Who Were the Members of the MIT Blackjack Team?

The MIT Blackjack Team was a group of students and ex-students from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard Business School, Harvard University, and other leading colleges who used card counting techniques and more sophisticated strategies to beat casinos at blackjack worldwide. The team members were recruited through a notice placed in the MIT student newspaper The Tech.

The team’s approach was originally developed by professor Edward O. Thorp, who in 1962 published a textbook called Beat the Dealer.

In it, Thorp described how he used card counting to beat the dealer at blackjack. The book became a bestseller and made Thorp a celebrity.

The MIT Blackjack Team’s first foray into casino gambling happened in Las Vegas in June 1979. The team was small at first, consisting of only four members: Bill Kaplan, J.

P Massar, Joe Reed, and Steve Weiss. They started by playing at the Tropicana Casino, using Thorp’s card counting system to win money at blackjack.

The team soon attracted the attention of casino security, and they were asked to leave the Tropicana. Undeterred, they moved on to other casinos, such as the Sahara and the MGM Grand.

By February 1980, the team had grown to 12 members and began playing multiple casinos simultaneously.

In 1981, the team took their gambling operation on the road, traveling to Atlantic City, New Orleans, San Juan (Puerto Rico), Lake Tahoe, Los Angeles, and Reno. At its peak in the early 1980s, the team had over 35 members and was winning millions of dollars from casinos each year.

The team’s success came to an end in the mid-1980s when casinos began using computerized systems to keep track of card counting players and to change their rules accordingly. The MIT Blackjack Team disbanded shortly thereafter.

Though they were only active for a few years, the MIT Blackjack Team made a lasting impact on casino gambling worldwide. Their success proved that casino games could be beaten by skilled players using proven strategies.

Their story has been made into a Hollywood movie called 21 starring Kevin Spacey and Kate Bosworth.