Other Blackjack Strategy Techniques to Improve Your Odds
Shuffle Tracking and Card Clump Reading are two relatively new Blackjack strategy techniques. They've
been around about fifteen or twenty years, depending on what articles you read, but aren't
as well known because they haven't received the forty years of widespread publicity
afforded to card counting.
Shuffle Tracking
Basically, the Blackjack strategy of shuffle tracking is a procedure wherein you track certain cards in the deck as
they are played, in order to follow those cards through the shuffle and then try to either
cut them into play or cut to keep them out of play.
For example, if a large group of low cards was picked up and stacked in the discard tray,
and you then kept track of that group of low cards during the shuffle, when it is your turn
to cut you can cut the deck after this group of low cards. This keeps them out of play for
the first several hands.
Since there are now proportionally more high cards in the first hands dealt, and high
cards favor the player, you can bet higher with a greater expectancy of winning.
Done skillfully, this Blackjack strategy can be as very effective. With shuffle
tracking, you can know there is a clump of high cards coming. With card counting, you
can predict when the deck is rich in high cards, but you don't know exactly when they
will be dealt.
Card Clump Reading
In order to have something to track in the shuffle, you must be able to recognize clumps
of high and low cards and how they are formed. This Blackjack strategy is called "card clump reading."
After several shuffles, clumps of low and high cards will invariably form. This is
because the dealer rarely shuffles the deck enough times to truly randomize the cards.
Thus, any clumps will tend to continue and in fact get bigger.
These clumps form primarily because of the way in which the dealer picks up cards that have
been played and places them in the discard rack before the next shuffle.
For example, assume a full table with seven players. If most of the players bust in a
given hand, this means that there were likely many low cards dealt. This is because
players are more likely to hit after receiving two low cards and thus have a greater chance
of busting. Since the dealer picks up busted hands immediately and places them in the
discard rack, there will be a clump of primarily low cards.
If on the other hand, most players win, there will likely be many high cards dealt, as
players will usually stand after receiving two high cards. Since winning hands are all
picked up by the dealer last and placed in the discard rack, there will be a clump of
primarily high cards.
According to this Blackjack strategy, if you are then able to follow these clumps through the shuffle, you can tell
approximately when they will be dealt and adjust your bets accordingly.
Are These Other Blackjack Strategy Techniques Effective?
In theory, yes. If you have the keen observation skills and mental discipline needed to
recognize clumps and then track them through the shuffle, you can gain a genuine
advantage over the casino.
However, to do this, plus count cards and keep the running count, plus play perfect basic strategy, all the while concealing your behavior from the dealer and pit boss, requires
skill and concentration beyond the range of most people.
But like all other gambling skills, if you are willing to put in the hours of practice
necessary to perfect them, these techniques can pay big dividends.
