I play quite a bit late at night go between 1am and 2am most times never relly thought about it, but was watching a show on dealers in vegas and the casinos want a dealer to deal 450 hands a hour that is the magic number. now that is 7.5 hands a min seems high to me what do you think i think that is damn fast wonder if the count was mis-stated i can find out no problem just was wondering your thought that is damn fast.I got to find out it is driving me nuts have a few friends who deal in big places and none are home just called 2 and the other 3 are on shift right now. but seems way to fast and like i said i play 2-3 times a week not there long go in try to hit hard and fast and out the door with in 10-15 mins.
black jack games in vegas
- Thread starter fletcher
- Start date
I think there would be no way to deal 7? hands a minute. With new money coming in and folks blowing out that would take at least some time off that hour.
fletch
yeh that would be impossible. The figure was quoted wrong most likely.
I searched the internet but found nothing written on how many hands on average could be played in a hour. I think the casinos have it like a unwritten rule.
The more hands played the more money.
Its the american way.
KOD
yeh that would be impossible. The figure was quoted wrong most likely.
I searched the internet but found nothing written on how many hands on average could be played in a hour. I think the casinos have it like a unwritten rule.
The more hands played the more money.
Its the american way.
KOD
Probably 450 for the whole table. As far as comps go, they assume 60 hands of blackjack an hour x 6 spots at the table would make 360 for the table per hour.
It must depend on how many players are at the table and the players skill level..... I've seen dealers here in Vancouver, Bc that when they deal 1 on 1 against a higher roller that has the table to himself, they deal a hand every 5-7 seconds... and i've seen the pit bosses tell the dealers to speed up and keep it up etc.... I guess more hands = more money.. + less time for the player to think about his $$ so he gives it up easier than having to sit and think about it....
but theres no way to deal that many hands if theres more people at the table or if they aren't experienced players... unless u are counting each persons hand as a hand.....
GL
but theres no way to deal that many hands if theres more people at the table or if they aren't experienced players... unless u are counting each persons hand as a hand.....
GL
I just watched it again and that is what they said BBC i think you have it maybe that is it i could see that , i thought they were talking about the table as one hand and there would be no way now counting each person there i could see, i was trying to figure if you were playing 1 on 1 against the dealer and you still could not get that many hands in imo, i bet you are right, they count each person at the table as a hand because by the time you make a bet , take cards and pay, then reshuffle that would be about right. i will find out but i think you are right each person at the table is a hand, that is the only way in hell because i think you get about 3 hands tops a min on a fast table. but kod was right that is the reason the more hands the more money,also a little trick to make sure they get your money they try to keep you on the floor for 3 hours straight, the guy said if you spend 3 hours at a time chances are you will lose money more times then not, that is why they hate me go in play 100 a hand win 1-2 hands and see you or i get up 1 to 2 hands then see you i am out with a few hundread each time i go and if i lose 5 in a row which has happened maybe a few times i am also gone but eay to make 1 or 2 hundred the way i do it,i don't mess around with splits or dd's i just play straight and hit and run, i do take care of my dealers though was ran from playing at a local place right by sunset, not because of how much i have won but the way i play they did not like it well tuff shit i do it for money not fun, if i want fun i will go to a game or a movie. but it was a real good show it was a new one out filmed in 3 of 2003. thanks to all and bbc because it was driving me nuts.
..............................................................fletcher said:
fletch
Although I love sports wagering first, blackjack is my game when I am in Vegas.
One time years ago my brother and I were walking through Ceasars going to get a steak dinner. Even though my brother
lived in Vegas he hated gambling and always was telling me no one can win at blackjack.
I told him just a minute and sat at a bj table despite his protests.
In 20 minutes I won $ 900.00 playing 200 a hand. I then got up tipped the dealer 50 bucks and walked.
We had a good dinner that night.
Your philosophy is exactly correct playing bj. I wish I lived in Vegas I would do exactly as you do playing bj late at night.
I prefer the table to be full and I like to sit at the last spot so I make the decision on the last card dealt. Love busting the dealer.
I always dreamed about having a group of guys that play bj for a living and being a part of something like that. Hit them fast and run.
Thanks for the memorys.
KOD
I know little about beating sports, but I can and do beat blackjack.
"Hitting and running" is meaningless unless you have a long term statistical edge. The key is getting an edge. How do you get an edge at blackjack? Learn to count cards.
The main way (without cheating or a few other ways) to get an edge is just knowing when you have a better chance of getting a blackjack. The dealer has just as good of a chance of getting a blackjack as any of the players, BUT when a player receives a blackjack he gets paid 3:2.
Think about it... if you somehow knew that every card left in the deck was an ace or a ten, and you played against the dealer, both you and the dealer would get many blackjacks. If you bet $100 you win $150 when you get a blackjack. If the dealer gets a blackjack then you lose only $100. That extra $50, the extra half bet made when you get the blackjack, is where the edge is. If you just traded blackjacks back and forth with the dealer every other hand, then you would make $50 every 2 hands.
You must also play your hands well. Basic Strategy is simply how to lose the least amount of money at blackjack if you don't count cards. If you were to play the double deck game at Bellagio and bet $100 a hand, you would stand to lose only 0.19% of your initial bet on average in the long run. So you would lose only $0.19 per hand, and if you are playing with 3 or 4 other players, you will get about 100 hands dealt to you per hour. So you would risk $10,000 and lose 0.19% of that, or $19 per hour lost, every hour, on average, for the rest of your life.
But if you count cards, you are simply comparing the number of low cards (2,3,4,5,6) remaining to the number of high cards (T J Q K A) remaining. Notice that there are 5 low cards and 5 high cards. Think of a balance. If you remove several low cards from the deck (or decks), then there will be more high cards (and more blackjacks to be dealt) remaining in the unseen cards.
There is a point when the ratio of high cards to low cards gives the player an edge. Every player has an edge at certain times, but most people have no clue when that is. It doesn't take too much to overcome a 0.19% house edge at their double deck game. But if too many high cards have been removed, then the players will have EVEN WORSE than the -0.19% off the top.
The key is betting more money (in proportion to your bankroll and perceived edge) when you know you will get more blackjacks, and betting less (or no) money when the house has the edge. The way to determine the edge is keeping track of the high and low cards.
Here's a good book to read if you are interested in playing blackjack for serious money.
"Burning the Tables in Las Vegas" by Ian Andersen
For the mathematical look at the game, try
"Theory of Blackjack" by Peter Griffin
Two other helpful books are
"Professional Blackjack" by Stanford Wong
"Blackjack Attack" by Don Schlesinger
A software program called Blackjack Risk Manager (BJRM for short)by John Auston is also recommended.
You also might want to check out www.bj21.com This is Stanford Wong's blackjack site. He has books and software you can buy that are helpful.
My advice is don't play blackjack at all until you have studied the game. It's fairly simple to learn how to win. The tough part is getting away with winning. If you play for fun, then don't worry about it. Just play basic strategy and have some free drinks. But if you want to win money at the game, then some serious study is recommended.
I've been playing blackjack seriously since August 1997.
Anyway, just didn't want people to get the wrong idea about the game. You CANNOT win just by going up and playing 3 hands and trying to get lucky. You will lose eventually. It may take a LONG TIME, but the house has all the time in the world. Some small places are just paranoid. That is why you might get run off for winning a couple of hundred dollars. I know people who have been barred from playing blackjack at Barbary Coast and Sun Coast, and they had NO CLUE. They were just drunk and winning. The bigger places LOVE action, as long as it is from players who cannot beat the game. If they determine that you actually have a long term edge, you will not be welcome anymore.
Read read read about the game.
Practice practice practice counting at home.
Run run run simulations to figure out the best betting strategy and the best games to play.
THEN go make money.
Good luck to all.... I'll see you at the tables.
"Hitting and running" is meaningless unless you have a long term statistical edge. The key is getting an edge. How do you get an edge at blackjack? Learn to count cards.
The main way (without cheating or a few other ways) to get an edge is just knowing when you have a better chance of getting a blackjack. The dealer has just as good of a chance of getting a blackjack as any of the players, BUT when a player receives a blackjack he gets paid 3:2.
Think about it... if you somehow knew that every card left in the deck was an ace or a ten, and you played against the dealer, both you and the dealer would get many blackjacks. If you bet $100 you win $150 when you get a blackjack. If the dealer gets a blackjack then you lose only $100. That extra $50, the extra half bet made when you get the blackjack, is where the edge is. If you just traded blackjacks back and forth with the dealer every other hand, then you would make $50 every 2 hands.
You must also play your hands well. Basic Strategy is simply how to lose the least amount of money at blackjack if you don't count cards. If you were to play the double deck game at Bellagio and bet $100 a hand, you would stand to lose only 0.19% of your initial bet on average in the long run. So you would lose only $0.19 per hand, and if you are playing with 3 or 4 other players, you will get about 100 hands dealt to you per hour. So you would risk $10,000 and lose 0.19% of that, or $19 per hour lost, every hour, on average, for the rest of your life.
But if you count cards, you are simply comparing the number of low cards (2,3,4,5,6) remaining to the number of high cards (T J Q K A) remaining. Notice that there are 5 low cards and 5 high cards. Think of a balance. If you remove several low cards from the deck (or decks), then there will be more high cards (and more blackjacks to be dealt) remaining in the unseen cards.
There is a point when the ratio of high cards to low cards gives the player an edge. Every player has an edge at certain times, but most people have no clue when that is. It doesn't take too much to overcome a 0.19% house edge at their double deck game. But if too many high cards have been removed, then the players will have EVEN WORSE than the -0.19% off the top.
The key is betting more money (in proportion to your bankroll and perceived edge) when you know you will get more blackjacks, and betting less (or no) money when the house has the edge. The way to determine the edge is keeping track of the high and low cards.
Here's a good book to read if you are interested in playing blackjack for serious money.
"Burning the Tables in Las Vegas" by Ian Andersen
For the mathematical look at the game, try
"Theory of Blackjack" by Peter Griffin
Two other helpful books are
"Professional Blackjack" by Stanford Wong
"Blackjack Attack" by Don Schlesinger
A software program called Blackjack Risk Manager (BJRM for short)by John Auston is also recommended.
You also might want to check out www.bj21.com This is Stanford Wong's blackjack site. He has books and software you can buy that are helpful.
My advice is don't play blackjack at all until you have studied the game. It's fairly simple to learn how to win. The tough part is getting away with winning. If you play for fun, then don't worry about it. Just play basic strategy and have some free drinks. But if you want to win money at the game, then some serious study is recommended.
I've been playing blackjack seriously since August 1997.
Anyway, just didn't want people to get the wrong idea about the game. You CANNOT win just by going up and playing 3 hands and trying to get lucky. You will lose eventually. It may take a LONG TIME, but the house has all the time in the world. Some small places are just paranoid. That is why you might get run off for winning a couple of hundred dollars. I know people who have been barred from playing blackjack at Barbary Coast and Sun Coast, and they had NO CLUE. They were just drunk and winning. The bigger places LOVE action, as long as it is from players who cannot beat the game. If they determine that you actually have a long term edge, you will not be welcome anymore.
Read read read about the game.
Practice practice practice counting at home.
Run run run simulations to figure out the best betting strategy and the best games to play.
THEN go make money.
Good luck to all.... I'll see you at the tables.
great write uo TNO we will get together as soon as this cast comes off and go over what we taled about , i will have jeri pick the first book up and read it by then i should be out of cast and we can start doing our stuff, about the hands in that show last night what the hell were they talking about the whole table? i watched it twice and that was the number the guy from the rio said, i thought i might of miss hred him so watched it again at 12 it has to be the whole table they are counting each person as a hand and that still seems high? talk to you soon
Eric
Eric
In his book "Blackbelt in Blackjack," Arnold Snyder talks about the approximate number of hands per hour for a game of blackjack.
# of players does NOT include the dealer's hand. 1 means just you and the dealer headup. 2 means you and one other player. Generally blackjack tables have 6 or 7 spots/boxes.
1 player = 200 hands per hour
2 players = 160 hands per hour
3 players = 140 hands per hour
4 players = 120 hands per hour
5 players = 100 hands per hour
6 players = 80 hands per hour
7 players = 65 hands per hour
So at a full table, you can expect the dealer to "play out" about 65 hands per hour. Each of the 7 players will get a hand, and the dealer will get a hand. The hand is dealt, the dealer pulls 21 (like always... haha), you lose your money, then they deal the next hand... on and on like that until all players are broke (haha).
So if 7 players (excluding the dealer) are at the table, the dealer will "deal" 455 hands per table.
6 players x 80 hands per hour per player = 480 hands per hour
5 players x 100 hands per hour per player = 500 hands per hour
4 players x 120 hands per hour per player = 480 hands per hour
3 players x 140 hands per hour per player = 520 hands per hour
2 players x 160 hands per hour per player = 320 hands per hour
1 player x 200 hands per hour = 200 hands per hour
The number of hands dealt per hour of course depends on the dealer's speed, the speed with which the players make decisions (in between drinking, talking to their friends, the waitress bothering them, etc.), and also table fills.
Since I have a long term edge over the house, I want to place as many positive expectation bets as I can. So I want the fastest possible dealer, and if I do have to play with other people at the table, I don't want them drunk and messing around and going too slow. That just costs me money.
Anyway, the house is greedy and just wants everyone to lose and smile and act like they had fun. The house doesn't care about us, our families, our minds... the house is cold and heartless.
Since the casino has an edge over nearly every blackjack player that THINKS he or she can win (that is the beauty of the game... it SEEMS like you can win, like you have a choice), they just want to crank out as many hands as possible. To me, dealers are like factory workers, but they do not produce a product. They spit out hands like automatons.
The funny part is... dealers get pissed when customers don't tip them. I say... the casinos are huge and rich and steal everyone's money. THEN they don't pay their own workers. They make the people from whom they are stealing pay the bill.
I don't tip blackjack dealers anymore. When I first started a long time ago, I tipped. But that was at casinos in the midwest. I used to play in the same casino all the time, so some of the dealers I'd get to know a little and tip them. But here in Vegas, hell with it. I'm here to make money. This is my job. Let the suckers tip. I don't tip the guy at the sportsbook counter just because I win that day. Why tip a blackjack dealer?
I tip waitresses at restaurants, bars, clubs, etc. Those people work hard and are providing a service. I go to a restaurant and I get food. You go to a blackjack table, they are taking my money and then they want tips too? Heck with that. If I played for "fun" I would tip, since I know I would be losing anyway. But when you play for money, unless it buys you more playing time at that casino, tipping is worthless. I used to tip dealers in Vegas. I would come out here for a month or so, and then 3 months later, the dealer I gave $20 to and talked with for 4 hours won't remember me anyway. And actually, I want it that way. I want no memory of me in their minds. I want to take their money slowly, surely, and quietly.
I don't bet a ton of money anymore. I just bet small and play here and there. It's tough these days. Games are not even close to as good as they were back in 1997-2000. Vegas is becoming a blackjack wasteland.
# of players does NOT include the dealer's hand. 1 means just you and the dealer headup. 2 means you and one other player. Generally blackjack tables have 6 or 7 spots/boxes.
1 player = 200 hands per hour
2 players = 160 hands per hour
3 players = 140 hands per hour
4 players = 120 hands per hour
5 players = 100 hands per hour
6 players = 80 hands per hour
7 players = 65 hands per hour
So at a full table, you can expect the dealer to "play out" about 65 hands per hour. Each of the 7 players will get a hand, and the dealer will get a hand. The hand is dealt, the dealer pulls 21 (like always... haha), you lose your money, then they deal the next hand... on and on like that until all players are broke (haha).
So if 7 players (excluding the dealer) are at the table, the dealer will "deal" 455 hands per table.
6 players x 80 hands per hour per player = 480 hands per hour
5 players x 100 hands per hour per player = 500 hands per hour
4 players x 120 hands per hour per player = 480 hands per hour
3 players x 140 hands per hour per player = 520 hands per hour
2 players x 160 hands per hour per player = 320 hands per hour
1 player x 200 hands per hour = 200 hands per hour
The number of hands dealt per hour of course depends on the dealer's speed, the speed with which the players make decisions (in between drinking, talking to their friends, the waitress bothering them, etc.), and also table fills.
Since I have a long term edge over the house, I want to place as many positive expectation bets as I can. So I want the fastest possible dealer, and if I do have to play with other people at the table, I don't want them drunk and messing around and going too slow. That just costs me money.
Anyway, the house is greedy and just wants everyone to lose and smile and act like they had fun. The house doesn't care about us, our families, our minds... the house is cold and heartless.
Since the casino has an edge over nearly every blackjack player that THINKS he or she can win (that is the beauty of the game... it SEEMS like you can win, like you have a choice), they just want to crank out as many hands as possible. To me, dealers are like factory workers, but they do not produce a product. They spit out hands like automatons.
The funny part is... dealers get pissed when customers don't tip them. I say... the casinos are huge and rich and steal everyone's money. THEN they don't pay their own workers. They make the people from whom they are stealing pay the bill.
I don't tip blackjack dealers anymore. When I first started a long time ago, I tipped. But that was at casinos in the midwest. I used to play in the same casino all the time, so some of the dealers I'd get to know a little and tip them. But here in Vegas, hell with it. I'm here to make money. This is my job. Let the suckers tip. I don't tip the guy at the sportsbook counter just because I win that day. Why tip a blackjack dealer?
I tip waitresses at restaurants, bars, clubs, etc. Those people work hard and are providing a service. I go to a restaurant and I get food. You go to a blackjack table, they are taking my money and then they want tips too? Heck with that. If I played for "fun" I would tip, since I know I would be losing anyway. But when you play for money, unless it buys you more playing time at that casino, tipping is worthless. I used to tip dealers in Vegas. I would come out here for a month or so, and then 3 months later, the dealer I gave $20 to and talked with for 4 hours won't remember me anyway. And actually, I want it that way. I want no memory of me in their minds. I want to take their money slowly, surely, and quietly.
I don't bet a ton of money anymore. I just bet small and play here and there. It's tough these days. Games are not even close to as good as they were back in 1997-2000. Vegas is becoming a blackjack wasteland.
Hey Naked One,what's up?I'll be in Vegas Halloween.I flat bet minimum $5.00 and raise to top bet of $25.00 or $50.00 if the count goes high,I use hi/lo.Any casinos left downtown with decent pen?How about the strip?[Circus Circus?]More importantly can you tell me 1 or 2 clubs that are must see on halloween in Vegas?It must get wild there and I'll be looking for drunk gals in wild outfits.Thanks in advance,Bryan.
After reading all of this........
After reading all of this........
I have a better idea than all of you.
LEARN HOW TO PLAY TEXAS HOLD 'EM!!!
Blackjack is super fun, but a complete waste of time. Even if you're a good card counter, you're gonna get spanked as many times as you win. I have a few friends that have giant math IQ's and are pretty good at counting cards, but still don't fill their pockets with money like I do at the poker tables, and in fact, they walk away losers quite often. NOW, if you're a GREAT card counter, that's different. You WILL have a nice advantage and probably win in the long run. But great card counters are very rare indeed.
So either spend a million hours learning how to train your brain to figure out how to count cards, at Vegas speed, with 6 players at the table, OR take a week, read Doyle Brunsons "Super System," and learn how to play poker. Great poker. That's where the real money is, and the casino's only edge is the "rake."
Learning how to crush people at poker is waaaaaay easier than learning how to perfect counting cards, and the casino won't kick you out forever if they catch you kicking ass at Poker. At a 5/10 hold 'em table, it's possible to play cards for 12 hours straight 5 days a week and only lose a "little bit of money" perhaps a few hundred a night. I'd love to see, even a pro card counter sit at a blackjack table for 12 hours, 5 nights a week, and only lose a few hundred. It just wont happen unless you're in the 1% of all the most brialliant card counters out there.
I'm not crazy, I KNOW blackjack can be beaten, but in general, the casino will mash you like a bug over the long haul in blackjack IMHO. It might not be as bad as roulette, but blackjack IN GENERAL is a suckers game just like most casino games. Take control of your bankroll. Learn poker, and learn it well.
After reading all of this........
I have a better idea than all of you.
LEARN HOW TO PLAY TEXAS HOLD 'EM!!!
Blackjack is super fun, but a complete waste of time. Even if you're a good card counter, you're gonna get spanked as many times as you win. I have a few friends that have giant math IQ's and are pretty good at counting cards, but still don't fill their pockets with money like I do at the poker tables, and in fact, they walk away losers quite often. NOW, if you're a GREAT card counter, that's different. You WILL have a nice advantage and probably win in the long run. But great card counters are very rare indeed.
So either spend a million hours learning how to train your brain to figure out how to count cards, at Vegas speed, with 6 players at the table, OR take a week, read Doyle Brunsons "Super System," and learn how to play poker. Great poker. That's where the real money is, and the casino's only edge is the "rake."
Learning how to crush people at poker is waaaaaay easier than learning how to perfect counting cards, and the casino won't kick you out forever if they catch you kicking ass at Poker. At a 5/10 hold 'em table, it's possible to play cards for 12 hours straight 5 days a week and only lose a "little bit of money" perhaps a few hundred a night. I'd love to see, even a pro card counter sit at a blackjack table for 12 hours, 5 nights a week, and only lose a few hundred. It just wont happen unless you're in the 1% of all the most brialliant card counters out there.
I'm not crazy, I KNOW blackjack can be beaten, but in general, the casino will mash you like a bug over the long haul in blackjack IMHO. It might not be as bad as roulette, but blackjack IN GENERAL is a suckers game just like most casino games. Take control of your bankroll. Learn poker, and learn it well.
Well pointspread, I guess your points are taken, but I think you are a little naive in a few areas, and definitely no offense meant.
I preface this by saying I do play poker for a living as well as dabble in handicapping. Picking up the supersystem and reading it isnt going to do you a whole lot of good......albeit its a fine read for an experienced player, not to mention that most of the terms are outdated. As for blackjack I personally know and am friends with two professional counters... It can be done so to say it cant is silly, although you are right that 99% of those who try cannot do it or don't have the bankroll to sustain the swings.
Your point on playing poker as it has the best true odds are correct, you are only competing against other players and the rake, you will find no bigger edge to yourself in any casino game than this. But the problem you are getting into is that 99% of poker players don't make it either. When I first started, I didn't and I have seen hundreds of players go broke trying. It's a cutthroat business, and a million variables come into play. Much like sports betting and handicapping, money management is EVERYTHING. Play within your limits on your established bankroll and you will be fine to handle most swings and standard deviations in cards. The thing with poker as most professionals will tell you is that you are trying to make one big bet per hour. For example, in a $30/60 game you are trying to make $60 an hour over the course of your lifetime in that game. This is where people get confused. It absolutely 100% does not mean that if you play for 5 hours you are expected to make 300 on any given day. These numbers are for the course of your lifetime expectancy in that particular limit and game. So to make the example short, lets assume that your are going to play 30/60 for a year straight 40 hours a week and 50 weeks of the year. Hence, if you can make it playing cards and have the ability and mental makeup (tough mental game) to handle the ups and downs you should net close to 120k per year. 2000 hours x 1 big bet per hour. Now even seasoned vets don't make this, and some make more, because every day, every setting, and every hand is different. A lot of luck is involved short term, but in the long run skill will eventually dictate who wins the money. For example, say a novice player sits down in a 30/60 game with 2k. He can easily run this into 5 or 6k with blind luck in a few hours. I've seen this happen a million times, as all the pros bite their tongues and salivate dreaming of when this particular fish will come back to the table. But the point is that this guy will give it all back and plenty more. Perhaps not that day, perhaps not that trip to vegas, but eventually. You probably won't be there when it happens, but you will be there when someone else is giving their money away. That's why game selection is almost as important as money management.
In sum, just wanted to say that you are correct that most people cannot and will never be able to beat blackjack. As for poker, the same theory applies, most will fail. And reading a somewhat advanced and outdated book isn't going to help you. Especially with the injustice ESPN and travel channel have done to the novice gambler, it's pretty sick. First off, no one plays no-limit hold em. NO ONE plays it live. Maybe less than 1/2 of one percent of all games in the country going on at one time are no-limit and most of those are ridiculously small stakes. Yet ESPN champions this as the wave of the future. The majority of all games spread with any serious dough are limit holdem games. Too many cowboys go broke watching this stuff on espn and thinking that they can do that. Well guess what, the money in all those tournaments is play money. Granted those chips are the mean to an end......real money, but they aren't throwing around one million in real dollars. At the most they can only lose 10k of their own money. Tournament rant another time......
Good luck in all you wagers and wager wisely.
I preface this by saying I do play poker for a living as well as dabble in handicapping. Picking up the supersystem and reading it isnt going to do you a whole lot of good......albeit its a fine read for an experienced player, not to mention that most of the terms are outdated. As for blackjack I personally know and am friends with two professional counters... It can be done so to say it cant is silly, although you are right that 99% of those who try cannot do it or don't have the bankroll to sustain the swings.
Your point on playing poker as it has the best true odds are correct, you are only competing against other players and the rake, you will find no bigger edge to yourself in any casino game than this. But the problem you are getting into is that 99% of poker players don't make it either. When I first started, I didn't and I have seen hundreds of players go broke trying. It's a cutthroat business, and a million variables come into play. Much like sports betting and handicapping, money management is EVERYTHING. Play within your limits on your established bankroll and you will be fine to handle most swings and standard deviations in cards. The thing with poker as most professionals will tell you is that you are trying to make one big bet per hour. For example, in a $30/60 game you are trying to make $60 an hour over the course of your lifetime in that game. This is where people get confused. It absolutely 100% does not mean that if you play for 5 hours you are expected to make 300 on any given day. These numbers are for the course of your lifetime expectancy in that particular limit and game. So to make the example short, lets assume that your are going to play 30/60 for a year straight 40 hours a week and 50 weeks of the year. Hence, if you can make it playing cards and have the ability and mental makeup (tough mental game) to handle the ups and downs you should net close to 120k per year. 2000 hours x 1 big bet per hour. Now even seasoned vets don't make this, and some make more, because every day, every setting, and every hand is different. A lot of luck is involved short term, but in the long run skill will eventually dictate who wins the money. For example, say a novice player sits down in a 30/60 game with 2k. He can easily run this into 5 or 6k with blind luck in a few hours. I've seen this happen a million times, as all the pros bite their tongues and salivate dreaming of when this particular fish will come back to the table. But the point is that this guy will give it all back and plenty more. Perhaps not that day, perhaps not that trip to vegas, but eventually. You probably won't be there when it happens, but you will be there when someone else is giving their money away. That's why game selection is almost as important as money management.
In sum, just wanted to say that you are correct that most people cannot and will never be able to beat blackjack. As for poker, the same theory applies, most will fail. And reading a somewhat advanced and outdated book isn't going to help you. Especially with the injustice ESPN and travel channel have done to the novice gambler, it's pretty sick. First off, no one plays no-limit hold em. NO ONE plays it live. Maybe less than 1/2 of one percent of all games in the country going on at one time are no-limit and most of those are ridiculously small stakes. Yet ESPN champions this as the wave of the future. The majority of all games spread with any serious dough are limit holdem games. Too many cowboys go broke watching this stuff on espn and thinking that they can do that. Well guess what, the money in all those tournaments is play money. Granted those chips are the mean to an end......real money, but they aren't throwing around one million in real dollars. At the most they can only lose 10k of their own money. Tournament rant another time......
Good luck in all you wagers and wager wisely.
