Who Invented Blackjack Card Counting Strategy?

Blackjack is a casino game where the player‘s success depends on many factors, including both skill and luck, but also concentration. This combination is what makes blackjack so exciting and appealing to players worldwide.

Some gamblers will inevitably do anything to emerge victorious when playing for money. One way to make sure you have an advantage is to use the card counting strategy.

Many of you are already familiar with card counting. You may have seen it in some gambling-themed movies or read about it. Although card counting is not illegal, casinos frown upon it and can refuse service to anyone they see use this strategy when they play.

But have you ever wondered who started it all? The man who invented card counting is Edward O. Thorp, an inventor who was also an avid blackjack lover.

Meet Edward O. Thorp

Edward Oakley Thorp was born in Chicago, Illinois, in 1932. He received a PhD. in maths from the  University of California and then started working for MIT. During his career, Thorp was a maths professor at different universities across the States.

As we mentioned, Thorp was an inventor and pioneer. He would go on to invent the first wearable computer in the early 1960s and worked on developing the probability theory through modern application.

Edward O. Thorp is also known as the author of Beat the Dealer. In his book, he proved that players could lower the house advantage by using the card counting strategy.

Before we move on, let’s explain card counting. It’s a strategy that players can use to keep a tally of the cards dealt during a blackjack game. By keeping track of these cards, you can gain an advantage, as you’ll be able to know which cards are available. Mastering card counting is everything but easy, although many have succeeded in it, including Thorp.

As a passionate blackjack player, Thorp started working on his theory years before the book was published. He used various tools to check the probability. He also carefully analyzed each blackjack hand and worked on how to get the necessary advantage.

Testing the Theory

After years of working on his strategy and perfecting it, Thorp finally decided to see it in action. It was an ultimate test, conducted in casinos across the United States, including Las Vegas. A professional gambler was his “test driver”, with a starting pot of $10,000. It didn’t take long to see that the strategy was successful. After the first weekend, card counting helped the two generate $11,000 in profit. Their constant winning attracted the casinos’ attention, and by the time the weekend ended, many of them rejected them.

Thorp became a celebrity in the world of blackjack. However, his prominence with casino security was also on the rise, so he was forced to use various disguises (fake beards, glasses, etc.) when playing at casinos.

His growing popularity inspired him to write the book we mentioned earlier, which became the world’s first guide to counting cards. In the book, Thorp detailed every part of his research, allowing everyone to gain insight into his work. Beat the Dealer even made it to the New York Bestsellers list, with more than 700.000 copies sold. It’s still available today, with blackjack enthusiasts of all types buying the book.