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Playing Multiple Hands - Part 2

As I mentioned in Part 1 of this series, you should play more than one hand at Blackjack only if you have an edge over the casino. This edge may come about through the very favorable rules which the casino offers (as this is being written, there's a game on the Internet which offers the Basic Strategy player a healthy edge over the house) or it may come through counting cards. Playing more than one hand when the casino has an edge only hastens the loss of your $$$, so I want to stress that multi-hand play by itself is not a way to beat the game. But it is a good way to get more $$$ on the table when the deck is in your favor and that's what was covered in the first part of this series.

Some Disadvantages

However, multi-hand play does complicate the game somewhat, especially from a money management point of view. For example, if your betting schedule calls for a top bet of $60 (based upon the count and the total size of your bankroll), it's not just a matter of putting out two bets of $30 in order to achieve the same effect. A more appropriate bet would be two hands of $40 because the two hands have an inherent relationship to one another. In the "heat of battle", so to speak, it's real easy to forget the count or to forget how much the next bet should be and you could end up over-betting which may cause you to lose, no matter how accurately you keep the count or play the hands. Conversely, your bet may be too small and that's like throwing $$$ away because this will presumably happen only when you have an edge, otherwise you wouldn't be upping your bet. So, playing more than one hand is a tactic which has to be learned and practiced like so many others in this game, but I want to stress that it's worth the effort. For me personally, multi-hand play has been the most lucrative "refinement" to my game, far out-pacing such skills as Ace side-counts and shuffle-tracking.

But it comes at a cost of exposure. Playing more than one hand may draw some extra attention from the casino supervisory personnel (or "pit critters" as we lovingly call them) and it's a tactic which is very difficult to camouflage. For example, it's relatively easy to camouflage a 1-4 bet spread at a single-deck game by occasionally betting two units after the shuffle, then dropping down to one unit if the count goes negative or by going up to four units if the count goes positive. But playing two hands is like being pregnant: you either are or you aren't. To camouflage your multi-hand play by betting two hands when the casino has an edge means you're betting at least twice as much in a negative-expectation situation and that is not the road to riches, my friends. And don't forget that most casino personnel know counters want to get more $$$ on the table when things are good, so if they see you doing it only part of the time, they might come to the conclusion that you're the type of player they can live without. The conclusion to draw here is that spreading to two or more hands has to be done smoothly and you need a good "act" to pull it off.

Some Tricks

Most gamblers (as opposed to smart advantage players like you) seem to think that the cards are in some sort of "order" and they also think the Blackjack is a team sport. They're wrong on both counts, but you can use that to your advantage. As I mentioned in part one, switching back and forth on the number of hands you play may drive off other players and that's usually a good deal for you. But another way you can use this "order" B.S. is when a player who has been at your table gets up and leaves. If the count warrants an above-minimum bet at that point and there's an open betting spot next to yours, spread out to two hands so you can "preserve the order" of the cards for the next round. Others at the table will agree that it's a good move (especially if the dealer busted on the last hand) and you get the bonus of not only getting more $$$ on the table, but now you look like the average gambler.

Another way to look like a "typical" gambler is to go to the casino with a friend and use him or her to play your second hand. Many casino patrons have friends who are interested in games other than Blackjack, but they'll drop by the table now and then to see what's going on, when are we going to eat, are you winning, etc. What if you planned those visits ahead of time? This won't work at every game in every casino, because there may be a "no mid-shoe entry" rule in effect which basically requires a new player who joins the table to wait until the shuffle before getting any cards. But, if that rule isn't in effect, work out a signal to "call-in" your friend when the deck is favorable and have him or her make a bet the same size as yours, which is presumably, the proper bet for one of two hands at that count. Your friend doesn't have to know how to count or even how to play the game, since you can handle all that with subtle hand signals. For example, if your right hand is playing with your chips, that may tell your friend to "hit" and when you stop, that tells your friend to "stand". I think you get the idea here, since all you need is a signal for double, split, hit, stand and maybe surrender. Also, have your friend take insurance if you take it and work out a signal for telling your friend to leave the table.

This playing technique requires a little bit of practice, but it's a nice tactic, especially for couples, since it can all look very natural. I've been using various versions of this ploy for over twenty years and have never been barred or even suspected. I used a variation of this some years ago to bang the old Playboy Casino in Atlantic City for over $5000....in half an hour! They still don't know what hit them.

In the next lesson, we'll cover how to figure proper bet size for multi-hand play and I'll share a few more tips and maybe bore you with some past adventures.

See you then.

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