Friday, Feb. 23, 2007 | 7:06 a.m.
When organizers of the Ultimate Blackjack Tour were forming a roster of featured players for the fledgling televised tournament circuit, drafting Ken Einiger was as obvious as doubling down on 11 against a dealer's 5.
Einiger, a Brooklyn native and a Summerlin resident since 2003, has established himself as one of the game's most accomplished players since taking up tournament blackjack nearly 17 years ago.
His victory in the 2005 World Series of Blackjack capped a two-year stretch in which Einiger won five major tournaments, a feat considered almost freakishly impressive by his gambling peers.
Einiger, whose tournament winnings total more than $1 million, was able to showcase his talent on network TV when the "Ultimate Blackjack Tour" series made its debut on CBS last fall.
The UBT, founded by 1994 World Series of Poker winner Russ Hamilton, aims to bring blackjack tournaments to the level of popularity televised poker commands. The first season of shows was picked up by WGN and is currently airing in reruns. Season 2 is scheduled to air on CBS later this year.
As the UBT expands, Einiger said, organizers plan to offer more "open" tournaments - meaning you don't need an invitation to compete, just a willingness to put up the cash for the entry fee. The Season 2 slate includes at least two big events scheduled for Las Vegas, at the Palms in April and at the Venetian in July.
In an interview at the coffee shop at Red Rock Resort, Einiger spoke about his lifelong affinity for gambling, how he honed his tournament skills, and the UBT's future - which Einiger believes is as bright as his signature yellow sport jacket.
Q: How does the Ultimate Blackjack Tour compare with your previous experiences in tournament blackjack?
I won the World Series of Blackjack in 2005 (at the Golden Nugget), and that was something I'll never forget. What the UBT did, for the last show of the season (that aired Dec. 30), they held a tournament they called the "Legends of Blackjack." It was one of the best single tables of players ever assembled. It had Anthony Curtis, Mike Aponte from the MIT team, myself, Ken Smith (as well as James Grosjean and Stanford Wong). I ended up winning, so I have the legends title. In poker, they give you a bracelet for winning. In the UBT, you get a medallion. I've got two of them now. I'm leading the field in medallions.
How did you get started in blackjack tournaments?
I lived in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., for years, and the Bahamas was so close, so I'd fly over to the Bahamas on weekends to go gamble - and I would lose, to be honest with you.
I was on a plane one day, and I met this guy, and we were talking, and he said, "Did you ever play a blackjack tournament?" I said no. I never even knew they existed.
So this gentleman, named Chuck (Gorsen) said, "Come on, there's a big blackjack tournament out in Las Vegas at the Aladdin." I entered, but I got knocked out pretty quickly. Chuck won it, and it was $50,000. I liked it so much, I decided to stick with blackjack tournaments.
I had a goal. I wanted to be one of the best tournament players ever in blackjack. It took a lot of work, but now I've achieved it.
How do you account for your hot streak that was highlighted by the World Series of Blackjack title?
My streak in 2004-2005 was one of the best ever in blackjack. In the blackjack world, if you play let's say 25 tournaments in a year, if you can make one final table in a major tournament, you've done pretty well.
No matter how good you are, you have to have some luck. You have to get the cards. In 2004-2005, I played in about 16 tournaments and made nine final tables, and won five of them. That's saying something.
It was one of those things where I was just feeling unstoppable. Everything was going my way.
Someone trying to learn tournament strategy can pick up your book ("Play to Win," revised edition, 2006) and study it. But how did you learn? Was it by trial and error?
When you're a newcomer, you hang around the blackjack tournament scene and you meet all kinds of people. You watch them play. You learn from watching them. Then you go out to dinner; they explain the way they play and you explain how you play.
If you're really into it, when you're not playing, you're watching. You're thinking about the game away from the tables. You begin to put together a formula that works for you.
How did your involvement with UBT come about?
Russ Hamilton decided he could do blackjack on TV in a way that would make it more exciting than your average blackjack show. He came up with "elimination hands" - after the eighth, 16th and 25th hands of the tournament, the person with the lowest amount of money is gone, eliminated.
He also instituted what's called a "secret bet." Once during the round of 30 hands you can write down a secret bet amount, meaning nobody at the table knows what it is. It adds an element of bluffing, like poker.
Russ said he wanted some of the guys who have been playing blackjack tournaments along with some poker people, like Phil Hellmuth and Annie Duke, and he made us the featured players.
Will the UBT offer more tournaments anyone can pay to enter, like the World Series of Poker?
Yes. For the April (19-21) tournament at the Palms, it's a $2,700 buy-in and anyone can enter. The final table will be filmed right there at the property, and it will be shown on CBS.
The UBT reported 1.7 million viewers for its Dec. 25 episode. What was your impression of how the first season was received?
For the average individual, the ratings tell the story - well over a million people watching the show. People like the elimination format. In old-style blackjack tournaments, you can sit still for the first 25 hands before you have to start betting (big). In elimination blackjack, if you hang out, after hand eight, you're gone. I know I had to change my style. I was used to being conservative.
There's a big difference between regular casino blackjack and tournaments. Isn't that a tough adjustment to make?
When you're playing regular blackjack, people might go with $500 or $1,000 and that's it, win or lose. In tournament blackjack, you might pay an entry fee of $1,000 or $2,000, but the prize money could be a couple hundred thousand. So you're looking at a huge possible reward. Plus, people want to be on TV. They want their friends and family to be able to see them on TV. People buy into that.
When you wrote your book, weren't you worried about giving away your secrets?
No. One of the greatest compliments I could get would be if I was sitting at the final table with somebody and they beat me, and they said, "You know, Kenny, I was able to do it because I read your book."
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