Draining the Blackjack Rack

There isn't much in life that compares with winning at gambling. Somehow, the cash just seems sweeter, maybe because it doesn't seem like working, even if you are playing blackjack and spent hundreds of hours learning to count cards. It's just not the same as working 9 to 5.

I've been involved with blackjack teams that worked hundreds of hours learning a new system, scouting casinos, dealers, floor personnel, even taking notes on camera coverage and other suspected counters in the vicinity, but it never seemed like working!

The miracle of casinos. Easy money - if, you know what you are doing. The fact that three quarters of the United States now offer casinos with blackjack tells you that most players are having a good time, not winning. And, that's good. It helps the casinos accept the occasional counter who whacks them around a bit.

When the Man Who Broke the Bank at Monte Carlo had his run of luck at roulette he didn't break the entire casino, he just broke the bankroll of the particular roulette table.

Because today's casinos can request a "fill" of chips and get it delivered by security quite quickly, it is really tough to ever break the bank these days. However, I did watch a player drain an entire rack of chips yesterday!

I knew the player, he was good, and he was alone at a $1000 max bet table. He bought in for $2000 and made a single $100 bet to start a new shoe. The first few hands were choppy, but as my dealer shuffled, I watched the a dozen small cards hit the felt on the table next door. The count went up and then the player went on a true heater, winning a dozen hands in a row including a couple double downs and two blackjacks.

He raised his bet $100 each hand and when he finally lost a hand he was at the table max and had won $9500. I was up $50 at the table next door and encountering serious chip envy.

After that single lost hand he split to two hands of $500 and raised those bets up $100 after each hand, win or lose, and he won maybe thirty of the next forty hands. The floor supervisor ordered a fill after ten minutes, but it was too late.

Before the fill got there the tray was empty except for a couple hundred in $5's and some $1 chips. All the rest of the chips were in front of the player in haphazard stacks of mixed denominations. He bet $232 and lost. Then he bet $464 and won, taking every chip from the dealer's rack. It was completely drained.

The pit manager arrived. The shift manager arrived. The fill arrived. The floor supervisor put the fill on the game and watched as the player colored-up and left with $42,000 in $1000 chips. He left everything else for the dealer.

I colored-up my chips and left winning $75 and spent it on gas on the way home. Hmmm, maybe I should join a team.