Chapter Plus Fifteen
Hole-Carding
I was in an off-Strip casino in Vegas with one other player at the table. Dealer has a ten up. This is before peeking devices had been installed in every Vegas table. Incidentally, three different people have told me that they invented these devices. Maybe they did. A Vegas cocktail waitress told me she invented the intermittent windshield wiper and forgot to patent it.
Anyhow, I have a 14 and signal for a hit. The dealer does nothing and doesn’t appear to be paying attention. I signal again for a hit and nothing happens. I quickly signal stand. Dealer flips over a five and then busts on the next card.
I had probably just committed a felony. The dealer certainly violated something. Several hands later it happened again. I left the table. The advantage is enormous. But all I need is to have a tape of me obviously colluding with a dealer, even if I had never before met him. I did keep the chips.
Hole-card play is taking account of any information that you have about the dealer’s hole card. I do not like the term hole-carding because in my mind it suggests illegal, unethical, or just plain sleazy actions to obtain that information. I am uncomfortable with trying too hard to gain this info — probably because of my Poker background. Try to see the other players’ hands in a Jersey game, and your new home will sit below sea level. But if you do have this information legitimately, the gain in advantage can be very large. In fact, it is theoretically possible to obtain a SCORE over 10,000. Let us start with the ultimate-gain tables.
© 2009 Norman Wattenberger
