I've got Stanford Wong's Casino Tournament Strategy, but is there anything else out there? I see that there are a number of books on Poker tournaments, and I imagine that many of those skills would apply in BJ as well. Any recommendations?
I don't know how relevant the poker tournament advice might be, but if you determine that is seems helpful, let us know. Wong's classic is still the only major tournament book on the market. There's a small book called Tournament Blackjack, by BJ Phantom, available at Gambler's Book Club, here: http://www.gamblersbook.com/cgi/shop/cashcart.cgi?ACTION=thispage&thispage=496702.htm&ORDER_ID=165412902 I'm still wondering who the "Phantom" is. Surely someone here knows, right? The book is probably worth its cost of $9.95, though there's really not much content there.
Poker Cross-Training Ken, I believe that many Blackjack players find themselves in unfamiliar woods when they enter tournaments. All of a sudden instead of fellow players, they face a game with opponents. Playing Poker will teach you the value of position, watching your chip counts, and the importance of educating yourself about your opponents. The greatest difference of course, is that you do not take chips directly from another player's pile in BJ, but you can still use some aggressive plays against them. An unexpected double or split can have the same effect as a check-raise in Poker and rattle your opponents into making a mistake. One thing that Poker and BJ tournaments definitely have in common: There is a high mortality rate for players trying to catch up with the chip leader!
Honestly, I think any attempts to read poker books to improve your BJ tournament strategy is useless or counter-productive. I suppose actually playing in Poker tournaments can help you get used to the pressure of a BJ tournament, but the skill sets are ridiculously different. Most critically, in a poker tournament, survival is name of the game. Everyone but one person will lose all your chips, so not being in a position to lose all your chips is key. On the other hand, in a BJ tournament, there is a fixed time limit, and after that, your chips are no good, so conserving chips is a bad idea.
