How Casinos Detect Card Counters

How do card counters get caught, and who is it that identifies them? Is it the eye in the sky? Highly trained dealers? Or is it those pesky pit bosses? In this video, long time card counter and blackjack expert Colin Jones shares the different ways casinos catch card counters.

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00:00 Intro
00:20 Are Backoffs Common?
01:19 How Do Casinos Know You're Counting Cards?
03:35 What if the Pit Boss is Giving Heat?
07:38 Do You Need To Worry About Surveillance?
08:46 Facial Recognition / Casino Shared Communications

[mochbrah]

Had a cool dealer ask me if I'm counting because I keep changing my bets and I just said yea (didn't care to get backed off). He was cool about it and said he counts at other casinos. We kept talking until he had to move tables, should've made a small team with that guy what a legend lol

[andrewvanatta]

I once had a pit boss come over to quietly look at my play. At the same time, the guy sitting next to me was trying to convince me to make one of those side bets that are only there for suckers. On the next hand, I loudly said "Okay, okay, I'll make the side bet. Just this once!" I made the bet, the guy shut up, and the pit boss left, because he knew no card counter would ever be dumb enough to make one of those bets. Two birds with one stone.

[blueman]

Player: "Hey that's the guy from blackjack apprenticeship".
Pit Boss: "Thanks...you're banned too because you know who he is".

[robertgarcia]

I was a dealer/pit supervisor in Vegas for 15 years. Most casinos won't back you off unless you are a really good card counter, most aren't. Even if you are counting you still have to get the right card to win.

[DCWERmax]

Low key I know this one dealer at my local casino that I think counts and was helping me win a lil. She kept saying “shh shh” and would deal me 21 like 5-6 times in a row. Then she said “cash out” and I was like “nah one more” and I lost and she was like “seee”. She’s always been super nice to me at the other tables and I think she was just slightly helping me out.

[ShurimanJesus]

I'm a dealer myself and I can honestly say I have seen people count on my tables and I really don't care. I work at the casino but not necessarily for the casino seeing as how most of my money as a dealer comes from tips so as long as the people are tipping and not being rude I have no issue with it since I won't get in trouble myself.

[WesleyAPEX]

It’s incredible that casinos only let you play if you lose money. How is that legal?

[kdw]

I have only been to a casino a few times, but our local casino had printed flyers giving basic information about card counting and how to try and do it at the table. They made it clear you couldn't use any device or write anything down, but you were encouraged to try and do it in your head.

[bryanmatyas]

What do you call a surveillance agent playing blackjack in another casino? A card counter. It's true. As a former surveillance operator turned card counter, every one of us, as part of our training, had to know perfect basic strategy and how to keep the count. It's even more fun to use your skills as an advantage player against the casino that fired you after they taught you how to do it

[TheFrenchPug]

My friend and I were counting cards at a table on the border of Vegas and California. We were small time betters but winning. This one guy sits down with mounds of $25 and $100 chips. He proceeds to clean out the dealer's chip tray in a short period of time. We were crapping our pants with excitement trying to figure out how he was doing it. The pit boss sent in multiple dealers to try and shake him up but it didn't work. He proceeded to empty another tray! His betting was really weird as it wasn't consistent and didn't seem to be based on the Basic Strategy or normal card counting system. He was an extremely advanced player. He amassed so many chips in front of him he had no room to play and eventually got colored up and left the table. They did not stop him from playing because he was hitting and doubling down almost completely opposite of what you should do. His play looked totally random but we knew it wasn't. Most awesome thing I had ever witnessed in a casino and they couldn't stop him.

[aldel]

Casinos actually love this guy. And all other books, guides and content on how to be a card counter. They all make them millions of dollars. Lots of schmucks go to Vegas all pumped up just to find out that somehow they are not that good in counting cards.

[anentirecroft]

As a dealer myself I would play dumb to it.The casino only pays me $3 an hour, the rest we make on tips when the player wins, and it might be hard for the mayority of players to believe but we’re on their side.Just don’t be obvious, surveillance is always watching

[tonioyendis]

Why would you want to "rat out" another player? You're not trying to beat the other players; you are all trying to beat the dealer. Makes no sense!

[monsters]

“This guys going some MIT shit over here” that had me rolling 😂😂😂

[DigiDysce]

I dealt cards for 10 years, and I was taught to count to try to catch counters. The only time I ever cared was if the manager was gonna sweat me if the table lost too much money (this is very common in Nevada). More often than not, I just let it slide. It usually meant more tips for me, anyway.

[toma.]

I got Backed Off one time with a free buffet offer. The Pit Boss walked over and told me, "You look hungry young man. Would you like to a comp for a free buffet?" I was about $600 up on a low table, $5 to 25 minimum bet table in Reno, I think. This was back in 1987ish. I took the hint and the free food, a very good buffet.

[Mushboom]

I understood about 4 words this man said but was engaged throughout the entire video. Great work!

[FeezyCam]

I had no clue how there are many people that don't want to see others win. This really open my eyes and allow me to see how human beings really are. Not just from a game stand point but from a reality stand point. This has really changed my life even though I don't play blackjack or know how to count cards.- Thanks for keeping it real.

[Kevin-ibgv]

I worked Atlantic City for 22 years as a dealer, and 2 years in Florida as a surveillance agent. In AC, card counters could not be banned but they would shuffle the decks if they suspected you to be counting. If they suspected you were card counting, surveillance would tape your play, and a floorperson would go into a room with the tape and watch it for hours if necessary and determine if you were counting cards. If you were, your name went into the casinos computer system and a memo attached describing you as a card counter. This is how, along with the following, they KNOW you are counting cards.
As a surveillance agent, we received an 8x10 1 inch thick book published only for casinos that was completely full of casino card, dice, slots etc., cheaters. Names, photos, addresses and methods of cheating were all in this book, if remember correctly, published 4 times a year. Basically a "TOP SECRET" document for the casinos to detect cheaters.
You, my friend, are definately in that book!

[fromthesky]

I've had a pit boss sit across from me on a chair, and he just sat there staring at me as I was counting cards for a good 3 minutes, haha.