www.CostaRicaTicas.com

Here is an article written about Costa Rica and the Horseshoe Casino.This appears in BJ Insider.com




BLACKJACK (AND MORE) IN COSTA RICA

By Joe Pane



Joe Pane is a skilled advantage blackjack player, and an experienced tournament player that has won over a million dollars in blackjack tournaments. Joe is the #1 ranked tournament player in the country, and was named 2007 Player of the Year by Las Vegas Advisor publisher Anthony Curtis. In Joe's last 11 tournaments in 2007/2008, he made the final tables eight times and won two of them for an impressive 73% final table appearance rate, with just over $225,000 won in the past 12 months. Joe is also the Assistant Director of Tour Operations for the Ultimate Blackjack Tour (UBT), as well as the Team UBT Coordinator. He is co-host of the radio show, "Queens vs. Kings – It’s All About Position" on www.holdemradio.com. His peers consider him to be one of the strongest blackjack tournament players on the circuit.

Once you’ve played blackjack in Las Vegas for a living, or for just plain entertainment, there aren’t too many other casino locales that can wet your appetite for fun and additional entertainment away from the tables. But my recent trip to Costa Rica proved that there is a place that has both, plus some additional exhilarating entertainment available to all Costa Rica visitors (not to mention some perfectly legal entertainment, which in Las Vegas, could have the vice squad knocking at your hotel door),

I was recently invited on a junket to Costa Rica by Max Rubin, who is the master of ceremonies for the famous Blackjack Ball. The latter is held every year at a secret location in Las Vegas, and it’s where the top blackjack players and authors gather to match their blackjack and math skills against each other. Max is also a well known TV personality who can be seen in just about every Las Vegas special that airs on TV. (Editor’s Note: For info on the last Blackjack Ball, go to issue #97, BJI).

The invitation was for the Horseshoe Casino, which is located in San Jose, Costa Rica. It was a weekend full of fun, and a first for me and a few others, who were also invited guests of Max and the Horseshoe Casino.

Max had invited me with one restriction: NO BLACKJACK for me, but you can come on down and have FUN, and we’ll pay for just about anything you do in and out of the casino (and that was no lie). I had a great time over my long weekend in Costa Rica, and Max made sure that was a given.

But there is always someone, or something, than can ruin a perfect situation and that was the Horseshoe casino manager Ron, who had the nerve to sweat the players and the money so much that he sits and plays at the same table as the players he is sweating! I have been in casinos all over the country and all over the world and have been under the "Heat" many times, but NEVER have I had the casino manager playing real money along with the players that he was sweating.

Of course, I didn’t play blackjack while I was there, other than one hand where I was given a free ace courtesy of a Horseshoe casino promotion that is given to all new players. However, one night I decided to sit and play some Pai-Gow Poker to meet my playing requirement for the weekend. Before the first hand was dealt to me, would you believe the casino manager pulled up a seat at my table and decided to play alongside of me. Now, sweating a player who is playing a game that mathematically can’t be beaten is a first for me, but that should tell you that the person hired to guard the vault in this joint hasn’t got a clue. He sat with me and one other player that was also on the junket, who was taking a break from his blackjack game to play Pai-Gow. This may be the only casino in the world where this type of "heat" is allowed. But I ask you: How can he be watching what is going on in his casino if he’s busy playing on his tables?

On other nights while I was there, I observed the casino manager playing Three Card Poker, while he was suppose to be watching the games, and also dealing with the normal functions that are required of a casino manger. I’m not sure what his salary is, or what is expected of him, but I know that if I was the casino manager, they would get their monies worth from me and their vault and their games would be protected.

Horseshoe offers the following table games to their players: blackjack, craps, roulette, pai-gow, and baccarat. They also have slots and video poker machines. The casino is pretty full with tables and machines, but small in size compared to Las Vegas casinos. The blackjack game is fair with a 65-70% penetration on their 6-deck games, dealer hits soft 17 and they have the no-hole card rule, meaning the dealer doesn’t take a hole card until after all players have completed their hand (but if the dealer get’s a blackjack, secondary bets made on doubling down or pair splitting are returned to the player). They also offer late surrender, which is another advantage tool that can and should be used to maximize your expected value while playing.

Other surrounding casinos within walking distance of the Horseshoe offered blackjack games that were not worth the walk or the time spent getting there. The games for the most part in Costa Rica are horrible other than the Horseshoe’s game, and I’m sure Max’s input had a lot to do with this. But there is one casino that is an absolute must to at least visit one time in your life and that is the Del Ray.

The reason you should go there is not for their casino games (no more than 50% penetration), but rather it’s to see the Del Ray bar, that at first reminded me of the bar scene in the movie Star Wars, which, if you remember the scene, had a crowd of the weirdest looking creatures ever assembled in one location. Well, the Del Ray bar has almost the same impact on your eyes, except it’s a gathering of beautiful Latin women, one after the other, who are there for your entertainment (if you catch my drift). The ratio of beautiful Latin women for every guy who walks through the bar is approximately 8 to 1. All of a sudden, the penetration at the tables doesn’t seem as important as it should be. J

The activities that Max arranged for us were two things that I’ve always wanted to do but never had the chance or opportunity to do so. But now, as a guest of Max and the Horseshoe, I would finally fulfill my desire to partake in these activities.

On our first (daily) outing, we were treated to ride an ATV (all terrain vehicle) through the rain forest. What a blast this was! If you ever want to feel like a 10 year old K*D again, you need to ride one of these things. And when you add in the rain which occurred half way through the three hour trip, it becomes even more of a blast.

Of course, Max joined us on both of our casino-comped excursions, and he somehow found his way to maneuver his ATV in front of mine as we attempted to ride up steep muddy hills in our ATVs. We were wearing rain gear but it was still a mud feast and a complete blast for all of us. I swear I felt just like a 10 year old K*D doing this.

The following day Max took us white water rafting down a river in Costa Rica that was the most exhilarating thing I have ever done in my life. I thought I was going to be thrown out of the raft at least two different times during this three hour ride down a very fast-moving river.

You can view numerous pictures of my white water rafting trip on my MySpace page, which can be accessed by going to www.myspace.com/joeplasvegas, Once you are there, look under pictures and you can enjoy my near death experience. J (Actually it was a great time and something I would love to do again.)

All in all, I had a great time on my trip to Costa Rica and it’s something I will always remember (unfortunately, not for the great blackjack conditions, but rather for the great time that Max provided us with the assistance and hospitality of the Horseshoe Casino).

If you are interested in taking a similar trip to Costa Rica, email me at Houseofpane@cox.net, and I will pass your request on.

To give you an idea on what your play requirements would have to be to have all of your travel and hotel and meals comped, I’ve summarized them below.


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Comps and Play Requirements at Horseshoe Casino in Costa Rica

From the Comp Classics (free drinks, food and valet parking) to the Exotics, including airfare, deep-sea fishing, jungle tours, white water rafting and the most outrageous nightlife imaginable, the Horseshoe Casino and Night Club is the only Casino in Central America that does it right. And it’s all FREE, based on your play at the Horseshoe Casino. Here’s what we’ll give you, based on 3 day’s play, 4 hours per day:




Game
Avg. Bet
Comp Earned

Baccarat, Blackjack, Roulette & Craps
$25
$25 Room Discount per night

Baccarat, Blackjack, Roulette & Craps
$100
3 Nights Deluxe Room
($75 per Night)

Baccarat, Blackjack, Roulette & Craps
$250
3 Nights Deluxe Suite & Airfare Consideration *

Baccarat, Blackjack, Roulette & Craps
$500 or more
3 Nights Presidential Suite & Airfare Consideration *,
Fishing & Jungle Tours, Transportation, Full RFB…The Works

Slot Machines
25¢ Three Coins
Room Discount

Slot Machines
$1 Three Coins
Deluxe Room

Slot Machines
$5 Three Coins
Presidential Suite & Airfare Consideration *

Video Poker
$1 game
Deluxe Room

Video Poker
$5 game
Deluxe Suite



* Maximum Airfare reimbursements are:
$400 for $5,000-$10,000 Credit Lines/Front Money
$800 for $15,000$25,000 Credit Lines/Front Money
Unlimited Airfare for Credit Lines/Front Money in excess of $50,000
Based on play and/or losses.


The Horseshoe casino also has a 10% "Quick Loss" policy. In other words, if your luck runs badly and you lose without satisfying the wagering minimums or four hours per day playing criteria, we will automatically give you 10% of your losses back to offset any lodging, dining or transportation costs you may have incurred.

Extraordinary Services, such as Private Jets, Yachts & Residences, 24/7 Personal Chauffeurs, Armed Body Guards & Chefs will be provided for those guests with previously arranged large credit lines or front-money deposits.



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Until next time,

Joe Pane

Visit my web site TheHouseofPane.com, and

listen to my weekly radio show on Thursday nights at 7PM Eastern Time on holdemradio

Good catch Mr Las Vegas. Joe Pane was going to post his article on CRT himself,but I guess it won't be necessary now. A couple of additions that I might give are that Ron isn't the Casino manager but actually one of the owners.In addition to him,Frank and Herman can also be seen regularly playing on the tables along with the players.I don't know if they are using their own money or just taking up space.

Unfortunately most of what Joe wrote about probably doesn't exist any longer. Max Rubin has had a falling out with the Horseshoe Casino and is no longer affiliated with them. In my opinion,that's a big loss to the Casino since he was the most knowledgeable Casino person there.

I don't get it, why would the owner playing at the table bother anybody? Was he hitting extra cards just to Phuck up the other players?

Horseshoe Casino. Here’s what we’ll give you, based on 3 day’s play, 4 hours per day:
Game: Blackjack
Avg. Bet: $25
Comp Earned: $25 Room Discount per night ($75)

Let's run some numbers and see what these comps are really worth. These figures are based on the "general" Vegas comp guidelines for blackjack.

Expected loss = Average bet x hours played x hands/hour x house advantage

4 hours x 50 hands per hour = 200 hands (hand shuffle)
200 hands x $25 per hand = $5000
$5000 x 3 days = $15000 put at risk
$15000 x 2% comp return = $300

$300 = $25 x 4hrs x 50 hph x .02 x 3 days

Is this a good deal? You decide.
Bear in mind the house advantage on all games other than blackjack (especially slots) is much worse for the player.

http://www.midwestgamingandtravel.com/A ... 20Game.htm

I think 50 hands/hr is an overestimate, even with an automatic shuffler. I would say 20-25 hands/hr would be average w/ hand shuffle. That's about 3 minutes per hand.

So, let's say I play $25/hand for 12 hours @ 20 hands/hr. I'm putting $6,000 on the line for a $25 comp. That's not expected win/loss, but that's how I look at it.

Of course these are averages but I actually UNDER estimated. I've read these figures on many websites. I suggest you actually count how many hands you have played in an hour. You might be surprised just how many you're playing. Some hands go faster than others (like when the dealer has a blackjack).

Of course you have to also factor in the number of decks being played between shuffles and the number of players.

A player’s average bet and hours played, as well as hands/hour, make up what casinos call “action.” Action is equal to average bet times hours played times hands/hour. This is the total amount of money a gambler puts into play. In the expected loss formula, for hands per hour and house advantage, casinos assume blackjack players play 60 hands/hour and that the house has an edge of 2%.

60 to 9- hands an hour. that is the average. however, if you are the only player you can play over 110 hands per hour

i get comped for my hotel and girls everytime I go. They are very nice.
where do you get 50 from?

that went out in the stoneages.

Orange wrote:


I think you are making an understimate. You factored the 4 hours by the 3 days, but you compared the result to the daily comp. Your estimate should read $6,000 on the line for a $75 comp (3 days X $25).