Counting Cards in Blackjack?

Question

Ok, so i have read all the other "Counting Cards" questions i have seen and none of them answer my question. My question is what does the card count mean? In example +16 is the card count. I know how to get to +16, i just dont know what is means.

Answer 1

The only way to card count is to buy a really good book on the subject, learn the material, and spend at least an hour a day practicing for a year or so.

For every person who thinks they can count cards, there are hundreds who have tried and failed.

I don't think the movie 21 has really clued people in on how difficult it is to do.

You have to play perfect blackjack strategy, keep a perfect count, without looking like you are counting.  And then bet big when the count is in your favor and small when the count is against you.

You also need to fully understand the exact mathematical impact that all the combinations of house rules has on your play and the house edge.

There's a lot of talk about counting these days thanks to the movie, but if it were easy to do, everyone would be doing it.

Answer 2

You are going to get to +16 in a variety of ways depending on how complicated the counting system that you are using is.  Some simple systems just use +1 and -1, other more complicated systems can use +/-1, +/-2, and +/-3.    Once there, however, you would generally want to increase your bets because there are a lot of faces cards left in the deck which provide a statistical advantage to the player.

Answer 3

+16 basicly means that there are alot more high valued cards left in the deck. 10,J,Q,K,A=-1 AND 2,3,4,5,6=+1 and b/c the dealer must hit untill he has 16/17[NEWdepends on game] highier cards left are more valuable to the players since the house[dealer] is more likely to bust[go above 21]

Answer 4

That number is irrelevant without actually being in a game and taking into account other factors, but it has to do with the amount of cards already dealt from a shoe or deck of cards.

A running count of +16 will almost always yeild an advantage provides you play your hands correctly, but you need to learn way more about counting cards to be able to use the count to place bets and expect to win.  For instance if i told you +16 was favorable on what basis would you say +8 is favorable what abotu +4?

Buy a book or read informations from the site i listed below

Card counting requires a very large knowlege base and cannot be summed up in on one page here, you are either going to get a broad unhelpful answer like the ones you said to have already read or none at all.  Follow the links off THIS PAGE http://qfit.com/blackjack.htm

and go from there.

You can learn and practice basic strategy here

www.hitorstand.net

Answer 5

a positive count mwans that there ar emore 10's or aces in deck, which is favorable for the player. a negative count means that there are more smaller cards in deck which is favorable for the dealer. the higher the count is, the more high cards there are and the more you can bet profitably.

so run out right this moment and beat the house.

Answer 6

Read the answers above and do a good job of describing the technique of counting cards.

It is nice to know how to do but I don't recommend it.

1) It is too hard to do. Too many distractions at a blackjack table to keep the count and stay focused.

2) It is boring! It takes all of the fun out of the game.

3) The house has caught on. At my local casinos Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun, they cut almost 1/4 of an 8 deck shoe, which nullifies any attempt at card counting. Basically there are too many cards that get burned and that effects the overall count.

4) The average person doesn't have the bankroll to do it for a long time.

Just enjoy the game. It is nice to know how to count, but counting itself is too hard and too boring. Have fun with blackjack, stick with basic strategy and with a little luck, you can come out a winner most of the time.  Good luck!

Answer 7

it means the deck is full of 10's faces and aces good time to bet more also to buy insurance if dealer shows ace also good time to double and split if u have something decent vs dealers bust card

Answer 8

I suggest you go to my forums and read my newly posted how-to on counting cards in the help forum. I explain it in great detail and explain the implications that come from a high count, be it positive or negative.

Answer 9

Simply put it means you have seen 16 cards of a value 2 thru 6 more than you have seen of 10/j/q/k/a since the count started.  Bet as big as you can without getting noticed.  

Look on your local listings for the history channel, they are running the MIT black jack team episode every time I turn on the t.v. it seems since the movie 21 has come out. I haven't seen the movie, but I imagine they will have a scene where they are learning card counting.