I stopped using my players card at a couple of casinos in Vegas shortly there after they gave me the boot I believe that they tracked me even harder for I was well known as you say you are they will not forget you.

Pigs get fat, hogs get slaughtered. Spreading 1-12 gets attentions.

Rose and Doc, were BJ card counters long before we even knew anything about dice control. Doc got backed off at a casino on the Vegas strip, now closed, for begin a little greedy. He was new to advantage play and his spread was way to big. My bets were much smaller than yours, but the spread was way to big. Remember the pit can count cards and easily tell what you are doing. Our suggestions to help keep you under the radar:

1. Never stay at a table too long. I would say that 30 to 45 minutes with a max of one hour should work. Maybe come back with a different shift or when a dealer takes a break. You can always play a little full play VP, or Pow Gai poker where you can give your brain a little rest.

2. After your time limit at a particular casino is over don’t come back to that casino to play BJ unless you play with a different pit crew. Play the morning shift one time, the afternoon shift the next and the grave yard shift the next. Sounds like you have several casinos within a short ( 2 hours or less) so spread yourself around. With say 4 casinos and 3 shifts at each you have 12 different groups of shift personnel. Never play at one shift at one casino more than once 3 weeks to a month between a particular shift at a particular casino.

3. Always keep track of the count in your head as you started doing. Good move.

4. Always tip. He helps in BJ as well as craps.

5. Don’t get greedy if you want to keep your opportunity to play at the various casinos.

6. A 1 to 5 spread should work just find and bring a lot less attention to yourself.

7. Make a "mistake" in your play from time to time with you have a low bet out—like when the count is low and you have your minimum bet out. Example—hit a 12 into a dealer 4 up card. This may well make you look like a regular player and not cost you much.

Just a few suggestions that have helped up from time to time.

Rose and Doc

Thanks for the response Doc. I thought I would add a few other ideas.

1. When I first starting counting I would immediately place out a big bet as dictated by the count. For example if the count went to 33 (In speed count) I would immediately bet 6 units. I’ve stopped doing this. If the count rises about the pivot point I simply parley my winning bet or maybe just bet two units. If the conditions stay positive I just parley another win to reach the betting level I desire. This assumes the count continues to increase. If I lose a parley I can usually bet the correct bet size according to the count without raising too much attention.

2. I tip in BJ as well as craps – the same way actually. The tip is placed on top of my bet so the dealer can win multiple bets if the cards run my way. This has helped me at least once where a dealer improved penetration. Doesn’t happen very often though.

3. I stopped updating records on my phone in places where the Eye in the Sky (EITS) can see me. I also refrain from texting about a session win / or lose in the same situation. I might be a little paranoid but after reading the "Card Counters guide to Casino Surveillance" the paranoia might be warranted. LOL

4. A good low cost cover play is to ask for even money when you have a blackjack and the dealer is showing an ace.

5. Another low cost cover play is to use the count to your advantage. Example 12 vs. dealer 2. If count is high one might want to stand on the 12 instead of hitting.

I’ve exchanged emails with Henry – so others may learn here is some of his advice.

1. Playing high limit without a players card is a red flag. If tables in the main floor have favorable rules you may want to play there instead.

2. If playing two spots dont increase the bets to same amount on the two spots. Say $40 one one spot and $60 on the other. As a side note – one casino I play in will not allow the playing of two spots without a players card. Not a very big deal so far.

3. As Doc mentioned – play different shifts. Keep notes of the floor supervisor when you play to avoid playing on his or her shift every week. Keep sessions short. 1 hour should allow ~ 4 shoes which is usually enough to bank a profit if variance isn’t out to get you.

Saturday I pounded one table for an hour then walked over to the craps table and pounded them some more. "Winning is really more fun!"

You have discovered that counting cards is very easy to do but very difficult to get away with.

Like my favorite TV character Andy Sipowitz used to say, "everything’s a situation". There are many things to consider when engaging in any AP endeavor.

1. Remember that no casino likes to lose and they can a will prevent you from playing any game at any time if they perceive you to be a threat. You never want a casino to think that you are a threat, and there are ways to do this but what works at one place may not work in another. You must get to know the enemy and understand how they look at your play. Understanding a casino’s pain threshold is a good place to start. Bellagio’s threshold will be much higher than the El Cortez but they both have one and knowing what it is and what reaction to expect is important to you. These thresholds come in many varieties, hourly, daily and lifetime. You can win 5 grand at Bellagio in a half and hour and go unnoticed but not at El Cortez. Lifetime wins of 50 grand at Bellagio aren’t unusual but 50 grand lifetime wins elsewhere won’t be allowed. Know the enemy.

2. Players cards. If you play in the high limit room (or anywhere at a high level) without a card you will be watched closely since all high roller gamblers want to be acknowledged with comps. If you play with a players card you make it easy for the casinos to track your play and record you wins which they will watch. If you play without a card you must play very short sessions to make it hard for them to watch you. You are gone before they can count you down. If you play with a card you must hide your play and your wins. No matter what you do you must hide your wins. To do this you need to know what your edge is so that you can calculate what your hourly win should be. Knowing your win rate will allow you to hide that amount every time that you play. If you win rate is $100 per hour you should remove $125 in chips from the table every hour. This isn’t as easy as you might think. If you are playing alone it is impossible. If you are playing with others it can be done. Never pocket black chips, only red and green and do it slowly like a green chip every 15 mins or so, and do it when other players come and go. I don’t mean to never show a win, what I mean is never show the actual amount that you walk with, ever.
The biggest mistake that you can make is being identified by name as an advantage player. Once the casino industry knows that John Smith is sharp and can beat them, then John Smith will be persona non grata in lots of casinos. John Smith may be barred but John Smyth might be able to play. Get it?

3. Playing time. Play short sessions. This usually means one big bet cycle and go. You can play for hours in negative or small positive counts at many places and no one will notice but once your bet goes to 10 or 12x they will watch and possibly count you down, unless you are gone. If you leave right away they may not bother to review your play since you won’t be there anymore. Do everything that you can to be unnoticed by blending in. Look like, talk like and be like everyone else that you are playing with. Spend time in the casino watching, just like the casino employees do. Learn how not to be noticed.
By the way don’t think for a minute that if you are losing that you won’t be asked to leave. They will get you when you are losing before you get a shot at getting your money back. Many players get backed off while losing because they feel safe and tend to play too long. Keep a one or two cycle bet limit and a reasonable time limit.
An easy way to go unnoticed is to not buy into a game with cash. At places where you play regularly keep a supply of chips so that you can slip into a game and play with out putting cash on the table which has to be acknowledged by the pit staff. If they don’t know that you’re there they can’t track you. If you have a proper 401G what difference does it make if some of it consists of chips and not cash. The side advantage to this is that the best place to get a photo of you is at the cage so avoid the cage after you play and when you need cash go to the cage sometime before you play or on a day that you aren’t going to play.

4. Disguising your play. Once again you always want to blend in. Others have suggested reducing your spread or making some mistakes while playing. The value of your play comes from playing perfectly with the proper spread so not playing perfectly or reducing your spread costs you money and can lead to playing a losing game. If you can’t play perfectly for whatever reason then don’t play, since we play to win money not just to play.
The best reading on this subject is Blackjack Attack by Don Schlesinger. Fully half of this book is charts that have come from billion hand simulations. By studying these charts you will be able to see what deviations in your play will cost in real dollars. It’s basically the Bible for blackjack players concerning game play and strategy deviations. You never want to make mistakes in your play without knowing what those mistakes will ultimately cost you.

5. You absolutely must be able to play, keep the count, talk to the pit and tell off color jokes without looking like you are counting cards. If you have to use chips to keep the count you are not even close to being ready for casino play. You must constantly practice so that you can do this in your sleep. You should be able to leave the casino and drive half way home and still remember what the count was when you left. This is very easy to do when you are practiced and by trying to do it without proper practice your card counting career could be over before you know it. You need to be perfect to have a shot at making money.

The only way to make money long term in casino is by hiding. Hide your identity, your play and especially your wins. This is a job and takes work and study to be successful. Enjoy the journey.

All great points!

Dom