Grand Casino, Gulfport, MS $100K (OPEN)

Another FYI, I played at the Copa Casino in Gulfport all night last night. It's right next to the Grand. They have almost exclusively two deck pitch games WITH surrender, double any two cards, double after split, etc etc. They have one single deck game with 3/2 blackjack payout, surrender, double on 9/10/11, no double after split. Minimum bet is $5 on all the tables. Max $300. I had a double deck table to myself all night.

They also have an interesting side bet called Lucky Ladies. If your first two cards equal 20 then you get 4 to 1 on the side bet. If they are suited you get more (don't remember exactly). If they are the queen of hearts you get 100 to 1. If they are the queen of hearts AND the dealer has blackjack you get 1000 to 1. It seems a sucker bet but I'd like to hear some professional opinions.

 

Re: The Copa

I offer the following from Max Rubin's website (maxrubin.net), where Mr. Rubin designates The Copa the worst casino in the United States:

"1. Copa in Gulfport, Mississippi
Not only is the place a physical dump with terrible games; it has the ugliest and rudest staff on Earth. Obviously appealing to the trailer patch {sic?} crowd, it appears that the only criteria necessary for working there is (pick one or more) missing at least one front tooth, weighing in at least 150 lbs. over the legal catch limit, having an I.Q. less than 70 or being pathologically snotty."

It sounds like my kinda place.

(By the way Numbers 2 through 5 are: Circus-Circus, Reno; Frontier, Las Vegas;Casino Queen, East St. Louis; and Horseshoe, Las Vegas.)

 

No offense to Mr. Rubin or nothing.. but the Copa caters to locals. If you go in there looking and acting like a professional card player then you'll be treated as described. I on the other hand found the dealers to be quite smart and friendly. The cocktail waitresses buzzed around me constantly. Try getting a drink at the Beau. It's practically impossible.

If you decide to go, pick up an MSU or LSU (safer with the MSU) baseball cap and dress down. No slacks or khakis or polo shirts.

 

On the Beach

In the now nearly constant news coverage of Hurricane Katrina, FOXNews has a correspondent on the Gulfport Beach right in front of the Holiday Inn. When he is on-camera the church steeples of Downtown Gulfport and the Grand Casino Hotel can be seen in the background.

It looks like this storm is gonna be the worst since Camille.

The concerns of those posting comments about the blackjack tournament are beginning to look petty by comparison.

I wish everyone in the path of Katrina the best of Good Fortune. And Best of Luck to Ken Smith and his family!

 

gulfport

i hope someone can tell us if the casinos are still there and if they will be ready by the 9th of september-to you all in gulfport that came early hope you were out of harms way

 

Tournament in Doubt

maxwell asks: "i hope someone can tell us if the casinos are still there and if they will be ready by the 9th of september."

From the Gulfport Sun-Herald post of 08:10CDT, 30 August:
"A revitalized and growing Mississippi Coast had even more to lose. In Biloxi, the mayor said, the storm's surge put at least five casinos out of commission.

Grand Casino Biloxi washed across U.S. 90. Treasure Bay's pirate ship was beached. Beau Rivage still stood, while Hard Rock Casino -- scheduled to open in early September - was half destroyed.

Hard Rock's signature guitar, touted as the world's largest, survived the lashing."

I don't know the condition of the Grand, Gulfport, but do not expect it to re-open by mid-September . . . or to host any blackjack tournament anytime soon.

Does anyone know the airlines' policy for ticket refunds when one's destination is obliterated?

 

grand gulfport

Grand-gulfport,grand Bilouxi Harrahs New Orleans Are All Closed Untill At Least The 13th Of September According To Their Website I Really Feel For Those People Over There I Went Through A Few Hurricanes Myself In Houston

 

Lucky Ladies Side Bet

Check this out.
http://wizardofodds.com/blackjack/bjapx8.html#luckyladies

 

Thanks for the tip Prospect. That's a pretty serious disadvantage. I wonder how it changes with the count? Doesn't really matter now; the Copa was a small casino and is probably destroyed.