The Blackjack dealers are in training now, preparing for the day when they can sit down behind the tables and help draw in a crowd to the Cherokee Casino in Catoosa.

If Blackjack is your game, then get ready, because it's almost here. Steven Loyd, vice president of gaming operations for Cherokee Nation Enterprises, said Blackjack could begin again as soon as Jan. 15, or a week or two later, around Feb. 1. He said everyone's been asking.

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"We have had an absolutely magnificent response that Blackjack is coming back to our casino," said Loyd. "We are getting calls everyday from people asking if we have started Blackjack yet."

The card game was played at the casino when it originally opened, but was taken out of the gaming operation for a while. Once Oklahoma voters passed State Question 712 that clarified the games allowed in tribal gaming facilities, plans began to implement the game again.

Some of the dealers are back for a brush-up course on the game, and more are currently being trained in a special Blackjack academy currently underway. They learn how to play the game according to the Oklahoma variation.

"Blackjack in Oklahoma is a little different than the Blackjack that is played in the casinos in Las Vegas. The way the casinos make their money in Las Vegas is by playing a 'house bank' game, where the players are playing against the house's bank," said Loyd. "We play the game using a 'players' pool.' The house's revenue on Blackjack here comes from an ante the players put up before each hand."

For those who aren't familiar with the game, Blackjack uses the score "21," which can be reached in many different variations. An ace, which equals 11 points, matched with any face card (10 points) or any 10 in the deck, is an automatic Blackjack. Blackjacks bring a 3-to-2 return at the Cherokee Casino, and any other way you reach 21 doubles your ante.

Loyd said table limits are clearly displayed in a placard on each table, where players will be able to choose a table possibly between $2 and maybe as high as $100. He said most people who come in to the casino to play card games have played before in Las Vegas or other places.

"For those folks who haven't ever played the game or need some practice, we will be offering during the initial part of the playing training tables where our dealers will take you through a few hands to get you acquainted to playing the game," said Loyd. "Our dealers are going to be very user-friendly, and make sure that every person who sits down to play knows the game, and if they don't they'll explain it to them."

Loyd suggests that anyone who hasn't played Blackjack in a casino should sit down at one of the training tables before betting their "real" money.

"They give you practice chips to use, and walk the player right through, teaching them how to place their bets, what winning hands are, and everything," said Loyd. "Blackjack is a very simple game. I think someone could sit down and learn it in about 15 to 20 minutes."

CNE plans to operate card games in the Catoosa casino, and may offer it one day in Tahlequah.

"We may bring Blackjack to Tahlequah after the permanent facility is open for business," said Mike Miller, communications officer for the Cherokee Nation.

Source: Tahlequah Daily News