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In honor of the lovely Holly Madison's gracing the cover of Live this month we have a special Holly Mad- ison Inspired Tutorial Of California Blackjack. Hol- ly recently shook her little bunny tail and dealt out more than just good looks at the 50th Anniversary of the Playboy Club at the Palms Casino in Las Vegas. Everyone knows that Blackjack is a casino favorite, not only because it gives the player the best odds to win, but also because it is a simple and easy game to learn. Add in the fact that both beginners and pros have about the same odds at winning and you've three great reasons to play. But what happens when Holly comes back from her new Vegas home to visit the mansion? Playing tradi- tional Blackjack is illegal in the Golden State (except on Indian reservations, but that's a far drive from the Holmby Hills), and Holly has Blackjack Fever! But, lucky for Holly, although traditional Blackjack is illegal in California, the LA Casinos offer a different variation on the game specifically designed to abide by Cali- fornia law, which includes a six -deck shoe, the Joker card, and a no bust system. All Holly has to do is take a short trip to one of the LA Casinos and she's playing California Blackjack in no time! LA Casino Blackjack, also known as California or no- bust Blackjack, is a variation of regular Blackjack that was first played in the casinos in Los Angeles, Califor- nia. Enterprising casinos came up with a new varia- tion that was legal to run and operate in response to California law that explicitly outlaws the game 'twen- ty-one' (or Blackjack). The rules are mostly the same as regular Blackjack rules: try to obtain cards with a higher value than the dealer's without going over 21. The first main difference between the two types of Blackjack is the deck used for play. • California Blackjack uses a six-deck shoe, each deck having 53 cards and an extra joker. • The highest hand in the game is called a "natural", which consists of an ace and a joker, or two jokers. • The object is to get a hand whose total does not exceed a natural hand but whose value is greater than the dealer's. • If a player gets a natural, he must declare it imme- diately. • Also there is no "house" in this variation. Everyone at the table takes a turn as the dealer. Cards are dealt clockwise from left to right and the dealer for the turn gets his cards last. The next big difference is the Joker card. • In LA Casino Blackjack, jokers are wild. • When played in a combination with any other card, the player's hand is a hard 21, and the player may not be dealt any more cards. • The joker will always be whatever number is need- ed to reach 21. For example, if a player gets a 6, then the joker counts as 15. Wagering also varies slightly. • If a player is dealt a natural hand, then it beats all regular 21s instead of ending in a push. • With a natural hand, a wager pays out 2 to 1. • If the dealer has a joker facing up, he will immedi- ately turn over his hole card. • In this scenario, a player may not draw, meaning all players with hands fewer than 21 automatically lose. If the dealer's hole card is a joker, then the player can only lose the original bet amount. Any additional bets from doubling or splitting will be a push. A most interesting twist is if a player's hand goes over 21, he does not automatically lose. Instead the bet is marked as having gone over 21, and the game re- sumes. • When the dealer draws out his last card, the game ends. • If the dealer busts but has a higher hand total than the player who went over 21, then it counts as a push and the player gets his original wager back. • However, if the dealer busts over 21 but has a lower or even hand value than the busted player, then the player loses. • A player may still double down or split just like reg- ular Blackjack and a player may surrender on any two cards unless the dealer has a joker face up. • When there is an ace and a face card, the hand counts as 21 points but it does not outrank other 21-point hands as in a regular game of Blackjack. The final difference is that LA Casino Blackjack does not have a house dealer. H O L L Y G E T S B L A C K J A C K 6