I was recently invited to come to Las Vegas and participate in what was described as a free craps tournament. This particular casino sweetened the deal by informing me I would get free entry into the tournament, which awarded a $3000 grand prize, and three free nights at the hotel. The deal sounded really great so I called to make my reservations. The receptionist said all the other rules will be explained at the welcome cocktail party held for all the people invited to the craps tournament. My first mistake was to assume that this competition would be just like all the other ones I have been to in the past: each player uses house chips and the prize is awarded based on which player wins the most over the course of the tournament.
Money or chip management strategies are just as important in blackjack tournaments as they are in poker tournaments. Blackjack contests usually have a set amount of hands played in each around. We will use 20 for our example here. When playing in a blackjack tournament, the most important thing to remember is that you are playing against the other people at the table as well as the dealer. So, if the dealer is winning and seems to have a great luck, it might be wise to bet small so you outlast your other opponents.
Other than the basic rules, there are other things you need to know to purchase a page in any blackjack tournament. The desk where you pay your entry fee or buy in should have a posted or printed list of rules. If not, or if you are confused about anything, feel free to ask the following questions:
When many players enter a blackjack tournament, the casino must accommodate them by either having more tables or structuring the tournament in several elimination rounds. The players with the most chips after a single round of blackjack will progress to the next round, often called the semi-finals. This is usually structured to have seven tables, so that the winner of each of these rounds get a seat at the final table, where the overall tournament winner will be decided.