I've certainly played my share of BJ tournaments as well, making it to Final Table thrice at Hard Rock in Biloxi, and placing 2nd at one of the $50K events last Nov. Having said this, I'm playing in my 1st accumulation tournament in awhile this weekend. It's interesting though, because there are 2 rounds of play, $2K/round and 20 hands, and the TOP 36 advance to the semis where they they will take the top person to the final table. So.... the most important thing would be trying to get in the top 36 to be eligible to play in the semis... I dont know how much it typically takes, but what would you say is a goal I should be playing for in both rounds? Max bet is $1K, so what should I be trying to reach in each of the 2 rounds to optimize my chances of making the top 36?
Stanford Wong's Tournament Blackjack book contains the formula for calculating the desired target. I have fournd it to be quite reliable.
Also... Wong CTS is a must read for a serious player. In addition, sign up for blackjackinsider.com. There are alot of strategy articles in the archives. Ken Smith's e-books are also available there, which are a must-read for today's game.
Thanks for the info, monkey... I actually ordered the book today! Can someone summarize for me how much I'd want to accumulate in each round with max of $1K/hand and we start with $2K? I just need to finish within top 36 to go to semis....
There was a thread "Hybrid strategy" http://www.blackjacktournaments.com/bb/showthread.php?t=5258&highlight=hybrid+strategy&page=3 that went into this a few years ago. Wong's formula is in that thread. It is the square root of the ratio of total players to number advancing times the starting bankroll. I am assuming that when you say 2 rounds, you mean you start each one with 2K. Using this with Wong's formula we will assume that there are 216 total entries with 36 advancing. The ratio is 6-1, the square root of 6 is about 2.45 so Wong's number would be 2.45*4000 = 9800. However, I have only played in 2 of these types of events and heard the results on one other. The low advancer had 83-88% of the Wong number. I would just round it to 85% which would make it about 8300. This is not the number I would aim at. It is just a number I would consider standing on if on my last hand I had 8400, I would bet low enough to not go under it. As to how I would attack this scenario. I would bet the max from the 1st hand of the first round, hoping to either get really good cards or have the dealer turning up small cards and busting. If I got lucky and got to 7-8K on the first round, then with additional 2k for the 2nd round I could play the minimum and have a reasonable chance of being in the top 36. If I bust out in the first round, then I know that I have to bet max basically all the way in round 2. If after the 1st round, the results are announced then you might have a another number to consider, but remember that everyone below the top 36 after round 1 will be betting more money in round 2.
Thanks for the post, Larry! This formula works great and I'd rather apply it then "wait around" 3-4 hrs of BJ players.... the prize money simply isn't worth doing all that, but I'll definitely apply this formula to how many players compete.... Btw are you from the Biloxi/Gulfport area? There was a "Larry" I met awhile back who frequents the BJ tourneys in Biloxi...
I am from the Dallas area. Unfortunately, Texas has no casinos. There is very limited access to tournaments around here so I decided last year to branch out to the Biloxi area and the Beau had a lot of tournaments that you could get into so I tried it out. Once the casinos started going to invitational only tournaments it has restricted the number of tournaments I might consider. When you start factoring in travel, etc. there is just not much out there. Larry
Yeah I am in the same boat as you... I am from Houston and luckily for me, through my BJ playing I get flown out there every month + 3 nights hotel so while I'm already there I definitely catch all the BJ tourneys and this wkend will be no exception! Will try my luck in the accumulation tournament Island View is having and will definitely report results here!
