Q. Were the reps comped?
A. Yes.

Q. You mentioned earlier that a few guys came in by helicopter. How far away is the closest heliport?
A. About a hundred yards from the entrance to private gaming. Once they land, we have a limo pick them up and they can be on the table gambling in less than three minutes. We even had one pilot drop a player on the golf course. Needless to say, he doesn't fly for us anymore. Any time new high rollers from L.A. call in and want to give us a first visit, we bring them in by helicopter. If they don't like us, we'll fly them back, no charge. But no one's ever left without gambling and most of them come back within a few weeks.

Q. Do you have any advice for other operators who are thinking about putting on a high-stakes player-development tournament?
A. A little. Put up a big prize. Have some wild cards. Make sure that the contestants have plenty of time to gamble on their own time. Do everything first-class. Try to keep the pros out of it. Anticipate every problem that might come up. Have a professional announcer on the microphone. Do everything you can to put your best foot forward and always use your best-groomed and best-behaved staff. If you're going to run a first-class tournament, let your key people, including your event coordinators and dealers, play in some tournaments so they understand the highs and lows the players are going to go through.

Next month's interview will be with Jimmy Wike, the table-games manager at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, who developed and directed the Hilton's first Million Dollar Blackjack Tournament.