CDC to Host Webinar Aimed at Fighting Advantage Players
February 25th, 2016 by Site Admin
Gaming consulting firm CDC has announced that they are holding a webinar for industry insiders to help identify and fight advantage blackjack players.
The seminar is being offered online and will take place April 28th at 1pm EST. The event was unveiled via an email to industry insiders, with the following copy:
“Advantage players cost casinos millions of dollars annually.In this webinar you and/or your employees will learn the latest blackjack advantage play methods, how to recognize players using those methods and how to protect your games from players using these methods.”
The webinar will be aimed at casino management, security, and table management, save for dealers. Tactics discussed will include edge sorting, first-carding, card steering, card location, hole-carding shoe games, and pitch games.
Those techniques will be taught by Eliot Jacobson, who is a mathematician who serves as an industry consultant to casinos.
Latest on Seminole/Florida Blackjack Dispute
February 10th, 2016 by Site Admin
The past few weeks have seen some major developments in the dispute between the Seminole Indian tribe and the State of Florida regarding their blackjack dispute, with the tribe and Governor Rick Scott coming to an agreement, but the deal languishing in the house.
The Seminoles and Florida originally had an agreement that lasted from 2010 to 2015 that gave the tribe the rights to offer blackjack in their casinos. That agreement ran out last year, and the state and Seminoles were at a stalemate until January.
Governor Scott and the tribe came to a 7 year, $3 billion deal last month that continues to see the Seminoles holding exclusive rights to blackjack, but expands the offering to other casino games as well, including roulette. The deal has been met with praise and criticism among the state’s politicians, although many disagreements are politically motivated.
This week, the State House voted to approve of the compact deal, sending the vote to the Senate where the matter was shelved for a week, as Senator Rob Bradley says he wants to take the time to review the deal and various amendments that have been added before making a decision.
The Seminoles say that if the agreement is passed, they will plan on putting together a huge $1.8 billion expansion of its Hard Rock Casino, employing 4,867 full-time employees and 14,585 construction jobs, but say that if the deal gets blocked, 3,500 people may lose their jobs.
Blackjack Online will update this story as more developments arise.
Florida Chamber of Commerce Backs Seminoles in Blackjack Dispute
January 14th, 2016 by Site Admin
This past week the Florida Chamber of Commerce announced that it is backing the Seminole Indian tribe in its dispute with the state government over the exclusive right to offer blackjack in land casinos within the Sunshine State.
The trade group announced its support in a statement this week while also releasing a survey that revealed 75% of those polled support the Seminoles in the dispute, noting that they feel the blackjack deal has been beneficial for all parties involved.
The state of Florida and Seminole tribe were in a compact until July of last year that allowed the Seminoles to have the exclusive rights to offer blackjack and other shoe based games in Florida in exchange for millions of dollars every year. The deal expired and a dispute came about because the state had begun allowing other casinos the chance to offer electronic blackjack games. The two parties have been locked in negotiations since, and a proposed agreement would see the Seminoles getting exclusive rights to the games for more than a billion dollars.
The new agreement would also allow for the addition of craps and roulette tables to casino floors.
A press release put out by the Florida Chamber of Commerce on the matter read: “After hearing the details of the (new) proposal, three-fourths of voters in Florida believe the Legislature should approve of the new 20-year Compact. This clearly indicates that as voters become more educated as to what is included in this new Compact, public support should increase.”
Blackjack Online will update this story as more developments arise.
Realistic Games Adds Blackjack Side Bet Games
December 18th, 2015 by Site Admin
Internet betting software developer Realistic Games has announced the release of two new blackjack side bet games, which it has dubbed 21+3 and Perfect Pairs.
The new side bets are being licensed by Realistic Gaming through Games Marketing, and are being provided to top casinos such as Paddy Power, Betfair, BetVictor, and Bet365 and will be available for play on both desktop and mobile formats.
The Perfect Pairs game will allow players to place a side bet on as to whether or not their first two cards will be a pair. 21+3 adds in a three card poker hand, which is based on the player’s two cards as well as the face up card displayed by the dealer.
Commenting on the launch of the new games Realistic Games Commerical Director Andy Harris said, “Our blackjack is very popular, but these two side bet games will only add to the thrill of playing it and the impressive returns for those who operate it. The fact that they work seamlessly across all desktop, tablet and mobile devices dovetails very nicely with their widely-acknowledged success in the land-based arena.”
Dealer at Mohegan Sun Accused of Overpaying Blackjack Player
December 3rd, 2015 by Site Admin
A dealer at the Mohegan Sun casino in Connecticut has been charged with overpaying a blackjack player at his table $78,390 and then collecting a portion of the winnings.
Roy Mariano was charged with first-degree larceny, and his attorney has entered a not guilty plea on his behalf. Mariano is a long time employee at the casino, having served as a dealer since the casino opened in October 1996. Mariano colluded with Marlene Rivera, who was playing at the tables and accepted the overpayments of her winnings. She has also been charged with first-degree larceny, but has not made a plea as of press time.
The defendant in the case was found to be placing $100 chips in a stack of the game’s markers every time Rivera won a hand. The duo was caught on video surveillance in the act, after which casino security escorted them to the police station to be questioned. It was later determined that Mariano had overpaid Mariano on 16 different occasions.
Mariano admitted to the crime, saying that he deduced the scheme because the casino had moved him from full-time to part-time and he needed the money as a result. He said that Rivera eventually sought him out and they came up with the scheme.
Blackjack Online will update this story as more developments arise.
State of Florida Files Motion to Shut Down Seminole Blackjack
November 17th, 2015 by Site Admin
Late last month the state of Florida revealed that they have filed a motion for an injunction against the Seminole Indian tribe to shut down their blackjack games after the two groups failed to come to an agreement over an extension of a previous blackjack agreement.
The state filed a lawsuit in a Tampa Bay federal courthouse with the Sunshine State asking the federal court to put a halt to the tribe’s blackjack games after the tribe disregarded the expiration of an agreement between the two parties that allowed the tribe exclusive rights to offer the games.
The two groups had initially struck a 5 year agreement worth hundreds of millions of dollars that gave the tribe the exclusive rights to offer shoe games within Florida. Unfortunately the deal expired while the two groups negotiated a new deal, but a snag was hit when it was revealed that Florida had begun allowing other casinos to offer electronic blackjack games. The tribe claims that is a violation of the agreement and they don’t have to stop offering the games as a result.
As of press time no resolution had been reached, but Blackjack Online will update the story as more developments arise.
Palm Bay Casino Cruise Ship to Begin Sailing
October 30th, 2015 by Site Admin
The Blue Horizon Casino Cruise ship is set to sail again this week after it was drydocked in July for maintenance on the ship’s engine, which cost its parent company PB Gaming more than $4 million.
The ship is due to go out on a dinner cruise on Friday, but will begin two trips per day on Saturday and Sunday. In addition to food, the ship has a full casino that includes blackjack, craps, roulette, bingo, slot machines and a full sportsbook. Entertainment is also provided as is alcohol. The ship is reported to be able to handle about 600 passengers.
Players wanting to go on the cruise will have to be 18 to gamble and 21 to drink, and the price for the cruise is $25 per person.
Florida Pol: Good Chance of Seminole Blackjack Deal
October 9th, 2015 by Site Admin
A recent dispute between the Seminole Native American Tribe and the state of Florida regarding the rights to offer blackjack in Indian casinos has a better than 50% chance of being resolved, this according to an influential state senator.
State Senator Rob Bradley said he believes there is a better than 50% chance that the tribe and state come to an agreement that will allow the Seminoles to continue offering the shoe dealer games in their land casinos.
“We’re closer now than we were two weeks ago, and we were closer then than the month before,” Bradley told the website FloridaPolitics.com. The state and Seminole tribe are embroiled in a dispute that could affect the tribe’s ability to offer games. The tribe signed an exclusive deal to be able to offer shoe games at its casinos, agreeing to pay $1 billion to the state. However that deal went south when the state tried to give the okay to other casinos to provide electronic versions of the game, which the tribe says is a violation.
The Seminoles say that they have the ability to continue offering the games until 2030 without paying any more fees to the state, but the state is countering that the group will have to remove the games if no deal is struck.
Currently, table games make up about 1/5th of the revenues, with slots and other games making up the bulk of the difference. Blackjack Online will update this story as more developments arise.
Buddhist Monk Arrested for Stealing $150,000 to Play Blackjack
September 24th, 2015 by Site Admin
Last week a Buddhist monk was arrested in New York, accused of stealing $150,000 from his group to play blackjack.
Khang Nguyen Le was arrested at Laguardia Airport last week after he was accused of stealing the large sum of cash from the Vietnamese Buddhist Association of Southwest Louisiana. Le was reportedly heading to the casino every few days, spending $10,000 on every trip to fuel his habit.
In an effort to keep his congregation from knowing his secret, Le traveled to the casino incognito and hid out in the corners of the location so that nobody would spot him. The indictment for the defendant revealed this tactic, noting: “Le stated that he always went to the casino alone to prevent members of the Buddhist community from knowing what he was doing,” court papers state. It was his practice to gamble in deserted spots in the casino to not be spotted by members of the congregation.”
Le remained in jail as of press time, although his attorney was hoping his client would be able to come home.
Blackjackonline.net will update this story as more developments arise.
Daily Beast Posts Article About Blackjack Cheaters Ball
September 10th, 2015 by Site Admin
American news website The Daily Beast has published an article this week regarding one of their reporters, who was invited to a secret gambling ball, which is dubbed “The Art of Cheating”.
Author Nina Strochlic wrote the piece, noting that she was invited to the ball, which teaches novices some of the ins and outs of cheating at various casino games. Strochlic ended getting to play blackjack with Rick Blaine, who was named the world’s best blackjack player and gave some of his insights into counting cards to gain an advantage over the house.
Blaine said that he works as part of a team and travels to various locations using fake names and disguises to throw off security teams. He revealed that he picks games with advantageous rules and then begins betting small until the count turns in his favor, where he then disguises his bets to grow wagers so he can take the casino to the cleaner.
Blaine said that he has grown good at knowing how to avoid suspicion from the tight security, noting that he has never been kicked out of a casino in his career, saying that he lays low to avoid suspicion.
“The casinos are very hip to (counting). You have to camouflage a big play in various ways,” Blaine told Strochlic. “Most card counters play consistent, predictable, they’re like robots. I try to use instincts when I sense I’m being watched. I hit them big, get out of there, and they just think I got lucky.”
Those interested in reading the article in full can do so here.
