It is well known to longtime readers of this blog — and I must have a few of those — there was a time in my life when I was in Las Vegas a lot. There were many reasons and one of them was that I developed a fascination with the game of Blackjack. It wasn’t the money. I played at such low denominations that I could have made more dough staying home and writing scripts. But I just took it as a personal challenge to learn all about Card Counting and to see how well I could master it.
One of the things that helped was learning about the various rules that different casinos offered and understanding how those rules impacted my odds of winning. There were certain places I learned to avoid and certain places where I stood a good chance of getting a few hundred dollars ahead. And if I was then wise enough to quit then, I could keep that money and feel proud — proud of knowing how to play the game, proud of knowing when (and where) not to play.
Much of the time, I quit when I’d won enough to pay all my expenses for that trip. I never thought I could make the kind of money that would make any sort of real difference in my life. I’ve known people who win a bit and think that can be their new principal source of income. Wrong!
I quit Cold Turkey forever one day because it became boring as some of my fascinations do. Also, it was becoming tough to keep track of rule changes at casinos. I will never go back to playing 21 because, first of all, most of my knowledge of the sport has dissipated and everything I do remember is obsolete by a couple of decades.
Every single casino where I used to often win is gone…like the Vegas bosses said, “What? Evanier used to win money at that hotel? Quick! Tear it down, tear it down!” Also, as I’ve mentioned here before, Vegas has become way too tourist-trappy and mercenary. Rooms now cost too much. Meals now cost too much. Shows cost way, way, way too much.
It would be impossible today for me to even win enough to cover the cost of a trip. Trips cost way more and the rules for Blackjack now really suck. I mean, you’d be a muttonhead to play there now.
Here’s a video from a company called Blackjack Apprenticeship that makes its money not by playing Blackjack but by teaching others how to do that. Their knowledge of what’s currently going on with that game seems to be solid and I’m impressed by their honesty. They’re trying to sell you on the game while warning you against playing it most places you could now play it in that town. If you think it doesn’t matter where you play — the game’s pretty much the same everywhere — watch this video and boy, are you in for an awakening…
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