Blackjack The Confession of a Hi-Lo Card Counter

Hi-Lo = High Energy Consumptions, Low Performance Mileage in shoe games. With 8-deck shoes, Hi-Lo counters (Moraine included at one time) beat themselves before beating the casino. Moraine is awfully ashamed.

 

Where Lies the Problem? Hi-Lo has its limit. It is efficient up to 4 decks. With 6 decks, it's a stretch already. With 8 decks, 'Hi-Loing" is a burden with no benefit in sight.

Consider this example: If a shoe has only 4 decks, a running count of +3 at the end of the 1st deck would give a 3/(4-1)=1 Hi-Lo true count of +1, thus giving card counters a level playing field against the casino from that point if the dealer stands on soft 17 (S17). But when the shoe has 8 decks, a +3 Hi-Lo running counts at the end of 1st deck, the true count becomes 3/(8-1)+ 0.43 only. The house edge is still NOT TOTALLY ERAISED even for S17 blackjack.

 

The Hi-Lo card counting system is not effective in 8-deck shoe games. It requires a significant investment of time and energy to learn and master, and even experienced counters can make mistakes. As a result, many counters believe that the Hi-Lo system is not worth using in 8-deck shoe games.