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Most people believe that when the dealer shuffles the cards, the count should return to zero when playing the next shoe of blackjack. While this is technically true, you can track the cards to adjust your initial card count when you are counting cards in blackjack.

How to Track the Shuffle

Supposing your count at the end of your shoe is a plus 15. This suggests the cards that did not hit the table and remain behind the cut card are mostly high cards. The knowledge that the cards behind the cut card are mostly face cards gives us an edge, if we can properly follow this portion of the deck. If it were possible to track that one particular portion of high cards through the shuffling process, you would obviously have a very large edge during the next shoe, by knowing the position of the cards that help you most.

As the dealer mixes and shuffles the cards into one another try to keep your eye on where the end portion of the deck ends up. Casually watch each cut and every shuffle the dealer makes. When the dealer offers the cut to the player, guestimate where the cards sit. When the shoe progresses to the location of your cards, you adjust your count to reflect the magnitude of high or low cards you expect to see. You take hits, double down and stand appropriately, as adjusted to your count’s modification.

How to Practice Shuffle Tracking

To practice tracking the black jack shuffle, you can experiment with this process by adjusting your card count when it comes to the perceived area of the deck you believe the high cards sit. If you choose, you can merely observe, as opposed to actually making the adjustment until you feel you are properly calibrated in your card tracking. Additionally, there are video tapes and DVDs available that show cards being shuffled. Some videos are even available on YouTube. The point here is practice makes perfect – well not exactly perfect, but perfect enough to give you an edge as a card counter.

When you follow cards through the shuffle, you have a clear edge as a card counter. Knowing whether a specific area of the deck is rich in high cards or heavy in low cards can really help you to adjust your card count on the fly to turn a profit on the blackjack table.