Let’s take a look at some of the most popular side bets found at the best blackjack sites. The most popular side bet of all is Perfect Pairs, this is featured quite heavily at many online casinos. This allows you to bet on whether the hand of a player (or the dealer) contains cards that have something in common – it can be suit, colour etc.
My Blackjack side bet:BlackJack Block®. Lage Lay-Out. Video Presentation.
- The 21 + 3 side bet is one of the most popular Blackjack side bets. The game combines the standard Blackjack and Tri Card Poker rules. To play this bet you have to place a regular bet and put your money on the side bet additionally. The player wins when playing a 21+3 side bet if their two cards and the dealer’s face-up card form a flush.
- Apr 17, 2015 Side bets in blackjack provide an interesting twist to the classic casino table game. While some options are simplistic in nature, others can transform the game into something that barely resembles its original form. No matter which version you choose, you’re guaranteed a new (and potentially profitable) experience.
This is clearly posted in the wrong thread, but I'd like to make a quick comment about it.
I read the instructions and was thoroughly confused by them. So I decided to watch the video. It makes more sense, though I'm wondering how many installs you have in the US; you mention you've got installs in South Africa and other places.
Simply put, if it takes longer than about 20 words to describe how your side bet works, it's probably not going to gain much traction in the US. The reason the above side bets work is they are VERY EASY to understand. As soon as you have conditional rules that the player has to remember, it goes from being fun to being a chore, and the casual gambler will not play a side bet that takes a lot of thought. Of course, the strategic player doesn't play side bets anyways.
From an operator standpoint, a complicated payout schedule that doesn't have rhymes or rules when multiple cards are involved is not good. I'm comparing this to Match the Dealer on Spanish 21. If you had to memorize the odd schedule, it might be challenging, until you break it down card by card where it makes more sense. I can see the error rate for mispays being extremely high too.
In short, it's always nice to see the entrepreneurial spirit, but this game probably is just a bit too complicated for US audiences.
in other words, most americans are too lazy and stupid for this side bet
I don't think that you have to be intelligent or a particularly motivated person to play a side bet that requires absolutely no strategy on the part of the player. My thinking is that we are people who like to do things in a somewhat conventional way, so we would like side bets that are simple to understand to the extent that we can get a general (even if only an assumptive and very general idea) of what our probability of profitting off of one play is. My opinion is that this side bet simply holds too many potential payouts that are unrelated to the Rules of most Table Games I have ever seen for a player to feel comfortable with placing a bet.
Your average side bet in an American Table Game usually bears a pretty close resemblance to the Rules of a familiar (but different) Table Game.
My Blackjack side bet:BlackJack Block®. Lage Lay-Out. Video Presentation.
This is clearly posted in the wrong thread, but I'd like to make a quick comment about it.
I read the instructions and was thoroughly confused by them. So I decided to watch the video. It makes more sense, though I'm wondering how many installs you have in the US; you mention you've got installs in South Africa and other places.
Simply put, if it takes longer than about 20 words to describe how your side bet works, it's probably not going to gain much traction in the US. The reason the above side bets work is they are VERY EASY to understand. As soon as you have conditional rules that the player has to remember, it goes from being fun to being a chore, and the casual gambler will not play a side bet that takes a lot of thought. Of course, the strategic player doesn't play side bets anyways.
From an operator standpoint, a complicated payout schedule that doesn't have rhymes or rules when multiple cards are involved is not good. I'm comparing this to Match the Dealer on Spanish 21. If you had to memorize the odd schedule, it might be challenging, until you break it down card by card where it makes more sense. I can see the error rate for mispays being extremely high too.
In short, it's always nice to see the entrepreneurial spirit, but this game probably is just a bit too complicated for US audiences.
Why is it posted in the wrong thread?
Regarding how many installs I have in the US?
On my post I say: Played Live 150+ Tables in Countries, South Africa, Egypt, Latvia, Estonia, Ireland, Morocco, Africa, EU, UK... (Not in the US).By the way, None of my games have been trial in the US yet.
Why is it posted in the wrong thread?
Regarding how many installs I have in the US?
On my post I say: Played Live 150+ Tables in Countries, South Africa, Egypt, Latvia, Estonia, Ireland, Morocco, Africa, EU, UK... (Not in the US).
By the way, None of my games have been trial in the US yet.
I got from the spirit of teliot's OP that it's supposed to be for games that have 100+ installs in the US. I'm probably not going to go to any casinos in the majority of countries where you have this game, except possibly Ireland or UK.
For your sake, I hope you can get a successful US trial going, but I just have a hard time thinking it would succeed giving the reasons I previously stated.
I got from the spirit of teliot's OP that it's supposed to be for games that have 100+ installs in the US. I'm probably not going to go to any casinos in the majority of countries where you have this game, except possibly Ireland or UK.
For your sake, I hope you can get a successful US trial going, but I just have a hard time thinking it would succeed giving the reasons I previously stated.
From the teliot's post it say's:
I am writing an article about blackjack side bets, and I'm trying to come up with a list of the most popular ones. This can be a world-wide list. I would like the wager to be placed on at least 100 tables and to have been around for a few years. Also, it should be a BJ side bet, not one primarily on a variant (like BJ Switch or SP21).
It had no mention of (for games that have 100+ installs in the US only) and How can it be world-wide list, if it is only applies installs in the US?
Field of Gold is also one I've seen a bunch of places..
See this post
I read your post, and I'm very intrigued by the fact that you did that amount of research so quickly.
FYI, I've NEVER seen the game on a double deck game. I have seen it on 6-deck, but usually the game is on a continuous shuffler, which probably detracts counters from making the bet. It never even crossed my mind that it could be counted, but the more I think about it, it makes sense.
Wizard Recommends
- €1500 Welcome Bonus
- €100 + 300 Free Spins
- 100% Welcome Bonus
Yes, I've seen that bet in Tunica. I address it in my blackjack appendix 8. I agree that side bet would seem very countable.
This is a sucker bet. The most likely time the dealer will bust is with a 6 up. However even then the dealer will only bust 42% of the time, give or take depending on the exact rules, for a house edge of 16%.
The probability of three seven of diamonds is combin(6,3)/combin(312,3) = 0.00000398937. The probability of three unsuited sevens is (combin(24,3)-combin(6,3))/combin(312,3) = 0.000399735. According to my blackjack calculator the house edge is 0.6233%. The expected loss on a $5 bet would be 3.12 cents. Just the value of the $50 for three unsuited sevens is $50*0.000399735=2.00 cents. To make up the other 1.12 cents the meter would need to reach $2802.
The wheel in Wheel of Madness is weighted. In other words it is designed to stop on the lower prizes more often. Without knowing the exact weights I can’t analyze it. I have tried to get the weights from casinos and the manufacturer but alas have had no luck.
Spirit Mountain Casino in Grand Ronde Oregon added a side bet in the last 24 hours called 'Field Gold 21.' It resolves before the rest of the hand begins and concerns the first two cards dealt to a player. The side bet can be between 1 and 25 dollars. The pay table follows.- Ace, Jack Suited = 25 - 1
- 2 Aces = 10 - 1
- 3 or 4 Total = 3 - 1
- 9 or 10 Total = 2 - 1
- 11 or 12 Total = 1 - 1
- Any Blackjack = 3 - 2
Aces always count as 1 and 10’s and faces count as 10. What is the house advantage? If I keep an Aces and Fives count is there a positive count where the possible remaining aces make the bet a positive proposition? Would counting remaining aces divided by remaining decks be better?
You didn’t tell me the number of decks, but assuming six the house edge is 5.66%. Here is the return table.
Field of Gold — Six Decks
| Event | Pays | Permutations | Probability | Return |
| Ace/jack suited | 25 | 144 | 0.002968 | 0.074202 |
| Two aces | 10 | 276 | 0.005689 | 0.056888 |
| 3 or 4 total | 3 | 1428 | 0.029434 | 0.088301 |
| 9 or 10 total | 2 | 4884 | 0.100668 | 0.201336 |
| Any other blackjack | 1.5 | 2160 | 0.044521 | 0.066782 |
| 11 to 12 total | 1 | 6612 | 0.136285 | 0.136285 |
| All other | -1 | 33012 | 0.680435 | -0.680435 |
| Total | 48516 | 1 | -0.056641 |
Just eyeballing it, I would say aces would be the best card to track, betting into an ace-rich deck. My advice would be to count aces as −12 and all other cards as +1.
There is one way to get the ace and four ways to get the 10-point card, for a total of 1*4=4 winning combinations. There are combin(52,2)=1,326 ways to choose 2 cards out of 52. So the probability of winning is 4/1326 = 0.30%. Fair odds would be 330.5 to one. The expected return is 0.0030*300 + 0.9970*-1 = -0.0920. So the house edge is 9.2%.
The reason they limit this bet to the first hand after the shuffle is a card counter could take advantage it otherwise. Without tracking the cards, you can assume the house edge is 9.2% all the time.
For the benefit of other readers, the Match the Dealer side bet pays when either of the player’s first two cards match the dealer’s up card. A traditional count is not going to be useful against this side bet. Rather, the odds would swing to the player’s advantage if the distribution of cards by rank were unusually unbalanced. It isn’t going to be practical to keep track of 13 different suits. The Big Book of Blackjack by Arnold Snyder, which I highly recommend, has a short chapter on how to beat a similar bet, the ’Royal Match.’ With only four suits to worry about, this side bet is vulnerable to the method described in that book in a single-deck game.
Top 3 Blackjack Side Bet
Yes! That side bet is extremely vulnerable to card counters. As long as the minimum is not too low, you should be using another strategy to exploit it, one that treats aces as a low card. Arnold Synder presents such a strategy in The Big Book of Blackjack. Otherwise, if you are using a standard hi-lo count, Synder says to only make the Over bet in very high counts.
It sounds like you are talking about Lucky Pairs, a side bet that wins if the player’s first two cards are a pair. Many baccarat tables also offer this bet. As I show in my baccarat page, the house edge is 10.36%, assuming eight decks. In either game, you would pretty much need to eliminate all cards of at least one rank to have an advantage. To know that, you would need to keep 13 different counts. In baccarat, this could be done, since you are allowed to take notes while you play. However, based on some very extensive analysis, profitable opportunities don’t happen often enough for this to be a practical use of time.
I have not studied the effect of card counting of that bet for myself. However, Arnold Snyder has, and his results can be found in his Big Book of Blackjack. There he says you should make the bet in a six-deck game if it is the last two decks, and the count is +10 or greater, using the Red Sevens count. In a double-deck game he says to bet in the last deck, and a count of +6 or greater.
Based on six decks, I get a house edge of 3.40%. I show all my math in my blackjack appendix 8. An extremely high or low count would indicate the ranks in the remaining cards are clumped together, which would lower the house edge, but I don’t think it would be enough to warrant bothering with.
This question was raised and discussed in the forum of my companion site Wizard of Vegas.
Best Blackjack Side Bet Odds
My blackjack appendix 2B was created for questions like this. It shows the probability the dealer will bust is 28.19% under those rules. That would make the house edge 1.33%.
This question was raised and discussed in the forum of my companion site Wizard of Vegas.
At the Lake Elsinore Hotel and Casino in California there is a blackjack side bet called the Red Flex. It pays according to the number of consecutive red cards in the dealer's hand, starting with the first card. The pay table is as follows:- Seven or more reds pays 200 to 1
- Six reds pays 100 to 1
- Five reds pays 50 to 1
- Four reds pays 10 to 1
- Three reds pays 5 to 1
- Two reds pays 1 to 1
If the dealer busts, or isn't required to draw cards because all the players busted, the dealer will still draw cards as necessary to adjudicate the side bet.
What are the odds?
I show my analysis of the Red Flex in my blackjack appendix 8.
This question is discussed in my forum at Wizard of Vegas.
I found a blackjack dealer who exposes his hole card when peeking for blackjack. He offers insurance after peeking. So, when the dealer has an ace up and I can see a 10, I take insurance. How much does this reduce the house edge of the overall game?
Let's assume six decks. The probability of the up card being an ace is 1/13. Next, the probability the hole card is a 10-point card is 96/311. So, this opportunity will occur 2.37% of hands.
The insurance bet I assume will be half a unit and insurance pays 2 to 1. So, every time this happens, you can expect to gain a unit. Since it happens with probability 2.37% of the time, that is what it is worth to you. Subtract the house edge under whatever the blackjack rules are to get the overall player advantage of the game.