I do not think you can have 2 mulligans. I would be surprised if it is allowed but may be an idea for casinos to think about for the future. They can sell mulligans unlimited.
Thank you for the replies. I made the mistake of posting this topic under this particular tournament. I haven't used this site a lot. I meant my question as a general inquiry, not for this particular tournament. Are you saying this is true in all tournaments? Should I repost this as a new topic on the general boards? Thanks again!
I believe the mulligan option started at the old Las Vegas Hilton several years ago. The only other venue that I've seen offer it is the Nugget. There may be others that I'm unaware of but my guess is that you can't carry one forward anyplace and I'm very sure you will be quite disadvantaged without having one at any venue. Billy C
I have never heard of a mulligan being carried forward, and certainly haven't heard of being able to use two in a single round. Can't speak to who started the concept of a mulligan but I do know that the Kewadin houses in Michigan gave you one in every round for a long time. They got rid of it because the locals were complaining that the traveling BJT assassins were using them well while they (the locals) would tend to spend them unwisely.
When the West Gate (old hilton) did BJ tournaments, the mulligan was carried over until the semi-final if not used.
Kewadin had a different name for it and I can't remember what it was. It definitely served the same purpose. I'm very sure that Les Thacker started the mulligan concept at the old LV Hilton. Nugget has apparently taken it a step farther by charging for "re-buy" mulligans. It's all about the revenue, fellas. Billy C
Revisiting this thread I do not see any mention of value / power / usage when it comes to mulligans. Was this purposeful? Do those who know the answers wish to keep them quiet? I have purchased both of Ken's books and haven't gotten to any sections about the topic yet. I also am still searching other threads. Thanks.
Ternamint, your questions "Was this purposeful? Do those who know the answers wish to keep them quiet?" is an insult to those many players on this site who readily and willingly share detailed information and strategy analyses on tournament blackjack for the benefit of all.
Dakota; I definitely wasn't meaning my remark to have a negative tone and I apologize to anyone if it came across that way. I certainly would not blame a group for holding back on certain issues, especially if they play professionally. In any business, there are trade secrets or at least things that a new entrant to the field must learn on their own. It isn't always fair to those who work harder to have all of their hard work turned over to someone who is unwilling to also work hard or is looking to exploit the information. This site is outstanding in the sharing of information and knowledge. I am used to the cash Blackjack world where good games are not disclosed and for good reason. Vultures descend and burn out the games. Maybe tournaments aren't like that. Please forgive my ambiguous wording in the prior post!
I am trying to understand the best use of mulligans. It seems obvious to use them at a critical point. I realize I was putting out a lot of general situations. But there are different formats out there and I thought it would be good to know the power of mulligans in various situations. Thank you!
The mulligan obviously gives you an increased chance of achieving your goal for the hand that you use it on, whatever that goal may be. These hands tend to occur near the end of the round and often on the final hand. As such you would tend to want to hang on to it until you find yourself in a critical situation. If you do use it before the last hand, be very aware of who still has one and what they might be able to do with it. If you can use it in such a way as to make their mulligan irrelevant, then you have made the best possible use of it. Here is a thread I created here a few years ago about how to best use the mulligan for achieving various goals. The strategies are for a particular rule set, but should be usefull in most events. https://www.blackjacktournaments.com/threads/mulligan-strategy.7505/
Great. Thank you. I found this thread last year and look forward to reviewing it. I made the mistake of typing "m"ulligan into the search bar. I used a small "m".
Thank you for your response to my reply, Ternamint. You do continue to bring up interesting and important questions for discussion. Much appreciated.
-I reread this post and it hits on several things that I am still trying to understand. -Do all bigger ($50K+ in total prize money) tournaments offer re-entry? Is it worth playing a tournament that does not offer it? It seems like a lot of work, time and expense to have only one shot. -Are wild card drawings worth waiting for? I had to wait 4 hours once and chose to leave. It was a $100k tourney but really with promos was a $67K. I think that was a really dumb move but I had some (small) positive ev elsewhere. I'm sure it depends on number of wild cards and expected number of people waiting or coming back for the draw and then compared to the prize pool. -Is the "return of fee" common? I assume you would still play if it wasn't. -Is it worth entering if the room isn't comped?
