Author Archives: Gary Reel

In his books, Turning the Tables on Las Vegas, and Burning the Tables in Las Vegas, Ian Andersen offers us a new psychology for casino behaviour. Andersen says that the more adversarial stance taken by most blackjack players is a mistake, and ends up working against them. Andersen offers us a more personable strategy based on finding common ground with the dealer. Andersen makes a point of befriending both dealers and pit bosses. He is also emphatic about coming across as humble and even feigning ignorance of the game. “A complete paradigm shift” is needed, Andersen says calling for a more considered and more nuanced response to the house, one based on strategic alliances that are sub-conscious, subtle, and aware of the range of dynamics in the casino player interaction. Continue reading →

It was blackjack expert Edward O Thorpe that devised modern card counting as we know it today. Thorp was in fact first and foremast a mathematical genius, but he applied his theory of probability and variable change to blackjack and came up with the system that could, in the words of his 1962 bestseller, beat the dealer. One of the hallmarks of Thorp’s system was that it was accessible to almost any committed blackjack player. You didn’t need a doctorate from MIT or a mathematical pre-disposition to understand the nuts and bolts of the Thorp method. Continue reading →

Commandment #1: Thou shalt not use intuition, feeling, sentiment or blind faith to make decisions about when to stand, hit, double-down or insure. Use sound strategy, or risk wasting away your money on the full force of the house’s already sizable advantage. Continue reading →