Games - Card counting

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	Games - Card counting

In card games, card counting is the process of gaining an advantage by tracking the cards which have been played, so the player has an idea of the value of the cards remaining to be dealt. Card counters use this information to determine how well the remaining deck favors their chances of winning. Counting is most popular with blackjack, though it can be utilized in any card game where the deck has a memory. It cannot be used in games like craps or roulette, which maintain the same odds each round. For example in 7-card stud, if an opponent is showing a partial straight that cannot be finished because the missing cards have already been dealt, one would bet more aggressively than if there were a possibility of the opponent holding a straight. However, in 7-card stud this is typically not called card counting.

In blackjack

In blackjack, the player has an advantage when the undealt deck is rich in high cards (10's and aces). The card counter takes advantage of this by making larger bets when this situation occurs. In the long run, the deck will be unfavorable to the player more often than it is favorable, but it is the amount bet under each condition that counts. The player can also use information about the deck's composition to alter strategy. For example, basic strategy calls for hitting a 16 when the dealer's upcard is a 10, but this is a very close play; one loses less by hitting than standing, but not by much. If it is known, however, that the deck is depleted of small cards such as 4s and 5s, and rich in 10s, that may alter the odds in favor of standing. Blackjack card-counters track the ratio of high cards to low cards. A deck rich in high cards favors the player primarily for two reasons. First, the dealer is more likely to bust. (The player is not as likely to bust because the player has the option to stand on totals of 12-16, while the dealer has no such luxury.) Second, the player is more likely to receive a blackjack and receive the 3:2 payout. (The dealer is also more likely to get a blackjack, but doesn't receive any extra money from the player when he does.) Many casinos are now paying only 6:5 on blackjacks, which removes the advantage from counting cards.

In addition, a card counter can play the Insurance bet if the count of faces is sufficiently high with potentially an advantage over the house; this bet is in general almost always disadvantageous.

It is difficult for most people to remember what cards have already been dealt, particularly from a multiple-deck shoe. Therefore, card counting schemes assign some sort of heuristic points score to each card in the deck(s) used and keep track of the overall score. Normally, low-value cards, such as a 2 or 3, are given a positive value, and 10s are given a negative value. The exact number assigned to the cards depends on the specific card-counting method. The card counter mentally keeps a running tally of the point values as they are dealt. A common system (the Hi-Lo Count) is to assign positive one (+1) to the 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 cards, and negative one (-1) to the 10, J, Q, K, and A. The 7, 8, and 9 are not counted in the Hi-Lo system. Counting schemes that assign point values of –1, 0, or +1 are called level one counts and are considered the easiest to perform. Slightly greater accuracy, at the cost of increased difficulty and likelihood of making mistakes, involves the use of multi-level counts, which assign point values of –2, +2, or greater to the various cards. This greater range of point values adds to the complication of keeping an accurate tally in one's head.

A final complication in card counting involves the issue of how to treat aces. While playing out hands, Aces are slightly disadvantageous for the player, which implies that they should have a positive point count; but for purposes of getting a blackjack, they are extremely valuable when they remain in the deck. Most counting schemes give aces a negative count, recognizing that there is a compromise involved in this process. Some schemes actually assign a zero value to aces, and require the counter to keep a separate side count of aces.

The most commonly used system by most professionals (both players and surveillance) is Hi-Lo. It assigns -1 to 10's and Aces, +1 to 2 through 6. Higher level counts theoretically generate higher profits, but for most players, decreased playing speed and increased fatigue and error rates argue against their use. K-O, an unbalanced count (7's are also +1) developed by Ken Fuchs and Olaf Vancura (Knock-Out Blackjack), is only modestly less effective than Hi-Lo, but is substantially less error-prone, because its unbalance eliminates the need (in systems such as Hi-Lo) to divide by the approximate number of remaining decks to find the "true count." Many players have difficulty performing rapid, accurate division at the table, or may be prone to errors in estimating the number of remaining decks.

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