Arnold Snyder
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Arnold Snyder ( 1960 – 6 June 2023) was a professional gambler and
gambling Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of Value (economics), value ("the stakes") on a Event (probability theory), random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy (ga ...
author. He was elected by professional
blackjack Blackjack (formerly black jack or ''vingt-un'') is a casino banking game. It is the most widely played casino banking game in the world. It uses decks of 52 cards and descends from a global family of casino banking games known as " twenty-one ...
players as one of the seven original inductees into the Blackjack Hall of Famebr>
€“ hosted at Barona Casino – for his contributions as a blackjack player and his innovations in professional gambling techniques. He was the first blackjack authority to publish the importance of deck penetration (depth of the deal) in
card counting Card counting is a blackjack betting strategy, strategy used to determine whether the player or the dealer has an advantage on the next hand. Card counters try to overcome the casino house edge by keeping a running count of high and low valued c ...
, in his 1980 book ''The Blackjack Formula''. He was also the first blackjack researcher to argue (in ''Blackjack Forum'', 1981–1983) that radical simplification of blackjack card counting systems did not substantially decrease earnings. Since 1981, Arnold Snyder has been the editor of ''Blackjack Forum'', a quarterly trade journal for professional gamblers. In 2004, Snyder moved the publication of ''Blackjack Forum'' from print to online due to time constraints imposed by playing more frequently and the frustration with dealing with the business side of the publication industry. ''Blackjack Forum'' has published many articles about professional gambling, discussion of strategies and approaches for various games and interviews with many professional gamblers including Al Francesco, Keith Taft and Marty Taft, Thomas Hyland, Johnny Chang, Darryl Purpose. His book ''Blackbelt in Blackjack'' is a guide to card counting and other professional gambling techniques in blackjack, with an emphasis on advice for winning in real-life
casino A casino is a facility for gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shops, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos also host live entertainment, such as stand-up comedy, conce ...
play. In his book ''The Blackjack Shuffle Tracker's Cookbook'', he published the first mathematical analysis of the value of different types of blackjack shuffle tracking, as well as the first analysis of how to most profitably track today's more complicated casino shuffles.''The Big Book of Blackjack'' covers the history of blackjack, especially the history of the achievements of blackjack's most successful professional players. In 1987, Snyder released a 5-part series books of 64-page blackjack guides that analyze the profitability of counting cards when various numbers of decks are in play: ''Beat the 1-Deck Game'' (1987), ''Beat the 2-Deck Game'' (1987), ''Beat the 4-Deck Game'' (1987), ''Beat the 6-Deck Game'' (1987) and ''Beat the 8-Deck Game'' (1987). In 2006, his book ''The Poker Tournament Formula'' provides mathematical analysis of the optimal strategy for multi-table
poker Poker is a family of Card game#Comparing games, comparing card games in which Card player, players betting (poker), wager over which poker hand, hand is best according to that specific game's rules. It is played worldwide, with varying rules i ...
tournaments with blind levels lasting less than an hour. The book also includes analysis of bankroll requirements for professional
poker tournament A poker tournament is a tournament where players compete by playing poker. It can feature as few as two players playing on a single table (called a " heads-up" tournament), and as many as tens of thousands of players playing on thousands of tabl ...
players, as well as mathematical analysis of optimal poker tournament rebuy strategy. Snyder has reviewed books by numerous gambling authors including the first edition of "Blackjack Attack" by Don Schlesinger and "The Blackjack Life" by Nathaniel Tilton and has exposed numerous phony gambling systems. Snyder's recommendations on gambling books and systems can be found at his websites. Arnold Snyder is also known as an advocate for the rights of professional gamblers. His testimony in the
Windsor, Ontario Windsor ( ) is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada. It is situated on the south bank of the Detroit River directly across from the U.S city of Detroit, Detroit, Michigan. Geographically located within but administratively independent of Esse ...
trial of blackjack team manager Tommy Hyland was instrumental in preserving the legal right to blackjack team play in Canadian and U.S. casinos. He has also testified as an expert witness in court cases involving the rights of blackjack hole-card players and dealer-tell players. Arnold Snyder also compiled a book, ''Radical Blackjack'' that was due for publication in 2011 but was not released at that time. Snyder decided not to publish the book due to some of the discussed techniques still being actively used by professional players and as such not wishing to endanger the integrity of the plays. The book was, however, finally published on June 1, 2021. Snyder died on June 6, 2023 at age 75.


Books by Arnold Snyder

*''Blackbelt in Blackjack'' *''Big Book of Blackjack'' *''How to Beat the Internet Casinos and Poker Rooms'' *''How to Beat the One-Deck Game'' *''How to Beat the Two-Deck Game'' *''How to Beat the Four-Deck Game'' *''How to Beat the Six-Deck Game'' *''How to Beat the Eight-Deck Game'' *''Radical Blackjack'' *''The Poker Tournament Formula'' *''The Poker Tournament Formula 2'' *''The Blackjack Shuffle-Trackers Cookbook: How Players Win (And Why They Lose) With Shuffle Tracking'' *''The Blackjack Formula'' *''The Over/Under Report''


References


External links


Official siteArnold Snyder: Blackjack Champ Biography and PhotoArnold Snyder's Fiction BlogArnold Snyder: A Hero among Professional Blackjack Players
{{DEFAULTSORT:Snyder, Arnold American gambling writers American male non-fiction writers American blackjack players 20th-century births 2023 deaths