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Synergistic Blackjack - Part 2

I wrote the first part of this series in August 2001 and, as so often happens around here, I went off on a tangent and never did parts 2 and 3 as intended. A reader reminded me of this, so here it is and thanks to him for reminding me.

Just to remind you, here's what I said about this style of play in Part 1:

If someone typically goes with you on your visits to a casino, most likely it's because s/he has his or her own interests in mind, but if you can work together from time-to-time, or even team up in a joint venture, there are some completely legal tricks that can help you increase your win rate. Before I go any further, let me say that there are also some not-so-legal ways for people to help one another at the Blackjack table and I'm not going to cover those. But, while I believe the "tricks" I'm going to talk about are legal in most jurisdictions, that may not be the case where you play. To be safe, check the gaming regulations for your area before you try any of these or, even better, if you think they might not be completely legal, don't use them. As I often say, those who use this information do so at their own risk.

In this installment, I want to give you some ideas on what you can do if you go to the casino with another person who has a good idea of how to play the game, but doesn't count cards. I am, of course, assuming that you count. The big problem with counting is that a fairly large bet spread is needed for it to work. Counters bet small when the casino has the advantage and then bet bigger - hopefully much bigger - when they have the advantage. Size really does matter when it comes to what we call the "bet spread". If you have a large enough bankroll and are able to use a big enough bet spread, you can beat almost any game out there. The problem is that the vast majority of casino supervisory personnel know this, too. Consequently, we have to "camouflage" our betting in such a way as to make a big bet spread less obvious and that's where your non-counting friend can help you.

The Friend Who Plays, But Doesn't Count - with this type of player, I'm assuming that you can tell him or her when to hit or stand or otherwise play the hand in some sort of non-verbal way and s/he won't mess it up. You might have to rehearse a bit to make sure you've got your signals straight, but at least they'll understand the concept of splitting pairs, doubling, etc. Here are some things you can do:

The Dummy Player - I like to play this way at times. No, I don't act like a dummy, but my friend does, in a way. I have her sit at the table while I stand behind her and give her signals on what to bet and how to play the hand, basically by poking her in the back (softly, of course). It's almost like a ventriloquist and his dummy, hence the name. This type of play is very disarming to the pit critters, because it looks like the "know-it-all" boyfriend is helping the "I've-never-played-before" girlfriend. One neat trick is to verbally tell her to stand, but signal for a hit, which is what she does. Why would anyone do that? Well, let's say the bottom has fallen out of the count and she has a hand of 17 against the dealer's Ace. Believe it or not, you should hit 17 against a dealer's Ace at a True Count of -5 or -6, depending upon the rules of the game where you're playing. Be honest with me now: Will you, as a counter, ever hit a 17? Probably not, but you can make it look like a mistake when playing with a "dummy". Same for splitting 10s in a high count against the dealer's 5 or 6. All you need to do is look away for a bit, as though you were distracted by something else, say "stand", but signal to split and catch her "mistake" just when it's too late. Yelling "Noooooo!" while clutching your head in your hands is the correct reaction, at least the first time you do this. Between hitting the 17 and splitting 10s, you'll soon find that you and your friend are alone at the table, which is really cool. That's when you can do this:

The Coordinated Bet - As a general rule, you do not want to play two hands when it's just you against the dealer. The reason for that is you will not get any advantage from the extra hand, if you are using proper money management. The "rule" for playing two hands is to bet 75% of your optimum bet for one hand on both of the hands. In other words, if your betting schedule calls for a bet of $60 at a True Count of 6, then you can play two hands, each of which has a bet of $45 and still have the same risk. So, your total bet is 50% higher, but you'll use 50% more cards per round, thus one offsets the other. But, if you're at a table with your friend and at least one other player, you can really have some fun. Your bets do not have to be identical to be effective, so long as they are within a reasonable relationship to one another and are made according to the True Count. We already know that $45 + $45 = $60 (at least from a risk point of view), but so does $60 + $15 = $60. From an overall risk point of view, assuming that you're properly capitalized as I teach in my Blackjack School, you can actually get a "free" $15 bet every time you make a $60 bet! What this means is that there is no difference in your total risk to bet one hand of $60 or to bet one hand of $60 and one hand of $15 next to it. This is a nice way to play and, again, it's very disarming to the casino supervisory personnel. Earlier, you were telling your friend how to play and now both of you are playing side-by-side, but you're still the "know-it-all", so you're betting bigger and your friend is betting in a more "dainty" (gee, is that still a word?) manner. It doesn't look unusual at all, but in reality, you're getting more $$$ on the table at no additional risk. Lovely, is it not? Now, use hand signals to tell your friend how to play her hand and how much to bet, just like I discussed in Part 1.

Next time (and I won't wait 8 months, I promise) I'll discuss some ways you can play with a person who counts the cards.

See you then.

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