Using progression systems in casino blackjack

Just how good are progression betting systems in casino blackjack ? Well there are two clear extremes here with one field thinking that they have no use whatsoever simply because no betting system can gain you a long term edge. This may be true but it is also masking the true strategic effect of them as well. The other field of opinion is with the uneducated types and is that progression systems can provide a means to create an edge in their own right with no other factors supporting them.

Both extremes are wrong as progression systems can be very useful if backed up by a successful method of operation. One such area is a casino game like blackjack where a progression system in its own right cannot obtain an edge even if a player was using very good basic strategy. However, if a player were already an established and experienced card counter then suddenly the situation is vastly different.

Here we have a situation where it is the card counting that is providing the edge and the betting system is merely complimenting that. Take the progression system away and the card counting techniques would still be effective using other forms of betting but take card counting away from the progression system and only long term losses can be expected.

However there are other such strategic uses of progression systems as well and especially where card counting is concerned. What you have to remember is that the casino staff are used to looking for certain types of behaviour when it comes to card counters. They look for large bet spreads and robotic behaviour. However when they see gambling types using doubling systems or progression systems then it looks to them as if you are no more than a gambler chasing their losses or letting their winnings ride.

This is a very often overlooked strategic advantage of using progression systems in blackjack. I once knew a very successful casino blackjack player who used this very technique and on one occasion I was in conversation with an experienced gaming manager who basically rubbished what he was doing by saying that they “would get the money back eventually”. I knew full well that not only was this line of thinking wrong but that also it proved beyond any shadow of a doubt that progression systems when used within a blackjack context can fool even the most experienced of gaming managers.

Of course often it is progression systems that get themselves a bad name but this is mainly because people only know one type of progression system and that is the Martingale. This type of system is basically a doubling up system which gets very expensive during a run of negative losing bets. It also requires a very large bankroll as well unlike cancellation systems for example which do not require anywhere near as much for them to work.

But it is clear then that progression systems have their place firmly in the gambling and betting world and this is something that needs to be respected by many so called gambling experts.