cards that have been dealt and adjust your count accordingly. This is called true counting and will be discussed in the next chapter.
REKO (Ridiculously Easy K-O) is a substantially simplified version of K-O (Knock-Out). REKO has about 99% of the effectiveness of K-O but is substantially easier to learn. The first step is to take the Effects of Removal table in the previous section and simplify it. We are certainly not going to add up numbers like .69% and -.51% while we are playing. It turns out that the table can be greatly simplified and remain highly effective. Below you will see the same table with a new row of simplified values:
|
Effects of Removal and REKO Tags |
||||||||||
|
|
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
10 |
A |
|
EOR |
.38 |
.44 |
.55 |
.69 |
.46 |
.28 |
0 |
-.18 |
-.51 |
-.61 |
|
Tags |
+1 |
+1 |
+1 |
+1 |
+1 |
+1 |
0 |
0 |
-1 |
-1 |
Now, instead of -.61% we have -1 and instead of +.38% we have +1. This is something a human can handle. These simplified numbers are called tag values and different card counting strategies use different tag values. Later I will discuss how these tag values are created and ranked.
In REKO, we keep one count, called the running count. Every time we see a low or high card, we add or subtract 1 from the running count. In K-O, the cards 2-7 are valued at +1, and the 10s and aces are counted as -1. (8s and 9s are called neutral and are ignored.) With a little practice, you will start thinking of the tag values automatically when you see the cards.
REKO Tag Values
© 2009 Norman Wattenberger
