Now that we know how to calculate the running count, we need to find the true count. This is what we use to adjust our bet sizes and play advance strategy .
To find the true count we divide the running count by how many decks are left in the shoe.
True Count = Running Count Divided By Decks Left
For example, say we started playing a six deck shoe.
The dealer has already dealt out 4 decks and 2 decks remain in the shoe. In this example, the running count will be at -9. To find the true count, we divide the running count by how many decks are left in the shoe.
True Count = -9 Divided By 2
So we divide -9 by 2 which equals -4.5. The true count is therefore -4.5. We use this -4.5 true count to implement advanced strategy and change our bet sizing.
If you have not seen the previous practice lesson on running count, then you should watch that first. Head back over to whatever blackjack live dealer site you play on for this practice lesson.
Remember counting cards with an online dealer is not profitable and we are only back watching other players! You are only practicing your skills online until you are ready for a real brick and mortar casino. As previously discussed, online casino dealers cut the shoe in half, deal slowly, ban you quickly and potentially keep your money if you get caught. It is poor for making money but great for practicing by observing other people play.
When you are on whatever blackjack site you favor, you again want to find a table with a lot of players on it. More players means more cards will be dealt in a round of hands and more opportunity to practice.
Remember to find the true count, we divide the running count by the number of decks left in the shoe.
There are six decks in the online blackjack game in the practice video. We will be estimating how many decks are left in the shoe. It looks like two decks have been dealt out in the red stack left of the screen, so there is four decks left in the shoe.
4 Decks Left In Shoe
We divide the running count by 4 in this situation to get the true count.
Now we will have a look at another table from the video. This second table looks like it has three decks that have been dealt. That means in a 6 deck game, three are left in the shoe to calculate the true count.
3 Decks Left In Shoe
We divide the running count by 3 in this situation.
In the blackjack video we then looked at a third and final table. This last table has not had any cards dealt yet. It is a good opportunity to see where a particular blackjack dealer cuts the decks in the shoe.
No Decks Dealt
When you are playing blackjack professionally in a casino, learning to observe the dealers cut is important. Each dealer will often cut the decks differently from other dealers. Once you observe how a particular dealer does it, they almost never change. Store that dealer's cut depth in your memory for next time. If their cut is good, you will want to play with them again. If there cut depth is bad, you will want to avoid them in future.
When I'm card counting with the 6 deck game in a casino, I walk around observing which dealers cut more than 5 decks deep. That means they will deal more than 5 decks out before reshuffling. I only play at tables that meet this criteria. I am able to really maximize a good true count this way. There is nothing worse than getting to a great true count only to be cut short by an early reshuffle.
Cutting Decks In Half
This dealer has cut the decks in half which is terrible for card counting but quite common online. This is one of the reasons why you should not count cards in online blackjack.
As the above example illustrates, you should not be playing online blackjack for any reason other than to back watch other players for practice or for a bit of fun. If you do want to play for fun, Blackjack Pal has all kinds of interesting online blackjack site directories for you to check out like our bitcoin as a deposit method directory . Always gamble responsibly.
If I saw a dealer in a casino cut the decks like they did in the image above, I would not be sitting down to play at that table. I would also make a mental note to avoid them in the future. You get the idea of what we need to do for true count now, so let us leave it there.
You should now add true count to your practice sessions. When you are practicing running count and basic strategy , calculate the true count too.