zero proximity blackjack

Z e r o P r o x i m i t y B l a c k j a c k

Zero Proximity Blackjack

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The most effective method to locate maximum basic strategy hit rate and maximum dealer break rate!

Keith E. Smith [email protected]

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Prolog hink about the last Blackjack game you lost. Did you lose it because of poor card play? Or did you lose it because you were simply in the wrong game at the wrong time? I'll bet it was the latter, wasn’t it? In my quarter century of Blackjack the

vast majority of games I saw players lose, had little to do with card play and everything to do with being in the wrong game at the wrong time. The purpose of this manual is to correct that player skill deficit right now by putting you in the right game at the right time. This manual is devoted to cutting your losing games in half at the very least. This manual is devoted to the success of all Blackjack Players from Beginners to Professionals. Even the best players in the world can vastly benefit by deploying the

tactics revealed here.

Contents Zero Proximity ................................................................................................................................. 6

The card counting paradox: ............................................................................................................. 6

The highest counts reside in the worst shoes ................................................................................. 6

Which games are the BEST games to play? ..................................................................................... 7

Dealer break rate: ............................................................................................................................ 7

When do we find the most winning tables? ................................................................................... 8

When do we find the least winning tables ...................................................................................... 8

But I can only play Saturday nights! ................................................................................................ 8

How to play Zero Proximity: ............................................................................................................ 8

A word on single deck ..................................................................................................................... 9

How to improve on Basic Strategy .................................................................................................. 9

Which Table position is best for ZZeerroo PPrrooxxiimmiittyy? ............................................................................ 9

The cardinal sin ‐ Negative Progressions! ..................................................................................... 10

Why Third Base? ............................................................................................................................ 10

NEVER PLAY a seven player game! ................................................................................................ 10

How Much Can I Improve? ............................................................................................................ 11

How can I improve at high count range tables? ............................................................................ 11

The First Base Trick! ...................................................................................................................... 12

How effective is it? .................................................................................................................... 13

Reading the dealer hole card trick! ............................................................................................... 13

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The Insurance trick! ....................................................................................................................... 14

How effective is it? .................................................................................................................... 14

Short cut card counting: ................................................................................................................ 15

The Purpose of Card Counting: ..................................................................................................... 16

Why I prefer the short cut counting version ................................................................................. 16

How to become a TOP card counter ............................................................................................. 17

When are you casino ready ........................................................................................................... 17

The best time to count .................................................................................................................. 17

Why this section was written ........................................................................................................ 18

Answer ‐ Sitting down to the wrong game ................................................................................ 18

Blackjack Rule # 1 .......................................................................................................................... 18

Never play a losing game! ......................................................................................................... 18

Correct any errors in judgment as early as possible ..................................................................... 19

The problem with ego ............................................................................................................... 19

Avoid the ego trap ..................................................................................................................... 19

Blackjack Rule # 2 .......................................................................................................................... 20

Always satisfy rule # 1 ............................................................................................................... 20

The First Challenge ........................................................................................................................ 20

Blackjack Revelation # 2 ................................................................................................................ 20

The fewer players per table, the better the player conditions! ................................................ 20

Why Preserve Clumping? .............................................................................................................. 21

Why Clumping Controls Dealer Breaking: ..................................................................................... 21

How To Defeat The First Challenge ............................................................................................... 21

The Best Way to Plan Your Trip ................................................................................................. 21

Pay attention To Comp Mail ...................................................................................................... 21

Personal Tips.............................................................................................................................. 22

One last point ............................................................................................................................ 22


You can't beat a seven player game .......................................................................................... 22

The Second Challenge ................................................................................................................... 22

Avoid the casino when they are least vulnerable! .................................................................... 22

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Put yourself In the Shoes of the Casino Manager ............................................................ 22

How To Defeat The Second Challenge .......................................................................................... 23

The Casino Manager's Last Resort ............................................................................................. 23

The Creation of Our Windows of Opportunity ................................................................. 23

Blackjack Revelation #4 ................................................................................................................. 24

Windows of opportunity are inevitable! ................................................................................... 24

What Constitutes a Window of Opportunity .................................................................... 24

How Do We Know When a Window of Opportunity Exists .............................................. 24

Table Denominations ........................................................................................................ 24

The $25 Window of Opportunity ...................................................................................... 24

Blackjack Revelation #5 ................................................................................................................. 25

$25 tables are often cheaper than $10 & $15 tables ................................................................ 25

The Third Challenge ....................................................................................................................... 25

Find the best game in the casino! ............................................................................................. 25

What to look For to Find the Best Games ................................................................................. 25

Finding Winnable Basic Strategy Games .......................................................................... 25

How do we know players are winning? ............................................................................ 25

Important: Retain All of Your Learning Levels ........................................................................... 26


Winnable games are not winnable unless the player correctly matches his playing strategy to

the game type at hand .............................................................................................................. 26

Finding Winnable First Base Games .............................................................................................. 26

Identifying The First Base Window of Opportunity: ......................................................... 26

First Priority of First Base: Get the Seat! .......................................................................... 26

We do not bet blind .......................................................................................................... 26

When First Base Isn't Open ............................................................................................... 27

What to Look for at First Base: ......................................................................................... 27

Technically Speaking: ........................................................................................................ 27

Important Note: Aces! ...................................................................................................... 27

How to count .................................................................................................................... 27

What the count means ..................................................................................................... 27

Don' let the technical stuff scare you ............................................................................... 27

Identifying Zero Proximity Games .................................................................................... 28

Avoiding Unplayable Games: Over‐clumped Games ........................................................ 28


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Do not sit down to games where the dealer is breaking less than one out of four hands ....... 28

Dealer Biased Games: ................................................................................................................ 28

1.) Dealer biased hands: ................................................................................................... 28

2.) Too many dealer ten ups: ............................................................................................ 29

3.) Low dealer breaking: ................................................................................................... 29

The best game in the casino!..................................................................................................... 29

How To Play Dealer Breaking Games: ....................................................................................... 29

The Fourth Challenge .................................................................................................................... 30

Capture the best position in the game! .................................................................................... 30

Best Position for First Base Games: .................................................................................. 30

Best Betting Strategy For First Base Games ...................................................................... 30

Best Card Play Strategy for First Base Games ................................................................... 30

Best Position for Head to Head Games: ........................................................................... 30

Best Betting Strategy for Head to Head Games: .............................................................. 30

Best Position for Basic Strategy Games ............................................................................ 30

Best Betting Strategy for Basic Strategy Games ............................................................... 30

The Object of Our Third Base Betting Style: ..................................................................... 31

Best Card Play Strategy for Basic Strategy Games ............................................................ 31

How do we KNOW a Game is Random ............................................................................. 31

Why Card Counters Miss Out on the Best Games in the Casino ...................................... 31

How to Play Double Shoe Shuffle Machines ..................................................................... 31

How to Play Continuous Play Shuffle Machines ............................................................... 32

Why We Love Continuous Shuffle Machines .................................................................... 32

Your Final Challenge ...................................................................................................................... 32

Correct any mistakes immediately When Things Go Wrong ..................................................... 32

Example of What Not To Do ............................................................................................. 32

Mistakes Are Inevitable But Fix Them Immediately ......................................................... 33

Your best bet: New cards .................................................................................................. 33

Postscript: ...................................................................................................................................... 33

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Copyright 2011 Keith E. Smith

Zero Proximity is for the accomplished Blackjack card counter and beginner alike. But for those interested in this advanced technology, a short review of traditional card counting will be presented.

The card counting paradox:

First recognize that Basic Strategy is designed assuming RANDOM cards. For our purposes here, we can define random as an equal chance of highs and lows in the upcoming cards.

Therefore Basic Strategy attains its highest hit rate in the lowest count range shoes. Count range is the highest + (plus) count of a shoe added to

the lowest – (minus) count of a shoe. The Count Range Concept: For instance a shoe with a highest count of +10 and a lowest count of ‐10 has a count range of 20. On average, a shoe with a count range of 14 will have a better Basic Strategy hit rate than a shoe with a count range of 28. The lower the count range the better the B.S. hit rate. It is imperative that you understand that and agree with that concept before we can proceed. Therein lies the card counting paradox:

The highest counts reside in the worst shoes! Count Range Consistency:

Now, there is one more factor I would like you to grasp about the concept of count range before we continue: Count range tends to be consistent from shoe to shoe. Count range survives shuffles. Not precisely mind you but a high count range tends to stay high (and therefore bad) from a Basic Strategy hit rate point of view. A low count range tends to stay low but it also tends to slowly climb in direct proportion to the number of players in the game. Therefore the best games are the lowest count range games with the fewest players.

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One of the selling features of card counting is that you can play any game from any position. That is a nice and highly marketable feature but I’m not there for convenience. I’m there for one purpose and one purpose only ‐ to win, no matter how inconvenient this may be. What happens if we abandon the convenience factor and only play the games we can easily beat? I’ve been there and done that so I can tell you, first hand, what happens. Your overall win rate goes up and it goes up dramatically. The price, a little inconvenience. All we need do is identify good games and ONLY play those games.

Which games are the BEST games to play?

Easy! The games with the lowest count range. Why?

Basic Strategy attains the highest hit rate. The dealer attains the highest break rate ‐ very close to 28% or even higher.

Dealer break rate: Recognize that the dealer cannot break on all highs or all lows. In all lows the dealer can only break if she is unlucky enough to arrive at 16 and draw a 6. How many unlucky dealers do you know? In all highs the dealer can’t break at all because she never hits except on a pair of Aces. And the dealer usually makes a good hand out of a pair of aces. Therefore the greater the count range the less the dealer breaks, adding even more to

the card counting paradox. How do we identify the best tables? We can do this from the isle.

The players tend to be winning.

Highs and lows are coming out of the dealer shoe about equally.

The dealer is breaking better than one out of four.

Dealer breaks in a row.

No miraculous dealer 6 or 7 card hands.

20’s win!

Normal color on the table ‐ mixed.

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Players are not holding their chips in their hands.

Big chip piles in front of the players.

A sparse dealer chip tray.

A boisterous table.

Happy campers!

When do we find the most winning tables?

When the casino is least crowded.

New cards.

Weekday mornings and afternoons.

The tables with the least play since new cards.

When do we find the least winning tables?

Saturday nights!

But I can only play Saturday nights! Forget it, you’ll lose. Look, I’m interested in serious but open minded players…players who recognize that they are not yet playing the best way possible. Those players who know their win loss rate and are striving to improve it. I don’t make the conditions. But I know how best to

play the conditions we all face. And I have the play record to prove it.

How to play Zero Proximity: We know now that the best games are the games with the lowest count range. Let’s quantify that. I have found that the dividing line is about 3 times the number of decks. This means that Basic strategy

wins when the count range is:

2 deck = 6 or less

4 deck = 12 or less

6 deck = 18 or less

8 deck = 24 or less Pure Basic Strategy will usually beat games within those count ranges or slightly higher

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but the lower the count range the better Basic Strategy will perform and the higher the count range the worse Basic Strategy will perform. Remember, count range is NOT maximum count. It is the range between the highest and lowest count.

A word on single deck. The same is true, the lower the count range the better but expect fewer hands and more shuffles and more new cards.

How to improve on Basic Strategy: Play the direction of the count, not the count!

One of the advantages of only playing close proximity games is it is easier to predict count direction. For instance if a count is only attaining a max count of about +6, +6 becomes a valid signal doesn’t it. Whether the next round stays at +6 or goes toward zero we have a good chance of winning. Now, let’s improve on Basic Strategy: We know Basic strategy hits best when the count is stagnant or going down. Fine but we can ALSO predict when the count is going UP. We know that an up count round is dealer favorable. Therefore we know its dealer strategy favorable. THEREFORE favor Basic strategy when you predict a down count and Dealer Strategy when you predict an up count.

Here is another way to look at it:

Basic Strategy gives up in low cards. The dealer CAN’T break in low cards. Don’t stand and bet the dealer will break right when she is least likely to break. Play the same way the dealer is beating you with. Hit! Give her a run for her money. If she can’t break, neither can you. Hit in up counts. Stand in down counts. Go after the highest hit rate

you can get. Practice makes perfect!

Which Table position is best for ZZeerroo PPrrooxxiimmiittyy? In a word, third base. You’ll see why in a moment.

Recognize that when we count cards what we are really doing is predicting count direction. We don’t win at a certain count. We win when the count is going down regardless what count it is going down from or whether that count was plus or minus.

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The cardinal sin Negative Progressions! Counting gurus tell us to never bet a negative progression. And they are absolutely right. Traditional Basic Strategy has a hit rate of 43%. You can’t afford a negative progression with a 43% hit rate. Forget it! But you CAN with a 50% hit rate from third base and I’m trying to get you to 52%. But even at 50% negative progressions make good sense once you’ve verified a low count range.

Why Third Base? Because at third base YOUR initial cards are MOST like the dealer’s. She gets both of her cards right after each of your cards. You tend to split wins evenly with the dealer. That is exactly the criteria you need for Negative progressions. Playing negative progressions safely:

NEVER go more than 3 bets. Start shallow like 1 ‐ 1 ‐ 2 then if all goes well graduate to 1 ‐ 2 ‐ 3 quickly. Then 1 ‐ 3 ‐ 4 and if all is still going well 1 ‐ 4 ‐ 6 but NEVER higher. Why 1 – 4 ‐ 6? Because that is the progression you can afford to lose the most and still win the game. BUT ONLY from third and ONLY in proven low count range (random) games. But don’t waste time. Good games don’t stay good forever. Head to head is best! WHY?

Because good head to head games tend to stay good the longest. WHY? Because head to head games can’t clump the cards. The cards are picked up the same way in the same order whether you broke or not. Take a 7 player game by contrast. The dealer picks up the mostly low break cards in one big clump. Then the mostly high stand cards in a second big clump. That is what causes clumping and clumping destroys Basic Strategy.

NEVER PLAY a seven player game! In fact I never play with more than 4 players plus the dealer and I play mostly head to head whenever possible. The more players in the game the shorter the life of a good

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game. That’s another good reason to avoid Saturday nights. Likewise: Never play a losing game! They never get better, only worse! The longer a game is played the more it clumps and the more it clumps the lower your BS hit rate. Review:

Play only the lowest count range tables.

Favor Basic Strategy in down counts.

Favor Dealer Strategy in up counts.

Play third base.

Play head to head if possible but

Avoid more than 4 players.

How Much Can I Improve? After recording tons of empirical data I can tell you that the best traditional Basic Strategy counters have a 43% hands won rate on their best days. I’m at 52% and have been there for many years. With practice you can get there too. 52% IS attainable. Think about it. How many shoes can you win with a 43% hit rate? The difference is Huge! Play to win.

How can I improve at high count range tables? Three ways:

The First Base trick

The Dealer Hole Card trick

The Insurance trick Now mind you, these tricks I am about to reveal are for high count ranges only. They are a way to make the most out of clumped cards. First let’s dispel the rumor that there is no such thing as clumping. This is ridiculous!

When you count, you are counting clumping. The count range is a precise measurement of clumping. The higher the count range the more the cards are clumped. The more the cards are clumped the less Basic Strategy hits. But there are ways to improve your lot. Exciting ways!

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The First Base Trick! OK, the cards are clumped so you are playing First Base. You do not

play a negative progression. You play Advantage Betting with a low bet and a high bet. I use 1 to 2. I’ve even been successful with 1 to 1.5 which I often use in A.C. $50 games. Now, like everybody else, you want to know where the tens are. Great, you are in the best seat at the table to predict your first card tens. Why is this important? Because when you get a first card ten your odds of winning the hand at that point jump to 74% so it pays to know when you are most likely to receive a first card ten. That’s when you play your high bet. The rest of the time you play your low bet. If I am predicting my first card tens very well at a table I sometimes play a progression on my high bets only and only when I’m quite confident of a first card ten. In other words, if I lose a high bet I wait until the next high bet occasion and bet more, usually a 1 – 2 ‐ 3. BUT only in the BEST first base games. Now, when are you most likely to get a first card ten? And here’s the trick. When the last 3 cards dealt in the prior round favored high. Just be sure you note the last 3 cards. Pay attention because they can fall most anywhere. In this case the 4th position players 2nd card the third base players 2nd card and the dealer’s hole card.

Don’t go by just the last card because it might be what we call a lone ten. But the more the cards are clumped the higher your first card ten prediction rate. Is it legal? Of course. It just seems like cheating.

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How effective is it? Well twice now, both times at the Taj. I’ve won $10,000 in a half hour W/O ever betting more than $200. No progression. Just a $100 low bet and a $200 high bet. Both times in front of large audiences. Did you ever do that? Well, now you CAN! But again, practice makes perfect. Remember, only do this in high count range and therefore highly clumped games. A word to the wise…..

Reading the dealer hole card trick! Of course this is highly advantageous and ridiculously simple. Again, only in highly clumped games. In the United States Blackjack, the dealer hole card is the card dealt immediately after the third base player’s second card. The first hit card dealt is the card immediately after the dealer’s hole card. When both of the read cards are high or they are both low, you pretty much know whether the dealer’s hole card is high or low. Do you think that could be an advantage?

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The Insurance trick!

Yep, every BJ book ever written, except mine, tell you never insure. Nonsense! In highly clumped cards you can easily achieve a 50% insurance hit rate and the bet pays 2 to 1! Some days the cards were so clumped Insurance was the only thing that kept my head above water. I’ve even been known to insure the whole table and I nearly always win that bet.

How effective is it? Well I was once ejected from the Claridge AC for getting every insurance bet right for 5 hours straight. Every time I insured the dealer had BJ. But also every time I didn’t insure, the dealer did not have BJ. I was ejected for obvious cheating. Did I cheat? Of course not. So how did I do that? Again ridiculously simple. Again the third base player’s second card is key. Whenever it was a ten, I insured. Whenever it wasn’t, I didn’t. How hard is that? The next image would be a great time to insure your hand and anyone else’s at the table if they would let you.

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Zero Proximity Objective: To improve your hands won rate in every way possible. First, select low count range beatable tables and then deploy every trick in the book.

ZZeerroo PPrrooxxiimmiittyy is more concerned with count DIRECTION. For our purposes here, at low

count tables, my advice is play BS in down counts but favor Dealer Strategy in up counts.

This will get your hit rate as high as possible.

Short cut card counting: For non counters who want a fast way to learn, try this balanced count: I find it easier yet more accurate for our purposes.

2 3 4 5 6 7 = +1

8 9 10 10 10 10 = ‐1

Aces swing ‐1 when they follow a high card +1 when they follow a low card. I find this count more in tune with the way cards actually fall in multi deck Blackjack. It therefore aids in predictability which is the main purpose of card counting in the first place. I do not expect traditionalists to agree. But I am more concerned with what works best in conjunction with ZZeerroo PPrrooxxiimmiittyy. Recognize that aces are played either high or low. High aces tend to stay with high cards. Low aces tend to stay with low cards.

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My main concern here is that you recognize that the lower the count range the better your hit rate with Basic Strategy. Table selection pays. Now, let’s look at more table selection strategy. Let’s shoot for a 52% hit rate.

The Purpose of Card Counting: The main purpose of card counting, of course, is to predict where the tens are because tens favor the player. So a plus count means there are excess tens in the remaining cards to be dealt = Player favorable. But the most effective counters use the count for more than that. A minus count means the remaining cards are rich in low cards. The dealer breaks far less in minus counts. The higher the minus count number the less the dealer breaks. Therefore the smartest counters know that the more minus a count is the more they must favor “Dealer Strategy” ( hit to 17 or better). Why? Because when you stand with less than 17, you are betting one thing and one thing only ‐ that the dealer will break. Why would you bet the dealer will break exactly when they are LEAST likely to break??? So, in high minus counts your best bet is to hit to 17 or better. Think about it! That’s exactly how the dealer wins, isn’t it. Dealer Strategy. Give them a run for their money. This is how to win your fair share in minus counts!

Why I prefer the short cut counting version: In short, the short cut version mimics the way cards actually fall in the game. Highs, 8 to K tend to mostly stay together. Lows the same, except for twos. About half of the twos are mixed with the highs. Why? Because players seldom stand after a two hit. Nines are high cards aren’t they? They certainly aren’t neutral. If you doubled on 11 and drew a 9, would you give it back? 9’s are HIGH. They run with highs just as 8s do. Remember, the card pick up causes clumping. The dealer picks up the mostly low break cards first and places them in the discard rack in a mostly low clump. Then, she picks up the mostly high stand cards and puts them in the discard rack in a mostly high card clump. Shuffles, whether by hand or machine are not nearly sufficient to mix these clumps and often augment clumping. Don’t argue with this. Simply note how often highs follow highs and lows follow lows out of the dealer shoe. You will soon prove clumping to your own satisfaction. Why do casinos do this? Because clumping strongly favors the house. It makes the dealer break less and it weakens Basic Strategy. You don’t really believe the dealer picks up the breaks first to avoid paying a broken hand do you? Dealers just aren’t that stupid.

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They are full time professional dealers.

How to become a TOP card counter: Practice makes perfect! But, exactly how do you practice effective card counting? I can count down a deck of cards in 13 seconds flat and tell you whether the card you removed is high low or neutral. I never met a faster counter. Here is how I learned: First, keep a deck of cards with you at all times. Whenever you get a chance practice this drill. If you are right handed hold the deck face up in your right hand. Peel the cards off one at a time with your thumb into your left hand. Peel them to the top of the cards in your left hand. Left hand folks do the exact opposite. With no mistakes your count will always end at zero regardless which count you prefer. Once you become proficient try removing an unseen card and then correctly identifying it as high low or neutral. Note that with the short cut version the missing card is either high, low or Ace.

When are you casino ready? When you can count a deck in 20 seconds you can count fast enough to keep up with almost any dealer. At 15 seconds you can keep up with ANY dealer. BTW, I also use this drill to check my condition before I play. If I can’t hit 13 seconds I don’t play.

The best time to count: Most counters are taught to count the cards after the round is on the table. Don’t do this! In face up games count the cards as they are dealt. That is what you practiced and that is the best way. It also gives you a better feel for the flow of the cards in the game you are playing right now. Of course in face down games you have no alternative but to count the cards as they are turned over. The most important point of this chapter is: Always use the count to augment your card play.

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Part Two – Finding a Winning Game INTRODUCTION

ero Proximity is one way to distinguish the best tables from a hand’s won rate standpoint. We now know that the lower the count range the better our Basic Strategy hit rate. Now let’s look at other ways to distinguish good play

opportunities. Which tables should we select and how should we play them. Which tables should we avoid?

Why this section was written. I have frequent opportunity to study my Blackjack students in the casino, critique their tactics and assess their level of learning. Recognize that, in doing so. I'm really critiquing my own teaching abilities. I never blame students when they are in error. I blame their teacher, me. This points out weaknesses in my curriculum which I then go back and correct, this manual is a result of those endeavors. The simplest way to get started here is to pose this question. What tactical error do I see my students make the most often?

Answer Sitting down to the wrong game! This is the worst possible mistake any player could make in the overall scheme of winning play, No amount of card play or betting skill can save you if you insist on placing yourself in losing situations ‐ If you insist on falling prey to the casino's simplest standard tactics. I obviously have not driven the point home hard enough for every student. That is the all important purpose of this manual

Blackjack Rule # 1

Never play a losing game! If we could always follow that simple rule, we would always win. Obviously, it is virtually impossible to always follow that rule to the letter so, we do the next best thing: We learn to qualify games, avoid obvious losing games and correct any errors in judgment as early as possible. But even before that, we learn to be at the casino when the MOST winning games are at our disposal, and anywhere else when the LEAST winning games are available. More on that all important subject later but first, let's thoroughly cover the point I just eluded to.

ZZZ

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Correct any errors in judgment as early as possible What exactly do I mean by that? I mean, in plain English, get out of losing or struggling games as soon as you so identify them, take your money and run. We already made one mistake. Let's not compound it. We will get into losing game identification markers later but first let's talk about the one thing that has destroyed more learned players than any other factor. Staying in losing games due to ego!

The problem with ego There are certain things in this world that just don't mix: faxes and chickens, guns and alcohol and Blackjack and ego. This brings up one of those vicious circle dilemmas. The more a player develops his skills, the more he builds his Blackjack ego, the more likely he is to fail headlong into the ego trap. He's got something to prove! He thinks he's playing against the dealer. He refuses to get out of losing games His ego won't let him, This is total self destruction and I could tell you war stories all day long about people I watched get destroyed by their own ego. Don't let your own ego derail you from adhering to Rule #1 Get out of losing games!

Avoid the ego trap All you need is a simple attitude adjustment. You need to have an excuse to leave a losing game that satisfies your ego. Here it is. You are not playing against the dealer. The dealer has nothing to do with it. They are simply following the casino's rules of employment. They could be replaced by a machine. You are playing against yourself! Your ego is on the casino's side. Don't let them use it against you. Don't beat yourself! You need a departure procedure. Here it is. Say to the dealer: "Wow, you are too good for me today, I'm going to find somebody easier" You know this isn't true. The dealer knows this isn't true. BUT, it makes the dealer feel good. It makes you feel good. And, most importantly, it let's your ego off the hook. This enables you to satisfy Rule #1, that is what you are there for. Remember, if you could always satisfy Rule # 1, you would always win So, Rule # 2 becomes: L e o n a r d B e n s o n V e r s i o n

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Blackjack Rule # 2

Always satisfy rule # 1 Never drop your guard. Leave your ego home, Identify losing games. Exit!

The First Challenge

Go to the casino only when they are at their most vulnerable!

What Makes A Casino Vulnerable? If we could look at but one

vulnerability barometer, the most telling is, the average number of

seated players per table. Whether we are scouting a pit, certain

denomination games or an entire casino, there is nothing that tells us more about the

Blackjack conditions prevalent right now than the average number of seated players per

table. Casino vulnerability is exactly the opposite of what most players think.

Blackjack Revelation # 2

The fewer players per table, the better the player conditions! I am not going into complete detail in this manual as to why this is true. Suffice it to say here, that mostly due to the card pick up procedure that all casinos employ in their game presentation procedure, the more players in the game, the greater the disparity in tens distribution, I mean unevenness, disarray or clumping of mostly high cards versus mostly low cards. Example: In a seven player game, eight hands are dealt, including the dealer. Suppose four players break with four or more cards, suppose the other four hands are two tens each. The card pick up procedure requires that the dealer pick up the break hands first, placing a clump of some 16 to 20 mostly low cards in the discard rack. Next, she will place a clump of eight tens in the discard rack. Casino shuffles, whether by hand or by machine, are carefully designed to preserve and nurture the clumping so formed rather than disperse it. We call this: "break card clumping.”

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Why Preserve Clumping?

Because the casino fully understands that the more players seated at a table, the more

the shoe will clump, the more the shoe clumps, the less the dealer breaks. The less the

dealer breaks, the more the table favors the casino. Every casino manager is taught and

fully understands this cause and effect relationship but pitifully few players have any

inkling of it.

Why Clumping Controls Dealer Breaking:

We don't need to resort to rocket science to reveal this phenomenon, just plain

common sense. Think about it, the dealer cannot break on all high cards. She never

hits on all high cards. Likewise the dealer cannot break on all low cards. All low cards

always add up to a total of 17 to 21, The only exception is when the dealer arrives at 16

and draws a 6. So, as every Casino Manager knows, dealers only break on mixed cards,

The more the highs and lows are mixed, the more the dealer breaks BUT, the more the

highs and lows are clumped, the less the dealer breaks. The less the dealer breaks the

less basic strategy wins. Basic Strategy is based on a 28% dealer break rate. It is the

casino manager's job and duty to make sure his dealers break less than 28%. Practically

speaking, it is the casino manager's duty to keep the open Blackjack tables as full as

possible

How To Defeat The First Challenge

The Best Way to Plan Your Trip: If at all possible, we want to plan our trip to be at the casino when they are least crowded. Pay attention to season, holidays and major sporting events. The best days to be at the casino are Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays during the off season.

Pay attention To Comp Mail: Casino Marketing is responsible for keeping the casino as full as possible. They offer room and show camps to this end. You will likely receive casino marketing mail offering major camps for specific nights, usually mid week. It is a good bet that they are inadvertently telling you exactly when the casino is most vulnerable. Pay attention! You get a nice comp to boot!

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Your Best Daily Casino Schedule: Arrange your daily schedule to be at the pits when they are least crowded. Mornings are usually best afternoons are next best Schedule your day opposite to the general casino crowd. Early to bed and early to rise.

Personal Tips: When I play Vegas, I hit the major strip casinos early in the morning, right after an early breakfast. But at night I hit the small local casinos. In other words, whichever way the crowd is going, I go the other way. In the Islands, I hit the casinos when the cruise crowds are leaving to go back to their cruise ships, this is usually around 10 PM but it pays to ask. It's best to avoid Las Vegas when a title fight is scheduled, but if you must, the best time to play is during the fight. age 8 Study the traffic and crowding at your favorite casino, when are they the least crowded? What days of the week and what hours of the day? That is when you want to be there. If the casino is too crowded to find BJ games with four or less players, I play Baccarat. In Baccarat It doesn't matter how crowded the casino is.

One last point: Before we leave the first challenge let me make one final point. The number of players at the table does not make a small difference. It makes a huge difference. Your chances in a three or four player game aren't slightly better than in a six or seven player game. Your chances are like ten times better in the smaller games, this brings us to the next BJ revelation.


You can't beat a seven player game! Sure, once in a while you get lucky but over the long haul, it is best to avoid six and seven player games altogether, I never even play with five players.

The Second Challenge

Avoid the casino when they are least vulnerable! Put yourself In the Shoes of the Casino Manager: I think this is the most revealing

way to examine this challenge. So, you finally make the grade, you landed the job all

other employees are striving for. You are the Casino Manager. They finally pick someone

from within. They usually go outside and bring in some hotshot from another casino. But

the Board has already given you your conditions of continued employment. The

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toughest is that the BJ tables must turn 32% of the drop each quarter. They already

pointed out to you that the average life expectancy of a Casino Manager is only six

months, Now you know why the last Casino Manager was so hard on you when you

were a lowly BJ pit boss. You know that you were selected because you convinced them

that you would do "whatever is necessary" to turn each quarters bottom line. You also

demonstrated that you knew how to do this as a BJ Pit Boss. They explained to you that

all other departments ran their expected profits automatically but BJ had to be

"managed" on a daily basis. Your new position pays far more, with great perks,

incentives and profit sharing. Being a devoted family man you are determined to do

whatever it takes to keep your new job and make a name for yourself in the industry.

You know that if you perform well, you can name your own price at the next casino. This

is the chance of a life time. So what is your game plan? Number 1 on your agenda is:

Keep the BJ tables full! You know that this task has far more impact on monthly and

quarterly profits than all other casino factors combined. You must anticipate the size

and flow of the crowds each day and each shift. You must study the myriad of factors

that determine crowd size. You must correctly correlate the number of dealers and

support personnel you bring in each shift to the number of players you anticipate. Too

few dealers and you have players standing around ‐ a mortal sin. Too many dealers and

you have too many open seats at your tables. This is a bigger mortal sin because it

greatly reduces your profits per player hour. Casino statistics put the optimum player

per table at 5.9. More than that leaves too many players walking the aisles. You don't

make a profit on the isles. Less than that eats into your profits per player hour.

How To Defeat The Second Challenge

The Casino Manager's Last Resort: To maintain the magic 5.9 number as close as possible. The Casino Manager's final adjustment is to resort to closing BJ tables. He treats this as a last resort because he doesn't want to pay dealers to sit in the dealer's lounge but dropping below the 5.9 number is the far bigger sin. So, he closes tables at a wink.

The Creation of Our Windows of Opportunity: I apologize to casino managers everywhere for greatly oversimplifying their responsibilities here. But I want to bring into focus the inevitable windows of opportunity thus created. At first glance, maintaining 5.9 players per table seems a

simple task. But it becomes extremely complex when you view the casino crowd as a living unknown with ebbs and flows that are largely unpredictable. The weather alone has a drastic effect. A sudden un‐forecasted shower triples the size of the casino crowd, for instance. When the crowd size is constant the casino Managers job is relatively

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simple. But the crowd size rarely remains constant for any great length of time. It is almost always increasing or decreasing, often too quickly to keep up with. 5.9 can drop to 3.2 very quickly: Show time, dinner time, bed time. buses are leaving, cruise ships are leaving, etc. The reverse also happens: Airports close. cruise ships dock, shows get canceled, rain squalls develop. In spite of the casino manager's best efforts, windows of opportunity develop. Page 10

Blackjack Revelation #4

Windows of opportunity are inevitable! That is why we are there! What Constitutes a Window of Opportunity? Again, watch my lips! When the average number of players per table drops below 5, we have a window of opportunity. The more below 5, the better. If this never happened, the game of Blackjack would be unbeatable. Yet we see many totally misguided players who play only when the casino is full. That's how the casino got full. Weekend nights are suicidal! How Do We Know When a Window of Opportunity Exists? The best way is to find a high point where we can observe the entire pit from above. If no such observatory exists, we walk the pit. There is nothing difficult here. Empty seats are extremely obvious. So is the lack of them. Table Denominations: It is the Marketing Department's job to get the players into the casino Then, maximum dollars per player hour is the Casino Manager's responsibility. It is, therefore the casino manager's duty to raise the stakes as the lower stakes tables fill up. Don't blame the pit boss. He is just following orders.

The $25 Window of Opportunity: We frequently see the window develop where the $5 and I or $10 tables are full, but the $25 tables are averaging only two or three players, often less. Some casinos try to fill the gap with $15 tables. Sometimes this works well for the casino but just as

often it merely creates $15 windows of opportunity or heightens the $25 window opportunity. When I play, I don't even look for the denomination, I strictly look for the opportunity. Many players complain when I say this. They say "But Keith. I can't afford $25 tables" To which I usually reply: "That's strange, I can't afford $5 tables" The fact is that while $5 windows often exist in the mornings, they usually disappear during the afternoon. Night time players must be ready, willing and able to play $25 tables or higher. Otherwise, they need to restrict their play to mornings. Page 11

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Blackjack Revelation #5

$25 tables are often cheaper than $10 & $15 tables! I don't make the rules I don't create the conditions. I merely tell you how to beat the conditions that prevail. It is very easy to be one of the 99% losers. Or, you can choose to be one of the 1% winners! The choice is yours! All you need do is abide by this instruction

The Third Challenge

Find the best game in the casino!

et’s Review Where We Stand: We now know to go to the casino when they are likely to be least crowded. We now know to visit the BJ pits when they are likely to be least crowded. We know that the best games will be at the tables with the

fewest players. We have already greatly improved our availably to winning games and therefore our chances of winning. So, we are at the right pond at the right time but where are the fish?

What to look For to Find the Best Games: I realize that this manual is a must for beginner and Basic Strategy players. These are the players most likely to sit down at the wrong games. Therefore, this manual has even more immediate value to them than it does for the more advanced players. It follows the natural order of advancement to teach players how to find winning games first, and the best way to play them, second. In other words, first we stop the bleeding, then proceed with the cure. I mention this here because Beginner and Basic Strategy Players must be restricted to sitting down to beatable Basic Strategy games while advanced players have a far bigger choice of beatable game types. Therefore we will discuss beatable Basic Strategy games first even though they would not be the primary target of the more advanced players. This is simply because we can usually win a whole lot more in First Base games than we can in Basic Strategy games. I always look for a good First Base game first and foremost. My favorite is a good head to head game. Finding Winnable Basic Strategy Games: O.K., we are at the right pit at the right time looking for a winnable Basic Strategy game. Fortunately for the beginner and Basic Strategy player these games are readily identifiable. Some 95% of players play Basic Strategy. So if the players at a table are winning you can be sure it's a good basic strategy game. How do we know players are winning? The tell tale signs are very obvious: Boisterous Table, Large player chip piles, Multiple color player chip piles, player body language and expression, low chips in dealer chip rack, multiple chip bets, dealer body language and expression, multiple game spectators. Ask the spectators!

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How we know players are losing? All of the above in reverse plus one dead giveaway. When a player is holding his chips in his hand, he is losing. Acknowledgments: I would like to take a moment here to acknowledge the work of Blackjack Strategists and Writers Jerry Patterson and Eddie Olsen who brought us the technology of identifying winning basic strategy games.

Important: Retain All of Your Learning Levels: It is important to fully understand met as you graduate from one Player Learning Level to the next, you do not give up the skills of your prior level. You will encounter conditions where Basic Strategy is the name of the game regardless of your Skill Level. This is a common error that players make, especially players who have recently advanced. They want to try their new skills even though they may have just sat down to a perfect basic strategy game. When In Rome…


Winnable games are not winnable unless the player correctly matches his playing strategy to the game type at hand.

Finding Winnable First Base Games: Identifying The First Base Window of Opportunity: If there could be but one key for successful Blackjack, this would be it! Today, First Base games are more prevalent than any other game type. This makes it difficult to resist, assuming that all games are First Base Games. First Priority of First Base: Get the Seat! Normally, the object is to identify a game type and measure it’s quality before we sit down. But, in this instance, a different rule applies: He who hesitates ... Therefore, when we see First Base opportunity, we act first and ask questions later. When we see a game of three players or less and First Base is open, we take the seat immediately, then decide. A strange phenomenon occurs in Blackjack that we need to avoid. When street players see us looking over an available seat, they have the nasty habit of ducking under our elbow and grabbing the seat for themselves. They seem to think it’s a race. If you were not standing there looking over the seat, they would have no interest in it at all. In BJ, people do strange things! We do not bet blind: No, we do not start playing immediately. Now that we have "captured" the seat, we can take time to go through our check list from our first hand observation point. Simply say to the dealer: "I’ll wait for the shoe to end." There are no rules against this anywhere and you make a good impression on the dealer, as well as the players. They think you are just being polite. But you know that politeness has

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nothing to do with it. You are there to qualify the game. If the game does not qualify, you simply get up and leave. You don't need to say anything but an “I changed my mind" would be appropriate. When First Base Isn't Open: If all else looks good I often take the open seat closest to first and move into first as soon as it is open. What to Look for at First Base: Whether we are in the seat or not the best approach is also the simplest. We watch the first player's hand and determine if we would be winning the majority of our high bets playing the First Base method. If the answer is yes, it's time to test the water with actual play. If no, we leave. Technically Speaking: {Especially for nerds} We want to know if clumping is in the First Base window. Are high cards following high cards and low cards following low cards between 55% and 75% of the time? The ideal First Base game is right around 65%. Note, we don't need to check both. Whatever the follow percentage is for highs. It's the same for lows. Here, we watch the card values at they are dealt out of the shoe. We use the following values:

Low Cards A234567 High Cards 890000A

Important Note: Aces! Note that there are two aces, one with the lows and one with the highs. We count an ace low if it follows a low. We count an ace high if it follows a high. This gives us a "balanced" count. Do not confuse this with card counting in the normal sense of the phrase. This is game type counting. How to count: A very accurate way is to count plus 1 when a high follows a high or a low follows a low and minus 1 when a low follows a high or a high follows a low. We compare our count to the number of cards dealt to determine our follow percentage ‐ our clumping percentage. What the count means:

Below 55% is a Basic Strategy game

55% to 75% is a First base game

Above 75% is approaching unplayable Don' let the technical stuff scare you: Remember, I included the game type count information for those interested in the numerical mechanics of the game. The important point is this: When you phantom play, are you winning or losing. That’s the name of the game.

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Identifying Zero Proximity Games: We are looking for clumped games but not overly clumped or purely clumped games. We prefer to see two or three sections of mostly high cards. We do not like to see numerous highs in a row. We are mostly interested in avoiding the losing sections described below. Avoiding Unplayable Games: Overclumped Games: Especially in eight deck pits (mostly Atlantic City) but also very prevalent in crowded six and even 4 deck pits, we find games too clumped to play. The tens are in one or two relatively clean clumps. Other than the dealer, we see no winning activity in these games. They are also usually characterized by low dealer breaking. Normally, the dealer breaks on an average of one out of every three and a half hands. But in over‐clumped games the dealer may be breaking as little as one out 10 hands. The low dealer break ratio is a dead giveaway.


Do not sit down to games where the dealer is breaking less than one out of four hands! This is why we avoid Blackjack altogether on Friday and Saturday nights. Few players have any notion of the danger they face in crowded casinos. Here we see those "buzz saw” games where the dealer just keeps winning no matter what you get and no matter what she gets. When you are nervous sitting there with a 19 or 20, you are in the wrong game. You are probably in the wrong pit or even the wrong casino.

Dealer Biased Games: These games are very common and make you feel like you are playing under some mystical black cloud. There is no black magic going on here. It just seems that way. Suffice it to say here that these games are to be avoided. They come in three types. 1.) Dealer biased hands: In random games, mathematicians have determined that the dealer hand should average 18.2. This is why we see this statistic in so many Blackjack books. If this were, in fact, the case, basic strategy would virtually always win. However, we have determined through the recording of tens of thousands of Blackjack shoes that, due to normal clumping, dealer hands actually average closer to 19.2. However, then we see those games where the dealer is consistently averaging closer to 20. She just keeps getting or making 20 and 21 virtually every hand. This occurs because of rotational biases set up in the game by the fact of the players playing one way, basic strategy, while the dealer is playing another way, dealer strategy. Suffice it to say here that these games exist in quantity, as I am sure most of you already know, and are to be avoided.

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2.) Too many dealer ten ups: A first card ten is a major advantage. When you get one and the dealer doesn’t your odds of winning the hand just went up to around 72%. However, when the dealer gets a ten up and you don’t, the same advantage goes to the dealer. Simple math tells us that the dealer should average four ten ups every thirteen hands. Incredibly, you will see games and even nights where dealers are averaging as many as 8 ten ups every 13 hands. While this sounds impossible, there it is right before your eyes. This gives you an idea of just how strong these rotational biases can become. Fortunately we only see this when casinos are crowded. But we now know to stay away from crowded casinos, don't we! You cannot win games where the dealer is averaging too many ten ups. This is another trap that the average unsuspecting player has no inkling of stay away! 3.) Low dealer breaking: We now know that the dealer should be breaking 28% or one out of 3.5 hands. We also know that severe clumping can drastically reduce dealer breaking, but so can rotational dealer biases. When the dealer isn't breaking, it isn't going to change. It isn't ours to reason why. Just say no!

The best game in the casino! O.K., we have discussed the dreary details long enough. Let’s talk about a very favorable condition: Dealer breaking games! In spite of the casinos’ best effort, we have all seen these games occur. Most of us have had the good fortune to play in them. We know that dealer's should normally break one out of three and a half hands, This, however, is so rare that when we do see it, it seems like a dealer breaking game, But, we get true dealer breaking games where we see the dealer breaking 50 % and even higher. I have seen the dealer break as many as twelve hands in a row under such conditions. This occurs because of a super even distribution of tens throughout the shoe that is very hard to shuffle out. We even see casino's resort to replacing the cards. These conditions are usually, but not always, short lived. When we see this it is not ours to reason why. We get in that game right now. Now remember, by getting in the game, you changed the player number. This might change the bias but usually not. It is prudent to test the water but as soon as you confirm that the dealer is still breaking, jump on the opportunity right now! I don't care how many players are in the game. I don't care how crowded the casino is. I don't care what day of the week it is. The opportunity is here right now.

How To Play Dealer Breaking Games: Play Basic Strategy except don't be quick to hit your stiffs. Stand on 14 through 16 until the game proves otherwise. Bet up as you lose. Now is the time for your most aggressive progression. Go for a 1,4,6. If the dealer is breaking on consecutive hands go for 2.4,6. Watch for the worm to turn, but meanwhile, blast away if the dealer is breaking on consecutive hands. You might try some up as you win. If the dealer is breaking more than 50%, go for up as you win or lose. It is time to go for the jugular. The pit boss is not going to let the game continue The Casino Manager is always notified. Get the money while you can!

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The Fourth Challenge

Capture the best position in the game!

Best Position for First Base Games: age 21

et’s take the easiest first. In first base games we want First Base (the position the dealer deals first). The huge physical advantage, functions best from that position. If we can' get first base, the advantage functions next best from the second seat.

If we must take another seat we move to first as soon as it is available. Best Betting Strategy For First Base Games: From first base we will use "Advantage: Betting ". We bet our high bet when we get the first base signal. We bet our low bet when we don't. In First Base games we win our high bet more often than not. How much more often depends on how centered the level of clumping is in the First Base window of clumping opportunity. It is not unusual to be winning our high bet in the 80 to 90 percentile range in well centered games. I might point out here that when one table is in the First Base Window we often see most or even all tables in that pit also in the window. Best Card Play Strategy for First Base Games: While we are speaking about the First Base System, let me also point out that while Basic Strategy will usually suffice in First Base games. Remember that our purpose here is to get you to winnable games and more important, avoid losing games. Best Position for Head to Head Games: We want the First Base position. While it really doesn't matter while we are playing alone, we capture that spot so we are in the best position if other players join the game, and they usually do. age 22 Best Betting Strategy for Head to Head Games: We use Advantage Betting for head to head games. Because there are no hands dealt between us and the dealer, we know before the hand is dealt whether we have the advantage or not. That is why head to head play, is the best game in Blackjack. Best Position for Basic Strategy Games: We want third base (the last spot before the dealer), Again, when we can't get third we take the position closest to third and move into third when it becomes available. Best Betting Strategy for Basic Strategy Games: We use progressive up as you lose betting from third base. The term for this betting style is "Negative Progressions". This term has become so popularized that you will even find dealers and other casino employees using this term as well as many others. An example of a negative progression is to bet 1, 2, and 3 units up as you lose, and return to one or continue at

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one when you win. This allows you to win the game without winning the majority of the hands. BUT, we never use more than a 3 bets in our progression. If we lose all three bets, we return to 1. The Object of Our Third Base Betting Style: The object is to complete the shoe without losing three consecutive bets. If we accomplish this we automatically win the shoe big time. But if we lose three in a row, we do not automatically lose the shoe. All of our "progressions" are designed to withstand losing three bets once per shoe. We bet this way from third base because the third base player's cards are MOST like the dealer's cards. Third base lends to swap wins with the dealer. We do not use progressive betting at first base because first base cards are LEAST like the dealer's and we tend to win and lose hands in a row. Best Card Play Strategy for Basic Strategy Games: It may seem redundant for me to say that we employ Basic Strategy in Basic Strategy games, but I have a purpose. When we are in a good Basic Strategy game, the last thing we want to do is get cute with our card play. Basic Strategy is designed for random games. It is the best way you can play your cards in a random game. How do we KNOW a Game is Random: A game is what WE call random when the high cards and the low cards are relatively evenly distributed throughout the shoe. We do not see noticeable clumps of mostly highs or mostly lows. Highs tend to be following lows and lows tend to be following highs, We see the dealer breaking intermittently about one out of 3.5 hands or even more often. Usually, there are no more than three or four players in random games. Five or more will automatically clump the game. With the exception of dealer breaking games, these are the best games in the casino. But recognize that dealer breaking games are caused by super random cards. Why Card Counters Miss Out on the Best Games in the Casino! Look, I have nothing against card counting. I am one of the fastest card counters, BUT it presents a small window of opportunity. A counter only has an advantage in games where the highs favor the end of the shoe. What about good games where the highs are evenly mixed? What about good games where the highs favor the beginning of the shoe. Think about it. In a random game, the count goes nowhere! The counter never gets to his bet signal, worse, he never hits his bet signal in dealer breaking games either. He totally misses out on the very best games the casino has to offer! And, he gets a headache, to boot. Fine, take advantage of good card counting games. But recognize that there are other good opportunities. Get the best of all worlds. Know ALL of the good game types but also know the bad game types and avoid them. How to Play Double Shoe Shuffle Machines: At the moment, these are the most common type of shuffle machine. But they are quickly being replaced with the continuous play shuffle machines. We play double shoe machines exactly the same as we play when the dealer shuffles. In fact, we actually prefer these machines over dealer

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shuffling. Their advantage to us is consistency. Good games are more likely to stay good longer, And machine Shuffled games tend to maintain their game type. This is because no two dealers shuffle exactly alike. That is precisely why the casino keeps switching dealers on us. How to Play Continuous Play Shuffle Machines: These machines are the final nail in the coffin of card counting. They render the count useless. Recognize that they do not bode well for Basic Strategy purists either. Fortunately for Basic Strategy purists, there will still be hand Shuffled games available. Recognize that casinos are among the sharpest and most profitable corporations on Earth. They answer to a Board of Directors and their stock holders. They are not going to buy machines for employee convenience, Boards are not interested in convenience for employees. They ARE only interested in monthly and quarterly profits for themselves. 95% of Blackjack players play Basic Strategy. The casinos themselves teach Basic Strategy. They are NOT going to pay huge sums of money for machines that favor Basic Strategy. On the contrary, they WILL pay huge sums for machines that increase profits. We might just as well call these machines Basic Strategy killers. You can bet, that these machines will tightly control the level of clumping to the casino's favor, otherwise they will quickly disappear as other machines have. But, they aren't disappearing, are they? Why We Love Continuous Shuffle Machines: Think about it! “A controlled level of clumping!" Just enough to beat Basic Strategy but not enough to be highly noticeable. If the machines over clump to a noticeable degree, players will quickly learn to play the clumps or they will complain and boycott the machines. Neither helps the casino. That makes the level of clumping IDEAL for ZZeerroo PPrrooxxiimmiittyy. Again, we play the casino's own orchestration against them! L e o n a r d B e n s o n V e r s i o n

Your Final Challenge

Correct any mistakes immediately When Things Go Wrong: By now, I’m sure you are beginning to realize that Winning Blackjack is a much broader science than you thought. Most players, regardless of their experience level are completely oblivious to almost everything in this manual. That is why 99% of players lose. It is not because they don't know how to play. It is because they don't know how to avoid the many pitfalls in the overall science of winning casino Blackjack. Example of What Not To Do: There I am scouting a game. Nearly always, it's the empty seats that drew my attention. But I see players holding their chips in their hand and I see a huge dealer bias. Maybe the dealer is getting a ten up on more hands than not. I usually place my hand on the back of the first or third base chair when I'm scouting a particular table. Just when I have determined EVERYTHING is wrong with this

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game, some misguided soul literally pushes me out of the way and dives for the seat I have my hand on. They seem to always have chips in their hand and immediately make a big bet even before they are completely seated. They seem to think Blackjack is some sort of race. The reason I’m telling you this again is in case I am describing you, lf you see yourself in this picture, change your ways right now! These people have no clue of what the game is about and are self destruction in process. Mistakes Are Inevitable But Fix Them Immediately: Even though we do everything right we are going to end up in the wrong game sooner or later. All of the warning signs are in this manual, Read it again and again. When you find yourself in this situation say "whoops" and leave the game right now. Bad games are immediately self evident. Fortunately, so are good games. Play the good games for all they are worth BUT watch for the worm to turn. Win the money and don't give it back! Your best bet: New cards: In spite of what every Blackjack book out there professes, I have said a million times: New cards are likely the best cards you will see all day! Sure, I know why they said this, It is because new cards often contain boxed card order clumping. Clumping in any form is bad for basic strategy. This is true but naive. Our number one problem today is not clumping. It's dealer biases. Dealer biases today are rampant everywhere except one place, new cards. Because dealer biases are created by play, they do not exist in new cards. Clumping is not always bad, it is often good. The right level or window of clumping is a prerequisite of first base play. New cards, very often, are right in the center of the clumping necessary for successful first base play. In First Base play we place our high bet when the last round ended in high or mostly high cards. At the point of receiving a first card ten, our odds of winning that bet are 72%. This is the best "tell" in the casino. What does clumping mean? It means that tens are following tens more often than they should. At first base, the card before your first card is the last card dealt in the prior round. Watch for it because it can fall anywhere. First Base is your best bet of winning at BJ. The most important thing to know is that not all new cards qualify. Knowing this, some casinos go out of their way to produce random cards in the morning new card prep. What does that mean? It means that some casinos go out of their way to produce ideal Third Base conditions. Remember, the more random the cards are the more susceptible they are to Third Base and, they are free from dealer biases. So, sorry, but it takes a little effort on your part. Your job is to make the rounds and learn where the new card prep is conducive to first base play or third base play. Casinos change their new card prep procedure every several weeks or months. Now you know my secret. When I played AC, full time and won every day for three years, I was able to do this because I knew exactly where to be every morning. Now, go out and find out where you should be.

Postscript: Let’s stand back for a moment and look at the big picture of Casino Blackjack as an ongoing competition. Put the players and their instructors on one side and the casinos

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and their advisor on the other side. We can shorten the names of the two competing sides to the Players VS the Casinos. The Players introduce strategies like Basic Strategy, card counting, varying card play with the count. But every Player gain is met with a Casino defense like the introduction of the cut off card, multiple decks, increased dumping control via closing tables, short shuffles, shuffle machines, etc. But the problem still confronting the Casinos is that various players play various strategies. There is no single way for the Casinos to defend against all of the strategies all of the time. This is because what defeats one strategy is often exactly what makes another strategy work. But the Casinos have gained a huge lead in the competition by selectively applying the best defense at the appropriate time. The competition now stands with the casino's leading with some 15% advantage. So what can the Players do? I think the closest analogy is big game hunting. Hunting trophies are seldom decided by who is the best shot, although it certainly helps to be able to shoot straight when the time comes. The Trophy goes to the hunter who knew how to be in the right place at the right time. The hunter who is the most proficient at that skill wins the most trophies. The hunter who is in the wrong place at the wrong time isn’t even in the hunt. It simply doesn't matter how straight he can shoot, does it? So the FIRST priority of the hunter is to be in the right place at the right time. Once he gets the target in his sights the question becomes: Does he possess the discipline, the control, the calmness in the heat of the hunt to shoot straight Well , do you? My goal, in this manual. is to successfully get you to the right place at the right time. That is the first priority of Blackjack. This manual gives you a huge advantage over the other players and puts you on a level playing field with the casino. Now, the question becomes can you shoot straight? This is no place to quit. Send me an email if you need help at [email protected] or call me at (717) 458‐8561 Mondays 7pm – 9pm and Saturdays 10am – 12noon Eastern Time. L e o n a r d B e n s o n V e r s i o n

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Basic Strategy Chart Play this strategy when you cannot predict the hole card of the dealer or your hit card. When you have an idea of the dealer’s hole or your hit card ask yourself one question if you have less than 17. Do you think the next card will break him? If the answer is no, you must hit if you have a stiff hand. That’s correct! You may have a 13 against a dealer’s 15. If you think the next card is low by what you have seen…hit D = Double S= Split H= Hit S= Stand I am going to add one always rule, when you are playing negative progressions and Zero Proximity Blackjack (and I know what the experts say) always insure your Blackjack against an ace. Take even money. What if you bet a million dollars? Would you risk pushing and not a take a sure winner?

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