Knock-Out Blackjack: The Easiest Card-Counting System Ever Devised

by Olaf Vancura, Ken Fuchs, Ken Vancura, Olaf and Fuchs

Book Overview

The Knock-Out card-counting system eliminates the mountain of mental arithmetic necessary to win at blackjack. The scientifically devised unbalanced K-O count can be used profitably anywhere blackjack... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0929712315
• ISBN13: 9780929712314
• Release Date: September 1998
• Publisher: Huntington Press
• Length: 179 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.5" x 8.4"

Customer Reviews

A relatively easy-to-use card counting method that works

This book explains the Knock-Out ("K-O") set of point count values, which you use to determine when to raise your bet and by how much. Traditional card counting methods, such as the Hi-Lo, require you to compute a "true" count, which is the running count divided by the number of decks remaining to be dealt. But this type of computation can lead to errors since (1) you have to estimate the number of decks in the discard tray in order to be able to calculate the number of decks remaining to be dealt, and (2) you must then mentally divide the running count by the number of decks remaining. And you have to do all of this quickly enough so the casino personnel don't become suspicious that you are an advantage player; otherwise you risk being barred from playing blackjack at that casino.The K-O, like the Hi-Lo, is a one-level counting method in that the point count value for each card is either 0, 1, or -1. High cards (10s and Aces) are counted as -1, neutral cards as zero, and low cards as 1. As the count gets more and more positive, the remaining cards to be dealt contain a greater number of high cards versus low cards. This means your chance of getting a blackjack is higher than right after a shuffle, and thus you should increase your bet to take advantage of this opportunity. But with the K-O, as opposed to the Hi-Lo, you do not have to compute a true count. You simply add the 0, 1, and -1 values as the cards are dealt to calculate the running count. Then you use just the running count alone to determine your bet for the next round. There is no need to track either the number of decks in the discard tray or the number of decks remaining to be dealt, and, almost too wonderful for words, there is no headache-inducing, "dividing in your head" required!Amazingly, even with the simplicity of just using a running count to determine your bet amounts, the K-O provides about the same win rate as the Hi-Lo! I know this from running simulations on the excellent Blackjack 6-7-8 software written by Hal Marcus. By the way, I thought I died and went to heaven when I discovered the Blackjack 6-7-8 strategy cards. Just like the K-O count makes the betting decisions easier, these strategy cards make the playing decisions unbelievably easier. First of all, they look marvelous, and they feel like butter! But seriously, you just find the table that corresponds to the rules where you'll be playing, and then the large, easy to read, easy to remember, 3-letter, color-coded decision cells (including surrender, if you please) practically make the memorizing fun! If I have some time to practice, the Blackjack 6-7-8 software is the best, but when I keep putting it off until it's time to board the big bird from Chicago bound for Vegas, then I just whip out a strategy card, choose the table I want, and I can know it cold before the pilot says "fasten your seat belts, we're getting ready to land".Now could you increase your win rate by using more complex counting methods than th

Should you learn this system?

I have racked my brain trying to decide if I want to learn the K-O count or the High-Low. I figure, why waste my time learning one system if I will eventually move on to another, more advanced system? Just start with the High-Low from the beginning!But I have finally made my decision, and I feel this advice might help others trying to make the same decision. Is the K-O good enough to learn, or should you look elsewhere? Well, I'm no expert, but I have come to the conclusion, after reading much about counting systems, that it really makes no difference which system you use. The difference in expectation is very small, not to mention the potential for error in the more complicated systems like Omega II or APC. Even in a simpler level-1 count like High-Low, there remains that god-awful true count conversion (more room for error and delay). Of course, if you really want to play professional blackjack, you might want to eventually (or even right from the beginning) move to a balanced count system. But I have decided that while I want to play blackjack with an advantage, I never want the game to become a chore. I don't want to hate playing it. Therefore, it is not necessary for the recreational/casual player to learn anything more than an unbalanced count. Even if it's not the K-O system, you shouldn't worry about learning an advanced balanced count.The K-O system performs on par with all other similar systems, so the decision between which to learn is up to you (there is the Red 7 count and the Black Ace count, for example).Now, as far as this particular book goes, I think it is fantastically written and presented. I read another review that says the book is poorly organized, but I honestly don't understand where that person is coming from. The book presents the K-O in steps, and by the end you will understand it. (My only complaint is that there are a few incarnations of the K-O count, eventually all coming together to form the K-O Preferred system, and it is not always easy to know what exactly is involved with each incarnation.) It may be necessary to re-read it, but if you plan to seriously learn to count cards, then you should expect to read it several times anyway. Another complaint I saw was that the authors do not explain why they assign the values that they do to particular cards. But this is also simply not true. Vancura and Fuchs give you a chart that shows the player/dealer expectation when certain cards are removed from the pack, and it is on the basis of this information that they assign +1 to 2-7 and -1 to 10, J, Q, K, A.Anyway, if you are interested in learning a simple but powerful count that will perform well for recreational play, you definitely should read this book. It is wonderful. But not only that, the K-O is also considered a "professional" level count, so it cannot be written-off as a system not to take seriously. There is work to be done to learn it efficiently. And as Stanford Wong said in "Blackjack Secrets" (I believe it

One of the Two Must Read Books

In terms of books that can take you from knowing almost nothing about blackjack to becoming a skilled player, there are two that I have found to be the best: Knock Out Blackjack by Fuchs and Vancura and Best Blackjack by Frank Scoblete. Scoblete's book is the more enjoyable and entertaining. However, the Knock Out book has a counting system that is truly easy to learn. My advice is to get both. Scoblete is a warrior who has been in the casino wars. His diary at the end of the book is priceless and his insights into what it is like to play in casinos is the best I have ever read. Fuchs and Vancura, on the other hand, have created a simple but powerful card counting system in KO that I have been using with great success for over eight months now. I think these two books are just super. I recommend that you buy both to truly learn how to beat the game of blackjack.

Simplicity Gives System the Edge

Here's four years and 14 blackjack books' worth of advice:1) Yes, you can beat blackjack by learning how to count--even against six-deck shoes.2) The biggest reason players lose after learning how to count is they are making counting mistakes and don't know it.3) Knock-Out Blackjack is the one level-1 system that virtually takes the mistake factor out of counting.That's the biggest reason it's powerful and that's why it works. This book is well-written, easy to understand, although the charts they use have been formatted better in other books.Read additional BJ books, of course, master other counts, but KO is essential to your repetoire, particularly for shoe players.

Counting cards can be simple, this book shows the way.

If you have tried counting cards using other systems and have failed, then Knock-out Blackjack is the book for you. Not only is the system uncomplicated, but the authors layout a step by step progression of easily understandable techniques. The data supporting the K-O system is included in various chapters, yet you do not need to know or memorize the math. There is no dividing and they show you how to make a simple adjustment so you there are no negative number to work with. And it is easily adjustable to any number of decks. When they say it is the easiest card counting system every devised, it is true. I have tried other systems and failed. But with K-O system the average person will have the advantage over the house for a change.If you like to play BJ this book is a must.