Originally Posted by redietz View Post
I tested the visual clarity question both at home at proper distances and in various casinos by sitting at the middle seat of a table and trying to see cards placed at the adjacent tables. I also measured distances in several casinos to see if there were problems with my visual acuity. Since coach is a stickler for details, I actually crouched to seating level at some of the casinos rather than sitting down in the seat. I thought that was less conspicuous some places and gave me more time to measure distances with my tape measure before being bothered by anyone.

I have bad eyes, but I was able to see cards well at most positions on most tables. Even at the worst distances, it was easy to tell paint from non-paint.

I haven't played much blackjack in 30 years, and what I can't pin down is how easy or hard this is when people are moving about at full tables. So I have suggestions for all readers:

1) Simply go into various casinos at night with a deck of cards, place the cards on adjacent empty tables at various seats, and see if you can clearly see the cards from seats at the other table. Take a tape measure and measure the distances in various casinos between seats at adjacent tables.

2) Go home and lay out tables at similar distances and re-check the clarity.

3) Get friends or family to sit down at your two home tables while "playing blackjack," and practice your ability to identify partial counts at the adjacent table.


Rather than empty debating, just go and try it. See if you can do it, and to what degree you can or cannot do it under what seating conditions. That should provide answers for anyone actually interested in this question.
There are two parts to this debate.

1) can a person see or read cards at 6 - 8 feet? That is ludicrous. Easy test. Tape a card to the wall. Step back 8 feet, 10 feet, 12 feet. If you can't see the card clearly then you really do need to visit the eye doctor. And that is before we even get into discussions about "pips and paint". You can track cards even further away by looking at pips (the little symbols correlating to the number of the card) and paint, obviously the jack, queen, King, which are all 10 value cards.

2.) the second issue is if there is a clear view. Opponents trolling me always want to leave out the key fact that I have always said "when conditions are right". They aren't always for a variety of reasons, mostly being a key seat at the second table. If that key seat is taken, conditions aren't right.

In Alan's photo which was obviously taken from the first base position (seat all the way to the right) of the adjacent table, you can see that if someone is seated at 3rd base (furthest seat to the left), of the second table being tracked, that person will be blocking the view of much of the table. However this too was an intentional mislead by Alan. I clearly stated that I sit in one of the two middle seats, which allows for a view with minimal turning of the head, usually just rolling the eyes a bit. When sitting in one of the middle seats there still is a key seat that can block but it is not 3rd base, it is the seat next to 3rd base or next to last seat.

Either way, opponents looking to argue, leave out that I always said "when conditions are right" and that in part means the key seat is unoccupied. Opponents like Alan's whose argument has been dishonest.