So, $1,000,000 BJ tournament @ L.V.

Counters and wannabes welcomed. Could this be a new era for BJ? The LV Hilton is launching a major BJ tournament with a 1 million first prize. The format appears to be similar to the world series of poker tournament and is open to all, including counters.
Anybody know any more about this?

The Jan/Feb issue of Blackjack Confidential magazine offers some details:

Beginning April 12-13, the Las Vegas Hilton plans to host a dozen monthly tournaments each offering $64,000 in guaranteed prizes ($20K to the winner).

These satellites will lead to a 200-player championship in which a single player will walk away with a $1,000,000 First Prize. 19th-place will win $1000. The field will comprise 16 semi-finalists from each satellite and 8 wildcard entrants drawn on 8 April 2003 from among all tournament participants.

What's the catch? The entry fee for each tournament is $1000. $1000 for a chance at a $20,000 FirstPlace prize and one of 16 chances to compete for a $million. Let's see . . . 12 tournaments X 200 entrants X $1000 = $2.4million; that'd be a prize pool of $64,000 for each satellite, and $ 1.6 million for the Finals in April 2003.

I like your math. So,if they sell out all the satellites seats, they bring in 2.4 million. By my calculations, the total prize money would be 1.9 million.

But still, 1 million. Better odds than the lottery or trying to beat them at the tables for a million. Maximum investment would be 12k.

Thanks for the information. Do you (or anyone else) know the format and rules for the satellite and final tournaments?? i.e.--number of decks used, betting minimums and maximums, number of rounds played in each tourney (e.g. 50 or 60 hands?)--or else is there a time limit (e.g. 1hr)?

Also, is there any significant danger of being identified as a skilled player and barred from LV Hilton, Caesars, and other PPE properties in the future, as a result of playing in these tourneys?

From Blackjack Confidential:

" Each monthly tournament will be limited to 200 players and offer six decks with Las Vegas rules. There is no buy-in. Players will [receive] $5000 in non-negotiable chips and have betting limits of $100-$5000 for the four-round events."

There's no banquet, no frills. But every player will receive a souvenir T-shirt.

If you play as a skilled player, you may be identified as a skilled player. But, given the format and betting limits luck will predominate over skill in this tournament.