New Player Struggling

[Notsure]

Hello everyone. This is my first post and first time on this forum.

I started playing Blackjack again a little more seriously just recently. I learned Basic Strategy and started practicing then went to a few Casinos the past few months. I blew a bunch of money last time I went so I decided I would learn how to count and not have that happen anymore ha

I watched a few videos online, read the "World's Greatest Blackjack Book" by Humble and Cooper, and have been practicing on the Burntcard Blackjack app on my Surface. I adopted the Hi Opt I strategy and haven't gotten to the point where i can do an Ace side count or anything else.

I've been getting pretty good at counting, but needless to say it is not working, atleast on the program I'm using. I even tried to test out my method on real cards dealing out to myself but I am still losing betting units left and right. I have been consistently losing money on this app I have regardless of the number of hands played. I even decided to cheat and write down my count and use the advanced techniques of varying my basic strategy based on the count using the charts and I'm still losing money.

I'm just wondering if I'm doing anything wrong, if there are common rookie mistakes or if some of these computer programs are unreliable as far as their randomization. I'm hoping there is a flaw in the program I'm using or my dealing abilities and not a flaw in my counting method.

I guess it's hard to get input if no one can see what I'm doing wrong but I def wanna learn how to get this right, especially before I go to the real casino.

Also, do you have any suggestions as to which website or app to get purely for fair practice or any other way to practice to see if my method is working or not?

Thanks.

[ZenMaster_Flash]

Hi-Opt I was designed as a stepping stone to a COMPLETE count
wherein the player Side-Counts Aces, 7's, 8's ,9's. It is not nearly
as strong as the Gordon Count that moves the Low Cards to the
2 - 5 grouping.

In any case, Hi-Opt I, used as usual, is a VERY weak count.

Note that Hi-Opt II is a VERY powerful.

[Freightman]

Hi-Opt I was designed as a stepping stone to a COMPLETE count
wherein the player Side-Counts Aces, 7's, 8's ,9's. It is not nearly
as strong as the Gordon Count that moves the Low Cards to the
2 - 5 grouping.

In any case, Hi-Opt I, used as usual, is a VERY weak count.

Note that Hi-Opt II is a VERY powerful.

Flash, if he's not side counting at hi opt 1, he's certainly not going to sidecount at hi opt 2. He's a rookie.

Not sure, hi opt 2 properly used is very powerful. If you're not comfortable with sudecountsudecount, and it appears that you are not, there are other simpler counts that will get the money, though at a slower rate.

[Freightman]

You'll get a few responses all over the nap. Just a brief comment from me since I'm a tad busy.

Hi Opt 1 is a pretty good count, provided you use an Ace Sude Count. Without the sidecount, it's pretty weak. Either perfect the ASC, or switch counts.

Switch to what is the question. Are you playing shoe or pitch. Hi opt 1 is better than hi Lo, however, if you're not sude counting aces, hi Lo is a lot better. There are lots of counts out there.

[ZenMaster_Flash]

AmericanEnglish,1858,originally"freebooter,guerrilla,Kansasirregular" (especiallyonewhocamefromtheNorth).

[Zach Black]

Casino practice can be expensive. I'd recommend using the CVBJ practice software by the owner of this site at qfit.com. It's the best available.

Unless you live in Reno, the hi opt 1 without the ace side count is not a good choice for a count (assuming your local casinos offer mostly 6 Deck) If you add the ace side count it's a decent choice for single and double deck games.

Learning to count is not going to eliminate losing sessions. If you read through the archives you will see stories of veteran players that have losing streaks that go on for months. Having a large enough bankroll and the nerves to ride out these rough patches is part of the game.

Using a simulator like CVCX will give you the ability to determine what the optimal bets are for each count based on the game, your bankroll, and the level of risk that you're comfortable with.

I'd suggest further reading starting with the free book here; https://qfit.com/book/index.htm

[Romes]

If you're at the point where you can't side count then one of two things needs to happen:
1) You must practice more in order to be able to side count proficiently.
2) You must use a count that doesn't require a side count.

Since you're a newbie and just starting out, I always recommend Hi/Low, but it's honestly to each their own. The right count for you is the count you can perform proficiently and with zero mistakes. Play around with a few others and see what feels right/easiest for you.

Also, on your losing... There have indeed been people who practice with software and just have a bad run. Blackjack is a constant barrage of winning and losing. Learning to count cards will not drastically improve your win rate. You will in fact still lose more hands than win, but the key is identifying the advantageous hands so you can bet more and win more money on those, thus win money overall. It's quite possible that even when 'cheating' and writing the count down that you have a bad run and could lose. The best graphs I've seen representing a years worth of data have what "looks like" WIN/LOSS/WIN/LOSS/WIN/LOSS/etc... There have been pros (including myself) that have lost for MONTHS. The game can be quite frustrating, but so long as you are counting and playing correctly (most important) then you must trust the math. This is just discussing the "counting" aspect of counting, and not Bankroll, RoR, etc, etc, etc... Which I hope you're aware of.

[Notsure]

Thankyou for the replies. That makes sense my method isn't effective without the Ace Side Count. I guess the Ace count is essential when counting.

I'm using Hi Opt I because I want to build on the method and do this regularly. I feel like with practice I can master it with the Ace side count and then start memorizing the charts that alter your basic strategy depending on the count.

My near term goal however is to master Hi Opt I with the Ace side count before I start going into the casino. I'll be honest, I've been practicing for a week and it's hard enough to remember my count without having to worry about the Aces so it will definitely take alot more work.

Thanks for the tip about Hi Opt II. I'll consider that when I get a little more proficient.

[Notsure]

And Sweaty, yes I'm pretty comfortable converting the running count into true count. My main issue is just flat out remembering the count from hand to hand. This makes it exponentially harder for me to do a side count.

And thx for the suggestions about CVBJ. It looks a little expensive though! I found it for $90 on one site but I will consider it.

[Sweaty]

And thx for the suggestions about CVBJ. It looks a little expensive though! I found it for $90 on one site but I will consider it.

Depending on your stake, it could cost you a few hours of EV, but well worth the peace of mind.

I'm sure Norm(forum owner/software creator) would never advocate a poll, but I assume a large majority of serious players on this board use or have used this software.

If you're struggling to keep the count, maybe try visualizing it in your head. Some people picture the number itself, for me it's almost like a linear scale. 0 being the center and each RC being a "notch" in each direction, although I don't conciously do this anymore.

[Romes]

Another thing for remembering the count many do (including myself) is to use another language for negative numbers. This drastically reduce "flipping the sign" when it's -3 and you forget, then you go "oh yeah, 3..." and take it as +3.

[ZenMaster_Flash]

For Side-Counting Aces, append the corresponding
letter of the alphabet to your Running Count.

A = 1, B = 2, X = 24

[Frank Galvin]

For Side-Counting Aces, append the corresponding
letter of the alphabet to your Running Count.

A = 1, B = 2, X = 24

You know that there are 4 Aces per deck. When I first started practicing side counting Aces, I kept losing track of them. Ultimately I found posts about using letters on various forum. So to simplify it, I decided to practice using the 4th Ace per deck to track how many Aces had been dealt, and ultimately, after I got used to that, I found that I knew what the letters were for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Aces of each deck dealt.

So, when I first practiced side counting Aces, I knew:

D 4th Ace (1 Deck - Eventually memorized A, B, C, D)
H 8th Ace (2 Decks - Eventually memorized E, F, G, H)
L 12th Ace (3 Decks - Eventually memorized I, J, K, L)

DHL - DHL is part of the world’s leading postal and logistics company Deutsche Post DHL Group. A global competitor to FedEx or UPS.

P 16th Ace (4 Decks - Eventually memorized M, N, O, P)
T 20th Ace (5 Decks - Eventually memorized Q, R, S, T)
X 24th Ace (6 Decks - Eventually memorized U, V, W, X)

PTX - I could not come up with an acronym with all three (3) letters for decks 4 through 6, but I could remember PTL. I bastardized my letter-association method for that 6th deck's Ace, as I just simply taught myself to remember that the 24th Ace was something other than L, four more than T, starting with U, then V, then W, and finally X.

Do whatever works for you (IF ANYTHING DOES).

We all have our own methods that we eventually develop that work for us. If you want to do something, like learn how to side count Aces, you will!!! It just takes commitment.

Nike had it right: JUST DO IT!

These last two only come into play if you are playing 8 deck games.

28th Ace - AB (7 decks)
32nd Ace - AF (8 decks)

After it finally became as simple to side count Aces, as +1 or -1 for the Hi Lo method (actually started side counting to using AO II), ultimately, I was able to just track Aces using a running number count (1, 2, 3....).