No, the above title is not a typo! In days of yesteryear, Tournament Blackjack survived and prospered, not just by the efforts of a few, but by the support of a large group of loyal participants, who returned again and again to their favorite events. They loved the game, and discovered, as I did, that tournament players were the best group of people one could hope to find anywhere. Tournaments became social events, and they were not to be missed without a good reason.

Eventually, the host casinos, using unequal treatment, or just plain not inviting them to events that used to be open to all, weeded some of these people out. Why? Many of them were $5 bettors, and casinos viewed them as marginal or undesirable to their bottom line profit, even though they paid their $300-and-more entry fees, plus $300 to $600 buy-ins for each round. Casino managers were unable to see that the tournaments were much better for everyone because of their attendance, which kept the prize fund higher and the entry fees lower. Most tournaments used real money chips in those days, and kept large percentages of the prize funds, but these players did not complain about the rip-offs. They just came to play the game, and to enjoy the party. Some of these tournament players still attend certain events, but others have left us for good. It is the latter that I want to honor this month.

Forest Price had many tournament friends. He flew into Las Vegas for almost every event with his wife, Clarice, an excellent player herself. We first met at the Lady Luck Casino tournaments in the early ‘80’s. Years later, I noticed that he got to the Stardust before I did, even though we had both left the Lady Luck casino at the end of the same round. Thinking that I could help him out by sharing a ride, I asked him if he used a rental car. "No", he replied. It turns out Forest left his car parked in the Lady Luck lot 365 days of the year, for his use when he flew into town. Even though years had gone by since either one of us had stayed at that hotel, they still let him park in their lot at no cost. Lady Luck used to be a ‘friendly to the patrons’ casino, and we all miss that attitude from today’s casinos. Forest won more than one big event, and his presence is still missed.

Marie Vandenbos won a major event at the Excalibur. She was the quintessential nice, old gray-haired lady, and was always accompanied by her husband, Don, who also competed. At the final hand of the tournament, she was about two chips behind the leader, and he matched her maximum bet. The player’s cards were hidden in this tournament, but the dealer had an Ace showing. When she made the insurance bet, she most certainly was thinking how she could best beat him. However, the leader followed with a matching insurance bet to make certain he had the identical outcome as Marie. The dealer flipped over his blackjack, and commenced to pick up all the bets, when Marie finally dropped her nice old lady demeanor, and surprisingly slapped her own blackjack onto the table to win the $50,000 prize. She truly was a nice old lady, who enjoyed winning, and here she illustrated the following lesson to all of us.

It had long since become common knowledge that a leader should always match the insurance bet of an opponent to retain the advantage of his lead position. Marie knew that this player would match her insurance bet, and would lose the round if the dealer had the blackjack, because she would push the hand and he would lose. She also knew that if the dealer did not have the blackjack, her opponent would have fewer chips to double with in order to try and catch her. She showed us that matching an insurance bet is not always the answer.

Joe Butterfield loved tournament blackjack more than most could ever imagine. He traveled the tournament trail all over the world of tournaments, and in his monthly column for Blackjack Confidential Magazine (titled "The Tournament Trail"), he told us about every stop. He never had a bad word to say about any tournament, or any player.

One day at the Excalibur Tournament, Joe and I were assigned to the same first round re-buy table. Two advanced with player’s cards face down. Our dealer was truly vicious, spewing out 20 after 21’s. I lasted about fifteen hands and was the first to bust out, without ever winning a single hand. The other five all made it to the final hand without a lot of chips left, but Mr. Butterfield was certainly in the lead. Large bets were placed by all, and lucky Joe was last to act. What could be better? I’ll tell you what!

I was standing behind Joe as he peeked at his cards. He carefully looked down at a beautiful pair of pictures, while the dealer had a four up. At that moment, both Joe and I realized that he could not possibly lose, unless two of the other four players had Blackjacks and the dealer also hit to 21 to beat Joe. Wow! Would you believe Player 2 and Player 4 both wound up with Blackjacks, and the dealer hit twice to an unbelivable 21. Cruel! But with only a moment’s hesitation, Joe got up from the table, and expressed his good luck wishes to the winners. His stoic and gruff exterior never showed a hint of disappointment as he headed optimistically to the re-buy table for another try.

The next month in his Tournament Trail column, Joe praised the Excalibur or their great tournament and wonderful treatment of their players. They really were one of the best tournament hosts ever.

Phil Bach was a great sport and a good friend. He was a big bettor at the tables, and loved playing tournaments with larger payouts. In 2006 we both entered one at a major Las Vegas casino. It was a head’s up format. At our Round Three match, we had to face each other. With a $150,000 first place prize, we were seriously intent on winning, but I had a little added incentive. A couple years earlier, in a Million Dollar III qualifier event, I had made a small error of one chip on a last hand insurance bet. The dealer had the Blackjack, and my one chip miscount allowed Phil to advance to the finals, qualifying him for the Million Dollar III finals event at the end of the year. It cost me six more $1000 entry attempts that year to try to qualify, and with every entry I thought of Mr. Bach, while kicking myself around the entry table.

Back at our third round heads up match, I found myself hopelessly behind with ten hands left to play. With $1600 left from a $5,000 starting stack, I went "All In" and caught a Blackjack, but the road to recovery was still almost out of sight. With one hand to go, Phil had last bet and was more than 1½ maximum bets ahead. I bet the $2,500 max, and he followed with a smart bet of $1,200. My only hope was to win a double bet and hope that Phil would lose or push. Because of Phil’s bet, I knew that Phil knew the same thing. The dealer had a five up, and I had a hard 12, while Phil caught a 6 – 3. I remember thinking, "Why couldn’t these hands be reversed?" I doubled my 12 and to our mutual surprise, it was hit with a 9 for 21. Phil hit a 6 for 15 and wisely stood. The dealer hit to 17 and I survived the round. Phil was amazed at my luck, but, as always, he remained the perfect gentleman. He spread the word about how I won amongst the players, and for the rest of the weekend I was known by my opponents as "The Lazarus Man," because in most of my rounds, it became necessary for me to come back from the graveyard of bankruptcy. Sadly, I believe that was the final tournament for Mr. Bach. His illness got the best of him, but he is certainly loved and missed by many.

Roy Powers was the friendliest, nicest, competitor to ever grace the game with his presence. He never had a bad word to say, and was always ready to share information about upcoming tournament stops with anybody who asked. No one could be more helpful. He always came to Las Vegas with his lovely wife, Marty, who did not compete at the tables, but was always Roy’s most excellent dinner companion.

Roy played all tournaments: Blackjack, Craps, Baccarat, Three Card Poker, and Pai Gow. He won a fair share of them. At the time that he did it, he was the oldest player to ever win a Million Dollar qualifier tournament. He was over 80 years young. I also witnessed him win a Las Vegas Monte Carlo semi final. A past two-time Monte Carlo winner was at his table. Roy was behind on the last hand and got a Blackjack, but that did not appear to be enough after the two-time winner doubled down an eleven and hit 21. The sun was shinning on Mr. Powers that day as the dealer also hit to 21, and Roy went on to the finals and then straight to the winner’s circle.

Goodbye, Roy! You were always a close friend to more players than anybody, and I am very proud to count myself as one of them. What an upbeat guy!

There is a Blackjack Hall of Fame originated by Max Rubin. It’s populated by some truly smart and talented people. I would like to start a Blackjack Tournament Player’s Hall of Fame, by inducting all five of the aforementioned players into it. This Hall of Fame can be gauged, not necessarily by the intelligence of its members, but by the loyalty, love, and support they have offered to the game.

For three decades, I have wanted to thank this group of the dedicated and the determined, who helped provide and sustain the tournament playground in which I have lived. Thanks to all, and especially to those great people that have left us.