I’ve had a hectic few weeks with work ramping up and a friend moving out of town. Still, I’ve managed to carve out time for blackjack practice, and I can feel the progress.
My game is sharpening—decisions are becoming more instinctive. Most of my mistakes now happen when I drift off during simulations. Staying focused is a challenge given how busy and exhausted I am, but I’m hanging in there!
Here’s a snapshot of my progress on the graphs. If you need a refresher on what these metrics mean, check out my initial training post here.
Time In:
As you can see, my training has slowed down a bit. It’s not because I’m losing steam, but simply because I haven’t had the time!
This chart is different than the first one I posted. My thinking is that if I call it cumulative hours, it should include hours before I started tracking my time.
Basic Strategy:
Ah, the dreaded basic strategy drill. The most fundamental information for starting to win at blackjack, yet I still find myself making mistakes! I’m very confident in my basic strategy and know exactly what decision to make. It’s just that doing this drill over and over—925 hands at a time—becomes very draining, and I tend to go on autopilot after a while.
I had a moment on 5/2/25 where I was groggy after just waking up, and I felt like punching the wall after making more than one mistake. I’ve drilled this so much I couldn’t believe I was still slipping up. I took a deep breath, hopped in a cold shower, came out, and managed to get through with only one error. I still need to master perfect runs, but that episode was a bit of an eye-opener.
Running Count:
Running count has been improving significantly! I’ve officially graduated from speed 9/10 (with 3 perfect days in a row). It’s become much easier, and it feels great to see that progress. Speed 10 is incredibly fast, so I’m both nervous and excited to see how it goes.
Deck Conversions:
True count conversions have been slowly improving. I find I’m pretty automatic with running counts from 0 to 16, but when it cracks 17-18+ it takes me a moment to calculate the true count. I still think this drill is worthwhile even if just for the repetitions, but I’m considering hitting the in-person discard tray with some flash cards of high running counts to start nailing those higher true counts.
Deviations:
The deviations drill at this point is a breeze. I only catch myself slipping up on that dreaded 16 hits 9 at a -1. In my head, I see 16 vs. 9 standing at a +4, but when it’s the first two cards dealt, it’s a surrender. If the count is low enough, instead of surrendering, you hit the hand. When I’m focused, I don’t make this mistake.
I’m a little gun-shy about adding the extra deviations. In my casino mode test outs (hard mode), sometimes it takes me a few seconds to make a decision if there’s a deviation I haven’t used much. I think the best way forward is to get completely perfect with the 26 deviations I already know.
Casino Mode + Positive Shoe Bias:
The next white whale is casino mode with positive count bias. Here’s what makes this mode difficult:
- Dealer Mispays—catch the dealer giving you more or less when you win a hand.
- Math questions—between hands, you’ll randomly receive a simple math question. Keep the count in your head while answering.
- Inconsistent number of players—players will jump in and out of your table.
- Timed decisions—I have it set to the default 5 seconds but will lower it as I get quicker.
- Background noise—generic casino sounds with slots and people yelling out numbers. I know all the songs now, and they get stuck in my head: “I’LL JUST SIT RIGHT HERE AND HAVE ANOTHER BEER IN MEXICO!”
- No error feedback—if you make a mistake, the simulation won’t correct you, leading to some questionable decisions.
- High positive bias—this is optional, but I’ve increased the difficulty by making all tests high-count situations. This means, while dealing with everything above, the running count can reach 26 or higher, and I’m trying to calculate the true count and use deviations.
In the few hours I’ve played so far, this mode is definitely more challenging than real-life play. It’s been tough, but as always with this journey, incredibly rewarding.
I feel like I’m getting closer to where I need to be. A new goal of mine is to be good enough to be considered for a top-tier team. It would depend on many factors if I ever join a team, but I know I don’t want to go on this journey completely alone. I also want to hold myself to a standard that others would trust with their money—becoming as good as the teammate I would like to have.
I’ve noticed that I’m less enthusiastic about counting at this point; it’s becoming just something that is. I still enjoy it, but it feels like a normal part of my day now. Every day is about getting reps and moving closer to the endgame. I used to talk to friends about it, wanting to learn together or teach them, but after reaching this point in my training, they’ll have to come to me.
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