Gaining the Edge Without Counting

[devbanana]

Hello,
I have been getting better at Blackjack. I have memorized the basic strategy, and generally do very well at it.
However, I am visually impaired. I have no vision at all, so seeing the cards is out of the question. The dealer will tell me what cards I get, and what his/her top card is, as well as the hole card afterwards obviously. However, I can't know the cards the other players have.
I'd like to find ways to put the edge in my favor. I know it might not be as great as if I were to do traditional card counting, but are there other techniques? I could count my own and the dealer's cards, but much of the big picture would be missing, so not sure how much of an advantage this would give.
I found a book, “Beat Blackjack Without Counting Cards: A Winning No Count Method” by Joshua Simon. It has mixed reviews, and I've not read it yet. Anyone hear of this book?
Any other advice or suggestions would be appreciated.

[Nyne]

The only way that's going work is if you can play heads up. Any cards you miss effectively reduce the penetration, which will make the game unbeatable with other players, for all practical purposes. You'll also want to use an unbalanced count so you don't have to estimate cards remaining and convert to a true count. Otherwise, you're best bet is to hunt for promotions that give an edge off the top, which may or may not be practical, depending on where you play.

[Math Demon]

Hello... I am visually impaired. I have no vision at all, so seeing the cards is out of the question.

The only way that's going work is if you can play heads up. Any cards you miss effectively reduce the penetration, which will make the game unbeatable with other players, for all practical purposes. You'll also want to use an unbalanced count so you don't have to estimate cards remaining and convert to a true count. Otherwise, you're best bet is to hunt for promotions that give an edge off the top, which may or may not be practical, depending on where you play.

Nyne, your insights never ceases to amaze! Three very good tips right there.


devbanana, I wish you the best of luck! If you can handle KO or REKO, you can have decent enough advantage. You will also have the perfect "camouflage".

[devbanana]

Nyne, your insights never ceases to amaze! Three very good tips right there.


devbanana, I wish you the best of luck! If you can handle KO or REKO, you can have decent enough advantage. You will also have the perfect "camouflage".

I've read about REKO. Do you think this would work for me?
Thanks for everyone's suggestions.

[Zach Black]

I observed a visually impaired person play with an assistant during a small tournament. The assistant would verbally tell the player, the other player's bet sizes, chip stack, and hand's. After the tournament they continued in the same manner in the cash game, with the assistant announcing every player's initial hand and hit cards as the hands were played.

I you find a willing assistant, an unbalanced count like REKO could be used even with a few other players.

[Three]

If the casino took action against the player with assistant they could face a lawsuit and serious PR problems under the disabilities act. I doubt they would ever back you off.

[Norm]

There have been several blind tournament players, one that was quite successful years back. Other players' cards are of utmost importance in tournys.

[AnzaExo]

If the casino took action against the player with assistant they could face a lawsuit and serious PR problems under the disabilities act. I doubt they would ever back you off.

That's a pretty interesting point, they would receive a lot of aggro if they did that.

[21forme]

If the casino took action against the player with assistant they could face a lawsuit and serious PR problems under the disabilities act. I doubt they would ever back you off.

In the same way lawsuits against Harrahs has stopped security from abusing patrons?

[Zach Black]

For the OP;

The first sentence of the book "Beat Blackjack Without Counting Cards: A Winning No Count Method” by Joshua Simon mentions positive progressions. Positive progressions or martingale's do not work.

The second paragraph tells how the author verified his method with "thousands of hands on the kitchen table". This is statistically insignificant. Any result can occur over a few thousand hands. Most blackjack simulations use 200+ million hands for any kind of accurate result.

The table of contents list chapters on "Lockwin" and "Lady Luck and your Intuition", both voodoo.

The bottom line ...this book isn't worth 99 cents on kindle. It's a joke.

[Jabberwocky]

For the OP;

Positive progressions or martingale's do not work.

I'm not sure about that statement. In "Thirteen Against the Bank", Norman Leigh proved a lot of people wrong so much so that the gendarmes were summoned resulting in his barring from all casino properties in the South of France. I agree that Martingale doesn't work because mathematically it is a bad system. Don Juan played it into oblivion.

[devbanana]

I observed a visually impaired person play with an assistant during a small tournament. The assistant would verbally tell the player, the other player's bet sizes, chip stack, and hand's. After the tournament they continued in the same manner in the cash game, with the assistant announcing every player's initial hand and hit cards as the hands were played.

I you find a willing assistant, an unbalanced count like REKO could be used even with a few other players.

Thanks. I wasn't sure if this would be allowed.

[Dieter]

I think you'll have a reasonable case for an assistant. Other players at the table are allowed to see every card dealt; they shouldn't deny you the same opportunity.

I know that one gentleman was playing next to me and had trouble seeing the cards. He was straight basic strategy, not apparently a counter. Dealer & floor had no problem with me announcing his cards to him, dealer's upcard, and the hit cards. They did have problems with that on the handheld games, but not on the face-up shoe games.

So long as the house rules don't say that you can't seek advice from any non-player, there shouldn't be a problem. Tribal casinos may not be required to make ADA accommodations, so you may have better luck at "real" casinos... however I expect that many tribal casinos will attempt to accommodate you.