Ok, I'll let you in on my home casino's game. Not that I want the competition, but they could use some more traffic so that they can get more tourneys going and I can have more chances at some fun/money. Santa Ysabel Resort and Casino (where there is NO resort yet) It's in the middle of nothing, and at least an hour from something resembling a real highway. So make sure to fill your gas tanke before heading out. Website is a little slow to load, forgive them. It's better than it was. Really. Sunday's it's a 1pm start. 6d shoe. $35 buy-in max 24 players, 6 to a table. They've been known to squeeze a 7th on a table on occassion to the consternation of the regulars who will grumble very loudly with smiles. No Re-Buys at this time. No surrender. Insurance 2:1. Blackjacks 2:1 for easy math as the chips used are green/black/purple/yellow. Random seat-card selection: first up - first select from face downs. trading sometimes happens so couples split up. Very relaxed atmosphere up here as the Pit Manager and crew wants people to keep coming back as long as they aren't drunken ***holes. Very few have been bounced/banned to my knowledge. This game has a Mulligan Chip in each round. You may kill any one card in your hand at any time. You get the NEXT card in the shoe. If you only had your first to and had A-3, mulligan the 3 and get a T....you are paid 2:1 Blackjack. If you have busted with a 8-4-T and mulligan the T and pull a 9, you then beat the dealer...you are paid for a winning hand. Don't use the Mulligan Chip by the end of the round? It's swapped for an Opportunity $5 play on table games. R1 is 15 hands, $3k in starter chips, mulligan chip, $100 min for 10 hands then $200 for final. All-in whenever you want. Split to 4h, A to 2. DD on first 2 only. Button moves each hand, skipping the empties. Chip count before last three hands. Depending #of tables, 3 or 4 advance to either Final (2 tables) or SemiR (4 if 3tables and 3 if 4 tables). Semis plays just like R1. Fresh stack of $3k. New mulligan. 3 advance to Final table. Final Round. Another fresh stack of $3k. New mulligan. This time min. $200 for 10h and $400 for final 5h. Chip count on last three as before. Payout goes to top three: $500/$200/$100. They do take down 1099 info, just incase you collect enough earnings to have one generated at the end of the year (oops, I'm getting one this year), but by keeping the max tables to 4, it's keeping the prize pool small as well.
Ok, Thursday's tourney is DD. Everything above applies EXCEPT if you want to mulligan a card in your hand or your hidden DD or split-A down card, you can peak and then mulligan it so others cannot see what was just killed, and then you can peak again to see the results for relief or regret. I like the DD game as this plays a little more like poker, and there are a few more palyers right now. Promlem on Sunday is that the Charges tend to play at tournament time, cutting into the attention of the players (and sometimes the dealers). I've pointed this out to the Pit Manager and said when Football is over, I bet that the Sunday tourney will start filling up again.
10 players today...I made final table. At 4 players, we decided to chop as the chip count between 4th and 3rd was <200 and between 1st and 4th was <2k. There was a husband and wife in 1st/4th, and they suggested it...no skin off any noses here, as this was better for 4th and 3rd placers (zero and $100 each if no chop). So, banked buy-in for Thursday.
