STREETWISE BLACKJACK

Streetwise Blackjack

Casino 411

By Peter Ruchman

     You know that they know and I know that we know that they know. That's the way it is. The state of the art of blackjack at the turn of the century is such that there really are no secrets. The blackjack explosion that took place in the last third of the 20th Century has subsided into more of a calm truce by those long-standing archrivals, the casinos and the players. At this point the casinos are just gathering information. The work of the masters: Thorp, Revere, Wong, Snyder, Griffin, and Schlesinger made daydream believers out of ordinary folks, convincing them they could win playing casino blackjack. Throughout the 70s, 80s, and 90s, multitudes flocked to quench their thirst at many fountains of blackjack knowledge. This just in: people enjoy gambling! Then, if you give them a real shot, it gets better. And if you apply yourself, you can win.

     The parry, thrust, retreat and engage tactics by both sides over terms of engagement have slowly dissolved into a resigned acceptance. The automatic shuffling shoes have done the job chasing anyone who understands the game. No one who is aware of the orthodoxy of blackjack history is going to seriously play against these shoes. And they are spreading like wildfire. Would you believe that they are in place at every casino in the Netherlands? Hard to believe but true. Closer to home, they are also on every table in the new casinos in Detroit and making their fiendish presence known in Las Vegas.

     There are casinos in Las Vegas and points east that haven't bought these devilish devices on a wholesale basis, but are test marketing them. Players for their part can still find tables that deal an honest game using single and double deck or shoes. One of the advantages of working at Gambler's Book Club is that we get to talk to a wide range of customers from all points. They give us information. The same fellow who informed me about Holland also gave me his report on Mississippi. This is a middle-aged gentleman named Hoyle, who has been playing for years and is very familiar with games throughout the world as he travels all over this country as well as Europe.

     He told me that there are better games with deeper penetration for the players in Mississippi than in Las Vegas. According to Hoyle, there isn't the rampant paranoia that exists in some other places north and west of Biloxi, Gulfport, and Tunica. Hoyle also mentioned London casinos as a favorite despite the oddity of some of the rules. In certain European locations, the dealer doesn't take the hole card until all of the players' hands have been resolved and the doubling is only on 10 or 11 with no re-splits. This requires an alteration of strategy but the game Hoyle pointed to was one in which the cards were dealt face down to the players and if the dealer busted, they never checked the hands. Ah hah! Virtual 21! Anyone for a game of 23?

     The world has shrunk. This is not an original thought either, but it can be applied to gambling and casino blackjack as well as any other activity. The Internet has made many things possible with thoughts zipping around the globe at the stoke of a keyboard, Maui to Mazatlan in a micro-second. If a good game of blackjack pops up somewhere in the world, there is bound to be someone yacking it up with the name of the casino, shift, and dealer on one of the many websites devoted to the gambling, cards, and 21. There goes another oneŠ

     If you don't think that the people whose job it is to run the games visit these sites, well, I just happen to have a lake and a dam a few miles south of Las Vegas I'd like to rent to you. Cheap! The facts of life are that casinos employ many people who aren't dumb. They contain college graduates who can surf the Internet with the best of them, trolling for information. What do you think the reaction of one of these career pros will be when he or she comes across his/her own casino, discovering a player crowing to the world about that ridiculous game of 21 at XYZ casino dealt by Fred the dealer on swing shift? Is our casino surveillance manager going to high-five his casino manager in delight? After all, some believe that any publicity is better than none at all, right? Like I said at the top, there are no secrets any longer.

     A different customer went to play at one of the local casinos last week. He played in a gambling hall that is part of a series of casinos ringing the Las Vegas valley with properties in almost every sector. They are stationed all over the city. The player, Ken Laredo, told me that he bought in for $100 at a five-dollar double-deck game. The dealer counted out the 20s and a floor person hopped right over to inquire if Kenny belonged to that casino's player's club and had an ID card. He told the supervisor that he didn't nor did he desire one. Apparently, that wasn't the appropriate response. The floor stared him down as the dealer turned to a touch-sensitive computer screen to his side to punch in the known information concerning the player. He entered the seat taken by Ken, the amount of the buy-in, denomination, and then surveillance took over.

     If Ken had indicated he wanted to join, his name, address and all other personal information would be registered forever with the marketing departments of all of the company's properties in the state and throughout the country. The "intelligence" departments of these casinos would also share in this newfound knowledge as well. If Ken had a card, it would simply be swiped like a credit card, the metallic strip revealing all the casino needed. When Ken got up to play at a different table, the procedure would be repeated.

     Wherever Ken went in the casino that night he was under siege from those whose job description includes the marching order to obtain any and all customer information. That same computer setup was at every blackjack table. If a customer refuses to offer information, he or she is viewed as a potential threat. After all, why wouldn't you want a shot a free buffets, coffee mugs and tee-shirts? What are you, a card-carrying card-counter? Are you un-American? Are you an unregistered alien? A casino con artist? You have now entered the Twilight zone of 21st Century casino operations and are persona non grata, probably photographed and duly noted. After all, what good are you if they can't get to you? George Orwell, you were soooo right.

     As casinos and hotels are snapped up like appetizers by the corporations devouring as much as they can, there's no telling where this information will wind up next week, or month, or year. The thought that four of these corporations‹Hilton/Park Place, MGM, Mandalay Bay Resorts, and Harrah's‹control 85 percent of the available rooms on the Las Vegas Strip is mind-boggling. That's close to 130,000 rooms in a city where almost 34 million people visited last year. All those Mirage, Bellagio, Treasure Island, Boardwalk, Monte Carlo, Golden Nugget and Beau Rivage customers now belong to MGM as of May 30 when that company finalized the deal to purchase Mirage Resorts from Steve Wynn.

     In this current state of affairs, information is the key. How much you spend; how often you visit; how long you play; how much you win and lose; how you play; where you eat, what you eatŠall of this information is analyzed by the surveillance and marketing departments to determine how much or how little a threat you represent to them. As you might imagine, the percentage of people who turn down one of these slot club or players' cards is minute. Like Kenny, you jump onto the heart of the radar screen by refusing to participate. And as a greater number of casinos are linked together, sharing information, your face and vital stats become part of a larger database.

     It comes down to information -- how much you have and the details you choose to share. It's all in how you play the game.