1 comments about John Patrick's Blackjack For The 21st Century.

1. One usually assumes that if a person has written a book, he or she must have a modicum of knowledge about the subject being written about; but this book proves the fallacy of such an assumption. John Patrick is totally clueless concerning the mathematical probabilities which govern this game.

   All games that are offered by a Casino have a built-in advantage, but seldom will you find an author suggesting that you play in a way that will increase the Casino's advantage over you. This is the only thing that John Patrick does correctly. Every one of his "special" ideas about how to play this game are WRONG.

   If you play Blackjack the way he tells you to, you will not only throw away the money you spent to buy this book, you will also throw away the money you wager in a Casino using his "special" strategy. My only regret is that I had to choose a rating system from 1 to 5. If I could, I would have chosen -50.

5 comments about Powerful Profits From Blackjack (Powerful Profits Series).

1. I have all the blackjack books. While the mathematics are usually sound, and the theory is always accurate..these books never did what was most important....TURN ME INTO A WINNER!

   I requested my yearly statement back from the Grand for 2003 and they show me at a net loss of $105. Thats for the ENTIRE year! Now consider that I always hide Green Chips and Black chips whenever possible before cashing in at the table to conceal my true winnings, and consider the 33 night of free hotel stays, the endless free meals, the free shows, the free trips on the casino plesure boat etc. and I was a BIG winner in 2003! My first winning year ever.

   I owe all of that to Victor's Blackjack book. He offers a method of play that will actually allow you to win without counting cards, without risking getting barred from the casino, and without all of the mathematics involved in the card counting strategy.

   The wagering differential is the most amazing concept I have ever seen. I logged most of my play from 2003...I shoudl have logged it all, but I didn't. But from my records I only had 3 losing sessions in 2003 at the Grand.

   What more can I say. This book pays for itself.




2. I don't know what the other reviewers are smoking, but this is one of the worst Blackjack books I have read. Might as well take your 10 or 15 dollars and just throw it away. This book is almost 100% just random babbling, all words and no numbers. A HUNDRED AND NINETY PAGES INTO THE BOOK, BASIC STRATEGY IS THE ONE AND ONLY THING HE HAS ACTUALLY COVERED. I was disgusted when I looked at the page number and saw 190, realizing all this idiot had done was talk about what he was going to teach for over half of the entire book. He stretches five word sentences into page and a half long explanations to fill up space, and he does it quite well. This book is ridiculously stupid, I STRONGLY suggest reading almost any other book.



3. 
   My comment is not only about this great Blackjack book, but also about the reviewer identified as "munkmunk." All readers of that person's review of this book, or any other, should take note of what he says in the opening line to his review of "Playing Blackjack as a Business," by L. Revere, also posted here at Amazon. In that review, titled by "munkmunk" as "Sexist, thief, egomaniac?", the first line of his review says:
   
   "Not being "of age," and therefore not playing in a casino, I cannot say how much money one could make with these strategies."
   
   By his own admission, "munkmunk" is not of legal age to gamble. Therefore he is unable to understand the real world of the casino, and how and why strategies in this book, and the other by L. Revere, are applicable to those environments. Being so obviously out of touch with the reality of the world of Blackjack play in the casino, since by his own admission he cannot so legally play there being too young, this makes it plainly obvious that this young person merely has some anger of his own to grind, and seems to enjoy lambasting good books and the hard work by their authors. Amazon should perhaps be more careful, and not allow underage persons to so shamefully misunderstand books of these adult subjects.
   
   Additionally, we should all remember that the real world of the in-casino blackjack play is nothing like the "theoretical" world of the statistician, or mathematician. Furthermore, we should also understand that the minds of the very young often cannot grasp realities in either the "theoretical" or the "real world," and thus have significantly skewed opinions on something whose intended purposes obviously escape them, and whose principles are far too advanced for their undeveloped minds to as yet conceive.
   
   It should be obvious to everyone reading these reviews by the young "munkmunk" that they are a form of teenage angst, sadly directed at the authors of these good books on Blackjack.
   
   This book is a serious work about a serious subject, and extraordinarily well written -- but it is written for adults who will play in real casinos -- and not for angry children with a computer and nothing better to do than to express their ignorance in a public forum like these postings at Amazon.
   
   Read this book for yourself, and you will know why the other reviewers, including myself, have found this to be such a terrific, fresh, new look at a great old game.



4. 
   This book by Victor H. Royer is one of a great books about Blackjack. If you are serious about knowing the real truth of what Blackjack is all about, then you must have this book.
   
   Here you will find not only a terrific history of this great game, but you will find invaluable information about how the game is actually played in the casinos of the 21st Century. What you may have heard about Blackjack in the past, or perhaps read as recently as the last century, is no longer the case. What you see on TV about the various Blackjack card counting systems is also no longer possible under the majority of situations and circumstances, such as are the real truth of the modern casino.
   
   What you should know is Royer's tiered wagering method, and his new Modified Basic Strategy - MBS. If you want to give yourself the right chance to win money, then this is the book for you. It will pay for itself many times over in just your first trip to a casino.



5. Gambling is an iffy proposition without some real knowledge. To learn one must play 100 times (+) and hope that LUCK is in the house or things can get depressin real fast or one can go to the source of knowledge. This book teaches the unitiated some fundamentals and strategies with wich to approach the table with a fair amount of confidence and with the right bankroll, for they say that without the proper amount of cash you are bracing yourself for defeat. Mr. Royer strikes as one of the good guides, he certainly knows his subject and his overall writing is quite enjoyable. After reading Mr. Royer's book I went to Las Vegas (my favorite!) and put into practice what I had learned from this book. I had my bearings about me and it lasted the better of 2 solid hours, in which in a 5 dollar table with the right conditions (Favoring the Player as much as possible, but of course!!)I won 185 dollars, after having lost and won my fair share of both. The point I am making is that without the book I definitely would have lost much more and not won anything. I gave him 5 stars for 4 did not quite do the job.
   I walked out a winner and realized that this is something I am actually enjoying. I always favored dices but Blackjack is a lot of fun!

No comments about Illustrated Guide to Blackjack: 150 Situations & Solutions to Make Winners Out of Beginners.

5 comments about Beating the Casinos at Their Own Game : A Strategic Approach to Winning at Craps, Roulette, Slots, Blackjack, Baccarat, Let It Ride, and Caribbean Stud Poker.

1. Beating The Casinos At Their Own Game is a book you should consider if you'd like some help playing at the casinos. It's a well, written and nicely illustrated 278-page gambling guide with instructions for most of the games you'll find at any casino. The author, Peter Svoboda, knows his math because he has the credentials: a degree in both mechanical and civil engineering.

   You'll find casino basics in chapters 1 and 2 including some history, odds of winning and losing, what the casinos do to get you there, the house advantage, advice on managing your money and when to quit. And if you have a gambling problem, Peter will direct you to the right place. Chapters 3 through 13 list rules of the ten most popular casino games, with playing strategies and some betting systems you can try. The illustrations will help you learn the games and the math listed will explain the odds and probabilities of winning.

   Peter includes some known strategies for Craps, Roulette and Baccarat. So, if you're inexperienced at any of these games, you can take an expert with you to the casino. Peter also presents some of his own winning systems.

   If you've never been to a casino, but think you might want to try some of the games offered, I'd recommend studying this book before you enter. It has all the basic playing information you'll need to improve your chances of winning...




2. This is the first review I have written on Amazon. I felt compelled to write this to keep unsuspecting people from purchasing this book. I do not know the author, I am not an author, and I have no interests in whether this book does well or not. I am simply giving my opinion.

   Simply put, my problem with this book is that it is full of incorrect statements and poor advice which completely ignores probability theory. For example, on roulette, Mr. Svoboda actually says, "The house will always have a 5.26% edge, but you can increase your winning probabilities by playing it smart." What?!? When I read that, I knew he had a very weak grasp of probability theory. It is impossible to change the odds in roulette; they are fixed. You are always at a 5.26% disadvantage, no matter what your betting strategy is. Period. I suggest you run away from any book that asserts otherwise.

   The surprising thing is that in several parts of the book, Mr. Svoboda agrees that the casino has an advantage over the player in the long run. However, to overcome this, he recommends that players play in the short run! I couldn't believe that an engineer, and someone who supposedly understands mathematics and probability, would actually write such completely incorrect information. True, in the short run you may win, but odds are that you will lose. The percentage disadvantage you face does not change.

   Over and over, Mr. Svoboda asserts that his strategies increase your chances of winning. How can you increase your chances of winning if the odds against you are fixed? For example, after several pages of detailed and complex tables and charts, Mr. Svoboda admits that his craps betting strategy gives the house a 2% advantage. Yet he still advocates following his strategy, saying that you just need to know when to walk away when ahead. What he fails to mention is that you will be behind more often than you will be ahead.

   In games of chance and independent trials (such as craps, roulette and keno, to name a few), the house has a fixed percentage advantage over the player. This is a proven mathematical fact. There are no betting systems or strategies whish can change this percentage advantage. The only thing a player may do is bet slowly and bet the minimums in order to decrease the rate at which he loses. Gambling at these types of games should be viewed as paying for entertainment, not investing, as Mr. Svoboda suggests.

   Casinos love people with systems. Why do you think companies choose to spend $1 billion to build a new casino? Because they know that system betters will come in and lose more than that. Casinos exist because they make money for their owners. I had thought that with the advanced level of gaming theory available today, that books which advocated incorrect probability theory would become a thing of the past. Then I read Mr. Svoboda's book and realized I was wrong.

   On the plus side, the book does clearly state the rules of the games and the odds of winning. It has very pretty and colorful charts and tables. As a rule book, it is very good. However, as a strategy guide, you are much better off ignoring this book. Mr. Svoboda's assertion that "this book will help you learn how to level the playing field...and gain a return on your investment" is false. This book does not tell you how to even the odds against the house. The only return on investment you will get by following the advice in this book is negative.




3. I browsed through this book at the local bookstore. All I can say is don't take any pointers from this guy. He says before placing bets on "any craps", you should wait until the die hasn't produced craps for atleast 18 rolls???? He says after this the probability of any craps showing is 88 %. What is this all about? The truth is the odds of rolling craps is the same (11 %) regardless of how many times it's been rolled in the past. If you already own this book, I suggest you take your loss and throw it away.



4. Once I picked up this book I knew immediately I would breeze through the explainations easily. The text was well done and very readable = the charts, graphs and diagrams all came at the right time. The tid-bits about Mr Svoboda's experiences were fun to read, But.. most of all I was able to acquire a grounded knowledge of how to approach the games at any casino! Can't wait for the next book to come out from Mt Svoboda!! His knowledge and skills at communicating the nuances and the details of each game were very evident! Fun and easy lessons!!



5. I bought this book before heading to Vegas mainly because I wanted to brush up on the rules of blackjack. I was only going to have 4 hours there so i didn't want to waste any time getting ready to play. I found the second chapter and other sections that describe how things work in casinos (where to get your chips, what hand signals to give the dealer, etc) useful in keeping me from wasting time when i got there. The rest of it was worth reading to learn the rules of the games and to get me thinking about probabilities.

   Unfortunately, the logic's not always there and sometimes the data are wrong.

   Some examples:

   In the roulette section, he recommends that if you are going to bet on a single number, you should pick one that hasn't shown up in the past 20 spins. This, after explaining how a lot of people keep gambling on the faulty premise that if something hasn't happened in a while, it's likely to happen, and after describing bias in roulette tables, which would make a number more likely to re-appear if it HAS appeared multiple times before.

   In the blackjack section, I re-calculated the probabilities for each of the tables that he has in there, and while most of his numbers are right, some of them are off by as much as 5%. True, my numbers could be wrong, but since i wrote a computer program to do it (meaning that it did it consistently for each test), why would it be right for all but one value in the table? More likely, they are hand-copying or editing errors.

   I wrote software (yes, i'm a geek) to play the game, implemented his suggestions one by one, and played 100,000 hands with each to see what kind of improvement each one made. The fact is, if you play your hand just like the dealer (hold at 17+, hit below), you will win 48% of the time, lose 43% of the time, and push 9% of the time. If you implement all of his strategies, you will win 48% of the time, lose 43% of the time, and push 9% of the time (yup! exactly the same!). What's important turns out not to be how you play the game (in most of the strategies, you are trading busts for losing hands and vice versa), but how you BET. Using his doubling and splitting strategies lets you hang on to your money much longer before going broke (sometimes twice as long). In the blackjack section, he doesn't spend much time talking about betting.

   Lastly, and this applies to blackjack again, he claims that the casino's main advantage in blackjack lies in the fact that "the players must choose before the dealer whether or not to draw more cards." While it's true that you could play a lot better if you could see the dealer's cards, that is not what gives the casino the advantage. Remember, the dealer is basically a human machine -- it hits at < 17, holds at 17+. The dealer does not have the benefit of seeing EITHER of your cards, so that can't be the advantage. The casino's real advantage is that the player has one more losing condition than the dealer has. That condition occurs when both the dealer and the player bust. Other than that, if the player played exactly like the dealer, they would both do exactly the same. You cannot overcome this handicap. If you play conservatively such that you do not bust (which is where most of Svoboda's recommendations lead you), the percentage of hands you lose because the dealer has more points than you will go up.

   That's about it for now. Just wait till I read the other chapters, though!

5 comments about Twenty-First Century Blackjack.

1. This is Thomason's best book to date. The Quit Points bring a wholly new dimension to the game. His progression are the most intelligent and an improvement on his previous ones.
   
   I think he proves his case and makes no wild claims but is very fair and balanced.
   
   Using his mehtods I am way up and what is more I can play higher limits on a smaller bankroll. This is the great value of his method. You get a shot at the House for little risk. Only the House can truly rely on the Law of Large Numbers to allow their built in advantages to play out. The rest of us have to make the most of winning streaks and limit our losses on losing shoes. This method allows one to do just that.
   
   I use Mannorino's Gregorian Strategy NOT basic strategy as I believe this is a more powerful and advanced strategy against six and eight deck shoes.
   
   The combination of these two methods is deadly. Ignore the dimwits who whine about Thomason's methods and proofs. Clearly they have not read the book or are merely jealous competitors. Perhaps they enjoy losing.
   
   Blackjack is now fun again!



2. I've seen a lot of strategies, read a lot of books, looked at a lot of web pages. They all say the same thing, progressive betting systems don't work. Just look at the first reviewer who harangues the system. It didn't stand up to all of his umptybillion simulations. Well I don't live or play blackjack in a simulation. I've used this system over the last year and have yet to see it just break down and fail. Or on the same token do worse than flat betting. If you are a casual player that wants to win get this book. But be forewarned do not tell anyone how you are winning, because remember progressive betting doesn't work. On a more serious note, this book is extremely easy to read if a little longwinded. After seeing the size you may wonder what I mean. Well the strategy itself can be wrapped up in about 3 pages but you don't get to it until chapter 20 something. Not that I'm complaining I think the background is very important. My final word if your looking for a book that means you want to win. So try this strategy and find out for yourself. Don't let the "experts" fool you with their billion hand simulations, i've never played a billion hands , nor will you.



3. Why they chose that first reviewer at top is a mystery. If you read the book, within the first few chapters you'll know his review is worthless.
   
   First the author does something that very few other books do, he compares his system against flat betting and card counters on the exact same sequence of hands dealt from shoes and compares the final results so all you are seeing is the results of each betting system. And his system does not always come out on top, that's not his contention anyway. His contention is that compared to the flat better you will lose less and win more with his stategies.
   
   Secondly, all his findings are backed up by very exhaustive research, there is no "trust me" statements, everything is backed up by real world data and testing.
   
   The premise behind how it works is simple. Given any shoe, if you have a sequence of 5 wins and 5 losses, a flat better would come out even. However if you had a minimum bet on the losses and a maximum bet on the wins then overall you would be ahead. Mr Thomason's system helps to put you into this position to come out ahead.
   
   Now as to real world experience, I have won 29 sessions against 5 losing sessions. I am very much ahead. Prior to this as a flat better I would say that I lost a little more than I won, a little below .500. What's more its a pleasure to play and see things happen as they are predicted in the book.
   
   There is also something in here for card counters as well. Pay very close attention to his "Quit Points" section. It is probably the most effective defensive strategy anyone has come up with and it works.
   
   There is no doubt a card counter will win more often and more money but I go to Vegas to relax and have fun, I already have a job and to me card counting is work. Instead of stressing and straining I now sit at the tables relaxed enjoying myself and still walking away a winner most of the time.
   
   Thanks Mr. Thomason for helping me win a lot of money and at the same time allowing me to enjoy myself.



4. o.k., here's the thing of it-i count cards and i also sometimes play using a positive progression. i have won and lost big using both systems,counting cards and positive progressions that is.
   i very much enjoyed all of Walter Thomasons books.



5. The author presents many theories that are interesting and unique. My problem is that 90% of this book is research/results, and 10% is actual gambling advice. Who is the target audience? This book might be relevant to gambling theorists but is not helpful to your average gambler. I am a basic strategy player and felt let down by the lack of advice and tips. I still don't know how you could implement his quit point strategy in today's casinos with crowded tables and tight rules. I would give this book four or five stars if the book was 50% research and 50% advice.

No comments about Blackjack Mania.

No comments about The blackjack hijack.

No comments about How to win at blackjack: The Einstein system.

5 comments about Blackjack The SMART Way -- The Millennium Edition.

1. I have read this book several times and have made money at the tables in Vegas and Atlantic City. I have also attended a seminar by Richard Harvey.



2. Mr Harvey has shown me a new way to make money from Blackjack - write a book that gives mugs the impression they can be good players by cleverly engaging in stupid play.

   Read all the negative reviews, they are obviously written by people who know how to play blackjack. Mr Harvey's book is a sucker bet. Play his way for fun and a quick win - if you are lucky. Long term, it is slow death.

   There are gamblers who follow lucky streaks and actually make a living doing it. If you want to develop that sort of intuitive talent then this book is for you.

   However, this book doesn't stand up to even modest analytical scrutiny. Nevertheless, for the inquiring mind, there are one or two ideas here that are worth investigating, just don't apply them as given.

   Mug players will love this book, it makes all the right noises and tantalizes them with the notion of a 'better way to play'. I can honestly say the casino's would do well to sell this book to all their patrons; in fact I seriously wondered if he wasn't employed by the casinos to write it! Mr Harvey's biggest ace is the fact that there are no end of people who will want to believe his claims.

   Even so, every card counter will be pleased that this book is on the market as it will generate a new breed of people to distract the casinos from who the real counters are. (Hmmm, so maybe the casinos didn't employ Mr Harvey after all.)

   I wish I could have been nice about this book, I was looking forward to getting it, I wanted to believe in what he said. But truly it is like giving a kid a loaded gun to play with. You would do much better to get an astologer to compute your lucky days for playing blackjack than to blindly follow his methods. Truly.




3. This was my first blackjack book. It is well written, easy to follow, and entertaining. Unfortunately, it is also ridiculous. Its not surprising, upon reading other texts on blackjack and speaking with professional players, that one cannot find mention of this authors work amongst professional players anywhere. If you don't have anything nice to say....
   
   Harvey is convincing when you don't know any better. I wondered about these negative reviews and thought people were just quick to judge a different approach, until I got more involved in advantage play. Truly, the strategies in this book are a bunch of esoteric mumbo jumbo that will cost you your entire bankroll eventually.
   
   Do you want to put your bets on the line for hunches, or do you want to have a true advantage? Don't let this book fool you. No pros even acknknowledge its existence. Start with the "Big Book of Blackjack" or "Blacklbelt in Blackjack" - both by Arnold Snyder. And read every book you can on the subject before comitting money.



4. Blackjack The Smart Way is, in my opinion, THE book for playing blackjack "new school" in this century. The work by Dr. Thorpe got us all recognizing that Blackjack could be beaten. Richard Harvey tells us how to win by using such technics as The "X" factor and card observation. You'll also discover the secrets of tricky "2's" & silent "7's". This is information not available anywhere else. You'll change accepted theory on spliting and doubling. Blackjack isn't the same game we played 5 or 10 years ago. It's tougher and you need to be informed before you enter a casino. That is IF you want to win. I also highly recommend Cutting Edge Blackjack, but buy this book first. If you only own one Blackjack book or you're even thinking of playing blackjack you'll thank me for recommending BLACKJACK the SMART way.
   Erskine, host Erskine Overnight, syndicated talk radio program



5. One clue that a book is bad is when the author claims that everyone else is wrong. Well, everyone else isn't wrong. Harvey uses poor methodologies, invalid math and superstitions to come to conclusions long proved to be false. For some reason, he takes time to insult the serious researchers along the way. Science is developed by standing on the shoulders of giants. Harvey simply tossed all their good work and started from scratch. Yes every science can be improved. But here, good work is thrown out and substituted with concepts found in other famously poor books like those of John Patrick and Jerry Patterson.

5 comments about Hollywood Blackjack: An Uncensored Guide to Doing It Like a Pro.

1. This book is Great! Of all of the blackjack books over the years (and you know the names...Uston, Revere, Wong, etc.) this is the first to present detailed information and strategy that's both fun and easy to read. Not just basic strategy, mind you (although it's there, too), but "camouflage" techniques and other details so important to ... how shall I say this ... advanced play. I was pleasantly surprised and this book is now #1 on my stack of well-read and highly earmarked blackjack books.



2. I purchased this book for information on playing blackjack tournaments. There is a brief 14 page chapter on blackjack tournaments. The chapter starts off saying that this book is not going to teach you anything about how to win a blackjack tournament, and to go "suck on it." Unfortunately, this information was not available in the advertisement for this book.
   
   Much of the rest of the book rehashes old strategies including Basic Strategy and card counting using the High - Low system that are covered in Stanford Wong's "Professional Blackjack" book and elsewhere.



3. Granted...The Secret is a pile of poo....but this book has great advice. If you are not big on reading books that are full of stats and want to be entertained while getting some good advice at what to do at a blackjack table, then this book does the trick. It is young and hip.....not boring. for me that is always key.



4. Sure there are numerous books teaching one how to play blackjack. Hollywood Blackjack is fresh and provides the reader with time-tested winning strategies, but in a clear, easy-to-follow manner tailored for today's casino environment. In his entertaining style, Hollywood Dave shares his recent experiences in beating the casinos. While we are treated to a primer on tournament play, Dave tells us about some of his tournament experiences. A thoroughly enjoyable read.



5. anyone who has read other blackjack theory books should agree that "Hollywood Blackjack" is a refreshing change. i can think of other books that give similar information, but staring at charts is just not how i learn. dave also gives a glimpse in to a world of gambling that is what every aspiring gambler hopes to experience. it is great to know that the dream is still alive. and somewhere in another weird world, hunter thompson is surely proud.