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I'm still trying to master the surrender deviations. You may or may not change your action (e.g. Stay away from continuous shufflers.I own the book. It's a great starter card counting book. hit instead of stand).Finally, Renzey suggests reading all the books you can about blackjack. All in all, a person needs to be serious about learning and playing blackjack, or in my opinion, already know a little something about basic strategy. Renzey comments on these variations starting on page 55. The title of Chapter 6 is "What comes after Basic Strategy." Well, I guess he skimmed the book so fast that he didn't even bother to look at the chapter titles.
I read the reviews that gave this book only 1 star. I've had the book for over a year and I still practice, practice, practice. Even though I had been playing blackjack for years, I set the book aside right then (obviously keeping it close for reference) and spent at least two weeks mastering each variation. Anyway, I decided to stop at the stage 3 KISS Count. Renzey really lays out the core components of the game and the order content is almost flawless. However, you absolutely must take your time. I'm pretty sure those people either flew through the book, didn't know anything about blackjack before reading the book, or thought they were smart and could master blackjack in a day, or all three. For example, one reviewer says that he/she doesn't know which strategy to employ nor in what order to employ the strategies.
If you have one of the seven hands discussed, all you have to do is scan the table to see what is out there. I also re-read several key sections in the book. Again, take your time.I then moved on to advanced plays and then to card counting. I practiced until I NEVER messed the count up. Well, actually the book corrected me in some small details because I didn't know basic strategy changed given the rules of the table (e.g.
However, if you want to relax after each time your cards are dealt, this may be the way to go. I'm taking that advice and that is why I am on Amazon today. The only part of the book I didn't care for was the explanation of "Board Composition." I did read it thoroughly, but I never practiced it. Well, I have the book right here. As for learning the KISS Count (Stage I), I again set the book aside and practiced for what I know was at least two months.
dealer hits or stands on soft 17). At the very least, go sit at some $5 tables and just get comfortable with the table environment. I knew basic strategy to a "T" before I bought the book.
Blackjack Bluebook II is a great book for the beginner and intermediate player. from a very basic one that is easy to implement and give you, I think, about a 0.08% edge--- to full blown systems that could give you around a 0.65-0.70 edge.
It didn't lead you to believe that you would make a killing by following these techniques. What I like about the book is that it move you along from understanding the game, to understanding basic strategy, to improving your game and finally to turning the tables on the house.One of the things that impressed me was that the book was not full of hype.
Although I rarely go to the casinos, I went a few times over the past several weeks and was intrigued by the game of blackjack. If you don't know basic strategy yet, it gives you the proper charts.For players that know basic strategy, it give you the knowledge to know when to deviate from the strategy to narrow the house edge.For players that want to try and gain a small edge, it gives you several "counting" techniques.
In fact, it consistantly reminded you that this was a long term strategy to gain a slight edge and was still, in the end, gambling. I'll never be more than a casual player, but even if I play occasionally, I want to know how to decrease the house edge and potentially gain a small edge.
Here is why I found it useful:It dispels myths that many seasoned players believe are true (I have seen this in practice many times at the table, even on my few recent excursions to AC).
The last reviewer of this book missed the reason why the unbalanced KISS counting system has different values for different suits. It is an old simplification trick that Mr. While this system cannot guarantee that you will be a winner it can guarantee to tell you when you actually have the advantage against the dealer and when to start placing your blood pressure-rising monster bets.
At first this seemed strange to me as well but it is much easier than counting each 2 as 1/2 point. Renzey has adapted to his KISS count, and it works.I highly recommend this book for providing a simplified yet very accurate counting system that is very user-friendly. (I have tried) It is this counting of only half of the 2s which gauges the advantage or disadvantage to the player at all points in the shoe.
I've been using Renzey's KISS III count for several years because it is the simplest, most accurate card counting system that I have come across. I could even count the red 2s and not the black 2s if I wanted to to accomplish the same thing. Now if I could only get lady luck on my side.
Lady luck may not always be on your side but the KISS count will. I keep a count of the black 2s, but not the red 2s as the system suggests.
One confusing example is that the author has different rules for different suits. I was hoping for some clear guidance on how to approach black jack. This book is highly not recommended. But I'm 100% sure that the suits don't play any role in the outcome of the game, because all suits have the same values. Do you learn basic strategy first and then move to hand composition or card counting and how many moves do you have to relearn if you switch strategies.The book is not well organized and I agree that the information is confusing. I have a strong mathematical background and I only suspect that some assumptions in the book are not sound.
In one part of the book, the author expresses one idea then contradicts it later. Much of the material was unnecessary. The author made some mathematical asumptions that according to a mathematicain friend, is incorrect. It's not like I have never read a book on Blackjack. Difinately NOT recommended. I found this book to be disorganized and conflicting. In fact, while not any kind of pro, I've been student of Blackjack for 35 years. The book said it was very simple, but in fact was not.
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