Luis A. Gonzales 

Executive Director 

Tribal Gaming Office 

Pascua Yaqui Tribe 

7406 South Camino De Oeste 

Tucson, Arizona 85746 

Dear Mr. Gonzales: 

This is in response to your letter of October 11, 1995, 

requesting the National Indian Gaming commission (NIGC) to review 

the card game, Maverick 21, and to determine its classification 

under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA), 25 U.S.C. § 2701 

- et. seq. (1988). 

Pursuant to the IGRA, class I1 gaming includes non-banking card 

games if such card games: 

(I) are explicitly authorized by the laws of the State, 1 

(11) are not explicitly prohibited by the laws of the 

State, and are played at any location in the State, but 

only if such card games are played in conformity with 

those laws and regulations (if any) of the State 

regarding hours or periods of operation of such card 

games or limitations on wagers or pot sizes in such 

card games. 

25 U.S.C. 5 2703(7)(A)(ii). his opinion is confined to 

determining whether ~averick 21 meets the non-banking requirement 

for class I1 status. 

Maverick 21 is played like blackjack but in a non-banking format. 

Each player pays an ante to the house and places a wager on one, 

two or three circles. The wager amount for the first circle is 

mandatory but the wager amounts for the second and third circles 

are optional with predetermined limits set by the casino. Each 

player is initially dealt two cards. The objective is to get a 

"Naturalu (an ace and a card valued at ten (10)) or to have the 

highest point total not exceeding twenty-one (21). The best hand 

in each circle wins and collects the pot for that circle. If two 

or more players have a "Natural" or the highest point total, the 

winners share the pot. 

lhll .,", If The betting format and how a player wins differentiates Maverick 1 
21 from traditional blackjack. In Maverick 21 there is no bank 

IIW' or banker taking on all players, collecting all losses, and 

paying all winners. Instead, players play against each other. 

In blackjack, "[elach player bets only with the dealerw or the 

house which is the banker. Richard L. Frey, According to Hoyle 

205-206 (1970). Thus, a player's cards must beat only the 

dealer's cards in traditional blackjack. In Maverick 21, 

however, a player must beat all of the other playersf cards in 

order to win as in poker. The amount a player can wins is also 

different. In blackjack, a player's potential winnings is based 

on the amount he or she wagers while in Maverick 21, a player's 

winnings is based on the number of players in the game and 

whether there is another winner. Also, the strategies that a 

player uses change when he or she is playing against other 

players and not against a bank. These variations in the game are 

sufficient to conclude Maverick 21 is not traditional blackjack 

by another name. 

The IGRA excludes from class I1 gaming "any banking card games, 

including baccarat, chemin de fer, or blackjack (21)..." 25 

U. S. C. § 2703 (7) (B) (i) . Although blackjack is, specifically 

exclude from class I1 gaming, the wording of this provision 

seemingly prohibits only banking games. Blackjack may be played 

a class I1 game if played in a non-banking format. The 

legislative history of the IGRA supports this interpretation. 

The Senate Report on the IGRA describes the distinction between 

banking and non-banking card games as follows: 

Sections (4)(8)(A)(ii) provides that certain 

card games are regulated as class I1 games, 

with the rest being set apart and defined as 

class I11 games under section 4(9) and 

regulated pursuant to section ll(d). The 

distinction is between those games where 

players play against each other rather that 

the house and those games where players play 

against the house and the house acts as 

banker. . . 

S. Rep. No. 100-446, 100th Cong., 2nd Sess. 9-10 (1988). 

Because the players in Maverick 21 play against each other rather 

than against the house and the house has no stake in the outcome 

of the game, Maverick 21 is not a banking game. We therefore 

conclude that Maverick 21 meets the non-banking requirement for 

class I1 status. 

As stated above, in order to qualify as a class I1 game, Maverick 

21 must also: (1) be explicitly authorized by the laws of the 

State or (2) not be explicitly prohibited, be played at any 

location in the State, and conform to any state law or regulation 
limiting the hours or periods of operation of the card games or 

wagers or pot sizes. Y 

If you have any questions, please call this office at 202-632- 

7003. 

sincerely, 

Michael D. Cox 

General Counsel