Blackjack dealer Roland Miyares wears a face mask and gloves while dealing to a guest as the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Tampa re-opens to the public for the first time since March 20 to a. Seminole Hard Rock Poker Tournaments Tampa, war blackjack poker, poker 176x220, ks star casino. The Seminole Hotel & Casino Hard Rock Tampa is located in Tampa in Florida. The casino features a wide array of table games including Poker (Omaha, Texas Hold’Em, 7-Card Stud) and 800 slot machines. Its hotel features a wide choice of luxury rooms and suites, a shop, the “Hard Rock store”, a spa, a pool and an event room. Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood’s table games selection is the best in South Florida. Featuring live dealers, guests can choose from Blackjack, Mini-Baccarat, Pai-Gow Poker, Three-Card Poker, Casino War, Texas Hold ‘em, Spanish 21 and Let It Ride. Guests can also.
Situated on 26 acres of prime real estate just east of the Las Vegas Strip, the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino has been providing entertainment and gaming action in a boutique luxury resort atmosphere since 1995. In 2010, the property completed a $750 million expansion, including the addition of some 40,000 square feet of casino space, more than doubling the gaming area to its current 72,000 square feet and increasing the options in the pit area to 92 tables, about half of which are dedicated to blackjack. It’s a place for the young and young at heart, as the Hard Rock’s rock’n’roll reputation attracts a demographic of well-off visitors aged 25 to 40, who like to party and play 24 hours a day.
Blackjack at the Hard Rock comes in three basic varieties—single deck, double deck and six deck. The best odds can be found at tables with minimums of $100, where the dealer stands on all 17s, doubling down after splitting (DAS) is allowed and it is permissible to re-split Aces (RSA). In the double-deck version, surrender is not allowed and the House edge is just 0.20%, while the six-deck version does offer surrender and the advantage to the House is 0.28%.
For those who prefer tables with lower minimums, there’s a double-deck game with limits of $25~$2,000 that has the same rules as the more costly version, but the dealer hits on soft 17s. That bumps the House edge up to 0.40%. And at the $10~$1,000 six-deck tables, the dealer hits on soft 17, DAS and RSA are allowed and surrender is not, for a House margin of 0.57%.
The single-deck games pay only 6:5 on a natural blackjack instead of the standard 3:2. Most of those tables are located near the Hard Rick’s Party Pit, which on weekends features two pole dancers instead of the runway show typically seen at other casinos. There’s one table for $10~$1,000 Blackjack Switch in the main pit, too, and note that although all blackjack tables feature automated shuffling machines, they are not set for continuous shuffling and must be reloaded with discards periodically just like shoes.
Although the Hard Rock was not the first Las Vegas casino to offer poolside blackjack, it certainly upped the ante on how much fun it can be, with bikini clad dealers and one of best music play lists in town. Both in-water and poolside versions of 21 are offered on the five-acre pool grounds. Tables are placed right at the water’s edge at the Poolside Palapa at Nirvana, formerly the HRH Beach Club [ ]. Out of the water, wagering takes place on four tables set up in the shade of the Palapa Hut adjacent to the Nirvana Bar and Grill. Hours of operation, which may vary by season, are generally from 11am till sunset on weekdays and from 10am till sunset on Saturday and Sunday. And yes, “special dryers are used to dry out paper bills, and players are usually given pouches to store their chips when they leave the tables”.
To recognize player loyalty, the Hard Rock launched its new Backstage Pass Rewards Club in 2012. Points are awarded for gaming activities—slots, table games and poker—and “nearly every little thing you do on the Casino floor and off.” Tiers of membership are assigned based on point accumulation from General Admission to Entourage at 20,000 points, Platinum Access at 125,000 points and Nirvana by invitation only. Benefits range from room, retail, dining and spa discounts to food, drink and gift comps, free slot play, priority services and room upgrades. New members get a free $10 Match Play coupon upon joining. According to the program description, for table games like blackjack, “Points are generated based on average bet and length of time played”. What’s more, “It is the responsibility of the participant to ensure … that a supervisor is aware of play when playing tables or other games.”
For those carrying a hefty bankroll, one of the finest places to play in all of Las Vegas is the Hard Rock’s Peacock High Limit Gaming area, located on an elevated platform just off the main casino floor. The appeal of $100, $500 or $5,000 hands of blackjack played with a House edge of just 0.20~0.28% should be attraction enough, but management knows that high-rolling customers like a bit of privacy surrounded by rich woods, leather seats and rich-hued fabrics. A separate high-limit room called the “Dragon Salon” offers Pai Gow Poker and Baccarat, but not blackjack. For those who wonder why the name “Peacock” was selected, the peacock-feather vest made famous by Jimi Hendrix when he played the Filmore in 1968 used to adorn the walls here, but it was removed during the renovation.
For more information about online blackjack in the United States, read our Safe USA Blackjack page.
by Steve Bourie Learn more about the authorread more »
June 22, 2008 will forever be remembered as one of the most historic days in Florida’s gambling history.
No, I’m not talking about the fact that it was my birthday (it really was!). Rather, it was the day that the Seminole Tribe of Florida introduced the first legalized game of blackjack in the state.
The star-studded event took place at their Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, which is locatedjust south of Fort Lauderdale.
The Seminole Hard Rock was a hotbed of national notoriety a few years back when Anna Nicole Smith was found dead in her room at the hotel, but the resort was always the most popular gamblingvenue in south Florida ever since it opened in May, 2004.
The sprawling property includes: a AAA Four Diamond-rated 500-room hotel; 16 restaurants and lounges; a 145,000-square-foot casino with more than 2,500 slots; and a separate 12,00-square-footpoker room. Other amenities include a shopping complex with 23 retail shops and 16 nightclubs, plus a 5,500-seat indoor arena.
In late 2007 the Tribe signed a compact with Florida Governor Charlie Crist allowing them the exclusive right to offer blackjack, as well as baccarat and some other card-based games, at allseven of their casinos in return for payments of approximately $100 million each year to the state.
The first hand was scheduled to be dealt at 5:30 p.m., but due to the festivities surrounding the event, it was a little after 6 p.m. when the cards were finally dealt.
Former Baywatch babe, Carmen Electra, was the main celebrity chosen to be dealt the first hand, but there was certainly no shortage of famous people at the event from all walks of life.
Famed boxing announcer Michael Buffer was on hand to bellow “let’s get ready to gamble!” and also to introduce the local and nationally known celebs, such as: Heather Graham, Lorraine Bracco,Frank Vincent, Alonzo Mourning, Bernie Kosar, Rob Patterson of Korn, Dwayne Wade, Howard Schnellenberger, mixed martial arts fighter Kimbo Slice, and many others.
Behind the scenes, there was also a glamorous private party held in one of the ballrooms for Tribal members, the media, other dignitaries and invited guests.
In all, there were 71 tables with 55 devoted to Blackjack, six to Three Card Poker, three to Pai Gow Poker, three to Let It Ride, two to Baccarat and two to mini-Baccarat.
When the first blackjack hand was dealt most of the seats were occupied by invited guests and there were only a few open seats for the public. Those seats were soon filled and there wasn’t anempty seat in the house, despite a $25 minimum bet requirement at every table, including the novelty poker games.
About 20 tables had continuous shuffling machines, while others had eight-deck shoe games and there was one high-limit pit that offered four six-deck shoe games for those willing to make $100minimum bets.
Blackjack rules were basically the same as in Atlantic City: dealer stands on soft 17, split pairs up to three times and double down on any two cards. The casino’s advantage against aplayer using perfect basic strategy was .44% with an eight-deck shoe and .42% with a six-deck shoe.
I didn’t play any blackjack myself, instead my wife and I headed back to the party to enjoy the lavish festivities. We both agreed that they sure knew how to throw a party, but who could blamethem for being so extravagant- it was my birthday!
As a follow-up, we returned to the Seminole Hard Rock a week later on a Saturday around 8 p.m. to see how the crowded the tables were and if the minimums had changed.
All of the novelty poker games had $15 minimums and we did find four blackjack tables offering a $15 minimum. Other than that, most were $25 with a few at $50 and $100, plus one at $200 and oneat $500.
Needless to say, there were no seats available at the $15 tables, but there were usually one or two seats up for grabs at the $25 tables.
It was obvious that the introduction of blackjack was a huge success, but the following week the validity of the compact which legalized the games was brought into question.
On July 3 the State Supreme Court, ruling on a lawsuit which challenged the validity of the tribal/state compact, said that Governor Crist did not have the authorization to enter into a compactfor banked card games with the Seminoles without the approval of the state legislature.
Attorneys for the state and the Seminoles are still trying to figure out what all of this means and how they can resolve the issue. In the meantime, the games are still going strong with bigcrowds at all times and we’ll just have to wait and see how it all plays out in the future.