Like many other new blackjack players, I figured counting cards wouldn’t be all that hard. Plus one for every 2-6, minus one for every ace, 10 or face card. Ignore 7-8-9. What could be easier? I practiced for maybe a month, could even count down a deck pretty quickly, and figured I’d be an advantage player eventually.

However, I didn’t expect it to be as boring as it was, and I completely ignored the fact that my ability to keep an accurate count diminished after I had more than two beers. So after a while I abandoned card counting, figuring that trips to Vegas and Foxwoods were a lot more enjoyable when there are fun people at the table, the dealer has a decent personality and you can wolf down as many free Heinekens as you want.

Maybe because of my modest wagers ($10-15 start) or maybe because I just wasn’t good at it, or maybe because I wouldn’t play unless I could sit at third base, but my counting sessions in Vegas drew scrutiny only a few times – once at Barbary Coast (now it’s Bill’s Gambling Hall) and the once at the Gold Coast. Both times unsmiling pit bosses honed in on me, even though I wasn't even at the green chip level.

I was thinking of those suits the other day when I read that new regulations going into effect at casinos in Atlantic City might result in the elimination of pit bosses. The Division of Gaming Enforcement recently published what it calls “emergency regulations” eliminating the requirement that casinos hire floor supervisors and pit bosses to keep an eye on table games. Instead, only one person would be required to oversee the whole operation. Casinos could save millions in labor costs.

The thinking is that electronic advances will be able to pick up the slack on low rollers, and the big-money tables can still be staffed as needed to deal with anything that JDLR (just doesn’t look right).

Visitors might not notice a change right away. In fact, two casinos -- the Hilton and Borgata – in AC say that no changes are imminent. That may be bad news for advantage 21 players, but good news for a group of people who like the rest of us are just trying to put food on the kitchen table.

I was a little pissed at those Coast suits who gave me the hairy eyeball back in the early 2000s, but as I look back now it might have been the highlight of my inglorious time as a blackjack player in Las Vegas. Guys, if you’re still around and applying heat on nickel and dime players at the BJ tables, good luck and I hope you keep your jobs.