Just watched a fantastic documentary on the History Channel called ‘Breaking Vegas', which tells the story of the MIT Blackjack Team, a group of MIT students in the early 90’s that elevated card counting into a profitable business.
Most of these guys were Computer Science majors who realized that blackjack is a winnable game, to those who use the proper disciplines.
Of course, the casinos know this too. Card counting isn’t illegal, but casinos make sure you’re arresting for trespassing if you’re doing it on their property.
The History Channel lays out a fascinating tale about a group of kids who were ‘A’ students at MIT during the week, were going to Vegas on the weekends, being treated like kings (on casino comps), and were flying home with paper sacks containing hundreds of thousands in cash. Meanwhile, casino detectives are hot on their trail, deciphering why a bunch of twenty-somethings from Boston are cleaning out the town. Great story.
Incidentally, one of the most successful players turned his winnings into a successful software company. Talk about a nice way to get started.