Blackjack is rarely thought of as a competitive game, although blackjack tournaments have been around for quite some time at brick-and-mortar casinos. They have also become increasingly popular among online players in recent years. The main reason for this growing interest is that the tournament version of 21 gives the average player the opportunity to snag a sizable prize for a relatively small entry fee.
There are different types of blackjack tournaments, with some competitions taking place within a single day, while others last two or three days. Tournament play requires skill, discipline, and above all, sufficient knowledge of tournament strategy. Blackjack tournaments have a different structure from the standard casino-banked version of 21 and, consequently, call for an entirely different strategic approach.
In the following article, we present the nuts and bolts of blackjack tournament play and introduce you to the main tournament types. Also featured are several common tournament strategies and tips on how to improve your chances of beating your opponents.
How Tournament Play Works in Blackjack
In their base form, blackjack tournaments are played in nearly the same way as the standard version of the game. Players still aim to beat the dealer to earn chips from each hand, but there is one major difference: they are competing against each other rather than against the house.
The principal objective of each participant is to collect more chips from the dealer than their opponents do. The house still derives benefit from the tournament because each player must pay a modest fee to enter the tournament. The casino pockets a small cut from each entry fee, while the rest is used for building the prize pool. In some cases, the casino also contributes to the pool as a means of increasing its size and attracting more players.
Once everyone pays their way in, each contender receives the same starting stack of chips as the other participants, with the chips themselves being devoid of monetary value in most cases. They are merely used to keep track of how each player is progressing through the tournament.
A tournament can last one or several rounds, with each of them being played over a fixed number of hands (usually between 15 and 30) or a fixed period. When the starting hands are dealt, the opponents face the same playing decisions as those in standard blackjack, i.e. they can hit, stand, double down, split, take insurance, and so on.
As in poker tournaments, the first player to act changes with each hand, because being the first person to make a decision puts you at a significant disadvantage. Also, decisions are made based on how the other players are doing, but more on this later when we discuss tournament play and basic strategy.
What happens once everyone has finished playing their hand depends on the rules of the respective tournament. In single-round blackjack tournaments, the chips of each participant are counted up individually. The positions of players are then determined based on how many chips each person has at this stage.
The overall prize pool is then divided among the participants based on their chip counts. Sometimes the person with the most chips collects the entire pool, but in other cases, the pool may be split among the top finishers. It all depends on the specific rules of the tournament.
In competitions where multiple rounds are involved, the person with the smallest chip stack at the end of the round gets eliminated. Eliminations continue this way each round until a single player remains, and that player is declared the winner.
Differences between Standard Blackjack Games and Tournaments
Main Tournament Types in Blackjack
Similar to poker tournaments, competitive play in blackjack is not limited to a single format. Several notable types of blackjack tournaments exist: elimination, accumulation, mini, major, sit ’n’ go, and live-money events. Let’s take a look at what each format offers.
Elimination Tournaments
Accumulation Tournaments
Mini and Major Tournaments
Sit ’n’ Gos
Tournaments with Live-Money ChipsBlackjack Tournament Basics – Prepping Up for Your First Tourney
Participating in a blackjack tournament calls for some preparation, even more so if you are a first-timer. It does not come down solely to paying the entry fee. The first thing you need to do is to acquaint yourself thoroughly with the rules because no two tourneys share exactly the same rules. This will prevent you from making unnecessary mistakes and disrupting the tournament’s flow.
Players are normally presented with copies of the rules after paying their entry fees. If the tournament takes place online, make sure you read the terms and conditions the web-based casino has attached to the tourney.
This will give you valuable information about the betting limits, the prize pool, how many hands are played per round, whether surrendering a hand is permitted, and so forth. If you still have any questions, be sure to ask the support staff or the tournament director before you take your seat at the table.
Perhaps more importantly, remember that rules are there for players to follow. Breaking important rules can lead to disqualification. One of the main things to avoid is the so-called string betting, in which you grab several chips from your stack and drop them one after another into your betting circle.
This is considered a serious violation. Tournament etiquette requires you to post all the chips you intend to bet with one motion. It is best to prepare the stack you want to bet in advance and then slide it into your betting circle.
Even if they do not kick you out for breaching the rules and table etiquette, string betting can still cost you. Tournament managers often punish string bettors by counting only the first chip that lands on the felt and returning the rest to the offender.
Another mistake you must avoid is conversing with bystanders while the last round of the tournament is in progress. This is strictly prohibited in some tournaments and can again lead to immediate disqualification.