Category Archives: Side Bets

Summary of Blackjack Side Bets: 2 Decks

Posted on April 30, 2013 | Leave a comment

[updated 04.30.13]

This post gives an overview of the relative vulnerability of the blackjack side bets I’ve written about in this blog. Some of these side bets have been spectacular one-time opportunities for APs. Others are ongoing income earners: moderately vulnerable, but not so weak as to be burnt out. And some are both popular and safe. The article covers blackjack side bets for a double-deck game, with the cut card at 75 cards (with one exception). I assume the AP does not wager on the side bet unless the system indicates he has the edge, and in this case he wagers $100. Continue reading →

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Card Counting the Buster Blackjack Side Bet, 2 Decks

Posted on April 29, 2013 | Leave a comment

In this post, I discussed card counting the Buster Blackjack (BBJ) side bet in the six-deck case. The player wins the BBJ side bet if the dealer busts. The payout is based on the number of cards in the dealer’s busted hand, with a top payout for an 8+ card dealer busted hand. There are at least eight different pay tables offered with BBJ.  I developed card counting systems for two distinct groups of these pay tables. I found that BBJ has moderate vulnerability in the six-deck case for one group of pay tables, but low vulnerability for the rest. This article covers BBJ as a side bet for the two-deck game. I will digress at the end of this post into an obscure issue called the “cut card effect” that impacts the house edge for BBJ if a cut card is used. In my opinion, this effect is the most interesting feature of the analysis of BBJ. Continue reading →

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Card Counting the Buster Blackjack Side Bet, 6 Decks

Posted on April 25, 2013 | 2 Comments

One of the most common blackjack side bets in California card rooms is known as Buster Blackjack (BBJ).  I found this documentation online. The player who makes the BBJ wager wins if the dealer busts. The payout is then based on the total number of cards in the dealer’s busted hand.  There are a lot of details to share, so I’ve decided to break up the discussion into the six-deck case and the two-deck case. This article covers card counting BBJ in a six-deck shoe game. Continue reading →

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Card Counting the Total Shot Bonus Baccarat Side Bet

Posted on April 18, 2013 | Leave a comment

Yet another side bet that can be counted in California card rooms:  the Total Shot Bonus (TSB). Formally, this side bet is for the baccarat variant known as Supreme Baccarat. This variant is simply the commission free version where a Banker winning total of 6 pays 1-to-2.  Like ordinary baccarat, the main game is not vulnerable to card counting. However, TSB suffers from the same flaw as many baccarat side bets that have come before: it is based on final hand totals of 8 and 9. For example, the Lucky Nines side bet  can be crushed; but Lucky Nines only appeared at one location, one time, and can no longer be found. On the other hand, from what I’ve been told, TSB is quite common in California card rooms. Continue reading →

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Card Counting the Red Flex Blackjack Side Bet

Posted on April 15, 2013 | 3 Comments

Red Flex Bet (RF) is a side bet for the blackjack variant “Pure 21.5 Blackjack” that is played in California card rooms. This side bet can also work as a side bet for ordinary blackjack, though I am not aware of any blackjack placements. I am also not aware of any placement outside of California card rooms.  I was told that RF is fairly common in northern California card rooms, with a maximum wager of $50 to $100. There is no extra collection for RF wagers, and players can play RF on multiple spots if they are available. Continue reading →

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Cheating the Lucky Pairs Baccarat Side Bet

Posted on March 29, 2013 | 3 Comments

In this blog post I covered the basics of advantage play against the Lucky Pairs (LP) baccarat side bet. In the most common variation of LP, the player can wager that either the next Player or Banker hand will be a pair. A winning wager pays 11-to-1. With eight decks, the off-the-top house edge is 10.361%. Advantage play is not lucrative or easy for this bet. However, in the AP’s favor, many Asian casinos allow fairly large wagers ($500 or more) on LP. Continue reading →

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Card Counting the Bust It Blackjack Side Bet

Posted on March 11, 2013 | Leave a comment

In the past few years there has been a proliferation of blackjack side bets based on the theme of the dealer busting.  Among these side bets are “Bet the Bust,” “Bust Bonus,” “Bust It,” “Buster Blackjack,” and “Dealer Bust 21.” The market probably has room for one of these to be moderately successful: the winner of that battle is still to be determined. Among these, the wager “Bust It” (BI) has been around the longest. It is offered both as an ordinary blackjack side bet and as a side bet for Spanish 21. This article considers the countability of BI for ordinary blackjack. If a reader can confirm that they’ve recently seen BI available with Spanish 21, I will analyze that as well. Continue reading →

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Summary of Baccarat Side Bets

Posted on February 19, 2013 | Leave a comment

This post gives an overview of the relative vulnerability of the baccarat side bets I’ve written about in this blog. Unlike blackjack where new side bets are constantly cycling through the market, in baccarat there are very few. The conservative nature of baccarat inhibits creativity. For example, most blackjack side bets could easily be adapted for baccarat. In addition, there is the fertile ground of streaks or patterns. The four cards that make up the Player and Banker hands can be used to create more complex side bets. There are also key hands and key totals that can be used for side bets. Continue reading →

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Card Counting the Lucky Nines Baccarat Side Bet

Posted on February 6, 2013 | 3 Comments

Sometimes a side bet comes along that dwarfs the others in terms of its card counting vulnerability. Such was the case with the Slingo Bonus Bet 21 side bet for blackjack. When I read about the Lucky Nines (LN) baccarat side bet on the Wizard of Vegas website, I immediately realized that it might be the most vulnerable baccarat side bet I’ve seen. In fact, it may be the most vulnerable side bet, period. This bet pays based on the total number of nines in the first four cards dealt to the banker and player, with bonuses for suited nines. Intuitively, a simple nines count should be more than adequate to crush this bet. Continue reading →

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Card Counting the High Tie Blackjack Side Bet

Posted on January 27, 2013 | Leave a comment

The High Tie blackjack side bet (HT) dates back at least to 2004, where it is mentioned in this article. I recently ran into this bet at a casino I was visiting. After all these years, it’s still around. In fact, it is also part of the DigiDeal lineup.  This wager pays when the player is dealt blackjacks and pairs, with bonuses for suited hands. At first, it may appear that this collection of unrelated elements would make the bet uncountable. But the fact that blackjacks are part of the pay table outweighs the other parts of the bet. Any card counting system that compares ten-valued cards and aces against pip cards can be used to beat this side bet. Continue reading →

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