STREETWISE BLACKJACK

Streetwise Blackjack

Cold Sweat, Part II

By Peter Ruchman

As in many battles, the first of a two or three day tournament eliminates the majority of players, with the less-experienced falling out accompanied by veterans. Blackjack's dictum: you must get cards, is the driving force behind most fast exits. You can be a novice or a seasoned pro, but the simple truth is if the cards don't fall your way, you will not win.

Tournament play is distinguished from everyday casino table games by its very nature‹you are playing against others while still trying to beat the dealer. An entirely different set of strategies must be employed, and there are different styles.

One tried and true method is to play the maximum on the first hand, right off the top. In the annual Bally's blackjack tournament held after the Thanksgiving weekend (see last week's article, Cold Sweat, Part I) two players at separate tables employed this strategy with differing results. At his turn, the first player pushed all of his chips, $5,000, out into the betting square, naturally causing a ruckus. He was fortunate to receive two face cards, and win, doubling his money. He spent the rest of his round betting the minimum $100 for the other 29 hands and won his table. The other players were forced into an attempt to catch him and couldn't.

The second player to use this strategy won his first hand as well, but insisted on continuing to bet big and the inevitable losing streak forced him out early. The first man understood the risk and the reward‹the second didn't, he was gambling, and foolishly at that. He wasn't a tournament player and my guess is that he doesn't win often.

Just as there is no one path to guarantee success in life or in gambling, the same holds true for casino play. Diametrically opposed to the two fellows above, my own approach involves a conservative playing style placing an emphasis on survival. I hope to have enough chips to last me to the crucial last five hands. This means I play the absolute minimum until the end, when I make a series of plays. There are inherent dangers to this concept and one involves a player who takes off like a rocket, then has the sense to sit on his lead. forcing everyone at the table to chase him/her.

In gambling one must remain flexible. From my perspective, gambling is nothing more or less than an on-going series of adjustments. This concept looms even larger in a tournament, as you must adjust to your table and the cards you receive. Several shooting stars at any one table forces everyone to respond or risk getting left in the dust. Of course, if the big bettors insist on betting large amounts, they risk corresponding failure.

The second factor dictating play is the flow of action. If the dealer is busting consistently, and players are graduating their bets upwards, usually a good choice, a conservative tournament player like myself is forced to edge up with them‹the point here is you can't always impose your preference on the events without risking failure -- as in life, go with the flow, but understand the options.

I have become accustomed to a state of wariness when everything falls my way in a tournament's first round -- "If it seems to good to be true, it usually isŠ" After having things go my way on Monday's opening round, I was nervous about Tuesday morning's second. In my life, I have had to work for what I get, and if something comes along, there's usually a catch or a price to pay later.

In this case, I was rewarded with Marcie, who from past experience, had dealt tough cards, belying her outwardly sweet disposition. Nothing against her, but that's just the way it is with some dealers. She came through like a charm taking almost every hand, snapping up cards like a rainbow trout in a swarm of tasty bugs. At the 25th hand countdown, the big money on the table was $4,500, with most of us sitting around $3,500 -- a decidedly sad state of affairs considering we had each started off with $5,000 in non-negotiable tournament chips.

After the break, with five hands remaining, we all needed to move. I put up $700 and was rewarded with a bone-crushing 13 to Marcie's Queen. Feh! As this also happened to be right off the shuffle, I had to hit. Hope springs eternal with a happy 6. Will it stand up? No, as she flips the 10 from the hole. As several others pushed, and two pulled naturals (blackjacks), I bet $1000 and this time my cards grew into a 14. Happy day -- Marcie was showing a King. I pulled a five, once more sending hopes soaring, until she flipped a Queen.

Last chance Texaco, here we go and I pulled out the stops. Here comes the King followed this time by aŠ6? Double Feh!! Naturally, the smiling Marcie is showing a King again. The count is even, I have to hit, and I get a (drumroll, pleaseŠ) 3! There's a theme to this and I know what's coming when she flips a ten and I'm out. Thhhhhhhhhhhaaaattt's all folks!

I stuck around for the wild card drawings watching some brilliant moves and some amazingly poor choices. I was going to write about them, but there were so many throughout the day, on both ends, I couldn't possible do them justice in this limited space. Instead, I urge you to enter a tournament or just go watch one and see the action with your own eyes. E-mail me here with your impressions.

The final table, for the $50,000 big enchilada featured a young non-stop joker, accompanying the deadpan serious seniors. This table had a worse case of hot-House dealer than my own -- Jason busted a total of four times at the 23d hand countdown (the final table played 28 hands, rather than 30), pulling 20s and 21s almost every time. When the winner was finally announced -- Jimmy Ambrosio -- a round of applause lit up the casino -- 48 hours of nerve-wracking battle done until next year.