November 2014 - Blackjack Apprenticeship

Archive: Nov 2014

  1. Blackjack Hall of Fame

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    By David Drury

    Blackjack_Hall_of_FameThe Blackjack Hall of Fame at Barona Casino in San Diego, California stands as a curious testament to the giants who mastered the game of 21 and/or paved the way for its continued mastery.

    The shrine is more than curious; it is paradoxical. Unlike the “Winners Wall” you can find down one hallway or another in every casino, filled with old bats smiling at having lucked their way into a big slot payout—this is different. Casinos are happy to celebrate luck. They are loathe to celebrate mastery. Luck represents a mere tax on their mathematically guaranteed profits. Mastery represents where profit got away from them. More often than not, Casinos boot people from the premises for mastery at Blackjack. Yes, even Barona Casino where, after being booted for mastery, you can walk a few feet and see them celebrating it with great gusto. It all is very strange if you allow yourself to stop and take it in, which I did one day on the way to the gaming floor at Barona Casino. Or I tried to do. I had no idea it was there to begin with.

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