Progression Blackjack

by Donald Dahl

Book Overview

Gain an better alternative to the card-counting strategy with "Progression Blackjack". This book offers a revolutionary strategy for novices to master the game and for veteran players to consider... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0806513969
• ISBN13: 9780806513966
• Release Date: October 2000
• Publisher: Citadel Press
• Length: 155 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.4" x 8.2"

Customer Reviews

Very helpful system

Whether you are a card counter or progressive player, it is your betting strategy that allows you to preserve money, and make gains when appropriate. Online I see a lot of bantering between counters and progressive players. The truth is the combination of both theories makes the most sense. According to all the counting books, you would only increase your bets with the positive good counts; however, anyone who has played this game long enough realizes that you sometimes go on win streaks with bad counts, and lose your butt off on good counts due to large bets placed on the table. Remember although the counts are favorable, the dealer has a favorable chance of hitting blackjack also. On the other hand, progressive players depend on the streaks and don't take advantage of the count, because the theory tells the player to return all the way back to the beginning bet of the progression, instead of keeping your bet relatively higher to chance winning bigger money. The truth is I combine both. By using the method of progressive betting, you actually hide the fact that you are counting. Most casinos look for those big jumps in bets during good counts that tip off counters; however, by jumping to higher base bet progressions, one is able to progress rapidly without drawing negative attention to yourself from the pit bosses. I mostly win with this strategy, playing 2-3 hands at $100 each with a bankroll of $5000, with record high of $24,000 win in one session. Mostly aim at equalling my bankroll. I've won as much as $4000, with $50 base bets on 2 hands over 2 hours. You don't have to bet big to win. CAUTION: where the system may fail has to do with greed. If one gets too aggressive with the progression, and don't take back your winnings as this book has you do, then you may get caught not having the funds to back up your double-downs and splits. If you do count, have a favorable count, and put big bets on the table, you may end up losing your winnings that you progressively earned IF you have a bad losing streak...thus, cut your losses to minimum by returning back down to your 1 unit base bet. I would love to write a book on this strategy that I came up with...maybe in the future. If you really want to get good at the game, learn shuffle tracking.

Great for Recreational Players

I've tried a zillion systems for Blackjack, and this is the best. It keeps you in the game until a long streak comes along, and then you make a killing. Playing the $10 progression, I have made as much as $700 in one session. I usually start with $200, and I rarely lose it all. Admittedly, I will oftentimes win a little or lose a little, as the streaks do not always come. But it's hard to explain the feeling of making $100 bets, when you started at just $10! Reading the negative reviews from card counters is amusing. First, they assume that everyone wants to play the game for a living, rather than just for fun. The fact is, most of us are recreational players, and we're not trying to pay the rent from our Blackjack winnings. Second, it's apparent that none of these reviewers has actually tried the system! They criticize based on "theory" and "statistics." Wouldn't it be more fair to actually play the system before trashing it? My only criticism is that Dahl's basic strategy is a little more aggressive than most authors recommend. I play the more "standard" basic strategy. Is this a system you could quit your job and play professionally? Probably not. But that's not the point. The point is to give the average player a legitimate shot at winning, while minimizing risk. This system does just that. And you can get some nice comps in the meantime.

a very enjoyable read

i enoyed this book alot and would suggest others buy it.

Betting Strategies DO Work!

This book isn't particularly well-written or enlightening, but I'm giving it a 5-star rating to counteract the unfair 1-star ratings given by the uninformed reviewers below. There IS substantial theoretical justification for why a betting progression is preferable to, say, a constant betting strategy. To understand the intuition, see, for example, Kelly's Rule of Betting, or construct a simple Monte Carlo simulation that compares the N-play final wealth distribution resulting from the two strategies. In general, you will find that, versus constant betting, progressive betting will increase the mean, increase the median, right-skew, and slightly decrease the standard deviation of final wealth, all of which is favorable. Of course, counting cards is the only way to increase the per-play probability of winning to above 50%, but it would be foolish to squander the additional benefits of an intelligent betting strategy. In other words, the fallacy in the reviews below is that card counting and betting progressions are not competing strategies, but, rather, are COMPLEMENTARY strategies, both of which can improve your blackjack results. In summary, the idea of betting progressions IS useful, but Dahl's book is perhaps not the best one on the subject.

This system works!

Not wanting to count cards in a 6 deck shoe, this book offers an alternative to card counting. Some other reviewers don't think that the progression system makes any sense, but think about it. When the deck is in your favor you will more likely win more hands. The progression system leads you to bet more when you win more. My experience is that for ~92% of the time, the deck is neutral, and the good basic strategy Dahl teaches keeps me from losing too much money. ~4% of the time I'll lose several hands in a row and I'll sit out the rest of the shoe. ~4% of the time the shoe is decidedly in my favor, and the betting progression system makes a lot of money very quickly. I played about 12 hours of blackjack in Vegas last weekend using the strategies in this book and left with quite a bit of the casino's money.The book is short, no doubt. But that made it easy for me to learn and use. The World's Greatest Blackjack Book, while a great read, is too much to memorize, and requires more precision focus than I can maintain for four hours of play.Give this book a chance, and see which strategy (progression or counting) you can honestly use correctly in a casino.