Returning to the mining-town casinos at Blackhawk (BH), my first return play on visit #2 was at The Lodge where I had my single previous loss.

After my previous four sessions and a fair amount of reflection, I was determined to limit my minus count exposure even more: spreading from 0 to three hands of $100. With my ZEN count (mid ‘80s version), each true of +1 equals a tad over +0.25 increase in player advantage, so with the mediocre Lodge rules (the worst rules I would find in BH double deck - no DAS, h17) I would need a true of +2 to neutralize the house-edge and a +3 to bet either $100 or two hands of $75 or 3x $65 (playing to a $30k bankroll), and a +4 would take me to three hands of $100. Given the dynamics of the theoretically floating house edge (the house edge for this game is about 0.50 percent off the top but declines to under 0.20 at the one-deck mark), I would adjust my bet markers as each shuffle progresses.

To still maintain some decent camouflage, whatever my final max bet was before the shuffle, if I won I would keep it the same off the top of the next shuffle, or maybe drop it by no more than half, plus a fair amount of improvisation in between. For negative counts, -1.5 or above, I would use a negative sideways progression, spreading laterally to two and three hands of $25, and below -2, I would grab for my cellphone.

In a positive count of +2, I would parlay from $25 to $50 after a winning hand, and above +2, jump aggressively to one or three hands of $100 as the count indicated.

On my first $25 hand, I got two tens against dealer three. I split them (incorrectly), got a third ten and split again - I just wanted to establish my ten splitting early and incorrectly - I wound up making three stiffs and the dealer made eighteen. I smiled sheepishly like the schmuck I wanted to appear. Then the "pitcritter" swooped in and informed me that I could not play standing ("Face down double-deck requires players to be seated," he informed matter-of-factly.)

Still in a neutral count, I sat down and spread to three hands of $25, and lost all three. The count dropped to -1 and I bet the three times $25 again. This time I won all three as the count sunk below -2 so I answered my phone even before I touched my chips and stalled just long enough to be advised to step away, while the dealer pushed my bets and payoffs back.

After the shuffle, I re-entered with two hands of $25, won both but again the count tanked, again I took the cell call and appeared oblivious to the need to step away as I made the same bet again. When the dealer reminded me to not play on the phone, I set it in my lap, played the round, and then left my chips after settlement as I picked the phone back up and stepped away, and again the dealer was forced to push my bets and settlement back.

The tens splitting, the constant in and out, the repeated change-up in number of hands played ... this was quickly taking its toll on the two other players, one of whom was Asian and not hiding his displeasure. Now the count was below -3 and I stepped back to the table mid-deck and ‘clueless attempted' to bet two hands of $100 and the dealer pushed them back and told me to wait for the shuffle as the Asian player gave me a another snotty look.