The Blackjack Apprenticeship Podcast
by Blackjack Apprenticeship
Everyone wants to beat the casino. Hear from those who actually have. From practical tips and hard earned wisdom to epic stories of blackjack careers that went far better than expected, the Blackjack Apprenticeship podcast is for anyone interested in blackjack, card counting, or just ”sticking it to the man.”
Episodes
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Gina Fiore Returns to Discuss AP Life and Her New Memoir | BJA194
Colin chats with Gina Fiore, professional gambler and longtime advantage player, about her new memoir Advantage Player: A Memoir of Blackjack, Backrooms, and Beginnings, out October 27. Gina has played on and run teams that have beaten casinos for millions, and she's the latest nominee to the...
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Mailbag Q&A: Bankrolls, Back-Offs & the Business of Card Counting | BJA193
Joe748 and SD1 return for another Mailbag Q&A; about the costs and challenges of life as a card counter, from keeping travel expenses in check to handling requests for advice at the table. They discuss when expanded deviations are worth learning and why thorough records and professional tax...
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Johno Returns to BJA With Another $100K From Playing Part-Time | BJA192
Johno returns to the BJA Podcast to join Colin and SD1 after winning another $100,000 playing blackjack part-time. The retired teacher shares what changed in his second 500 hours, from bigger bets and better game selection to having his fiancée join him at the tables. They discuss handling…
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Bob Nersesian Returns to Explain What's Changed for APs | BJA191
What can casinos legally do after they identify a card counter, and where do they cross the line? Attorney and Blackjack Hall of Fame member Bob Nersesian returns to explain what has changed for advantage players in Nevada, why he believes regulators are increasingly siding with casinos, and what...
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From Nurse to Six-Figure Card Counter: Parcero’s Blackjack Journey | BJA190
Colin and SD1 sit down with BJA member Parcero to trace his path from a decade in nursing and casual basic-strategy play to disciplined advantage play. After months of rigorous training and a successful BJA Bootcamp test-out, Parcero says he grew an approximately $50,000 starting bankroll into…
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July Mailbag Q&A: Online Blackjack, Deviations, Travel Budgeting | BJA189
SD1, and Joe748 sit down to answer a wide range of listener questions covering blackjack strategy, side bets, travel, casino heat, facial recognition, and bankroll management. They discuss emphasize relying on mathematical analysis rather than intuition, caution against chasing unproven side bets...
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SharpCookie Shares How She Won Over 300k Playing Blackjack | BJA188
Colin sits down with SharpCookie, she shares how she went from discovering card counting almost by accident to becoming a full-time advantage player with more than $300,000 in profits. She discusses the intense training, emotional swings, team support, casino cover tactics, backoffs, and…
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[Rebroadcast] Beating a Mobile Game for $650K w/ Magnum Wordsmith | BJA108
Sitting on your phone all day is a waste of time, right? Not if you're BJA member Magnum Wordsmith. In this episode, Colin and Joe748 are joined by the aforementioned Magnum Wordsmith. They discuss topics such as transitioning from playing in a band at casinos to playing blackjack, developing his...
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Gilgamesh: Why He Left a Six-Figure Career for Blackjack | BJA187
Colin and Joe748 are joined by BJA member Gilgamesh to share how a lucky first trip to Las Vegas led him from casual blackjack player to full-time advantage player. After training with BJA, attending a boot camp, and counting cards part-time while working long hours as an engineer, he left his...
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John Mehaffey Discusses Best Blackjack Games in Vegas 2026 | BJA186
John Mehaffey co-founded Vegas Advantage in 2018 with his wife, Kristina. The site covers Las Vegas table game minimums and rules, including where to find the best blackjack games and which ones to avoid. John and Kristina survey at least a dozen Las Vegas casinos every month to find the latest...
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May Mailbag Q&A: Bet Sizing, Wonging, Advanced Counting Systems | BJA185
Joe748 and SD1 are back for a new mailbag episode to answer more questions from socials and the BJA community! They're discussing bankroll expectations, heat management, chip cashouts, wonging, ID requests, bet sizing, and whether advanced count systems are worth learning. Emphasizing that many...
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He Won $100K Counting Cards While in Law School | BJA184
Colin and Joe748 sit down with BJA member Jaw5reaker to talk about how he went from a rough first Vegas trip to winning over $100,000 counting cards in less than 300 hours. They get into his early training, what changed after joining BJA, learning to handle backoffs, bankroll decisions, playing...
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April Mailbag Q&A: Pro Income Levels, Finding S17 Games, Burnout | BJA183
Colin, SD1, and Joe748 discuss professional card counting income, burnout, team play, finding Stand 17 games, “flow of the cards” myths, superstitions, wonging in and out, and how new players should get started. They compare solo play and team play, emphasizing that teams can pool bankrolls and...
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How This AP Beat Electronic Blackjack for $700k | BJA182
Joe748 and SD1 talk with Australian advantage player DoubleAny2, who explains how he adapted when continuous shufflers made traditional blackjack harder to beat in Australia. He describes finding a major edge in electronic blackjack machines by combining card counting with creative ways to…
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Max Ruben Interview: From Casino Cheats to Advantage Play Expert | BJA181
Colin sits down with Max Rubin who share stories from a lifetime in gambling, tracing his path from growing up around casino cheating to becoming one of the most respected figures in advantage play. He talks about learning legal advantage techniques, discovering how casinos overvalued player…
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[Rebroadcast] The Magic of Card Counting with Steven Bridges | BJA103
Steven Bridges is a UK-based professional Street Magician turned Blackjack Card Counter. We had the pleasure of meeting Steven back in 2018 when he attended one of our Blackjack Bootcamps. Since then, he has taken on the exciting challenge of going from beginner to pro in the world of…
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Ex-AP Turned Casino Surveillance Reveals How They Catch Card Counters | BJA180
Joe748 and SD1 interview “Fish,” a surveillance agent with an AP background, about how casinos actually identify and evaluate card counters. Fish explains that most surveillance departments focus heavily on table games, mispays, weak dealers, and obvious AP indicators like refusing a name, taking...
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[Rebroadcast] Married Advantage Play Teammates with ‘Flewster’ | BJA101
How do the trials of a married card counting duo compare to the endeavors of the typical solo card counter? Joining Colin and Joe748 are BJA member Flewster and his wife and they discuss: The heat difference between husband and wife, The flexibility of full time, The effect of card counting on...
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March Mailbag Q&A: Generating Max EV, Best Time to Play, Is 10k Enough? | BJA179
SD1 and Joe748 are joined by Colin to answer questions about bankroll requirements, optimal playing conditions, and advanced strategy decisions in card counting. The discussion covers whether a $10K bankroll is realistic, why bet spreads—not just deviations—drive most of a counter’s profit, and…
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Darryl Purpose: Stories From a Lifetime of Beating Casinos | BJA178
Colin, SD1, and Joe748 talk with Blackjack Hall of Famer Darryl Purpose about how he got his start in card counting as a teenager after reading Beat the Dealer, eventually joining Ken Houston’s blackjack team. Darryl shares stories from decades of advantage play, including team dynamics,...
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[Rebroadcast] The Courage of a Female AP with CurlyFry | BJA096
With 450 hours and counting in at the blackjack tables so far this year, BJA member and full-time card counter CurlyFry joins Colin and Joe748 to discuss: Betting $250 on a $2500 bankroll, Getting a cruise ship casino to change their rules, Getting backed off on a first date, Playing in Monte...
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2026's First Mailbag Q&A: Being Flyered, Loss Limits, Deck Estimation | BJA177
SD1 and Joe748 kick off the first mailbag episode of 2026, answering a wide range of questions from the BJA community. They dig into topics like deck estimation, one hand vs. two hands, advanced counting systems, session length, loss limits, CTRs, new tax laws, and whether double‑deck is worth...
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Lessons from a Lifetime at the Tables: JoeMiner’s 30-Year AP Journey | BJA176
Joe748 and SD1 sit down with longtime card counter JoeMiner, who shares his 30‑plus‑year blackjack journey—from his early days in the 90s to his modern approach as a retired AP. Joe talks about how the game has changed, transitioning from double deck to 6 and 8 deck, how aging has affected his...
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December Mailbag Q&A: Casino Theft, Best EV Game, Moving Bankrolls | BJA173
Joe748 and SD1 answer more questions form BJA Forums and socials about casinos not cashing your chips out, choosing the most profitable blackjack games, and whether other players’ decisions affect your results. They also explain how to handle back-room situations and the smartest ways to store or...
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[Rebroadcast] Pitfalls and Planning With Full-Time Card Counter PirateAP | BJA092
Joining Colin and Joe748 in episode 92 of the BJA podcast is full time card counter and Blackjack Apprenticeship member PirateAP. They discuss: Receiving pushback on going full time, Playing blackjack like a ploppy, Travel hacks, How to choose casinos when planning a trip, and more!
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Bluejack's Origin Story: High Stakes Double Deck, Heat, and Community | BJA172
Joe748 and SD1 sit down with BJA member Bluejack to talk about his journey into card counting. Bluejack shares how he went from discovering BJA, starting out slow, and eventually moving into high-stakes double-deck play. He discusses heat, avoiding ID, backoffs, huge wins, painful downswings, and...
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October Q&A: Handling Heat, Bankroll Management, Future of APing | BJA170
SD1 and Joe748 discuss strategies for handling high-minimum games, managing chip inventories to avoid CTRs, how to approach betting spreads with small bankrolls and the future of card counting amid changing casino environments, and whether new technologies like AI or cashless systems might…
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[Rebroadcast] Upswings, Downswings, and Networking with Markopolo212 | BJA089
In this episode, Colin and Joe748 are joined by full time card counter Markopolo212, and they discuss: Starting with a small bankroll, Almost losing his whole bankroll after hundreds of hours, Attending a bootcamp, Regrets from playing double deck, the midwest meetup, and more.
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FloorModelRolex and 6FootShoe Discuss Team Play, Heat, and Road Stories | BJA169
Joe748 and SD1 sit down with full-time APs and BJA Members 6FootShoe and FloorModelRolex to trace their paths from dealer/health coach to road-warriors and card counters. They unpack big wins and brutal downswings, team play and trips, the realities of heat and mid-shoe back-offs, and the…
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[Rebroadcast] Former Casino Floor Supervisor and Current AP ‘Phantom’ | BJA083
In this episode originally aired on 9/28/21, Colin and Joe748 are joined by a former casino employee and current AP that goes by 'Phantom'. Their discussion includes: The skill level of the average casino employee, What could trigger a call to surveillance, How he protected the game from card...
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Sept Mailbag Q&A: Different BS Charts, Beatable Side Bets, Bet Spreads | BJA167
Colin and BJA pros Joe748, SD1, and Nickels answer community questions fresh off a bootcamp. They cover everything from bankroll management and avoiding heat when not playing negative counts, to side bets, player’s cards, and favorite blackjack books—all while sharing casino stories and lessons...
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Colin Talks w/ Mike Aponte on Leading the Legendary MIT Team to Victory | BJA166
Colin interviews legendary MIT Blackjack Team pro Mike Aponte about joining the team, rebuilding it after the failed “Strategic Investments” era, and how ruthless training, selective recruiting, and disciplined team play turned a $300k bank into multimillion-dollar wins. Aponte details his…
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AP Life Skills: AP Ethics Roundtable w/ Colin, Nickels, SD1 & Joe748 | BJA165
Fresh off a BJA bootcamp, Colin sits down with Nickels, SD1, and Joe748 to tackle the question: What are the ethics of advantage play? They unpack ethics vs. legality, the role of deception and cover stories, and where “acting” at the table crosses a personal line. The crew debates dealer errors,...
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Solo Counters to High Stakes Team: StaticBlackjack, RobertMoser & Badluck | BJA164
In this episode, Joe748 and SD1 sit down with StaticBlackjack, RobertMoser, and Badluck to discuss their journey from solo card counters to running a coordinated blackjack team. We dive into bankroll building, team rules, handling casino heat, trust-building, EV-based profit splits, and the perks...
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[Rebroadcast] Fitting Blackjack into Your Life ft. AP Sage GreaseMonkey | BJA080
Card Counter and BJA member GreaseMonkey joins Colin to discuss: Why he got into card counting, what is was like playing on his own bankroll, what is was like being bankrolled by another player and deciding how Blackjack fit in his life.
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July Mailbag Q&A: Transporting Cash, Advanced Counting Systems, Proper Betting | BJA163
Colin, SD1, and Joe748 answer questions covering everything from advanced card counting systems and AP travel stories to risk management and career advice. They discuss the pros and cons of different counting systems, share insights on maintaining an edge, and offer practical advice for both new...
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The "Big Beautiful Bill": Discussing Impacts With a Gambling Tax Expert | BJA162
Colin, Joe748, and SD1 are joined by tax expert Gary Kondler to break down how new legislation could impact gamblers’ taxes. Gary explains the proposed 10% cap on deductions, how it affects pros and recreational players, and why W2Gs, 1099s, and session accounting matter more than ever. They…
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[Rebroadcast] Gambling, Advantage Play, and Losing Streaks with “Ballaboy2234” | BJA073
BJA member and Bootcamp grad "Ballaboy2234" joins Colin to discuss: Training with a co-worker - Taking advantage of a side count early in his career - Mid career losing streak and reality check - The effects of Covid on his career - And more! See the Opportunity/Risk video here:...
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June Mailbag Q&A: Card Counter Tells, Is The Edge Too Small, Is BJA Worth It? | BJA160
In this month's mailbag Joe748 and SD1 tackle top questions from the YouTube community and the BJA forum. They dig into the most common tells of a card counter, dispel myths about the risks and rewards of advantage play, and offer practical advice on navigating casino culture as an aspiring or...
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AP Life Skills: The Psychology and Neuroscience of Gambling | BJA159
Joe748 and SD1 interview Dr. Timothy Fong, a UCLA professor and leading authority on gambling addiction, about the neuroscience, risk factors, and real-world consequences of gambling disorders. Dr. Fong explains how gambling impacts the brain, why some people are more vulnerable, and discusses…
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Paradigm’s Path: Bootcamps, Bankrolls, and Burnout as a Full-Time AP | BJA158
Joe748 and SD1 interview BJA Member “Paradigm” about his journey from discovering blackjack and card counting as a hobby to ultimately making the leap from a career in the medical field to becoming a full-time advantage player. Paradigm shares insights on his cautious approach, the impact of…
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[Rebroadcast] Insights From International Blackjack Pro “Ultimate” | BJA027
In this month's rebroadcast we're going DEEP into the vault to our talk with Ultimate in the early days of the BJA podcast. It's a great episode that still holds up! In this Podcast we discuss: - How he went from home gambling nights with his friends to studying card counting - How he fit his...
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May Mailbag Q&A: Casino Green Flags, Reporting Winnings, Chip Inventory | BJA157
Joe748 and SD1 are back to answer community questions from the Blackjack Apprenticeship forum, YouTube, Spotify, and beyond. They cover everything from taking advantage of favorable casino situations, playing conditions in Reno and Vegas, and chip inventory strategies, to evading backoffs and...
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AP Life Skills: Maximizing Your Edge With Credit Card Rewards | BJA156
Greg and Nick from Frequent Miler join Joe748 and SD1 to reveal how everyday spending APs already do can also pay for travel, hotels, and more. They break down how to start earning credit card points, avoid rookie mistakes, and use airline transfer partners for outsized value—like flying Delta…
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[Rebroadcast] Interview with Veteran Blackjack Apprentice ‘ambj21’ | BJA053
The week we're revisiting an episode from 2019 with multiple six-figure card counter "ambj21" We discuss: – Losing 80% of your bankroll – Playing as an investment vs playing for survival – Balancing Advantage Play while raising a family – Putting your money where your values are
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BPWannaBe’s Journey: From Slot Machine Designer to Six-Figure Card Counter | BJA155
In today's episode, Joe748 and SD1 sit down with BPWannaBe, a part-time card counter who's earnings are in multiple six figures while juggling a full-time job and family commitments. He shares the ups and downs of his journey—from learning about card counting while playing poker full-time, early...
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April Mailbag Q&A: Etiquette, Camouflage Techniques, Backoff Nuances | BJA154
In today's mailbag Joe748 and SD1 answer more questions from the BJA forum, Youtube and socials. They cover the use of betting camouflage techniques, the risks and strategies of using someone else’s player card, and the etiquette of dealing with other card counters at the table. Additionally…
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AP Life Skills: How to Get Enough Sleep on the Road | BJA153
Today Joe748 and SD1 are joined by renowned sleep expert Mollie Eastman, creator of Sleep is a Skill. Mollie dives deep into the science of sleep, circadian rhythm, and how environments like casinos—and modern life in general—can disrupt our biological clocks. From practical tips to insights on...
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[Rebroadcast] Part 1: The Life of Card Counter ‘SassyRed’ | BJA048
SassyRed was a remarkable member of the BJA community, let's revisit her very first appearance on the BJA Podcast this week. Part 2 of this conversation focuses on emotional swings as an AP and is also available to our members on the member only podcast player. In this interview we discuss: - How…
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Richard Munchkin: Stories and Exploits from a Blackjack Hall of Famer | BJA152
In this special episode, Colin interviews Richard Munchkin — legendary advantage player, Blackjack Hall of Famer, and co-host of the Gambling with an Edge podcast. Richard shares incredible stories from his decades-long career, including how he put himself through college with backgammon and…
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About this show
Everyone wants to beat the casino. Hear from those who actually have. From practical tips and hard earned wisdom to epic stories of blackjack careers that went far better than expected, the Blackjack Apprenticeship podcast is for anyone interested in blackjack, card counting, or just ”sticking it to the man.”
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Blackjack Apprenticeship
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