I've been meaning to write my analysis and share my feedback of the first ClubUBT cruise, but I had a few work deadlines to get out of the way. I tried posting on the LVA forum, but as you can see, I was speechless (I'm not able to post there currently). So I will post here first: The ClubUBT dealers: The dealers were professional, fun, funny, and worked real hard. I only played poker for about an hour, so my analysis only covers the three bj tournaments and one SnG I played in -- a total of 9 tables. During my play, there were no dealer errors. I only saw one dealer error at another table, and Joe Pane stepped in quickly to remedy the situation. I felt very comfortable playing, knowing the dealers were at the top of their game. Rating: A The ClubUBT staff, parties, gifts, etc.: Bonnie Leinhos, Joe Pane, Sissy, Bonnie's daughter, and the other personnel (whom I don't know by name), were great. They created a professional atmosphere and well-run card room. Joe was available and close by during all 9 tables I was at. He explained the rules, answered questions, and was a joy to be around. There were two bottles of wine, and a fruit and cheese platter waiting for us in our cabin when we first arrived. Nice touch! The welcome and bon voyage party were a welcome addition as well. Cruise winners received a plush robe. And everyone received a beach bag, t-shirt, and cap. Drawings were held each night for more giveaways, culminating with a cruise and jewelry (worth $2,000 each) being given away on the last night. Rating: A The mix of games (non-tournament): Poker seemed to rule the week. While there were always multiple poker games going, there were numerous times when I came to the card room to play in a BJ SnG, only to find out there weren't enough players to get one started. Or there was one game going on, but I realized it would take a long time to complete -- with no guarantee another would be started. Granted, there were players who hung around the card room for many hours -- and into the wee hours of the morning. Players such as bjmace and spore did this, and they wound up playing many SnGs. I was on the ship with my girlfriend, while these guys didn't have such distractions, so that may explain why this occurred. A suggestion I wish I would have made while on the cruise: Players could leave their cabin numbers and/or cell phone numbers and be on call if a player or two was needed to get a BJ SnG started. Rating: B- The tournament logistics: If I remember correctly, there were about 19 cruise winners who chose the free entry into the major BJ tournament, and 31 who chose poker. The smaller BJ tournaments had 17 and 12 players, while poker had many more. This was very disappointing. One reason there weren't more BJ entries is that the poker tournaments began at 10am, and the BJ tourneys began at noon. There were many players who would have liked to play BJ, but were still involved in the poker tourneys. If there would have been a few hours more between the two, I know there would have been more players who would have played both. I understand, though, that the card room needed to be closed during the 6-7pm dinner break, so the time restraints were a big factor. Also, the bj tourneys were slow to start on a few occasions. They were scheduled to start at noon, and one actually began at 12:45. Hanging around a card room just wasn't that much fun...especially with so much more to do onboard. Rating: B The BJ tournaments: I love elimination bj, and this was only the second time I got to play it live. And in most cases, the competition was stiff. Most players were experienced online players, so most of us knew most of the tricks and strategies. It was a lot of fun playing live and in person (as opposed to dead and in PJs). The live "chat" was so much more fun than online. And players were actually able to count cards, since we played with a six-deck shoe. At one table, there were so many 10s and aces that came out early, that bjmace told Joe that the count was probably around -45. Joe did a quick count of the discards and confirmed that the true count was about -45. Yet, picture cards still kept coming out! The thrill of a live dealer turning over a physical card cannot be matched with a quick online reveal of a card. Hearts were racing, tables were slapped, and cheers were heard throughout the tourneys. That's what it's all about. At first, I wasn't in favor of chopping the pot prior to playing the final table at the first tourney. But we compromised with a partial chop, plus the winner getting an extra few dollars. We did the same on the second tournament, and played out the third. Rating: A- The players: What a treat it was to meet and play against so many people who were only a screenname prior to the cruise. I previously had the pleasure of meeting Joe Pane, bjmace, Monica Reeves and Sissy. And for the first time, I met ArubaManDan, Spore, zweeky (Marc), DrBass (Larry) and Tammie, Randy and Mo, Den81, Mike, Andee, Pinklady (Angela), and others. Everyone was so very pleasant, easy to get along with, and lots of fun. This made the games that much more enjoyable -- and tough at times, since someone had to be eliminated every few hands. So thanks to ClubUBT, many people got to meet one another in person for the first time. Rating: A Past differences with Joe, bjmace, spore: As most of you know, I've had my differences with Joe (on the LVA forum), mace (on this forum) and spore (in chat on bet21). I've always respected the play of all three. But the online exchanges have sometimes become nasty. (I'm speaking of what occurred many months ago, and not recently.) But I have to tell you, once you're in the presence of someone in person, it's a different ball game. When mace first saw me on the ship, he came over and said how sorry he was about some of the things he said to and about me on this forum. I could tell it really bothered him. In person, you would think Joe and I were the best of friends, if you watched us talking to each other. And spore and I simply spoke to each other as if nothing had gone on online. Looking back, I wish I had never gotten involved with any negative back-and-forth online. It's so easy to sit behind a keyboard and screen and simply type whatever comes to mind. It's another story if one were to say some of these things in person. It just doesn't happen...probably, because these things simply aren't appropriate when face to face. I'm glad I cleared things up with Joe a few months ago. It made my interactions with him a lot more pleasant. Realization: Sadly, it became apparent to me on the ship that elimination blackjack cannot compete with poker, and will never be anywhere as big as poker. Maybe it's just me, but to me, poker is boring compared to ebj. There are numerous lulls in the action, when you're not involved in a hand. With ebj, you're involved in every action, every turn of the card, and in figuring your next bet between hands. You're constantly on with little chance to relax your brain and body. For me, ebj provides a constant rush, while poker only does so once in a while. Same with ebj vs regular bj tournaments. Poker tables and players outnumbered bj tables and players 2-1, 3-1 or more during the cruise. This is similar to what I remember on the Club when it came to the number of players in a poker cruise tny vs a bj cruise tny. Can the Club create a BJ-only cruise? It may not be worth it to them. So...see my suggestion below. Suggestion: I'm sure it took a whole lot of planning, coordination, and money to bring the ClubUBT staff, dealers and materials from Las Vegas to Miami. And while I love cruising, especially from Florida, maybe ClubUBT could hold some local (Las Vegas) events in the future. Instead of giving away cruises, why not give away five-night stays at a luxury resort in Las Vegas (Venetian, Wynn, Bellagio). Then hold bj tournaments during these five days at the host resort. Food and entertainment vouchers can be given out so the total value of the five-night stay could be equivalent to the $2,000 cruise. Since winners have to pay their own travel expenses to get to the cruise, they would have to do the same to get to LV. Plus, there could be tourneys run all five days, as opposed to only three days on a cruise (since no tourneys are allowed on the days when the ship is docked in a port). Plus, the host casino could invite players to play as well. Just a thought. Overall rating of ClubUBT cruise (not counting the actual Carnival Valor cruise, cabin, food, excursions, personnel): A-/B+ (or 8.75 out of 10)
Ted, Congrats on your wins and thoughtful analysis What an outstanding analysis and evaluation of the Club UBT cruise. I concur 100% with your comments and suggestions. Hope someone is listening! Congrats again Ted, for outstanding play during the BJ tournaments - you set a standard that will be hard to meet or beat in the future!
By the way, for those of you that were on the cruise, was there any discussion about the future of UBT, ClubUBT, or Elimination BJ? Like you, Ted, I still think that Elimination BJ is much more fun than a regular BJ tournament.
Toonces, I didn't hear about, nor was anything announced about, any upcoming or planned ebj/ubt tournaments. - Ted
Drbass: You are too kind! As we all know, ebj is about 70-80% luck. And with the small fields we had, this can't compare to the tournament I participated in last July at the Venetian, with over 100 players. I totally bombed out in that one. Luck and the right cards at the right time kept coming my way. My comments were emailed to Bonnie and Joe. I'm sure they'll make note of some of the suggestions and minor criticisms. All in all, my girlfriend and I had a blast, and it was great meeting fellow players like you and your significant other.
HEY... I just wanted to say few words. I had a great time and yall are super AWESOME! EVERYONE IS A CHAMPION!!!! Miss you all already, Pinklady
Ted Great assessment of the cruise tourneys and the entire experience, I concur completely. It was great meeting you and all the other players, and I enjoyed the exceptional competition in the EBJ tournaments that I participated in, realizing that I still have a long ways to go! Hopefully the decision makers over at Club UBT will take heed of some of your recommendations, as I, like many people, would like to see EBJ succeed. All in all, I had a blast on the cruise, and can't wait for the next one! Den81
