Hi Lo Card Counting System

The Hi Lo card counting system (or the High Low count) has been introduced by Harvey Dubner, an American engineer from New-Jersey, and is considered to be the basic one. It is a simplified version of the Edward Thorp’s groundbreaking system, and certainly is much easier in usage. It is suitable for those people who’re on the learning stage, or just started to play blackjack. So, if anyone needs to learn how to play blackjack in a really short period of time – this card counting strategy is the right way to go. Although, this particular system may seem to be really easy to memorize, but it fairly increases the player’s chances in winning the game. It should be pointed out that this system also works for those who play people who play in a team.

The whole idea of this strategy is very simple – you make your decisions (whether you should – hit, stand, split or double) basing on the assumption of what card is going to be next in in your hand. If your counting is right, than – you win. In order make the right assumption it is necessary to count cards, an in order to count cards one has to assign a certain value to each card. In the Hi Lo card counting system, the values are assigned as follows (regardless of suits):

2, 3, 4 , 5, 6 – Count +1

7, 8, 9 – Count 0

10, J, Q, K, A – Count -1

When the game starts with a new deck, it means that you should start counting form zero, and then add values to the cards according to those listed above.

It is worth to mention that if you play with one deck, it is really not that difficult to count those cards, but if you play with multiple decks, everything may seem a bit more complicated, because you’ll have to keep in mind how many cards are left in the shoe. And, for some people, counting card is difficult by default, and if you feel like this is true for you as well, try to practice, before playing for real money. Remember the more you practice the easier it gets.