass you by,
    > because you have two tens and he has a four
    > showing, then it's your fault. Give the
    > signal EVERY time!

    > Then, when he passes you, you jump all over
    > him, and say, "I didn't give you a
    > signal; please DO NOT play my hand for
    > me."

    > And, you never just sit there and watch the
    > scenario play out. You stop the play before
    > it's too late.

    > Every time I have A,7 v. 9->Ace, I inch
    > my hand out closer to the cards, to be ready
    > to give the hit signal, the moment the
    > dealer reaches my hand.

    > Don

  11. #11
    Titaniumman
    Guest

    Titaniumman: That's great advice.

    Several years ago, I was playing in the smaller casino at Caesars Palace. I was only a basic strategy player at the time, and was playing $50/hand on first base at a full 6 deck table. The dealer was fast, and automatically playing obvious hands for the players. She was playing correct b.s. so far, so I didn't complain.

    I had a hard total of 15, and she had a seven showing. Before I could signal to hit, she tossed a six on the next player! Of course, I immediately spoke up, and the dealer called over the pit boss.

    I explained the situation, and made sure to state that basic strategy called for a hit. Everyone at the table told the pit boss that I was not given time to signal my hand. I expected the dealer to concede, but she said snidely, "He's only complaining because the card is a six."

    The pit boss said that the best she could do was to let me back out of the hand.

    I gathered up my chips, refused to color up, and stalked out in a huff. The one consolation was that I walked out to the bigger casino area, and proceeded to have my biggest winning session ever.

    I no longer allow any dealer to assume any decision for me.

  12. #12
    Norm Wattenberger
    Guest

    Norm Wattenberger: Oddly

    I think all of the posts above are great even though contradictory in places. Personally, I like it when a good dealer starts playing for me in heads-up play as you can reach an incredible speed. Sometimes the dealer can also begin to feel he is a partner. After all he is playing most of the hands. In one case playing DD (rare for me) at the usually tight Mir*ge, I played with a dealer that played for me and knew how to count. He asked me if I was counting. I told him that I once dabbled with counting and found it too boring, but had some idea when the count was up. He began increasing penetration when the count was high.

    Clearly, there is a danger of a dealer playing incorrectly in an odd situation. What I've done is to raise my hand to stop him and then make a signal or DD bet. This is more obvious and faster than reaching for chips. Plus, when you reach for chips, your head dips and this can be taken as a sign that you've given up interest in the hand. When the count is high, you must be ready to this immediately. I'll also do this on occasion to test the dealer on an obvious play.

  13. #13
    Don Schlesinger
    Guest

    Don Schlesinger: Re: That's great advice.

    Your point provides the answer that I was prepared to give to MathProf.

    Dealers rarely "play your hand for you" by hitting a hand that you might want to stand on. On the contrary, they often "pass you by" by playing your hand for you by standing on a hand that, in fact, you might want to hit (case in point, above).

    I am suggesting that you avoid such situations by ALWAYS giving a signal and by never permitting the dealer to simply pass you buy without your stand signal. That way, you are less likely to have her do what she did to you. Because, as Prof fails to realize, there are two sides to the story: it's great with 16 v. 10 when you get the deuce, but when it's 15 v. 7 and she passes you by, you do NOT have the right to the 6. They won't back up the cards.

    I respect your opinion, Prof, but I'll continue to do it my way. I don't EVER let the dealer play my hand for me -- ever. And the first time he/she does it, I politely tell him/her, "please don't make my decisions for me or assume what I'm going to do." They never do it again.

    Don

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