BlackjackTournaments.com needs your help: If you are attending a land-based tournament with a prize pool of $10,000 or more, the members at BJT would love to see the Play by Play details of the event. If you'd like to submit the details of the hands after the countdown, I'll pay $25 via PayPal for each report. Be warned. It's not an easy job. You have to be really quick with a pad and pencil to get it all on paper. Here are some hints: Note the date, casino, and event name. Prepare a separate sheet of paper for each of the final hands starting right after the countdown. Write the seat numbers on the left hand margin. Add a line at the bottom for the dealer. During the countdown, write each bankroll total next to the player's seat number. As each hand begins, circle the seat number of the player with the button. As each player bets, write down their exact bet amount. As cards are dealt, write down the cards dealt. You may find it easiest to begin at the button once the second card is dealt to that player. Use "T" for any ten-value card if you prefer, or T,J,Q,K. When the dealer flips over the upcard, write it next to the dealer. As players complete their hands, write down any additional cards they draw. If they double, write Dbl after the two card hand, and the card they draw next. If they double for less, indicate the amount. Example: "A6 Dbl($50) 4" for an A64 hand. If they insure, write "Ins" and the amt. Note surrender of course as well. Splits are tricky. Just hurry and get the details down in a way you can make sense of. Once the players are complete, show the rest of the dealer's hand. The first dealer card is assumed to be the upcard. 2T7 for example is a two up, ten under, hit with a 7. Once the round is complete, be sure to get the official totals, as that allows you (and me) to verify that everything adds up completely. While you may want to verify that everything adds up, don't stress out about that. I plug all this info into a spreadsheet that does all that for you. KEEP YOUR HANDWRITTEN NOTES until I'm done with the posting. Errors can often be resolved by referring to the originals. This process is tough, but once you do it a couple of times, you get pretty good at it. I still find errors in some of the ones that I do, and have to backtrack and figure out where I went wrong. Once you have all the details, you'll need to email them to me, or private message me. Be sure to include your PayPal email address so I can pay you. Also let me know how you would like to be identified in the "Reported by" credit for the information. Some casinos are friendly about helping with this process, while others aren't. Ask first if you think there may be a problem. Getting names of the finalists is often the most challenging part. Ideally, it would be great to have the names associated with each seat number, but many casinos are adamant about not revealing them. Get the names if you can, but if you can't, that's fine too. Speaking briefly with the winner and getting some info about their tournament experience and any human interest info is a plus as well.
