Greetings Aaron,

Thank you for the thoughtful post. I am still puzzled as to my friend's success and he is as well. One variable that I left out is the fact he occasionally played hundred dollar tables and made thousand dollar bets. Also, given that he played 2 hands it increased his wager. But, even still, he gave 95% of his action to the $25-500 table (playing 2 hands).

I am pretty sure he isn't fooling me because he liked to show me his bankroll (which eventually wouldn't fit in an oversized wallet even though it was all 100's). Also, he must have won even more money when you factor in all of the $90 a night stays at the Canterbury Inn (a fancy hotel), travel between Missouri and Minnesota, and living expenses. Furthermore, I used regularily watch him play and functioned as an emotional crutch during his downswings. We were and are good buddies and he was very candid (to me) about his winning and losses.

While I wasn't shuffle tracking, I cannot say with any certainty whether or not he was. I do know how to count cards using simple, primitive systems. However, at the time I knew almost nothing about shuffle tracking. While he claimed not to care about the count, he did take an obsessive interest in having the cut card. Another point of interest is that he refused to play at casinos that used a fly or strip shuffle. He liked simple, clean shuffles like the one implemented at Mystic Lake. Also, he had many convoluted theories on clumped cards and would make dramatic variations of his bet contingent on where he thought the 'good' cards were hiding. Perhaps he had an edge and just busted out by playing $100 tables while on tilt.

I used to play extensively at this same casino as well. This was back in 93-95 when the casino was in its infancy (Mystic Lake Casino, Prior Lake). They had relatively decent rules and modest penetration at the high stakes. I was able to sustain myself for a lengthy period of time using a hi/lo counting system and making adjustments (to my basic strategy) contingent on the count. I had once worked a $2,000 bank loan to $23,000 over a half year. Whether or not I actually had an edge, I don't know. I did eventually lose my entire bankroll in one night of $100 table insanity (where I lost my head).

I no longer play blackjack and I can't say with certainty if I'm a winner or loser (over my lifetime). As mentioned previously, I am winning at poker and this captures all my gaming interest. I hope it isn't just a fluke ;-) Neverthless, I'm confounded at my friends success and he claims he is taken aback at his previous sustained run. I guess it's POSSIBLE it's an abberation. Maybe I'm overstating the casino's advantage or missing some other variable. Anyway, thanks for the feedback!

BTW, my friend is currently playing video poker for a living. Playing 100.1% and greater video poker and combining it with comps is his new passion. He and his father play regularily and neither have formal employment. Sounds interesting to me but I think I'll stick with conventional poker.

JeffreyREBT "Wherein I don't promise to make you rich without trying, or even trying very hard; I do promise to say things that will make you feel rich."