Paul Haas, BJT, and TxTourPlayer all in a newspaper article

I'd love to give him credit, but...

...its not exactly difficult to have a few articles written about you when the GSN press department, in its noble pursuit of promoting the show, goes out and sets up the interviews for you...

i said it on the radio show & i'll say it again, i think Paul's act is great & i sincerely hope he starts to actually study the math & numbers behind tourney strategy, because without that he is nothing BUT an act, destined to fail. All the press in the world & a lucky victory on TV do not make up for what anyone with even a remote understanding of good strategy can plainly see are his absolutely deplorable tourney skills... its just plain BAD for the game to elevate someone this clueless.

-hd.

 

An a huge hooya for Cerritos:

The original bad boy of black jack said it all.

 

I believe it was a press release from Mystic Lake that got this reporter interested. At least that's what she told me when I talked to her.

I also told her about the radio show and the URL for it. She said she was going to listen to it, but it doesn't appear she used anything from it. The only thing she used that I gave her was the "Show me the money" quote.


edited: Spell listen correctly.

 

Correct Play on last hand

With all the criticism directed at Paul Hass, at least he made the best percentage play on the last hand by doubling down on hard 13 vs dealer 5; this gives him a 75.8% chance of winning. If he had stood as basic strategy says he would have had only a 46.6% chance of winning.

BlueLight

 

Just a new point of view

Hollywood,

I'm a newbie around here and to the world of BJ tourney's. Been playing on my own for awhile just for the thrill, comps, etc. I don't make a living from it and I don't plan on it either.

Having said that I gotta say this - from a TV point of view and as a new comer to the world of BJ tourneys I think Paul is a shot in the arm.

I've only played in 4 tourneys myself - two land based and two on-line.

The basic strategy of min/min/min/min until near the end may be the ideal way BUT IT MAKES FOR BORING TV AND BORING PLAYING.

Now I know this is a stretch but look at tennis. Who was the outstanding icon in the 80's for the men? John McEnroe.

Why? His temper tantrums and attitude. I look at the UBT promo and I get excited. When I played at the two land based tourneys (Gold Nugget and Venetian) it felt like I was in a morgue. Give me a break. It's ok to have fun and be excited, especially when winning $25K

When I enter one of the UBT stops, plunk down my 2500 and play you can believe that I will be animated. No need to be rude to players mind you and I can see where "The Assassin" has some of that.

All I can say is that brainiacks on TV aren't fan favorites - speaking for myself.

 

missing the point...

Couldn't agree with you more. And you know i'm the first person to champion the cause of fun, exciting, TV-friendly interaction while playing -- shit, i've built a career around it. But your McEnroe comparison is flawed in one crucial area:

John McEnroe was also an incredible tennis player!

Let's look at other examples from other sports where someone has made headlines (and conversely made the game more exciting to watch):

Poker: Phil Hellmuth throws tantrums with the best of 'em -- but oh yeah, he's also the youngest player to have won the World Series main event and to date has 9 bracelets, 3rd all-time behind Johnny Chan & Doyle Brunson.

Basketball: Dennis Rodman dyed his hair green & blue, is covered in tattoos and piercings, and talked about banging Madonna...while helping lead the Chicago Bulls to NBA Championship victory year after year after year...

Football: Terrell Owens -- T.O. -- gave new meaning to end-zone celebrations by phoning home, signing footballs with a sharpie, and doing pull-ups on the goal post. But wait -- he's also one of the game's superstar receivers, one of only 6 players in history with over 100 touchdown receptions.


Do i need to go on? Here's my point: no one is arguing that crazy antics make for better TV. Hell, no one's even arguing that his track record isn't long enough -- Bobby Fischer was a chess pariah at an incredibly young age, and many people tried for years to discount him by saying he was getting lucky, etc.

What i AM saying is: Paul does NOT know how to play blackjack tournaments! Pointing to a single decent bet here or there does not discount the litany of horrible, uninformed, and clueless decisions he made during the match, showing a complete disregard for the tourney math & odds that govern & control the game -- hell, he even ADMITTED this during his radio interview.

And here's the kicker: none of what i'm saying is an OPINION at all.... its FACT. Meaning, not open for interpretation. There are many areas of tourney strategy that are open to debate, and as a science it is continually changing. But to ignore some of the most basic correlations, the simplest decisions that over & over again cost him 20%, 40%, 60% of his advantage in a given hand when just about ANY OTHER choice would have given him a better mathematical chance of success, makes it clear that this is a man who simply GOT LUCKY.

Why am i so heated about this? Because the LAST THING i want is for someone like YOU -- or the many uninformed viewers at home -- to see his antics, get excited by them, see him win, and say "i wanna learn to play as well as him" -- it just sets up a whole negative scenario by which bad play is copied, and creates a potential army of idiots who believe they don't have to study, learn, or train to be as good as this sport demands. It removes the integrity of what we are trying to do. Because while i believe that it is CRUCIAL to create interesting & memorable characters on TV for the continued survival of our sport, the moment we make it look like that's ALL IT TAKES (read: no SKILL necessary as well), we've already failed and are losing ground.

Plenty of players show up, win or lose, and are never heard from again. its a shame when the truly talented ones slip through the TV cracks due to being too "boring" for home audiences. but when someone like this jackass actually lucks out and wins, we cannot trust the media networks covering him to use the same sense of responsibility or judgment that we will, as they only need be concerned with the short-term reward of better ratings or higher subscription rates. Hearing him called a 'pro' or one of the 'best blackjack players in the world' is just laughable and to know that some people in America actually think that about him now -- and, conversely, the kind of skill level it takes to 'make it' in our sport -- just makes my skin crawl. Instead of elevating a monkey on a pedestal simply because we CAN, i say: the Emperor has no clothes. Any fool can win a poker tournament by going all-in with the worst hand and winning... but to say it is 'good for the game' and reward him for it -- give me a break!!

-hd.

 

Hoy Boy!

Here we go. Round and round again and again and....


Simple fact. S. V. is probably the best tournament player alive. Skill level and winnings total.

TX has stated he'll take the rest of the field against the top 5 to 10 supposed top players, pros, in any tourney. I would put my money with his.

Do all you can to massage the numbers and put yourself in the right position.But, just cause a percentage is, or an odds is what it it, doesn't mean it will happen on the hand YOU want it to happen.

Play enough. Play well. Play as Revere said, without a mistake and then the numbers should catch up to you. But on any "given sunday"...yadda, yadda.

Throw in reality TV and muddle the debate. It becomes a different animal when you want to exploite personalities, or lack thereof. Are you selling advertising to the masses or putting on a skill event.

Fischer's are far and few in between and go nuts in the process.

The truely skilled will repeat, regardless of personality.

And Blue....don't want to work the exercise in futility, but I can't believe those numbers on their face.

 

maybe I missed YOUR point

Hollywood,

Good examples of other "sports" and eccentric players I hadn't thought of them at the time.

My post was not so much in critique of Paul Haas, I didn't see him play I just read the newspaper article. My opinion of Paul, based only on the quotes in the paper, leave me with the impression of a brash, somewhat obnoxious individual - but until I meet with him I keep an open mind.

As a newcomer to the tourney world of BJ my point of view is simply that from MY LIMITED EXPERIENCE it needs a big shot in the arm right now. If I want to play poker there are a dime a dozen places, land and internet based to play. I can turn on the computer at midnight, go to pokerparty.com, netstars.com, UBT.com, etc. ad nausea and get a game 24/7.

Want to play a BJ tourney at midnight? Good luck. Now maybe there are more than the 2 BJ tourney sites that I'm familiar with, Global and BJ21, that have 24/7 tourney's. I have to spend more time on the Wong computer program than with real people.

Nevertheless I read that BJ is the most popular casino game! Can anyone say contradiction.

So tell me this, by your own admission Paul is a BJ cretin having absolutely no knowledge and skills - correct? Than how did he win that round? Will he be able to do it again? (Highly unlikely, my opinion and based on what I've read) In the long-run and over time the more skilled and better trained BJ player SHOULD rise to the surface (my statement)

So what is some brash lucky young guy gets PR and brings more people to the events. Is it a bad thing that unexperienced and recreational BJ players come to participate in the BJ tourney's? As a legend in the field I thought that you would salivate at the easy pickings and bigger pots

From reading your post I would say that we basically agree on 90%. There is one thing that really bothers me and that is this:

Personally I think your comments are elitist. So people like ME haven't been playing in BJ tourney's or make a living at it like you, Kenny Einiger, Joep and others. People like ME and others who finally see UBT may actually read books out there - hell people like ME may even buy YOUR book. Some of the members of the army of idiots may actually spend hours preparing, reading, and training. Then, one day when the tourney comes around - MAYBE surprise you by playing and winning.

Personally I look forward to learning as much as I can - I'm very thankful to people who have pointed me in the right direction and answered questions and been friendly. I would like to see the BJ world expand into an even bigger "club". Just like the old Stardust is being torn down for bigger and better I believe that the world of tournament BJ is ready for bigger and better.

How it gets there - anybodys guess. Will the icon be a brash "Assassin" or a reserved and quiet [you fill in the blank]

I don't care I just want my ticket

 

Midnight Internet Madness League

Actually your point about not being able to get a BJ tournament game at midnight just gave me an idea .

Why not set up at availability board as to what time you are looking for a game and at what site and this way you could have a scheduled match waiting for you when you sign on.

I'm noted for being on line when only the vampires are lurking around and would be more than happy to accommodate you with a few games under the cloak of darkness.

If anyone else believes this can work lets start it up

We can call it Midnight Internet Madness :laugh:

Especially with Global's one on one matches only 2 players are needed to get this started


Hosted by "Vampire Joep"

in a side note once the sun comes up I have to vacate the premises


Joep

 

Hollywood: if the shoe fits....

BLACKJACK HYPE VERSUS BLACKJACK REALITY
By Arnold Snyder
© 2005 Blackjack Forum Online

The best hustler is not necessarily the best player among hustlers.
He has to be a very good player, true, but beyond a certain
point his playing ability is not nearly so important
as his skill at various kinds of conning. — Ned Polsky, Hustlers, Beats, and Others

"Style over substance" :joker: :joker: :joker:

 

Despite my tendency for egomaniacal proclamation, i wasn't trying to be elitist or put you into a category with the hypothetical 'army of idiots' i mentioned later in that paragraph. When i referred to YOU i meant just that, someone coming up in the tourney world with questions about the game...then took a step back to refer to the greater community of viewers watching at home, most of whom have no experience whatsoever with the tourney world...then a step farther back, to recognize those in that larger group who would be stupid enough to believe all the misinformed ideas mentioned. I wasn't trying to infer that YOU were in either of these last two categories of people; sorry if it came across that way.

as far as Paul winning his initial round, yes, it was just luck. Sometimes that happens. There's an awful lot of that in this game! But as far as someone preparing, reading and training to win -- well, that would pretty much make you a pro then -- because really the litmus test is, have you done the work. So many people don't take the time, or watch someone get lucky on TV and think they can do the same thing without really learning about the complexities of the game. Anyone willing to put the time & effort in to training has nothing but my admiration & respect, win OR lose!

-hd.

 

BR1 almost always must correlate bet.

If the last hand in the first week of World Series were changed so that BR1's 3 card were changed to a 9 card, then even then doubling down is better than standing.


Plyr---Bank Roll----------Bet-----------Cards----Action-----Br1 prob to win
------------------------------------------------------------6Deck InfDeck

BR2---100,000-----50,000 + 50,000---- 5 + 3----Doubles


BR1---135,000-----50,000 + 50,000----10 + 9----Doubles-----.551 .5525
or
BR1---135,000-------50,000-----------10 + 9-----Stand------.524 .5271


Dealer------------------------------------5


As ridiculous as it seems, doubling down with hard 19 has a 3% better chance for advancing than standing in the above situation.

 

I just saw the leaderboard at Global and sure enough there was Joep "the vampire" playing TBJ at 0300 est.

Thank goodness I wasn't awake!

 

Thank you for the clarification. I also am sorry if I sounded like I have a chip on my shoulder. I haven't been around long enough to know most of the "grandfathers" of TBJ and I don't want to be disrectful in any way.

I'm learning that while there is luck, preparation and practice are an invaluable tool. When I mean practice I really try to "learn" from my matches at Global and BJ21.

TX makes it difficult with the 101, 201 etc.. bets and there are others who I like to play against because it is more fund than against the Wong software. Hopefully more and more people will "jump on the bandwagon"

As far as the "pro comment". I just want to be able to play against pro's like yourself, joep, ken s, TX and the rest of the BJT world so that I can learn. Who knows maybe one day I can grow up and play on UBT too - just like Paul. Should that ever occur, I promise to play with "good basic strategy" Hollywood. :joker:

 

Never Safe

Be aware Vampires are always lurking for new victims


Joep

 

Oh nooooo. I got "sucked dry" by Joep in daylight

I thought vampires were only coming out @ night - better go re-check my playbook

 

Drinks Are On Me

To show you that I can be a gracious host .When you come to Las Vegas I will return your money in the form of a newly acquired glass of blood .Can we toast to that?


Joep

 

To hollywood

Hollywood you cease to amaze me. You are by far the most jealous piece of shit I have ever met. I dont like you. I cant stand you. You know what forget playing blackjackl because now its personal. You keep taking shots at me and calling me a jackass. You can run your mouth but thats all you can do. I think ken had a great idea when he said lets have a fight. We can give the money to charity. I just want to beat the holy shit out of you. Stop runing your mouth. you are nothing but a loser in life. As far as the guy running his mouth too from Mystic Lake you might as well get in on this you and Dave can be partners. By the way Dave luck or not I got further than you and I beat out last years champion. as good as you are you couldnt even beat anyone out.