In previous publications on Casinoz we said that the vast majority of side bets in different games are not profitable for casino customers, so they should be avoided. Such bets are also offered in many varieties of blackjack. This article focuses on the most common of them. We will briefly tell you how they operate, their effect on the casino advantage, and thus how if they are interesting to players.
The data on casino return in each case depends directly on the bet. Many games we will discuss here offer favorable rules, if you ignore the side bets.
Blackjack with the Progressive Jackpot (Progressive Blackjack)
This is the most common type of side bets in blackjack. The player bets an extra dollar on a special field and gets payments for aces at his boxing, starting with the first card. This includes aces of the same suit. The highest combination is four aces of the same suit. If a player gets these cards in a row starting from the first one, he becomes the owner of the cumulative jackpot.
Variations of this blackjack with some variations in various models are offered by many major manufacturers of software for online casinos. Casino advantage in this bet depends on the payout ratio and the current amount of the jackpot, but it is rarely below 15%. Of course, we recommend you always refuse from such bets.
Bonus Blackjack
This is a blackjack bonus bet paid if a player or a dealer have blackjack. If you bet on blackjack with dealer at the same time and the player gets the ace of spades and the jack of spades, he wins the progressive jackpot. The edge in this bet at six decks exceeds 3.5%, which is too much for blackjack.
A pair of identical
This side bet is paid if the first two cards of the player are of the same value. The odds may vary, but the advantage of the casino is usually not less than 6%. Needless to say that this version does not suit you.
Three Way Action
In this version, you can combine three games: normal blackjack, poker and Seven Card Stud with high/low cards. You can bet on any of them or all at once. Everything is clear with blackjack (some of the rules nuances may vary in the games).
In stud poker you have additional cards to form the best poker hand. If a customer wins, he gets a payout ratio of 1:1. If the dealer has at least an ace, the player gets only half of the bet. The casino's advantage in this game is about 3.2%.
In the game on the highest card first card of the player and the dealer are compared. Returns of the winner are 1:1. At the draw, the client loses half of his bet. The house edge is almost 3%.
We recommend you only play blackjack. Two other bets are very unfavorable.
Perfect Pairs
Additional bet in blackjack, which is played with six or eight decks. In the first two client cards there must be a couple of different colors, one color and one suit paid by individual factors. Most often, they are 5:1, 10:1 and 30:1. In this case, the casino advantage on additional bet is nearly 3.5%. Needless to say that we can not recommend it to you.
Perfect Pairs Blackjack is offered by several manufacturers of software for online casinos. You can find some models in the game reviews on Casinoz.
21 +3
This blackjack side bet is borrowed from the Three Card Poker. It is paid if the first three cards dealt face-up (two for a player and one for a dealer) form flush, straight, straight flush or tris. In this case, the client gets the payment at 9:1. If the game is with six decks and just one factor, the house edge is about 3%.
Of course, it is lower than in most other additional bets, but it is still much higher than in the main versions of blackjack. This game is offered by IGT.
5 Card 21
The bet is accepted if five cards of the player form twenty-one points. To do this, there is a single optimal blackjack strategy game, developed by Stanford Wong. If you find it in a casino and learn how to play it, you can reduce the house edge to 0.2%.
At the moment, we can not tell you about any manufacturer of software for online gambling offering 5 Card 21.
Suited 6-7-8
Payments on this side bet is given in the case, if the first three cards of the player are Six, Seven and Eight of the same suit. The client has to win this hand. If you play blackjack according to the basic strategy with minor changes, you can achieve a small advantage over the casino, but only if the casino offers a normal payout ratio.
Super 7s
In this blackjack payments for additional bets are for sevens in succession, starting with the first card on the box of the player. It is paid from one seven (3:1) and also suits count. Three sevens of the same suit are paid at 5000:1. The bet is usually fixed. The house edge is about 11%. Draw your own conclusions.
Online game Super 7 Blackjack is offered in online casinos on the Betsoft platform.
Over/Under
This side bet is accepted if the first two cards of the player have more or less than thirteen points. In case of thirteen, both bets lose.
It's study was carried out by the expert Arnold Snyder. According to his calculations, in the game with six decks, the casino advantage is more than 6.5%. But he also found out that practicing counting cards in offline casinos, you can even gain an advantage over the casino on this bet.
So, if you play blackjack in online casinos, there is no reason to use this bet, but in land-based casinos you can try to count cards. But we recommend to review the research of Snyder first.
Royal Match
This additional bet is used if the player has two first cards of the same suit. Payment in this case is 3:1. If it is queen and king, the ratio is 10:1. Typically, this bet is offered in One Deck Blackjack and the casino advantage is about 4%. If the game is with several decks or changing bets, this ratio will also be different, but it is always too high to recommend this bet to readers of Casinoz.
Red/Black
Here, everything is easy. You make a side bet on the color of the dealer. The return is 1:1. If the dealer has a deuce of color you bet on it is a draw. The casino advantage is 3.8%.
Band (Streak)
You can bet on any hands in a row beneficial for you. Possible options are from two to five. The mathematical advantage varies from 8% to almost 15%. So forget about this bet.
Conclusion
If you carefully read this article, you could see for yourself that the side bets in blackjack are rarely profitable enough for players so that a sensible casino customer can not be interested in them. Most of them are introduced in blackjack with a single purpose: to increase the profit of casinos in a game with originally a small mathematical advantage.
Now you can come to the correct conclusion on additional bets in blackjack.
We would appreciate if you tell us about any other types of side bets you saw in the real world or online casinos.