Hello, I have never played tourament before but have been invited to Flamingo Bonne Chance BJT in Ausgust and plan on going? Does anyone know how many players to expect? how many chips do you start with? for elimination style play, do top 2 seats advance? would there be a rebuy? any other direct cost associated with the game itself? What I do know is one tournament entry, $40 dollars in casino play and comp room any answers to questions I was not smart enough to ask would be appreciated. thanks Lee
Welcome! Hi and welcome! I don't know anything about that particular tournament, but as this is your first tournament, you should check out the "Strategy Articles" section of this site (http://www.blackjacktournaments.com/strategy.php) for some general advice. It's not that you're not smart enough to ask the right questions, just not experienced enough. Good luck!
Ask casino for format/rules sheet gronbog is correct (per usual) but most of the questions you ask will have to be answered either/or by that casino and players that have experienced same event before. Billy C
Fine Print on the Offer Some of your questions can be answered by simply reading the fine print on the offer For instance, "Prize Structure is based on 500 participants and will be adjusted based on the actual number of entrants." I haven't played in a Caesar's Entertainment table game in a few years, but my experience back then was disappointment when they substantially reduced the prize fund because of low turnouts. Given that there is no entry fee for this tournament, they essentially control the number of entrants because of how many invitations they send out. I'd expect between 200 and 400 players, but that is just a wild guess. The offer also says that, "Re-buys will be available for $100 on a first-come, first-served basis and based on availability."
Flamingo BJ Tournament Otislee, Gronbog, Billy C and Kelly's advice is spot on other than last year a Paris $150,000 BJ tournament prize pool was raised to $250,000 due to an excess of entries (800+) as I recall. I anticipate the Flamingo's expectation of 500 participants to be realistic. If this is your 1st BJ tournament experience, your time may be better spent studying tournament strategy posted on this site rather than a concern regarding rules, number of entrants, players advancing per table etc. In addition to a forum search regarding tournament strategy, an excellent resource is Ken Smith's eBook "How to win more blackjack tournaments" available at this site. Good Cards wished you in your initial tournament venture.
Thanks to all for the excellent advise given. I am really excited about participating in this tournament. thanks Lee
I'll toss another tip in the mix. Learn to count and calculate chip stacks by sight alone. No strategy in any game will be of much use if you don't know the score, and those chips stacks are the score! Before my first live BJT table, I practiced on a borrowed case of WPT poker chips, you should do something similar - and practice a lot. Make sure you have at least three different denominations so that you have to count all three stacks then add up the total value, and do this while peering at them from distances of up to six feet. It would also help you to have multiple positions set up for counting, same as you'll likely have multiple players at your BJT table. Calculate those then recite all of the different totals without having to go back and count again. Do not employ a pen/paper or anything similar, you've got to be able to do this in your head.
An addition to Lefty's good advice---------make sure that your competition isn't "palming" chips. Failing to do so cost me something like 7k at a Stardust tournament in years past. Billy C
French Canadian I like the Canadian spelling better than our "favorite" although sometimes simpler is a good thing. Billy C
Pardon Us, We used to be British Heh, actually, I think that goes back to our British history. French would be 'favorite', same as American but, of course pronounced differently. Just say it with a cheesy french accent :laugh:
Good evening, as I have said, i have never played a tournament before, and I really appreciate all the great advice. One item I am not sure about is this Small print says that payouts will be in Casino Play Casino Play is your choice of Reel Rewards® Express Play® coupons or Table Gaming Vouchers. What exactly is "Reel Rewards Express Play coupons" and "Table Gaming Vouchers? How are they used, or could you walk up to the cage and cashe them out? I am sure this is a simplistic question, but I have never dealt with coupons or vouchers. I start with cash, change to chips, and back to cash. thanks Lee p.s. thanks for the advice on chip counting and other tips. I hope to make a go of this.
Reel Rewards are vouchers for slot or video poker play, you must play them as they're not redeemable for cash, whatever you win using the RR voucher is redeemable. Table game vouchers are similar to play till you lose promotional chips.
