Yesterday I got the two big Pumpkins!!!

Just got back this morning from a two-nighter at Foxwoods Casino.  Yesterday morning at 6am I couldn't sleep so decided to scout out a couple blackjack tables.  Lots of things you look at before jumping onto a table.  Is the table limit small, say a $10 game, where you can lower your wagers if the dealer gets hot?  Check.  Do the other players look like they know what they're doing?  Check.  Do they have many chips in front of them as an indication the dealer may be dumping?  Check.  Does the dealer have too many chips in his tray as an indication he/she has been taking...  No problem there.  Check.  What are the highest value chips in the dealers tray as an indication of the previous play on the table?  WHOA!!!  RED FLAG!!!

The dealer had two $1000 chips in the front of the rack.  These have no business being on a $10 table.  An indication that somebody "check-changed" them overnight to enter table play and got their azz kicked!!!

So I buy in for $500 in Green and start playing two hands on center-field with my goal to win $500, doubling my chips to at least $1000 and coloring up to take one of those $1000 chips to the cage.

The $1000 chips are affectionately nick-named "Pumpkins" because they are orange in color and a wider girth than the other chip denominations.  Three shoes later I had $1100 in chips to color up and took one of those pumpkins and one black to the cage.

Breakfast time.  Took a 45 minute break to enjoy some Eggs Benedict, tall glass of OJ and a side of bacon.  Is there a normal man anywhere who can resist bacon while dining out for breakfast?  He!! no.

Go back to the same $10 blackjack table and find the same dealer, the same players, with the same last pumpkin in the rack.  Buy in for $500 again and two shoes later I had $1020 in chips to color up and grab that last pumpkin!!!  $20 tip for the dealer and I was headed for the cage giving me a sweet profit of $1100 in a little over an hour's work.  Total profit $1500 in two nights and there is no way I stick around and give it back to the casino.  Seen that movie before.  It's done and Northbound for me... I GOT THE TWO PUMPKINS!!!

Awesome Cova's degenerate Goal 

Awesome, no Gatorade with brekky?

My Man Goose!! Congrats!! Sounds like a great two day run! With your sleep patterns you had an edge.LOL . Sounds like you had a great 3rd baseman also!!

^^^^^

Did you tip the dealers on the first $500 you won??

I always tip the dealers (and cocktail waitresses) to a fault.  Usually I make them earn it by putting up a pink or red bet for them on the next hand after a good break or after I get a blackjack.  A $25 blackjack pays $37.50 so next hand I'll bet that pink for them instead of playing it like most people would do.  Couple of times during that first session I had splitting and doubling opportunities and doubled their bets as well.  Dealers appreciate that side action and I want that dealer rooting for me and the other players at the table.  I know it makes no practical difference but I want good karma at a table.  Sometimes it helps when a poor player does something stupid like tries to hit a hard total against a dealers break card.  A good dealer will hesitate giving that poor player a chance to rethink his stupidity.  A house dealer not getting tipped won't care and pull a card immediately.  So yeah, I must have made the dealer $50 in tips during that first session.

Same table pit we played together in last month right in front of the cage.  I was out of ambien bullets so only got about 2 hours sleep over those two nights.  This degenerate lifestyle will kill me early but we're all going to go sometime.  "If you're not living life on the edge then you are taking up too much space".

Even though Foxwoods is an Indian Reservation they still observe CT State liquor laws... 1am last call at night and no booze until 9am.  A mimosa with my Eggs Benedict would have been the bomb.

Great story Goose, the writing put us there. Leave the gun take the Pumpkins....

Nice scouting tips as well, I never made such observations but I will going forward.

Hey KB.  Long time no talk.  How's it going???

Scouting potential blackjack tables to play is not only helpful to your bankroll but is also proper blackjack etiquette.  Unlike a crap game, you shouldn't just bust your way onto a table when you see an open spot especially when you see players making money.  When the players at a blackjack table are on a roll and the dealer is breaking and paying, the last thing they want is a new player adding a hand and changing the flow of cards.

Let's just call it an "unwritten" rule.  Be considerate of the other players when entering a blackjack game.  If the shoe is almost finished and the dealing is breaking, let the players play out the shoe.  Take your seat of course so you don't lose it, put your money on the table and calmly say, "Keep breaking dealer, I'll wait for the shoe". 

On the other hand the shoe may have just started badly and the players probably won't mind you entering the game.  Just say, "Would you guys mind if I join now or should I wait?"  At least you've given the other players the courtesy and they'll appreciate you asking.  Again, this is just proper blackjack etiquette and makes for a good blackjack table.

Didn't mean to bloviate or turn this Thread into a blackjack seminar but if that happens I'll be happy to answer any questions.  There are so many casinos and so many different house rules that I am FAR from an expert.  But I have survived the last 25 years at Foxwoods so I must be doing something right!!!

I'm with you on all the etiquette part, it's not proper to jump in a game in middle of shoe. It was the paying attention to the rack when you arrive. If it's full of chips, they came from somewhere, if it's empty the people at the table should have some. I'll send you a PM

Hey Ken, sup???

Yeah, you must improvise.  I now carry in my Maxima trunk a new favorite you might be aware of hailing from here in the NorthEast... "Fishers Island Lemonade".  It's 9% ABV (almost twice one normal beer) a Vodka / Whiskey combo in the most delicious lemonade.  They go down sooooo smoothly.  Sold in a four pack at $16 they are an expensive addiction.  My man at the liquor store orders me my own personal 24 case weekly now for a cool $90.

One of the jobs of a Pit Boss is to keep those dealer's trays as "normal" looking and playable as possible.  So they order "table fills" to bring in new chips from the cage.  They can also order chips be removed from the table to the cage.  So while table scouting chips is not an exact science it's something to keep an eye on.

no mercy

And boy was my swing off today.  Was getting HAMMERED down $1700 and got it all but $480 back.  Crawled out of there considering that quite a satisfying comeback.  Just not my day but there will be other days.  The casino is not going anywhere.