Counter’s must watch every move they make

Much of the stress of counting cards in blackjack doesn’t revolve around keeping track of the count. The hardest thing to do as a card counter is convince the casino that you’re just another shlub there to try your luck at a game of chance. And it’s because of this that you have to watch every tiny move you make in the building.

The smallest decisions can make the difference between you doing your thing or being escorted out of the place between a pair of suits whose shoulders line up with the top of your head. In the long run, little things matter in this game, believe it. It’s like in a strip club where they require a drink to be full at all times. If you try to play coy and just not sip the one drink you bought when you walked in, they’ll eventually get wise. If a club bouncer is smart enough to pick up on that, what do you think it’ll take for a casino pit boss to get suspicious.

OK, so what am I getting at? Believe it or not, your drink. If you sit down at a table and order a non-alcoholic drink, no big deal. If you’re a regular and are only rocking the Diet Pepsi…that’s going to draw some long looks. Trust me, it will. Maybe it’s your favorite drink, maybe it’s you trying to stay sober so you can count cards, but at some point it’ll be a giveaway to acting like you’re trying to stay focused. And casinos don’t like it when you’re focused.

So what to do? A couple easy suggestions. First, build up a tolerance outside the workplace and order at least one alcoholic drink a night at the table. Second, order your first drink from the bar before you sit down. Get a club soda with a slice of lime in it and it looks like you’re sipping down a vodka tonic.

You might think this is ridiculous, that nobody’s really going to care what you’re drinking, but I’ll bet next time you go to the casino, you’ll think twice about drinking clean the whole night. Be honest.