Top 3 Blackjack Tournament Rules

With the recent and very exciting advent of online blackjack tournaments, it's important to keep in mind that not all online blackjack tournaments are created equal. In fact, given that this thriving sector of the online casino world is still only in its infancy, it's a safe bet to assume that the rules will vary from site to site. Having said this, players are best off gathering as much info as they can vis-à-vis rules, terms, buy-in rates, number of hands, prize money etc., before laying down any of their money.

Of course, with any casino game there are fundamentals every real-money player must know before playing, or they won't be playing for too long. The game of blackjack is no exception, and blackjack tournaments are also played according to their own - however varying - sets of rules. And though the number of rules is plenty, for now we'll just touch on the top three rules everyone ought to know about playing in an online blackjack tournament.

Rule #1 - Number of Hands in Each Round
Some blackjack tournaments, such as Sit-N-Go's, feature only a handful of hands. Several other tournaments are played with 25 hands, and others as many as 30. Why is the number of hands significant? Well, the most important reason is that you want to know what your wagering position will be on the last hand. For instance, if you draw seat #1 in a tournament with 25 hands, your position on the final hand is liable to differ from your position in the same seat in a 28 or 30-hand tourney. By knowing how many hands there are in the round, coupled with your seat location and the starting button position, you can better calculate your betting position come the final hand, and hence adapt your playing strategy accordingly.

Rule #2 - Min & Max Bet Sizes
In some online blackjack tournaments players start off with lots of chips and bigger bet sizes, while in other tournaments players begin with few chips and the bets are relatively small. A 5-hand tournament, for example, may start you with 500 chips and have a minimum wager of 5 and a maximum of 500.

Knowing these betting limits is essential because they will affect your playing strategy. Case in point: Say you're playing in a tournament and the leader is ahead of you by 1,000 chips and the maximum bet is 500. In this scenario, you've got a lot of work to do if you're going to catch up. If, on the other hand, the max wager is 1,500, you're within just one hand of overcoming the leader. Likewise, if you're the tournament leader, then knowing that the minimum betting limit is low can enable you to lock up your win if you're way ahead with only a few hands left to be played.

Rule #3 - Number of Players Advancing
In single-round online blackjack tournaments only the winners place; Therefore contestants should be playing to conquer first place. In multi-round blackjack tournaments, however, generally two or three players advance to the next round. In order to continue playing, contestants need only finish second or third. Thus, knowing how many players will advance enables you to know where you must stand in order to move on.

Because each player starts the next round with the same amount of chips, there is no reason to be the table leader in the first round. Knowing that just two players - and not three - will advance to the next round, will affect your end-game strategy significantly. The number of players advancing is something you definitely want to check out before checking into an online blackjack tournament.

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