Scenario: Double deck pitch tournament. Cards dealt face down. Final table of 6 players Last hand I'm BR2 and on the button. There are a total of 3 players in contention. I trail BR1 by $160. I make a maximum bet of $300. All the players who are able ,make the same,$300 maximum bet. I get a pair of faces (Q,Q). The dealer's upcard is a 7. The dilemma: What is the best action? a) or b)?? a.) Split the pat hand. I will need to turn my cards face up, and take a "no bust" approach on both hands. All remaining players now know whether they need to split/double based on the outcome of my two hands. b.)OR, should I tuck my pat hand (value of the unknown) and hope for the best?
I would... Your bet was correct, seeing that two other players are in contention and your on the button your best bet was to go high. Now to answer your question, I would have bluff on this hand and acted like I had garbage (only time you can bluff in Blackjack tournament is in a game dealt down). After acting like I wanted or needed to DD, then I would have tucked the cards. Why split and give up BR2 and if you swing BR1 or even if BR1 pushes and you win you'll take the lead. Now the others can DD or possibly split if they catch a pair or same value cards, but make them have to do so. Don't give up a winning hand when you don't have to. Then sit back and hope that luck is on your side.
I like tucking the twenty as well, and if you can provide some doubt with Tx's ploy of bluffing, all the better. If you split, you'll likely end up with at least one hand stiff, and any double or split by BR1 locks you out of first place. There's a good chance that BR1 will feel compelled to double or split pretty aggressively here, and you can easily end up with a situation where you win if the dealer makes 21 or 20, plus you already have a good shot at winning if the dealer makes 19 and maybe 18 as well.
