We don’t really have to tell the Atlantic City players who subscribe to BJI that the new and beautiful casinos, the older casinos, and the dumps such as Claridge have made playing table games a real losing proposition. The blackjack games have seen an incredible increase in dealer’s hitting on soft 17 and the new carnival games seem to have taken about half the table game space now.

You all know those carnival games – for want of a better word – suck. The house edges are either too high or the games are too fast or both. Caribbean Stud, Three-Card-Poker, Four-Card-Poker, and Texas Hold’em Bonus Poker are the equivalent of being mugged on the Boardwalk in the wee dark hours of the early morning.

Casino gambling has come a long way. The casinos are beautiful; the games aren’t. The executives, trained in the best MBA schools across the country, have never gambled, except maybe to put some coins in a slot machine when their relatives come to town. They don’t understand that the thrill to gambling actually resides in the player’s belief that he can win. On these new games the players will find it very difficult to win on almost all given trips.

We are witnessing the ruining of blackjack. When we first started playing in Atlantic City, there were great games with great rules. We could play four-deckers with surrender and liberal splitting and doubling rules. There was no such thing as dealer’s hitting on a soft 17. Even the six-deck games were decidedly decent. No more.

Now we scrounge. In truth, we could probably just say, look for games at this casino and forget the rest. Most of the casinos really come under a standard umbrella – one with plenty of holes in it. We make distinctions between two and two-and-one-half stars that are kind of like the distinctions concerning how many angels can dance on the head of a pin.

The biggest problem today is that the 54 million casino gamblers contain so many bad players, uninformed players, ploppy players that the casinos don’t really have to lure table game players with good games.

Yes, it’s a bad situation and it will probably get worse.

If you wish to contribute your reports or observations, we need to receive them by the 24^th of the month for the next month’s newsletter. Send to fscobe@optonline.net.

Dear Frank and Alene,

Not much new in AC this month. The Borgata, Tropicana and Trump Plaza remain the only three casinos in AC that have resisted the urge to hit soft 17. Caesars, Hilton, Resorts and Trump Taj are still hitting soft 17 on part of their main floors. I do have another tip for the advantage blackjack players out there though.

Many times I have hit a casino in the past, played at a table for a couple hours and found that the count never really ever drifted too far in either the positive or negative direction. I never moved on to another table because I never varied my bet so the casino had no idea that I was counting. However, I was playing a losing game because I never found those moments when I had an advantage and increased my bet. So was I smart to play through these relatively neutral situations for two or three hours or should I have looked for greener pastures?
 
For a long time I thought that playing one shoe of cards was just as good as playing any other shoe of cards and that all shoes were just as likely to give me a chance to find those opportunities when a slug of big cards might be coming and I could bet big.

However, I have realized how wrong this thinking is. If you play through an entire shoe and the count does not drift either up or down during the entire shoe, this means that the high and low cards are distributed rather evenly through the entire shoe. Therefore, when the dealer shuffles the cards at the end of the shoe, each slug of cards that the dealer picks up are likely to be evenly distributed. If the dealer shuffles together a bunch of evenly distributed slugs, the result is likely to produce another relatively evenly distributed shoe. This explains the times that I have played for several hours, never saw the count drift, flat bet the entire time, and therefore played with a house advantage.
 
On the converse side, if you play a shoe where the count drifts up or down wildly, this means that the high and low cards are poorly distributed. Therefore, when the dealer shuffles the cards at the end of the shoe, this imbalance is likely to remain at least in part. So, a shoe that produces either a large plus or minus count, is likely to produce another large count after the shuffle.
 
My advice? If you play a shoe and the shoe's count never drifts much, move on and play another table because this shoe is likely to produce a similar result after the shuffle. If a shoe produces a large positive count and player advantage, play it again if you feel like you can do so without blowing your cover. This shoe is likely to produce another big count (either up or down). If you play a shoe and the count goes negative big time, get up and hit the bathroom, but be sure to return before the end of the shuffle because this shoe is likely to produce another large count as well.
 
I visited the following casinos this month. All reviews are of games on the main floor and not the high roller rooms.
 
Trump Marina: Eight decks, 75 penetration, H17. Offering a few $5 games. Lots of open seats.
 
Trump Taj: Eight decks, 75 – 80 percent penetration; S17 on 8-deckers outside high roller room, H17 on the rest of the floor.
 
Trump Marina: Six and eight-deck games on the main floor. The 6 deck $25 games are the most abundant. 75 percent penetration, S17 on the entire floor.
 
Tropicana: Eight decks. Penetration continues to improve but varies more from dealer to dealer than any other casino in AC. Still saw a couple dealers cutting off almost three decks and saw one cutting off only 1 ½. I’ll call it 65 – 80 percent penetration, S17 on the entire main floor. Only one of three properties not hitting soft 17. This place generally opens tables only on an as needed basis, so never a lot of open seats.
 
Hilton: Eight decks, 75 – 87 percent penetration, S17 on 8-deckers outside high roller room, H17 on the rest of the floor. The S17 games cutting off only a little over one deck here are the best in town. This is true for counters only. Basic strategy players are actually hurt by deep penetration. Usually several open seats.

Hope this helps.

 JON 

I have a simple suggestion for those Atlantic City drinking buffs. The best vodka is served at Borgata’s tables. The other casinos seem to water their table-drinks down. Drink up!

BIG BEN

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Here are our ratings for October 2008. We thank many of our readers for helping us to stay as updated as possible. There may be some disagreements in ratings among our correspondents but all these reports are based on individuals’ experience. A word to the wise: it’s always best to check out the casinos for yourselves.

Rating system:

***** = Excellent

**** = Very Good

*** = Good

** = Fair

* = Poor.

BALLY’S PARK PLACE: No change from last issue. This place is packed with fewer blackjack tables than in the past. A lot of carnival game players here. This used to be a premium property but it now seems to be a Harrah’s after thought. No mid-shoe entry in high roller room and on a few of the main $50 tables in casino. Mixed reviews about how deep the penetration is but we found it in the 75 percent area. All 8-deck games except for the high roller room action. For craps players, this is a good casino for the game. All tables are now 5X odds, with a range of minimums. Crews are friendly. Tables are somewhat high so short shooters get your platform shoes. Some correspondents disagree with this statement but we are guessing they are all over 6-feet tall! There are many more carnival games than ever before. Looks like Three-Card Poker rivals blackjack! Hotel has declined a lot. Two stars: * *

BORGATA: One of the three casinos that are not hitting soft 17 and thus deserves our respect. Penetration is much better now too. Casino is all six-deck games, which is great – for AC, that is. Penetration is almost 80 percent which is also an improvement. Craps has long tables, 14-footers, and very bouncy, and not worth playing unless you like to see dice flying off the tables or gaze upon beautiful cocktail servers. Go elsewhere for craps, except for Taj which has mimicked Borgata’s craps tables. This is a happening place and caters to a swinging young crowd. Good casino for Golden Touch Blackjack. Four stars: * * * *

CAESARS: No change from last issue. More tables with hitting soft 17 now. That brings this casino down a big notch. Directly across from Caesars is The Pier, which is a pleasure to walk through – a must see attraction in AC with some of the finest restaurants and views. Caesars itself also has excellent restaurants but you have long walks to find them. Cheerful place and worthy of the name it bears. Hotel/casino rating is A. They are going deeper at blackjack too but that H17 detracts from this somewhat. You can expect about 75 percent penetration with most of the dealers. The main floor of eight-deckers has some of the upper-limit tables ($25 and $50) with no mid-shoe entry. All the games in the high roller pit are also no mid-shoe entry with $100 and higher minimums. Table game action has improved and that is very noticeable in the blackjack pits – which are all 8-deck games. Six-deck games in high roller room have 80 percent penetration, as do the eight-deckers on the main casino floor. The craps games here are good with 12-foot tables and friendly crews. The tables are high so smaller controlled shooters should wear their "special shoes." Two and one-half stars: * * ½ *

CLARIDGE: Has many $10 games; otherwise a D-U-M-P according to reports from our readers. The new talk is that this place is closing as a casino but now that talk has quieted down. One and one half star: * ½ *

HARRAH’S: Harrah’s has ruined more good casinos in this country than hoof-and-mouth disease has ruined more things with hoofs and mouths. Hitting soft 17 now. Penetration now ranges somewhat below the 75 percent area. Resplitting allowed except aces. No midshoe entry in the high roller room of 6-deck action, with the rest of the casino being 8-decks. But we must warn you; this is a big slot place. Sadly, Harrah’s properties in Las Vegas and in Tunica are getting awfully bad reports about how some of the boxmen treat customers who practice a careful shot at craps and there is overwhelming paranoia at the blackjack games as well. So beware when outside AC. Harrah’s prefers their slot customers and all their casinos tend month after month to be adding more machines. Two stars: * *

HILTON: No change from last issue. The hitting of soft 17 brings this place down a peg. Resplitting allowed except aces. High roller room is 6-decks; rest of the casino is 8-decks with a few $25/$50 6-deckers on occasion. No mid-shoe entry on the six-deckers. High table minimums, especially on weekends, a lot of $25 tables, rare $10 tables. Penetration about 75 to 80 percent or higher. Good casino for Golden Touch Blackjack. For craps, we are dealing with 14-foot tables and a couple of 12 footers. Four stars: * * * *

RESORTS: No change from last issue. Just so-so after a good start a while back. Now some tables hitting soft 17. Not worth playing. Two stars: * *

SHOWBOAT: No change from last issue. High roller room got some good reports but the rest of the casino is becoming one big slot machine. We used to like this casino but Harrah’s has changed it into a slot joint. Where are the table games? Had been one of the best and now is one of the worst blackjack games in AC. Great rooms; good restaurants and that about sums it all up. One star: *

TROPICANA: Not hitting soft 17 and so we go up somewhat in our rating of this casino. Penetration around 70 percent. Is it still open? Two stars: * *

TRUMP MARINA: This place is hitting soft 17. This place’s tone has become somewhat strident. Six-deck games in high roller room and eight-deck games on the main floor have penetration of 75 percent mark, but you won’t find any dealers going much deeper. Games are mostly $15/$25 and up, especially on weekends. No mid-shoe entry on the 6-deckers but you can jump in and out on the eight-deckers. Craps tables are 12-footers with 2X odds. Pit is getting a little paranoid and nutty on the craps games. Foolish ploppies. One star: *

TRUMP PLAZA: Blackjack? Paranoid. Craps? Paranoid! I don’t think the management really understands their games based on our experience in the past two months. Big Ben said it a few issues ago; seems every lowlife street creep now parades with his baggy under-the-ass pants through this place acting tough. Who needs that when you have a lot of cash on you? Just about all 6-deck games with somewhat low penetration of penetration of 70-75 percent, depending on the dealer. No midshoe entry on games outside high-roller pit but you can find $25 (a few) to $50 minimums on these. Allows resplits, except aces. All tables are $10 and higher. Craps tables are 12-footers. Very friendly crews but a dark casino with a real smattering of low-lifes. Good casino for Golden Touch Blackjack. Three stars: * * *

TRUMP TAJ MAHAL: Now they are hitting soft 17. First they screwed up the craps tables so the dice go flying off the table every third roll and now they have decided to give the blackjack games a wicked colonoscopy. Two stars: * *

WILD, WILD WEST: No change from last issue. Smoke gets in your eyes. Lacking the spark it used to have. All 8-deck games with most offering H17 games – insane. This is a part of Bally’s Park Place and Harrah’s is looking to sell this complex like a pan of gold. Penetration is about 75 percent on all games. For craps this is a fun place to play with one 5X odds table and one 2X odds table. I remember when this place had many more tables. Crews are very friendly. One star: *

THE BEST BLACKJACK IN ATLANTIC CITY: Borgata and Hilton

The Best Craps in Atlantic City: Resorts

The Best Hotel/Casino in Atlantic City: Borgata, Taj Mahal