Has anyone posted/published the edge that can be gained by Ace Tracking?

I'm getting into researching Ace Tracking and I am having trouble finding any results on it, other than it being referenced as a strategy that can be utilized to gain an edge on the casino. I can't seem to find any facts to back that claim up, though.

I'm not talking about ace-steering or tracking via a lazy dealer when they hand shuffle, but instead if one were to count how many aces have shown up compared to how many decks have been dealt.

Say you are playing a 5-deck shoe and you are 3 decks through. How many aces would you not have wanted to see before you consider increasing your wager, and then by how much?

Any feedback or tips as to where to research this would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

I don't think tracking is the right word. When I hear ace 'tracking', I think of tracking a specific card through the shuffle and cut. I think ace 'side count' better describes what you are referring to.

Although I am a believer in the simplistic approach to counting and actually reverted back to a level one count, hi-lo, several years ago, after playing a higher level count for a period of 18 months, I have incorporated an ace side count into my play. This seems contradictory to my 'keep things simple' approach, but I really didn't intend, nor set out to side count. After playing almost exclusively 6 & 8 deck games for the first 5 years of my career, I moved to Vegas and for the first time had double deck games available to play. With only 8 aces in play, it is almost hard not to notice how many have come out and I just started unintentionally side counting my double deck play and the next thing I knew I was doing so with 6 decks as well.

I don't do a whole lot with this extra info. I really don't think fast enough to incorporate this info into more exact index numbers for strategy change play as I should, with the exception of the insurance decision. So basically the advantage I get from this side count is knowing I might have a larger advantage because few aces have been played, when my primary count does not indicate an advantage, or it does not indicate as large of an advantage.

There is a danger of overcompensating because if you are using an ace reckoned count, you have already accounted for aces, so adjusting your primary count, for betting purposes, is kind of 'double dipping' from the same info.

Thanks for the info kewlj. I've read a few posts (mostly on other sites) where they indicate that it is possible (or prefereable) to only do one or the other as combining the two only complicates things too much for only a small gain. I also read some players indicating that they will use an ace count only and base their play just on that information. I've never seen any math that indicates you can gain an edge by just doing that.

There's a simplified count called the 'Ace/5' count which basically just counts the Aces and 5's. I'm sure there is information on wizardofodds.com which may be worth checking out?

Quote: brianparkes

Thanks for the info kewlj. I've read a few posts (mostly on other sites) where they indicate that it is possible (or prefereable) to only do one or the other as combining the two only complicates things too much for only a small gain. I also read some players indicating that they will use an ace count only and base their play just on that information. I've never seen any math that indicates you can gain an edge by just doing that.

Oh, you are talking about ONLY counting aces. Sorry, I didn't realize that. No, I don't recommend that. You can do a lot better than that with a fairly simple count that isn't hard to learn.

Quote: Switch

There's a simplified count called the 'Ace/5' count which basically just counts the Aces and 5's. I'm sure there is information on wizardofodds.com which may be worth checking out?

I used this for a bit but found that if you can maintain a Ace/5 count, you can easily keep a hi-lo or REKO count. It just takes a little more practice keeping the negative/positive numbers in your head but it shouldn't take long flipping through decks of cards on your own.