It is not illegal to think in casinos, however, casino employees will try to prevent you from counting cards. Gambling houses are at liberty to ban anyone that they think may have an unfair advantage whilst playing and warn other casinos in the area. It is fairly common for those with an unnaturally large wining streak to be ‘back roomed’ so it is important for players to know their rights (these may vary depending on your location and the country/state laws that are in place). Back rooming generally just involves questioning followed by verbal warning but on rare occasions, casinos have been known to resort to more physical methods of deterrence.
Surveillance systems will not only enable the casinos to send images of players to neighbouring businesses, but will also contribute towards monitoring and catching card counters during play. Certain casino employees will be trained in game strategies so that they can identify individuals that make all the appropriate counting decisions. Professional Blackjack players lean how to play in a way that they go undetected by the casinos. This often involves combining and alternating certain strategies – they may even deliberately make mistakes in order to seem like more of a reckless gambler. One technique, ‘shuffle tracking’, when used effectively, is able to discourage casino surveillance whilst increasing your advantage. This technique is very difficult to master, but involves counting cards in order to identify regions of the deck that are highly saturated with tens and aces. When the cards are cut and/or shuffled, the player can suddenly increase his bet when these regions come into play. To any casino official, raising bets after shuffling or cutting the deck would seem like a thoughtless decision – certainly not one that any card counter would make. The concept would seem almost impossible, but it has been proved that this technique (when able to be carried out successfully) has a detrimental effect. Since developing this strategy, Arnold Snyder has written an entire report ‘The Blackjack Shuffle Tracker’s Cookbook’ dedicated to the subject. Blackbelt in Blackjack also features a fairly detailed section on this technique.
Covering or concealing facial features from security cameras is a topic that causes conflict among professional players. Although disguising yourself will mean that you can return to a casino after being removed from the premises, the nature of your appearance may arouse suspicion if it seems as if you have something to hide. ‘Card Counter’s Guide to Casino Surveillance’ by D.V Cellini is advertised by Cadoza Publishing as a specialist guide on the inner workings of the Casinos.
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