Hi/Lo Card Counting System
The Hi/Lo blackjack card counting system is very popular
and it’s also easy to learn and use.
I love to use the Hi/Lo card counting method in
combination with basic blackjack strategy. That way when
the odds are in my favor I am going to make sure that I
win as much as possible by placing larger bets. When the
odds are not in my favor I will bet conservatively and
if I lose, lose as little as possible. I will maximize
my winnings and minimize my losses.
Introduction
In Blackjack, there are the low cards, neutral cards and
the high cards. Low cards - 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, High card -
Ace, Kings, Queens, Jacks, and Tens, Neutral cards, 7,
8, 9. Aces are the only cards in blackjack which can be
counted as a high card or low card. Neutral cards are
card which do not have an effect on the count used with
many various blackjack counting systems. Basically,
blackjack card counting is all about keeping a track of
the high card and low cards that have been dealt on the
table by the dealer. In order for one to make use of the
card counting systems you ought to have good memory-you
should not lose track of your count during game play,
concentration is of paramount importance.
In this guide we will mainly look at the Hi/Lo blackjack
counting systems and how best it can be implemented
during game play.
Hi/Lo Counting System: Running Count
Generally, this system focuses on the high and low cards
that cause an effect on the count. Low cards increase
the count and high cards reduce the count. Thus the low
cards carry a positive sign (+) whilst the high cards
carry a negative sign (-). Neutral cards cause no effect
to the count. Players should note that the count should
commence at 0 after the shuffle. Each time you see a
high card on the table you should decrease the count by
1 and if a low card is dealt on the table increase the
count by 1. Do nothing to the count when neutral cards
are dealt on the table and the result of the count is
known as the Running Count (RC).
For example; we will take a look at cards that are being
held by four players on a blackjack table after the deck
has been shuffled. Player 1 - J/K, Player 2 - 2/8,
Player 3 - 7/9, Player 4 - 5/8, Player 5 - 3/4 Dealer
Face card - King.
Your initial count is 0. Player 1 has got two high
cards(decrease count by 2) and this means that your RC =
-2; player 2 has a low card (increase the count by 1)
and a neutral card (no effect to the count) this means
that the RC = -1; player 3 has got neutral cards (no
effect to the count) then the RC = -1; player 4 has got
a low card (increase the count by 1) and a neutral
card(no effect to the count) then the RC = 0;player 5
has tow low cards(increase count by 2) then the RC = 2,
The dealers face up card is a high card(decrease the
count by 1) the overall RC = 1.
Hi/Lo Counting System: True Count
True count is a method to depict the remaining cards in
the deck whether they are favorable or not. Each extra
card that is dealt on the table by the dealer will add
0.5% advantage to the player. Therefore with the true
count we have to calculate the exacta advantage of extra
high cards remaining in the deck. In order to calculate
the true count you have to know the exact number of
decks that are being used in thee blackjack variation.
Many blackjack variations make use of 4 to 8 decks. The
True Count (TC) is the Running Count (RC) divided by the
number of decks remaining.
TC = RC / Number of decks remaining.
TC gives out the assessment of how advantageous are the
remaining cards.
Hi/Lo Counting System: House Advantage
Normally, the dealer always starts off with the house
advantage because s/he gets to play last. Therefore we
would have to know at which point in time does the
player gets to have an advantage over the house. In
order to calculate this, you first of all have got to
know the rules of the variation you are playing. The
number of decks used in the game should be of paramount
importance. A player will always start off with the
disadvantage and this should be subtracted from the TC.
O.5% disadvantage = -1 to the
TC while a disadvantage of 0.75% = -1.5 to the TC.
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