How to Notice a Hole Carder
There are many ways to try to cheat at cards and a popular cheating method in the game of blackjack is hole-carding. This is the method of gaining advanced knowledge of the hidden or “hole” card before it is dealt or flipped over by peeking at the card. In most casinos this is not an illegal practice like counting cards because it is the fault of the dealer for not protecting the hole card from prying eyes.
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Instructions
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1
Observe the posture of the player in question. Is his head down, almost resting on the table, when he looks at his cards? Is he extremely slouched in his seat so his head is almost at table level?
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2
Go to the floor and see if you can see the dealer's hole card from the player in question's position. Try not to be too obvious and don't interrupt the game play or you won't catch your hole carder.
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3
Check the player database for any information the casino has on the player. Is she new to the casino or a frequent player? Have there been issues with this player in the past? Does her game play and winnings differ greatly from previous visits to the casino?
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4
Watch the person in question play and make note of the dealer's flipped card, the player's card, hits, stands, busts, insurance and the outcome after the dealer flips his second card. Do this for several hands and a couple decks to see if there is a pattern.
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Review your notes. Do you see a pattern in the player's hand decision based more on the hole card information than his own cards? Has the player split any ten value cards? Does he continue to make correct plays even when veering from the basic blackjack strategy?
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Dealers need to protect the hole card. Put in a new dealer. If the game play changes significantly then clearly there was a flaw in the previous dealer's hold-card handling that the hole carder exploited.
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References
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