No doubt you've seen a few flashy card counters ripping off the house in flicks like Rain Man and 21, but what does a real blackjack tournament look like?

Blackjack (or twenty-one, as the game's also called) tournaments are usually conducted elimination style, with tables of about six players, each competing for one or two spots in the next round. A set number of hands (usually between 15 and 30) define a round, and depending on the casino, players use either live money chips or non-negotiable tournament chips (which have no monetary value). Each hand proceeds following a special button that rotates around the table. This way, the same person doesn't start each hand (which would be a clear disadvantage). Most tournaments play three to five elimination rounds before a winner is crowned. Jackpot sizes are commiserate with the number of players, so a small, $10 entry fee tournament could award winnings of up to $1,000, while larger affairs may have kitties well over a million dollars.

Just like its card cousin poker, blackjack has been getting some attention on TV with hits like the World Series of Blackjack, where 40 professional blackjack players compete for $500,000. In the early 2000s, the Hilton Million Dollar Blackjack Tournament saw bets anywhere from $100 to $2,500 and awarded the top player with a lump sum at the end. Thankfully, you don't have to be on TV to participate in a little friendly competition; there's usually a tournament happening at casinos like Imperial Palace and Boulder Station weekly, or even daily. Though the stakes are much smaller, people still take these tourneys seriously, so don't get involved unless you're really ready to sit down and play.