Aces Return to Vegas for Gaming Panel

Blackjack is the “minor leagues,” said John Chang '85, one of three alums from the notorious MIT blackjack team who returned to Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas May 28 for a panel discussion at the 15th International Conference on Gambling and Risk Taking.

The Las Vegas Sun reported on the panel, at which Chang joined Houh '89, SM '91, PhD '98 and Andrew Bloch '91 for a frank discussion of the years-long streak that MIT students enjoyed, putting their math skills to practice.

Chang had to join the panel remotely, answering questions in a prerecorded session, since his ban from Caesar’s (among other casinos) is still in effect.

Bloch addressed those bans, which came after the students and graduates won millions of dollars in high-stakes bets at blackjack tables from Atlantic City to the Gulf Coast to Vegas. Casinos caught on, and the resulting tension made for great storytelling. The team first appeared first in Ben Mezrich’sWired story “Hacking Las Vegas” and in his subsequent book Bringing Down the House. That book was the basis for the 2008 film 21.

All panelists were asked about their ties to MIT. Chang mused that having associations to the school often worked against them. MIT was “feared because of its name," he said, "You know? 'Oh, those MIT geniuses are gonna come in and levitate the chips out of the rack…”

"It was great fun," Houh added. "There were all sorts of crazy stories…that's why it took me 13 years to get out of MIT."

Did belonging to a blackjack team hinder one’s schoolwork and chances at graduating? The players discussed this question via email after the panel. Chang said he could only recall one player from his years who didn’t graduate.

“I think the blackjack team may have actually helped people graduate more than it hurt,” said Bloch, “by providing a source of income and a continuing connection to MIT to students who had otherwise been losing interest in school.”

Chang, who captained the team for nearly a decade, waxed most wise when reflecting on the nature of the game. "I think blackjack really is more like a training to be successful in something else," he said.

For some members of the team, that something else was returning to engineering or academic careers. Houh became an expert witness in IP litigation. Another player, Jeffrey Ma '95, launched two start-ups and is currently CEO at tenXer in San Francisco.

As for Bloch, he’s still crunching numbers with cards in his hand, though it’s poker now that he favors. He won his first World Series of Poker bracelet last year.