At a high level, the Wong Halves system is a more advanced card counting system.. Central to most card counting systems is the idea of a running count.. Many card counting systems like the Wong Halves system require one more step to help you decide how much to bet.
Named after Stanford Wong, the Wonging style of play (back counting). He popularized the backcounting method and eventually blackjack players came up ...
How to Play (and Win) at Blackjack: The Expert's Guide
Because if you want to win at blackjack, card counting is a proven technique that... most notably, Stanford Wong in his classic book Professional Blackjack.Jump to Blackjack - The term "wong" (v.) or "wonging" has come to mean a specific advantage technique in blackjack, which Wong made popular in the ...
The Knockout Count method, also known as the K-O method, of card counting was made popular by the book Knock-Out Blackjack--The Easiest Card Counting ...
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Count Cards Like the MIT Blackjack Team | Winning Blackjack Wong method blackjack
John “Stanford Wong” Ferguson is credited for popularizing the technique. Wong is a famous gambling author who coined the term wonging.
That is not to say you don't have to use traditional card counting methods when back-counting; the shoe. Stanford Wong, Blackjack Secrets.
Explore and Recognize Life and Literature of Stanford Wong Wong method blackjack
The Wong Halves System for Card Counting Wong method blackjack
The system which will be described here is, actually, one of the easiest card counting methods which was first introduced by Stanford Wong, the blackjack expert ...Wong Halves is an advanced level card counting technique, and the famous blackjack player Stanford Wong was its inventor.
This book explains how to win at blackjack. It contains a simple explanation of a powerful winning system plus comprehensive coverage of several related but ...
Wong method blackjack
Page last modified: 12-16-94 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Table of Contents Section B: Blackjack Questions B1 What do these funny acronyms mean.
B2 What special terminology is used by blackjack players?
B3 What special terminology is used by card counters?
B4 Why is there so much talk about blackjack in rec.
B5 Is casino blackjack a "beatable" game.
B6 How much of an advantage can card counting give?
B7 Is card counting illegal?
B8 Can the casino ban card counters?
B9 What is the correct basic strategy for single deck Blackjack?
B10 What is the correct basic strategy for Atlantic City blackjack?
B11 What is the house edge when playing basic strategy?
B12 Why are single deck games better than multi-deck games?
B14 Do 'bad' players at third base have any effect on expected gain?
B15 Where is the best place to sit at a blackjack table.
B16 How is card counting done?
B17 What counting system is "best"?
B18 What counting system is easiest to use?
B19 What BJ counting system is most effective?
B20 Does penetration have any effect on basic strategy expectation?
B21 What is the correct strategy for late surrender?
B22 What is the correct strategy for "multi action" blackjack?
A:B1 Michael Hall The acronyms that are often used in blackjack articles in rec.
A:B2 Steve Jacobs, Dave Everett Blackjack Terminology: basic strategy a playing strategy that is designed to minimize the house edge as much as possible without using techniques such as card counting, shuffle tracking, or dealer tells.
Basic strategy is used as a foundation for card counting, but is also used by many non-counters.
After the cards are shuffled by the dealer and cut by one of the players, one or more cards are "burned" before any cards are dealt to the players.
The option to double is often allowed on the players first two cards only, although some casinos allow doubling after splitting a pair.
Many Northern Nevada casinos allowing doubling only with a two-card total of 10 or 11.
It is very rare to find games that allow doubling of hands that have more than two cards.
Generally, when doubling is allowed, the player does not have to actually double his bet, but may increase it by any amount up to but not more than the original bet.
Very valuable to the player, but rarely if ever offered by the casinos.
Some casinos will allow the player to be paid without actually placing the insurance bet.
This is called "taking even money".
This bet pays 2:1 if the dealer has a natural 21.
If the dealer has a natural 21 blackjackthe player's bet still loses in its entirety.
If the dealer does not have a blackjack, the player loses half the bet and doesn't play the rest of the hand.
It is always possible to draw one card to a soft hand without busting.
This option is exercised by adding a new bet to the second hand, and these hands are played independently.
Some hands, such at 16 vs.
The correct playing decision often involves some consideration of the dealer's upcard.
A:B3 Steve Jacobs Card Counting Terminology betting correlation a measure of how well the card weights correlate to the change in the player's favorability when the cards are seen by the player and removed from the deck.
This gives an estimate of the accuracy of the card counting system.
Usually done standing in back of the players.
Most counting systems use a balanced count.
This weight is added to more info "count" as each new card is exposed.
Weights are usually small integer values like -1, +1, or +2.
This gives an estimate of the accuracy of the card counting system for predicting when to take insurance.
Penetration is usually expressed as a percentage of the cards, as in "75% penetration".
Good penetration is extremely important to card counters.
Red 7 is an example of an unbalanced count.
A:B4 Steve Jacobs Blackjack is the most popular table game in American casinos, and the abundance of blackjack articles in rec.
Unlike many other casino games, skillful play in blackjack allows the player to gain a slight advantage over the casino.
However, there is no single form of the game that is found in all casinos, and it is often possible to find several slightly different forms of blackjack within the same casino.
When playing blackjack, the "correct" strategy to use will depend on the number of card decks used and on the particular "house rules" that are in effect during play.
All of these factors combine to make blackjack a very complicated topic.
A:B5 Matt Wilding Background: Many books have been written that claim that BJ is beatable.
Answer: Simulations performed by rec.
These numbers typically approach 1% an average penny gain for every dollar bet though in certain particular, ideal circumstances this can get somewhat higher.
There is disagreement on the net about how much advantage this translates into in "real-world" casinos, but it's generally believed that players can play with a small, long-run advantage in BJ.
The variance is very high in this game, however, which makes the slight advantage in BJ far from a sure thing.
A:B6 Steve Jacobs A typical card counter will have an edge of 1.
It is quite unusual to find playing conditions that allow the player to get more than a 2% edge against the house, even against single deck games.
The player's edge against multi-deck games is generally less than 1%.
A:B7 Steve Jacobs No.
The casinos would like you to believe that card counting is illegal, immoral, and fattening, but the fact is that card counters are simply using a greater level of 888 blackjack than the typical blackjack player.
The Nevada courts have ruled that blackjack players are free to use any information that is made available to them, provided that there is no collusion between a player and casino personnel.
For example, if a dealer accidentally handles the cards in such a way that a player can see the dealer's hole card, the player can make use of this information without breaking the law.
A:B8 Steve Jacobs This depends on where you play.
In Atlantic City, where games of skill are not permitted, the casinos are not allowed to ban skillful players.
In Nevada, casinos are allowed to refuse service to anyone at any time for any reason.
Players are routinely "barred", usually by being asked to leave or by being told that they are welcome to play any game other than blackjack.
If you are barred but persist in trying to play, the casino can have you arrested for trespassing.
A:B9 Steve Jacobs The following basic strategy is for single deck games without DAS double-after-splits.
A:B10 Steve Jacobs The following basic strategy is for typical Atlantic City rules.
HOUSE RULES: Cards are dealt from 6 decks.
Dealer must stand on any 17.
Double-down allowed on soft hands.
Pairs may be split only once.
Player may double-down after splitting pairs.
Surrender is not allowed.
Options less favorable than STAND or HIT are not shown.
A:B11 Steve Jacobs The expected gain for basic strategy play depends on the house rules and the number of decks.
The following table summarizes the players expectation for a variety of games.
All numbers are in units of percent of initial bet.
A:B12 Michael Hall There are some surface differences, such as single and double deck usually being hand-held, while four or more decks are dealt from a shoe, but there are fundamental mathematical differences too.
Single deck blackjack is usually better than multiple deck craps or vegas for card counters, basic strategists, and the clueless.
Busting less often helps the dealer's hand more than yours, since the dealer is forced by the rigid rules to hit more often than you.
Blackjacks are also less frequent, which is bad since you get paid 3 to 2 for those.
All in all, multiple decks will cost a basic strategist nearly 0.
This was an intuitive explanation; a complete mathematically sound albeit huge proof can be generated by a combinatorial analysis program.
Card counters face the additional problem that the count is less volatile with multiple see more and hence offers less frequent opportunities for large favorable bets.
Consider the difference between an urn with 1 black and 1 white marble versus an urn with 100 black and 100 white marbles.
Draw half the marbles: what is the probability that all the remaining marbles are white?
In the 1 and 1 thanks blackjack stragety final, there is a 1 in 2 chance.
In the 100 and 100 case, there is only a 1 in 100,891,344,545,564,193,334,812,497,256 chance!
A:B14 Steve Jacobs No.
It is a common misconception that incorrect plays by the player at third base will "take the dealer's bust card" or "leave the dealer a good card".
As long as the shuffle is sufficient to randomize the cards, improper play of other players will be just as likely to help as it is to hurt.
However, bad players can cause frustration and anxiety which may increase the likelihood of making mistakes.
It is best to avoid the temptation to strangle bad players.
A:B15 Steve Jacobs It depends.
For basic strategy players, seat position has no significant effect on the player's expected return.
For card counters who use strategy variations, it is probably best to sit at third base in order to see as many cards as possible before playing the hand.
When playing against a "front loading" dealer, the best seat is whichever seat gives you the best shot at getting a glimpse of the dealer's hole card.
When playing at the Rio, the best seat is the one that gives the best view of the cocktail waitresses.
A:B16 Steve Jacobs The card counting system described below is an unbalanced 10 count that is 100% accurate for determining when to take insurance.
As blackjack professional general purpose card counting system, it is relatively weak and not particularly recommended, but it illustrates many of the principles behind card counting.
This is intended only to give a feel for how card counting is done, and is not recommended for actual practice, although I've used it because of its simplicity.
This counting strategy is listed as "Unbalanced 10 Count" in other parts of the FAQ list.
For single deck games: 1 Start the count at -4 when the deck is shuffled.
When the count is positive, the player has the advantage when taking the insurance bet.
When the count is negative, the house has the advantage, so insurance should not be taken.
Counting is best done by counting several cards at once.
It is easy to practice this counting method in the following way: 1 Count through a deck of cards, counting one card at a time.
Start at -4, and count through the entire deck.
After all of the cards have been more info, the count should be ZERO.
If it is not zero, a mistake has been made somewhere.
Repeat counting through the deck one card at a time, until you can do it quickly without making mistakes.
Repeat until you can do it efficiently.
Look for the following patterns, adding the correct amount for each pattern.
When I play, I usually count the cards by counting an entire hand player's or dealers at once.
If there are more than three cards in the hand, I mentally break it up into groups of 1, 2, or 3 cards I usually look for "XNN" patterns and ignore those cards, since they add up to zero.
I usually count the cards just before the dealer picks up the hand exception: for insurance, you should count your cards and the dealer's up card immediately.
A:B17 Matt Wilding This has been answered by rec.
The first approach is to evaluate different systems by simulation.
The second approach estimates several performance parameters of each system that collectively approximate the system's inherent potential.
This allows the strengths of different BJ systems to be studied in detail, which should allow better, more precise comparison of different systems and aid efforts to improve a particular system.
It's not yet clear how these two studies relate, and no rec.
A:B18 Matt Wilding Background: Lots of systems are available.
There is an important tradeoff between complexity and theoretical power, as more complex systems are harder to use and more error-prone.
Kim ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Q:B19 What BJ counting system is most effective?
A:B19 Michael Hall, Jeff Jennings The playing efficiency, betting correlation, and insurance correlation is listed below for several counting systems.
These numbers give an indication of the effectiveness of the counting system.
When two numbers are listed, the second number results from adding an ace side count in addition to the "main" count.
See answer B3 for definitions of "betting correlation", "playing efficiency", and "insurance correlation".
A:B20 Steve Jacobs Probably not.
Unless the dealer is cheating, the cards will be in a random order after the shuffle.
If the player is not counting cards or using other techniques to gain an advantage, it will not matter if there are several rounds or only a single round between shuffles.
But, if the dealer if using preferential shuffling, this will hurt the basic strategy players as well as the card counters.
A:B21 Michael Hall Basic strategy for late surrender in AC multi-deck games is: Surrender hard 16 but not 8-8 vs.
You lose half your bet in return for not having to play through the hand.
With early surrender, you get back half your bet even if the dealer has blackjack, while with late surrender you lose anyway when the dealer has blackjack.
A:B22 Steve Jacobs Multi Action blackjack allows the player to place up to three bets simultaneously on the same blackjack hand.
The player is dealt a single hand, and the three bets are played out against the same dealer upcard, but with different "drawn" cards for each bet.
Many players feel nervous about hitting stiff hands against a high dealer's upcard 7 or highersince they will lose all three bets if they bust.
However, basic strategy is COMPLETELY UNCHANGED for this game, and the correct strategy is no different than if the player had see more a single bet at risk.
A:B23 Steve Jacobs Caesar's Tahoe introduced the Over-13 and Under-13 side bets that are allowed at some blackjack tables.
These bets are based on the player's total for the first two cards, when aces are counted as one.
Over-13 bets win when the player's cards total 14 or higher, while under-13 bets win when the player's cards total 12 or under.
Either bet will lose when the player's total is exactly 13.
These bets are placed at the same time as the blackjack bet, and usually the side bet can be no larger than the bet on the blackjack hand.
Although these are "sucker" bets for basic strategy players, with a house edge of 6% to 10%, special card counting strategies can be used to give the player a significant edge on these bets.
The deck becomes favorable for counts of +2 and above, and for counts -4 and below.
Over-13 bets should be placed when the count is +3 and above.
Under-13 bets should be placed when the count is -4 and below.
This counting scheme is very poor for playing the blackjack portion of the bet, and will only allow the player to play about even with the house on the blackjack bets.
A:B25 The individual book reviews given below are grouped according to the person doing the review.
If you have an opposing view or wish to express another view of any of these books, write your own review wong method blackjack send it to the maintainer of the FAQ list, and it will be included.
Reviews of books that are not mentioned here are especially welcome.
There are undoubtedly many good books that are not listed here, as well as many terrible books that are not listed here.
These reviews are only the opinions of the reviewers, and your mileage may vary.
Review by Michael Dalton as reported by Michael Hall Dalton, Michael.
Blackjack: A Professional Reference.
Spur of the Moment Publishing, PO BOX 541967, Merritt Island, FL; 1991.
Over 1000 entries listing books, magazines, publications, newsletters, articles, reports, videos, software and other products available for serious players of the game twenty-one.
Also included is the most comprehensive blackjack dictionary ever compiled explaining blackjack terminology, system and strategy descriptions, rules, and miscellaneous blackjack trivia.
Complete basic strategy charts that cover most blackjack games in the world are also presented.
Fully cross-referenced with recommendations.
Reviews by Edmund Hack: Blackjack Video: Winning at Blackjack with Bobby Singer, JCI Video, 1987, 103 minutes.
The tape covers 5 areas: Basic Strategy, Card Counting, Money Management, Team Play and Casino Awareness.
Unfortunately, the information is incomplete.
For example, the basic strategy section only covers hard and soft hands and the card counting section only covers the card values for the Hi-Lo count, but no bet sizing or strategy adjustments.
For this price, you get a set of notebooks with lessons and audio tapes covering the Hi-Lo count and an 800 number you can call to find out where the best games are in the city you plan to play.
One interesting point covered in moderate detail is team play.
Singer advocates playing 4 deck or up shoes with the "Big Player" approach pioneered by Uston and others.
He advised using a counter at one or more tables who flat bets and uses hand signals i.
The current count is signaled to streak bonus hot blackjack Big Player by the stacking of chips in front of the counter in a particular way.
The Big Player can then play out the rest of the wong method blackjack, presumably free of heat.
If the count goes bad, the big player leaves, proclaiming a trip to the restroom is needed.
The Winner's Guide to Casino Gambling, Edwin Wong method blackjack, Plume, 1980 and 1989.
This is a general overview of casino gambling with chapters on casino operations, comps, junkets, credit and the games offered.
Detailed sections on craps, baccarat, roulette, keno, slots, video poker 89 edition only and blackjack give the staff, rules, and procedures of each game, the house advantage, a glossary, and the best plays for each.
In addition, there are anecdotes about playing the games.
As the author has separate books on poker and sports betting, there is little information on them here and Red Dog and Pai Gow poker are not covered.
The blackjack section has correct basic strategy information for 1,2, and 4+ deck games with and without DAS, and a discussion of Strip, Reno and Downtown rules variations.
He presents the Hi-Opt I count not by that name and how to use it for bet sizing and insurance bets, but no strategy adjustments.
There is a section written by a professional blackjack player on how to hide the fact that you are counting and life as a pro.
If you want a single book as an introduction to casino gambling, this is it.
I advise buying this book as a supplement to whatever book you use for your counting system probably either Professional Blackjack, The World's Greatest Blackjack Book, Blackbelt in Blackjack or Million Dollar Blackjack.
The counting system discussed in "Fundamentals.
Unfortunately, many of the tables were generated using Snyder's Blackjack Formula, and so the accuracy is not as good as would be the case with computer simulations.
Card Counting for the Casino Executive by Bill Zender - this book is written for casino executives, as you might suspect, which makes it insightful reading for card counters.
The book goes into detail about how pit critters should go about identifying and discouraging card counters.
It also lists all kinds of ways the players can win, both honestly and by cheating.
The author is fairly counter-tolerant, which is refreshing.
Reviews by Steve Jacobs: Million Dollar Blackjack by Ken Uston.
This is a good all-around blackjack book, although the advanced counting scheme is much more difficult than most.
Ken gives a balanced view of blackjack, without the exaggerated claims that many BJ authors are fond of.
This is a good book with a pretty reasonable counting scheme.
Otherwise, it is a good book.
These guys have absolutely nothing nice to say about Lawrence Revere, so if you've read Playing Blackjack as a Business and would like to read an opposing viewpoint, this is the book for you.
Blackbelt in Blackjack by Arnold Snyder.
The Red Seven count in this book is simple, and quite effective against single blackjack sls c s p price games.
The Zen count is more difficult, but more powerful.
Snyder includes some interesting ideas that aren't go here in other books, such as "depth charging".
This book is probably wong method blackjack as good for beginners as are the previous two books, but is a good book for more advanced readers.
Theory of Blackjack by Peter Griffin.
This is one of the few good books that cover the mathematical considerations of the game.
This book is either a complete must or a complete waste of time, depending on how you feel about mathematics.
Beat the Dealer by Edward Thorp.
This book is a classic, and is still worth reading.
The card counting schemes are now somewhat dated, but it is still a good book for card counters.
Professional Blackjack by Stanford Wong.
Some people really like this book, but I didn't find it all that exciting.
It is considered a classic, and has a lot of good material.
Playing Blackjack as a Business by Lawrence Revere.
This is one of the most accurate books for basic strategy, and the color charts are very nice.
The numbers in the tables were provided by Julian Braun, and are about as accurate as any available, but don't believe the numbers that Revere gives for player's expected gain.
Revere's counting scheme isn't widely used today, and Revere's "I'm right and everyone else is a dope" attitude is very annoying, although partially justified if you account for the date of first publication and the scarcity of good books at that time.
Scarne on Cards by John Scarne.
This book is simply wrong when it comes to blackjack, and Scarne was too arrogant to even consider the possibility that he might have been wrong.
He spends a lot of time trying to discredit Thorp.
Turning the Tables on Las Vegas by Ian Andersen.
This is an entertaining book that describes techniques for disguising your play to avoid detection by pit critters.
Casino Tournament Strategy by Stanford Wong.
This book combines previous Tournament Blackjack and Tournament Craps book together at a reasonable price.
Covers many of the unique situations that come up in tournament play.
Worth reading if you plan to play in tournaments.
Call for their very interesting catalog.
Includes books, videos, PC based BJ practice programs, analyzers and simulators, and back issues of Blackjack Forum.
Current Blackjack News, by Stanford Wong.
Win Magazine, 16760 Stagg St.
Covers all gambling and gaming topics.
Founded by Lance Humble.
They'll send you a free but dated sample if you write.
Mainly BJ but contains some sports betting information.
I wasn't impressed with my sample.
Gambler's Book Club, 630 South 11th Street, Box 4115, Las Vegas, NV 89127, 800 634-6243.
Not a newsletter but call for their awesome, awesome, awesome catalog containing not only just about every blackjack book ever written but practically every book ever written on any gambling topic.
They also more info a book store at the above address in Las Vegas.
Produced by Anthony Curtis.
Lots of information on deals and freebies available in Las Vegas.
Sometimes includes valuable coupons or arranges special deals for subscribers.
I have personally more than recouped the cost in actual cash back from coupons for about half year's worth of the subscription.
It covers most gambling jurisdictions, with particular attention paid to AC and LV.
Articles on all games, by Wong, Caro, Frome, Malmuth, Snyder, and others.
It's a full color, slick, well produced magazine, about 60 pages.
Blackjack Expert Explains How Card Counting Works
Explore and Recognize Life and Literature of Stanford Wong Wong method blackjack
Counters Culture : The Simple Rule of Blackjack is That the House Reigns--To Win Consistently Takes Skill, Luck and the Art of the Con - Los Angeles Times Wong method blackjack
Jump to Wong Halves System - The Wong Halves system borrows its name from mathematician and blackjack expert John Ferguson, who first ...Like many other blackjack greats, Wong was a very smart man who. important chapter of Stanford Wong's career includes the technique that's ...
One of the most updated card counting online casino system widely used today is the Wong Halves Count. Stanford Wong developed this card counting system.