At first, I thought I would add this to the "Perceived Spread" thread but decided to start one. Maybe a few will advise and the rest will try a bit harder to stay off this thread.

So far, I have mostly relied on an "act" to try to get away with optimal betting but often its not enough. I am looking for ways to conceal card counting with bet amounts. For example, you walk in to a casino, the act (drunk or old sorry bettor etc.) does not seem to have an effect on the pit guy who then checks in often or watches your play. In some casinos, he walks over to the monitor and seems to be watching the table via technology. In any case, how can one come close to optimal betting without making it too obvious?

I have sometimes started with double the minimal bet and then dropped it to minimum if the count drops. The tougher issue is when count is rising. For example, TC 2 calls for a $100 bet, but do I vary the bet at that count, maybe $75 or $125. After all the pit is watching. The problem sometimes happens when you sit down and the count remains neutral or negative the entire shoe and you play a minimum bet ($25) and the next one, the count keeps going up, calling for $100+ bets to max bet.

Earlier in my short career, I used to raise bets lock step with the count. I am still trying to figure out how that can be varied. Advice?