Beginner off to vegas - "recreational card counting"

[mofungoo]

Anthony Curtis' Las Vegas Advisor website has info on promos and bargains.

[AP2win]

KJ, you're correct about the Riviera's win chip promo. It's $30 for $20. They say that players can use it once a year but the last time I asked they were vague about just what that meant. (Once per calendar year starting 1/1 or once every 365 days. ??)

[Nyne]

I know I'm too late to help the OP for this trip, but another great book to pick up for someone who is going to Vegas and isn't quite ready for full blown counting is Comp City. It will tell you how to maximize the value of your comps by losing much less than the casino assumes you will lose. You'll still be losing money if you aren't counting, but it can help you get more value for your gaming dollar. Some may say it's outdated, and the exact dollar figures listed for each level of benefits may not be accurate, but the general principles are still solid.

[boatman]

UPDATE

Thanks guys i've read all your posts.

Ok so I'm back from Vegas now. It was a very interesting time. Here's a couple observations:

I bought a strategy card in the gift shop when we first arrived. That stayed with me the whole trip. Everyone was making fun of me for pullin a strategy card out at the table but I was having fun with it. And several people asked me to borrow it at various times. hah.

I spent a bunch of time playing hi-lo on the website before the trip. And when we got there, the cards were going way to fast for me to concentrate. But later in the morning (5am) there weren't many people there so I just watched my friend play and counted and told him when to play big. (Wonging I guess it's called...) I think I was counting right. And, we had a couple big payouts. But a lot of big losses too. We were playing a 6 deck game that time.

I tried Hi-Lo again the next day - on a 2 deck game. Didn't have any luck there either though. So I hear the variance is quite high even in professional card counting so i'm assuming on this trip, i was definitely on the low side of lady luck. Though i'm sure I made several counting errors anyway.

Either way, there of course wasnt a profit motive on this trip. And talking about strategy and counting did make the game more fun. Though I did probably loose 800 bucks. oh well.

The biggest observation I had was how "social" the game of blackjack seems to be. A LOT of people seem to approach the game as more of a "bar room social event" -- like beer pong. e.g. bellying up to the blackjack table and drinking and talking crap while playing the game. Also people tend to do A LOT of flirting while playing the game. It's curious how fast people tend to start socializing with each other at a blackjack table. Conversations spring up pretty naturally. You end up meeting A LOT of characters. (Not to mention the fact that the drinks are free so...) I can definitely see how you'd have to "put a different hat on" if you were trying to win vs. if you were trying to have fun. For many people, blackjack seems to be mostly just a pretense to sit and talk and drink and flirt with the dealer. The game itself is secondary.

Anyway, in conclusion, it was a lot of fun. And, I have a bit of a blackjack bug now. The lure of being able to drive to Vegas and walk away with 10k (whilst people behind you are cheering you on) is definitely intoxicating. It's almost like a drug. I can definitely see why some people develop a gambling addiction. But of course, I understand that that's not realistic. But oh well. Even if I lost 800 bucks, I still could pretend like I was rainman for a couple days and that was interesting. Haha!

So i'll keep practicing on the blackjack app and maybe next time I go it'll be more profitable. As a side note, for those who want to go out and hit more than 2 nightclubs in vegas, the club crawl packages from Groupon are a great deal. Not only do they drive you to the 3 clubs, but they also give you drinks before and in the bus. And of course you don't wait in line nor pay cover. So that one was a no brainer.

Thanks everyone! Any other thoughts much appreciated!

[Hsiaodi]

There is a huge knowledge gap in your story. I think you need to recognize without that you are gambling albeit you may lose less. But in the the long term you are depending on luck.

Goals for a recreational player is different than professional player. When you win that 10k without proper bank roll you're lucky rather than skillful. End result maybe the same, but approach is not. That separates APs from others.

[Three]

I spent a bunch of time playing hi-lo on the website before the trip. And when we got there, the cards were going way to fast for me to concentrate.

As a player you control the pace of the game. Just take a while to make a decision. Keeping your signaling hand occupied doing something else can buy you a time without looking odd. If they don't wait for your signal call the Floor over. You should get an option to back out of the hand and keep your money. That is a dealer mistake and dealers get in trouble for mistakes as it costs the casino money. After a call or 2 to the Floorman the dealer will wait for you. A big part of being an AP is controlling the table. Lesson number 2 from your first outing.