A writer for a Vegas-themed website emailed me that question. It’s a question I’ve been asked before, and it’s a fair question, I suppose, but one that is difficult to answer (answer for the opposite question below!). In my case, just divulging the amount of the win would provide sufficient identifying information to compromise the participants and consequently the play itself.
Besides that, the question needs clarification (and I told the writer that, and then got no follow-up). Telling a tale about the most amazing win streak I’ve ever witnessed has no relevance to my life as a pro. I heard about a guy who bought a Powerball ticket and won $500 million, but what pro would find that story interesting? So perhaps the question should be: “What’s the biggest win your crew has had?” or “What’s the biggest win you’ve had where you had an edge?”
People who hear that I live in Vegas have asked, “Have you seen O?” Well, yes, I have, and I’ve eaten the seafood buffet at The Rio, and I’ve seen the wonderful fountains of The Bellagio, but don’t infer that there is any commonality between our Vegas experiences. Before I moved to Vegas, one entertaining aspect of a trip there was eavesdropping on the airplane as people shared their Vegas stories. As with Jerry Springer stories, the tawdry foreignness of it all would always entertain me.
If you run as fast as you can down the street, you still share nothing with Usain Bolt. For an Olympic sprinter, 10 seconds of racetime is the culmination of years of training, diet, study, and other preparation. Civilians (and amateur card counters) focus too much on the final manifestation of gambling–a person places a bet, and then wins or loses. Like the athlete, the professional gambler distinguishes himself from the non-pro through lifestyle and process. For every hour of gametime, how much time is spent networking, scouting, analyzing, studying, practicing, coordinating, and reviewing? This immersive lifestyle is focused on getting an edge. It is the edge, not the money, that separates the Haves and the Have Nots. I told the website writer that without an edge, big wins would not make good stories to my audience.
A buddy of mine said as much after I enlisted him on his first trip to Vegas 15 years ago. He helped bet a game for me, in which I lost $24000 (to this day, my biggest personal loss in a session). As we walked away from the table, he said, “You’ve ruined Las Vegas for me.” His comment had nothing to do with the money. The loss notwithstanding, we had just experienced 6 hours with a 3.4829% edge, betting $500-$800 per round, while every one of the hundreds of passers-by (including the surly shift boss) was completely oblivious. Then, after losing $24000, we couldn’t even ask for a dinner comp. Forget about Las Vegas; welcome to Mi Vegas.
I didn’t mind being anointed The Rainer on Parades (since “The Emperor of Ice Cream” and “Little Ball of Hate” are already taken), and in the years that followed I ruined Las Vegas for many more of my friends, and myself, too. I know that I will never enjoy the Vegas of The Hangover, or even the excitement of being with the dressed-up Midwestern locals who go to “The Boat” on a Friday night.
Like a kid with a peanut allergy who will never enjoy a Snickers, I accept the professional life without much regret or envy towards the civilians. The civilians have their soma, but the grass is not greener on their side of the fence. I sometimes remind my crew, “A billion Chinese do not want to be like Yao Ming; they want to be like us! Gentlemen, we are living the dream.”
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As a former acquaintance and fellow player, I remember we were steadily losing for 7 hours with about an 8% edge. I remember being down to our last $400 out of a $9000 session bank roll before 20 minute run where we turned over 10k positive on the session.
That was one of funniest wins at least. Mathematically, the bigger the edge, the less variance? Is that correct?
Variance is independent of edge (+EV). A game where you bet $1 and had a 1-in-900,000 chance to win $1 million would have much more variance AND a much greater edge than a game where you bet $1 and had a 1-in-99 chance to win $100.
Yes. I was thinking of blackjack games with varying edges and similar payoffs. What you say makes sense when comparing games with different payout structures. Thanks.
Good article James. I think a lot of beginning counters and non-card counters get fixated on the end result of winning or losing as you mentioned in your article. Not to long ago I gave a brief introduction on card counting to a gambler that I have never met before. We played with 2 decks, some chips and as he was losing I could see that his lack of knowledge of the game of BJ even though he has played it before in the casino and the emotional swings of losing fake money was weighing on him in a bad way where he would make statements like, “See, this is why I don’t play BJ.” When new BJ players hear the word, “Card Counter” they must think of instant gratification or automatic winner. When it seems that most of these people lack patience and the due diligence in order to realize a small edge at the game.
Richard Munchkin and I will be discussing this and the previous blog (handing off your seat) this week on the radio show “Gambling with an Edge,” 7-8 p.m. (Vegas time) Thursday July 10, 2014. The show may be heard live in Vegas on 1230 AM, and from anywhere at http://www.klav1230am.com The following day, the radio show will be archived on both bobdancer.com and richardmunchkin.com
While Richard has a similar table games background as James, 95% of my gambling expertise is in video poker. I’ll be applying some of what James (and those who have commented) have said to video poker situations — where the conclusions differ a bit because of the different dynamics of the game.
Awesome Bob! I cannot wait to hear this installment of Gambling With An Edge. I wonder if James is going to ever come on the show. I would like to hear what he has to say.
Jesse:
From your lips to James’ ear!