Thanks

[USFMD82]

Ill look into that system, I'm curious what you mean by being aggressive if your playing by basic strategy aren't you just playing by memory or do you stray from the strategy and Double down on other cards than the Basic Strategy (lol I just realized BS :) ) ?

Daws, good to hear your still up, i am up about 3X my original deposit, I cant find a video BJ table (or real life for that matter) that has a surrender option in my local casino. I go to Vegas in November, ill have to figure out if I wanna do tables or video, I know the higher the limit the less people I need to contend with.

[HoosierDaddy]

Ill look into that system, I'm curious what you mean by being aggressive if your playing by basic strategy aren't you just playing by memory or do you stray from the strategy and Double down on other cards than the Basic Strategy (lol I just realized BS :) ) ?

Daws, good to hear your still up, i am up about 3X my original deposit, I cant find a video BJ table (or real life for that matter) that has a surrender option in my local casino. I go to Vegas in November, ill have to figure out if I wanna do tables or video, I know the higher the limit the less people I need to contend with.

Well, I'm very rigid when it comes to using BS (ex. I always hit a 12 against a 2 and I always hit a 16 against a 7...you see a LOT of people at casinos, who play BS, p--sy out on those two hands a lot and don't take a card)

BUT....I will mess around with the doubles and splits sometimes. For instance, if I have a 10 or 11 and the dealer is showing an ace (but does not have the BJ) I routinely double down. I believe BS says to just hit against an ace, but I'm not 100% positive.

I will also split 2s against pretty much anything but a face card (I don't believe BS says to split 2s against a 7, 8, 9 or ace). I mean I LOVE 2s.

Another example of "aggressive" doubling would be to double a soft 18 against a 7.

But again though, a lot of it will depend on the dynamics of the table. How I'm doing against a particular dealer will really dictate how aggressive I am. If a dealer is simply not busting (I've seen shoes where the dealer doesn't bust at all or only busts once...brutal) I will tend to play a little more conservatively.

Oh...I should mention that I *rarely* surrender (my local casino has that option). That's just a personal thing, though. Also, I *will* play insurance if I have a winning hand (If I have a 20 and the dealer has an ace, I'll usually insure that)

[USFMD82]

I got it, have you always been aggressive like that or did it take you a while to get more comfortable, I myself play BS to the T even taking the Surrenders, of course as mentioned, I have yet to play a live game. I think I would get discouraged if the dealer kept wining for an entire shoe. do you have personal limits you set on yourself like (OK when I get to this level Im gonna walk away) One thing Daws Stressed early on when he started this thread was walking away when your up, and that has helped me more then anything I find if I keep playing once i am up over 100, its almost like my site thinks im being greedy so they take it all away :).

I still cant figure out why I am forced to take insurance when I have BJ and they have an A showing. Other then that I stick to the surrender options and it seems to have saved me quite a bit, and I do feel a bit of a gut kick when I have 16 to a 7 but I always go with the BS.

As to the DD on 10 and 11 with an A my BS card says to DD on anything 11 and everything but A for 10. And splitting 2's only on 3-6. What makes 2's your favorite card?

[HoosierDaddy]

Damn, just typed out a long response but accidentally deleted it:bang:

You shouldn't play at a site that forces you to take insurance when you have a BJ! Are you sure they are not just offering you even money? I've just never heard of a forced insurance play....that's worse than a 6:5 pay-out on blackjack.

Re: 2s. I think if you look at the BS numerical chart, of all the "break" cards, 2 has the highest percentage of not breaking. Anecdotally speaking, I don't see the dealer breaking on 2s much at the casino. When I split 2s, I usually end up with at least one double down opportunity (all you need is a 7, 8 or 9 on one of the hands). I would actually rather see a dealer have a 7 than a 2.

One other hand that I split, if I'm up on the day, is a pair of 9s against a 4-6. Again though, I really only like doing that if I'm up on the day and feeling a little greedy.

I'm going to the casino tomorrow night. I will give you a report when I get back:beerbang:

[USFMD82]

I hate when that happens (The long responses that get lost)

I dont know I will look further into it it happens so rarley that I havent made a point to look to much into it as I have done so well on it so far. but it only offers Insurance no option to decline, but all other options are there otherwise in a normal game, I am still very pleased with the site, but I will definitely continue to look into this matter, The reason I choose BODOG is because I have read on here that they are voted the fairest casino on a regular basis. I got tired of throwing my money at Sportsbook.com. in a month I have recouped all the money i have ever deposited into sportsbook.com (lol assuming I did a withdraw today)

One thing about your style of play is you mention your betting system (1unit,1unit,1unit) unless your on a hot shoe while this works for you, you mentioned walking away after a 4 hours session up a grand or more, how often does it take that long to get up, and on the other hand when do you decide its time to cut losses? You have more patience than I, i could not sit still that long I have trouble making it longer then 15-20 minutes (its actually easier to let the time slide when your down then up I find)

This has been my downfall in poker as well as I get bored after 20 minutes or so and make stupid bluffs. Thats why I prefer the sit n go, averaging about 30 minutes usually.

Cant wait to read your field report, seems like we got a nice bit of dialog here between all of us. I have learned valuable info between everyone contributing!

[HoosierDaddy]

Walking away from a table when you are winning can be very, very difficult, even if you go in there with a goal in mind and you meet that goal.

For instance, if I've been in there for a few hours and I've been grinding it out and have gotten a bit lucky with BJs and double down/split opportunities and am a few hundred bucks ahead, it can be quite difficult to remember that the house still has a slight advantage. You start thinking "jeez, even if i lose close to half the hands, I'm STILL doing quite well. I can do this all night!".

As an example, a few months ago I was probably up somewhere between 500-700, flat-betting 25 bucks per hand (sometimes throwing a red chip on top and making it 30) for nearly 6 hours. I was just consistently hitting solid shoes without going on a prolonged negative streak.

One hour later, I lost my entire profit AND the 800 bucks that I started with originally. Granted, the majority of the hour was spent going head-to-head w/the dealer (even after the dealer told me i should leave the table!).

That's the problem with implementing a progressive strategy like martingale w/blackjack. It can be pretty easy to lose 8 hands or so in a row. It's happened to me a lot, actually, and I usually see it happen to most people that like to log the hours at the table that I do.

On the flip side, I DO think there is something to be said about pushing it after you win (doubling your bet after a win and continue leaving your winnings out there with the hope of hitting 4 or 5 in a row). While I haven't tried that much, most people who've seen me grinding it out and winning have recommended it to me.

But, I like to usually keep it to 25 or 30 a hand. I will bump it up to 50 for a few hands if I'm doing well.

My feeling is this: IF you're using basic strategy, the house has a very, very slight overall edge. As such, if you get a little aggressive with the double downs and splits, you *should* (obviously not always) be ok. Also, between comp points, free drinks, and the overall entertainment value, you're doing ok even if you break even or wind up just a few units down.

But I def. prefer it to betting on sports. Sports was too stressful and too time-consuming for me, lol.

Tomorrow, I'm trying to walk out of there with 3 or 400 bucks and I'd like to do it in about 2 hours or so so I can catch the Titans/Steelers game. We'll see though:sm:

[USFMD82]

I know what you mean hard to stop when behind or ahead. When you say head to head with the dealer, do you feel this puts you ata disadvantage, it appears many see it form both sides, again I have not utilized BS at a live table with other people yet, but I would tend to think and I think I stated it before that I would feel morons that have no idea what they are doing would be more liable to throw off your luck then help it. I believe Daws stated he likes to play head to head or with other people he knows that also know how to play BS. Overall im still let with the impression playing just me and the dealer would be the best odds, then again I have no real grounds for this basis with no real life experience.

I know what you mean and I do not believe in martingale like strategies either. What me an Daws do, is similar to what you mentioned we chase wins, 2unit, 2 unit, 3,4,5,.. I usually revert back to 2 when i get to 5 units. I have found this to be a great money management because when you do get that loss, you are still up when you lose go back to 2 as well.

Good luck at the casino tomorrow, I gotta study this titans game some more :)

[Daws1089]

I played online yesterday as well as today and I'm beginning to believe Blackjack has lost its shine to me. Very rarely does any double down opportunity result in a win for me. Today I lost 7 in a row 3 different times, won 7 in a row once. It just does not seem profitable anymore. When I was killing it before it seemed way too easy. I don't know if that was because it was the beginning and I just happened to have a string of really good luck or what, but this is getting ridiculous now so I'm calling it off for awhile. No sense in blakc jack when football is on just about every night.

[USFMD82]

yeah, me too, after a really good run, I slowly started to decline, and playing BS slowly has netted me down to $0 (except for that Bills game last night, that realyl did me in :( ) I was up and doing great for a while but over the past well i lost a large sizable amount of my money through BJ playing I had 7 straight losing sessions. Its like The software figured me out and flipped that switch on me or something, either way, Im all out of money in my account for the time being, It was crazy I went like a month or so where every time I would play I would cash out with $100 each day. I think Ill give BJ a rest for a few weeks as well.

[Daws1089]

the highs and lows of gambling

[Billy Barooooooo]

the highs and lows of gambling

Just read your post! Good stuff I will say! Not going to sit on here and lecture you on what you should do and not do! I didn't read the article but from what I gathered it is pretty much a system I use to use. Now as I write this I'm just praying to God its not a press till you win system. Running short on time but I can tell you this, you have to press your bet in order to win. I start at a 25 dollar table when press it to 50, 50 to 75, 75 to 100, 100 to 150, 150 to 225 and so on until I hit table max or lose. Only once have I hit table max at 2k. Oh sure sounds easy but as you have learned winning two hands in a row is just F'en impossible these days! I use to wonder when the odds were suppose to come into play!
The Rush is unexplainable in text! LOL But if your a addict its not a good rush to experience! Cause once your hooked your hooked! Nothing like being stuck 3k and borrowing another K to finally catch a run and get all your money back and than catch a run and get your bet up to 800 only to have 4 splits and a double down, with the highest hand being a 17 and losing it all on a 4 card draw to 18!

Ahh those were the days!!!!

Remember keep it fun, don't let it get the best of you! Most importantly Family always comes first!!!!

Peace
BB:thumbs:

Hope you don't mind the rambling getting old and love to tell stories! :laughing:

[USFMD82]

Great story Billy, my heart would sink on a 4 way split being drawn to an 18, did you get up and walk away after that or did you keep playing and win it all back? I cant imagine dropping 2k on a hand.

I may try my hand in the future again but for now Im done with BJ for the next couple of weeks at least, I go to Vegas in Nov, ill see then how it goes.

Lucky for me I have no family to come 1st :)

[HoosierDaddy]

Yeah, I caught one on the chin last week at the table and lost about 7 or 800 (I did win about 2 of it back at the slots...lol)

I was about even after 2 hours of play when I caught a hot shoe (or at least I thought). First hand, caught a pair of 3s against a 4. Split them and doubled down both of the splits (caught a 3/8 and a 3/Ace) and they BOTH hit 21....so I was already up 4 units after 1 hand.

The shoe continued hot until the end...and that's where my evening took a turn for the worst. At the end of the shoe, I got 2 11s in a row, doubled both..and lost both.

Long story short, over the course of the next half hour, I caught 6 11s, doubled all of them, and lost all of them. It was crazy.

It was my fault as the dealer was "tough" and pulling one too many 20s for my liking. I can get lazy though and am hesitant to leave tables when I've already established a friendly banter with the pit boss, waitress etc.

I'll be back next week:sm:

[Billy Barooooooo]

No USF, I drove home and pulled over on the express way and tossed my cookies! :puke: Honestly!


BB:thumbs:

[USFMD82]

So I think bodog has turned on me definitely, on about 4 or 5 occasion I have gone in and put $50 in there, only betting $5 hands, and I will suffer ridiculously quick losses with hardly any wins at all, its not a matter of "stopping when im up" I haven't even gotten up yet on these times (that's what she said) , I dunno if I'm just on a horribly bad luck run or what but the cards are not returning to my favor so I am done with Bodog for blackjack