CBS Doubles Down on Ultimate Blackjack Tour

This year's Ultimate Aruba Poker Classic will also host the Ultimate Blackjack Tour, as professional poker players compete against their table game counterparts. And while the season finale films in Aruba, the UBT will premier its preliminary matches on Saturdays, begining September 16, on CBS at 2 p.m. EST.

At the onset of season 1, 10 top poker professionals joined nearly 100 elite blackjack players for a piece of the $1 million prize pool. Elimination matches determined the loser, as the player with the shortest stack after eight, 16, and 25 rounds hit the rail. After 30 hands, the chip leader is declared the winner.

With poker personalities Johnny Chan, Robert Williamson III, Phil Hellmuth, Annie Duke, Freddy Deeb, and others, out of their element, the entertainment factor is guaranteed to be over the top. Yet many participating poker pros agree that blackjack experts are even more creative in their behavior when pushed to the limit.

"The top blackjack players in the world," says Williamson, "they have us hands down beat on the eccentric side. They are definitely colorful characters."

In blackjack, as in poker, the outcome of an event often depends on a certain amount of luck. If an average player gets "hit with the deck" or goes on a run, he can quickly beat out a better opponent. But in the end, it's basic strategy and knowledge of the game that usually determines a winner.

"Elimination blackjack is much more like poker than normal blackjack," added Williamson. "I'm not a card counter, I'm not a shuffle tracker, I'm not any of the things that you can be and actually beat a casino playing blackjack. But I use tournament strategy to my advantage. "It's easy to learn," says Williamson about the game. "Enough people can catch on to that side… [and] be somewhat competitive. There's enough luck on any given day where they can come out on top against the [blackjack] experts."

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