Backgammon Codexery

Thorp count

Mathematician who devised a backgammon endgame probability method.

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Thorp count

Erica (Thorp) de Berry (1890-1943) · Public domain

It was devised by Edward O. Thorp, who also mathematically proved that card counting could overcome the house advantage in blackjack.[1][2] For backgammon endgame positions, the "Thorp count" provides a way to assess the probability of winning.[3]

Key facts and history

Thorp used the IBM 704 computer to investigate blackjack probabilities, learning Fortran to program his theoretical research model.[4] He tested his blackjack theory in Reno, Lake Tahoe, and Las Vegas using $10,000 in venture capital from professional gambler Manny Kimmel.[5] Thorp won $11,000 in a single weekend during his initial tests in Reno and Lake Tahoe.[6] He wrote the book Beat the Dealer in 1962, which sold over 700,000 copies and became a New York Times bestseller.[7]

Thorp also collaborated with Claude Shannon to create the first wearable computer, tested in Shannon's home lab in June 1961.[8][9] He later founded the hedge fund Princeton/Newport Partners in 1969, which achieved an annualized net return of 15.1 percent over 19 years.[10][11] From 1961 through 1965, Thorp served as a mathematics professor at New Mexico State University.[12]

What the cited sources add

The Blackjack Hero profile states that Thorp's Beat the Dealer unveiled the revolutionary Ten Count system, and all modern card counting systems are variations of it.[10] The same profile notes that Thorp published a revised second edition in 1966 presenting the High-Low Count technique developed by Julian Braun.[10] A UCI News article reports that Thorp donated his personal and professional papers to the University of California, Irvine Libraries in 2018.[2] That article also states that Thorp funded a $1 million endowment to the UCI mathematics program during his tenure.[2]

The Blackjack Hero profile adds that Thorp wrote a column for Gambling Times magazine for many years.[10]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Edward O. Thorp" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Peter A. Griffin (1979) The Theory of Blackjack, Huntington Press,; Edward O. Thorp, "The Invention of the First Wearable Computer", Edward O. Thorp & Associates (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  2. "Founding professor of math donates personal, professional papers to UCI Libraries", UCI News, 12 June 2018. facts only, no text reused. news.uci.edu
  3. Wikipedia, "Edward O. Thorp" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Chuck Bower, "Cube Handling in Races: Thorpe count", bkgm.com, January 23, 1997 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Edward O. Thorp" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Understanding Fortune’s Formula by Edward O. Thorp Copyright 2007 Quote: "My 1962 book Beat the Dealer explained the detailed theory and practice. The “optimal”; THE KELLY CRITERION IN BLACKJACK, SPORTS BETTING, AND THE STOCK MARKET by Edward O. Thorp Paper presented at: The 10th International Conference on Gambling and ; Discovery channel documentary series: Breaking Vegas, Episode: "Professor Blackjack" with interviews by Ed and Vivian Thorp; The Tech (MIT) "Thorpe, 704 Beat Blackjack" Vol. 81 No. I Cambridge, Mass., Friday, February en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Edward O. Thorp" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Discovery channel documentary series: Breaking Vegas, Episode: "Professor Blackjack" with interviews by Ed and Vivian Thorp; "American Scientist online: Bettor Math, article and book review by Elwyn Berlekamp"; It's Bye! Bye! Blackjack Edward Thorp, the pensive professor above, is shaking the gambling world with a system for beating a great card game. He published it a; Breaking Vegas “Professor Blackjack.” Biography channel Rated: TVPG Running Time: 60 Minutes Quote: "In 1961, lifelong gambler Manny Kimmel, a "connected" New Y (origina en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Edward O. Thorp" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: It's Bye! Bye! Blackjack Edward Thorp, the pensive professor above, is shaking the gambling world with a system for beating a great card game. He published it a; Discovery channel documentary series: Breaking Vegas, Episode: "Professor Blackjack" with interviews by Ed and Vivian Thorp (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Edward O. Thorp" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Blackjack Hero profile", Blackjackhero.com; Discovery channel documentary series: Breaking Vegas, Episode: "Professor Blackjack" with interviews by Ed and Vivian Thorp (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  8. Wikipedia, "Edward O. Thorp" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Poundstone, "Fortune's Formula: The Untold Story of the Scientific Betting System That Beat the Casinos and Wall Street", Hill and Wang, 2005; Edward O. Thorp, "The Invention of the First Wearable Computer", Edward O. Thorp & Associates; Poundstone, "Fortune's Formula: The Untold Story of the Scientific Betting System That Beat the Casinos and Wall Street", Hill and Wang, 2005 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  9. Wikipedia, "Edward O. Thorp" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Edward O. Thorp, "The Invention of the First Wearable Computer", Edward O. Thorp & Associates; Anthony Curtis, "Las Vegas Advisor on Ed Thorp", Lasvegasadvisor.com (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  10. "Blackjack Hero profile", Blackjackhero.com. facts only, no text reused. blackjackhero.com
  11. Wikipedia, "Edward O. Thorp" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: THE KELLY CRITERION IN BLACKJACK, SPORTS BETTING, AND THE STOCK MARKET by Edward O. Thorp Paper presented at: The 10th International Conference on Gambling and (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  12. Wikipedia, "Edward O. Thorp" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Founding professor of math donates personal, professional papers to UCI Libraries", UCI News, 12 June 2018 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Edward O. Thorp (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

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Sources

Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.

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