The easiest and most popular method of card counting is the hilo method which will be described here. Thorp first outlined the hilo card counting method in his breakthrough 1962 book, beat the dealer. Card counting is a casino card game strategy used primarily in the blackjack family of casino. This is the book in which snyder details some of his simple, but powerful, card counting methods. Found to be more powerful than even some level 3 card counting strategies.
Blackjack card counting how to count cards with our free. The high low card counting tells you when the best cards, the 10s, and aces, outnumber the small cards. It is a more robust system with a greater potential profit than the acefive system. In the knockout card counting ko count system, as explained in the book knock out blackjack, all card values are the same as in the hi low system, except for the value of the 7. Since the 1970s, literally hundreds of books on card counting have been written and published. The hilo system is a very common blackjack card counting system that. The richer the pack, that is, the more 10s and aces relative to small cards, the better for you. I used this exclusively when managing our multimillionwinning team.
This is where card counting becomes more art than science. His 1962 book, beat the dealer laid out not just what became somewhat of the foundation of card counting, but also several theories on how to play strategically correct blackjack. We wrote extensively about card counting in general on our main card counting page, but in brief, heres how it works. The book provides an interesting story that reads like a novel, however, it surprisingly includes solid information about basic strategy, the hilo card counting system, play deviations, the illustrious 18, kelly betting, team play tactics, etc. In many ways, thorp was ahead of his time, at the very least he was one of the first who published his theories and presented them to a wider audience. Note, there exist tens of thousands of different combinations of rules, penetrations, spreads, methods of true count calculation and indexes used. Others, like bringing down the house by ben mezrich, are mediocre at best. The is explained below and it says surrender if the count is less than the index number, in this case 2. Card counting is a casino card game strategy used primarily in the blackjack family of casino games to determine whether the next hand is likely to give a probable advantage to the player or to the dealer. There are at least four major movies that feature card counting 21, rainman, vegas vacation, the hangover.
This page contains comparisons between the hilo and ko strategies for six deck games. Thorp first outlined the hi lo card counting method in his breakthrough 1962 book, beat the dealer. The book is an autobiographical account of the authors adventures in card counting. The purpose of snyders system is the same as that of all blackjack counting systemsto track. Introduction to the highlow card counting strategy wizard of odds.
The hilo is one of the most commonly used card counting systems devised for the game of blackjack. In a way, learning hilo to read the running count is like learning a new language one that all winning card counters are fluent in. The best book i have come across in my blackjack travels is stanford wongs. And in the 1957 book playing blackjack to win, roger baldwin, wilbert cantey, herbert maisel, and james. Hiopt ii a more complex, level 2, balanced strategy developed by lance humble and julian braun. It assigns the following values to the following cards. A tag of 1 is assigned to the player favorable cards, which are the large cards 10, jack, queen, king, and ace. The first real blackjack out of respect for the game i like capitalizing it book i ever purchased was professional blackjack by stanford wong and to this day i still love it. Edward throps groundbreaking system, the tencount, to make it easier for players to use at an actual table. However, the easiest of those is the high low card counting system developed by harvey dubner. Hi lo card counting system high low blackjack card count. There are dozens of card counting systems, but i recommend hilo. Hilo the hilo also called highlow blackjack strategy is a level 1, balanced strategy optimized for betting originally created by harvey dubner in 1963. How to count cards in blackjack and bring down the house.
The author also presents the basics of card counting early in the book. The primary active card counting system was written by edward thorp in his book beat the dealer. Hi lo blackjack card counting system high low card counting system. Misinformation about card counting abounds in books, magazines, on the internet. The hilo strategy was later refined by julian braun, published by edward thorp and refined again by stanford wong. Blackjack card counting the ultimate blackjack strategy. The house edge in the game is destroyed when the shoe is rich in face cards.
The hi lo system is one of the most common ways of doing this. The scientifically devised unbalanced ko count can be used profitably anywhere blackjack is played. Card counting methods are measured using a few metrics. Hi opt ii a more complex, level 2, balanced strategy developed by lance humble and julian braun. Winning a blackjack hand depends on the number of decks and the mix of the cards, and how many high or low cards remain. Highlow deadly gamble casino gaming with the experts. I skimmed it and found it to be humorous and enjoyable. One of most popular card counting systems is the hilo system. Some of them, like the books by stanford wong, are excellent. I mean, you cant be actually counting the quantity of cards coming out of the shoe right. Las vegas, atlantic city, mississippi, riverboat casinos, native american casinos, the bahamas, and on cruise ships. In this system, the seven is considered a low card and thus a positive valueunlike the hi low system where it is a neutral card.
It has since been discussed by just about all the major blackjack writers. You need to know how rich the pack is in order to make appropriate bets and decisions in play. Start the count after the shuffle at 0 and every time you see a card with a face value of 26 add one to the count, if you see a card valued 79, do nothing and every time you see a 10 or a subtract one from my count. The book included a simple counting system to keep track of the ratio of high to lows cards in a deck. Tagging cards using the hilow card counting system. Memorize these or you will never be able to successfuly implement this strategy. The purpose of snyders system is the same as that of all blackjack counting systemsto track the number of high cards versus low cards in the deck. Home blackjack card counting systems single level card counting the term singlelevel refers to counting sytems where the point values assigned to the cards are either 1,0 or 1. Balanced cardcounting system is a system that applies the method of unbalanced card counting and modifies it according to the number of decks used in the game.
The book provides an interesting story that reads like a novel, however, it surprisingly includes solid information about basic strategy, the hi lo card counting system, play deviations, the illustrious 18, kelly betting, team play tactics, etc. Blackjack expert explains how card counting works youtube. He discovered the principles of card counting and published his method in 1962 in his book beat the dealer. You need to keep practicing your card counting with a deck of cards until you can consistently obtain a. Card counters track the ratio of high cards to low cards left in the deck so that they can raise their bets when the odds are in their favor. Unbalanced cardcounting system is a system that uses the count of a cards one by one as they are dealt and is used in a 1deck blackjack game. Card counting systems may have existed before thorps hilo method came onto the scene, but they were rudimentary and rarely publicized. Hi lo card counting strategy details the first thing all blackjack players must do is learn and memorize the blackjack basic strategy and then complement this to the hi lo method. Edward r thorp is considered the father of card counting. Hi lo card counting system for playing live blackjack. Hilo blackjack card counting explained sunshine slots. First you need to memorize the assigned values of all cards high cards 10, jack, queen, king, ace count as 1 each. How to count cards in blackjack blackjack card counting.
How to use the hilo system to count cards in blackjack and get an edge over the. The hilo blackjack system explained super casino sites. With hilo, the most common card counting system, the card values are as follows. A tag of 0 is assigned to the cards left 7, 8, and 9. This article will teach you how to count cards using the hilo method. You need to keep practicing your card counting with a deck of cards until you can consistently obtain a final count of 0. Blackjack hilo card counting system learn the art of. His writing started the blackjack revolution, and it was also instrumental in the casinos taking action to ban card counters. If possible having them listed in importance would be helpful as well. In this article, i assume that you understand how to use strategy indices. Follow hard 17 across to the only entry on that line, which is ah17. This type of system is what made cardcounting popular, mostly because it made the task feasible for the average human being. In this article we will try to explain the hilo card counting strategy as brief as possible in order to cover the basics to get you started. Start with a running count of zero at the start of the deckshoe.
Card counting uses a heuristic method of tracking the ratio of high cards to low cards. Hilo, an alias of the dutch producer oliver heldens hilo, song by evanescence from the album synthesis hi lo the price is right, a pricing game on the american game show the price is right. Hilo versus ko simulations blackjack card counting. Card counters are a class of advantage players, who attempt to decrease the inherent casino house edge by keeping a running tally of all high and low valued cards seen by the player. The reason the player who can properly count cards is feared by the casino is simple. It says youre supposed to divide the running count by the number of decks still in play. May 20, 2019 the book is an autobiographical account of the authors adventures in card counting. He pioneered the modern applications of probability theory, including the harnessing of very small correlations for reliable financial gain. So if the topic of what it really is like to count cards interests you then this book is worth checking out. For example, an search on books written about blackjack card counting returns 182 titles. The high low was first introduced in 1963 by harvey dubner 1.
First, you must know the point values to assign to each card. But nowhere does it say how to figure out how many decks are still in play in for example a sixdeck shoe. Card counting the ultimate guide count cards in blackjack. The hi lo card counting strategy is known as a simplified version of. You dont have to memorize all the cards that have been played in order to count cards. Aug, 2019 the hi lo count is the most widely written about, and in my judgment, the most commonly used card counting strategy. The knockout card counting system eliminates the mountain of mental arithmetic necessary to win at blackjack. Hilo card counting system blackjack betting strategy. Blackjack card counting the ultimate blackjack strategy guide. The greater the true count, the more you should bet. The hi lo blackjack card counting system, also known as the high low system or the plusminus system, was created by harvey dubner. Card counting systems may have existed before thorps hi lo method came onto the scene, but they were rudimentary and rarely publicized. Hilo card counting system blackjack hilo count system.
The hilo blackjack card counting system, also known as the highlow system or the plusminus system, was created by harvey dubner. The red seven count is a blackjack card counting system devised and popularized by arnold snyder in his books blackbelt in blackjack and the big book of blackjack. In blackjack, it is favorable to the player when there are more aces and 10 value cards 10s, jacks, queens, and kings remaining in the shoe. So for the purposes of this guide, well be using hilo. In my opinion, the best introductory treatment is in professional blackjack by stanford wong. Edward oakley thorp born august 14, 1932 is an american mathematics professor, author, hedge fund manager, and blackjack researcher. This relatively simple system allows a player to track the cards, and change his betting patterns to take advantage of counts. Hilo card counting strategy details the first thing all blackjack players must do is learn and memorize the blackjack basic strategy and then complement this to the hilo method. The highlow card counting tells you when the best cards, the 10s, and aces, outnumber the small cards. What is the most popular blackjack card counting book to read.
The high low card counting method is the most commonly used type because of how easy it is to use and is most especially used by blackjack teams. Before you can understand which method is the best, you have to understand how methods are measured. Divide the running count by the number of decks remaining. The highlow card counting method is the most commonly used type because of how easy it is to use and is most especially used by blackjack teams. Mar 06, 2017 the hangover card counting scene duration. Hilo has been the gold standard of card counting systems for many years. Blackjack card counting guide learn to count cards in 21. Blackjack is a game of skill and card counting can help you gain an advantage in the game. Thats the book that made the mit blackjack team a household phrase, at least temporarily. Introduction to the highlow card counting strategy. Those who are new to card counting or experienced counters who want to know more will love this book. Because of this fact, the hilo card counting system is known as a balanced card counting system.
Most professional blackjack players and gambling experts use the hilo as an example when explaining how card counting actually works and there is a very good reason for this. Hi lo, an alias of the dutch producer oliver heldens hi lo, song by evanescence from the album synthesis hi lo the price is right, a pricing game on the american game show the price is right. Card counting systems hilo count the hilo count may be the most widely known count in blackjack, and is a count that most serious card counters have used at one point or another. The knockout cardcounting system eliminates the mountain of mental arithmetic necessary to win at blackjack. Blackbelt in blackjack is another classic book from blackjack legend arnold snyder.