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Table Games Blackjack Rules: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

Discussion in 'Table Games' started by thecarve, Apr 16, 2013.

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  1. thecarve

    thecarve Misanthrope

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    Oddly, I was up incredibly early this Sunday and couldn’t get back to sleep. So, as opposed to doing something worthwhile, I decided to fool around with the figures from my most recent copy of the Current Blackjack Newsletter (March 2013). Basically, I just copied everything to an Excel spreadsheet and then did a little sorting and number crunching. I wanted to find out which casinos offered the best and worst blackjack. I decided to focus on two different criteria – an overall weighted average of the house advantage and the percentage of 6:5 games offered vs. 3:2.

    My results only take into consideration “traditional” blackjack. Spanish 21, Superfun 21, Double Attack BJ and BJ Switch were omitted. A few casinos offered a 7:5 game. I lumped those into the 6:5 category.

    Mostly, things are pretty much as I expected. But a few things did surprise me. I’ll just post my findings and let you draw your own conclusions.

    Best Casinos By Weighted House Advantage:

    1. El Cortez .24%
    2. Aria .36%
    3. Bellagio .41%
    4. Palazzo .45%
    5. Venetian .46%
    6. Wynn .52%
    7. MGM Grand .54%
    8. Mirage .55%
    9. Vegas Club .58%
    10. Mandalay Bay .58%
    Strip Average .81%
    DT Average .83%



    Best Casinos By % 6:5 Tables:

    El Cortez, Aria, Bellagio, Palazzo, Venetian, Vegas Club, Golden Gate, The Plaza and The D offer only 3:2 Blackjack.


    Hall of Shame – Average HA of more than 1%:

    Monte Carlo 1.04%
    Bally’s 1.05%
    Stratosphere 1.14%
    Excalibur 1.16%
    Flamingo/Margaritaville 1.22%
    Casino Royale 1.24%
    Harrah’s 1.41%
    NYNY 1.50%
    Four Queens 1.56%
    Binion’s 1.59%
    The Quad 1.73%


    Hall of Shame – Over 50% 6:5 games:

    Stratosphere 54.17%
    Flamingo/Margaritaville 58.49%
    NYNY 66.67%
    Harrah’s 71.19%
    Four Queens 75.00%
    Binion’s 81.81%
    The Quad 90.00%
    Casino Royale 100.00%
    Strip Average 28.01%
    Downtown Average 22.05%



    I’ve got info for off strip properties as well. I just haven’t had time to get to them yet. I also might get around to doing a “low roller” or “bang for the buck” ranking as well. Let me know if you have any interest in seeing something like that – or something else that I might be able to do without too much hassle.
     
  2. WrongWayWade

    WrongWayWade VIP Whale

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    Interesting collection. However, the only one I found interesting is the 'Over 50% 6:5 games'. The stat that really matters is the HA at the table YOU sit down at, and basically anywhere you can get (at minimum) a good shoe game with around a 0.5% house edge. But entering a casino with the huge percentage of 6:5 games can be annoying, looking for the one 'good' table.

    BTW, the $25 2-deck S17 game at the Mirage (in front of the high-limit salon) is no more, AFAICT. There still was one table marked S17, but it was a 6-deck shoe.
     
  3. gambler

    gambler VIP Whale

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    You made me choke on my coffee thecarve! I'm still trying to get past this:
    What casinos are paying 7:5?
     
  4. Big Tip

    Big Tip VIP Whale

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    Best Casinos By % 6:5 Tables:

    El Cortez, Aria, Bellagio, Palazzo, Venetian, Vegas Club, Golden Gate, The Plaza and The D offer only 3:2 Blackjack.


    These casinos don't hate you.
    They don't think you are an idiot.
    They don't take advantage of the idiots that are out there.
    They offer a good gamble.

    Okay, maybe a little dramatic of me, but I feel this way. Sure it only matters what table YOU sit down at like WrongWayWade said, but it does say something about the mentality of the casino. "We are the casino for serious, informed, gamblers."
     
  5. thecarve

    thecarve Misanthrope

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    Apparently, The Riviera has some 7:5 games. I haven’t been there in ages, so I can’t confirm. That seems to be the only one I can find, though – guess I shouldn’t have said “a few casinos…”.
     
  6. Vegas Insight

    Vegas Insight MIA

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    i've seen 7:5 at the riv's "party pit," but that was more than a year ago, so i cannot confirm they still use 7:5. as for daytime, i was going to sit down one recent wednesday afternoon for 30 minutes, but in the otherwise dead casino they had $10 table minimums. i said screw them.
     
  7. gambler

    gambler VIP Whale

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    That's ok, I'm glad to hear it's only one. That's just sick.
     
  8. Kickin

    Kickin Flea

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    Why? Not to defend it but at least its better than 6:5.

    I'm surprised about Binions. I had no idea it was like that. But with over 80% 6:5 games they haven't just soiled Benny Binion's name they shat all over it.
     
  9. thecarve

    thecarve Misanthrope

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    I was too. I’ve not played there in probably five or six years so I have no idea what they’re offering these days. Can any DT regulars confirm or deny this?

    BTW – Gold Spike would have made both “best of” lists with a weighted HA of .52% (#6 overall) and zero 6:5 games.
     
  10. thecarve

    thecarve Misanthrope

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    Binion’s and Four Queens are quite a drag on Downtown’s averages: Between the two of them, they account for 74.5% of all 6:5 games downtown! :eek: Without those two outliers, the average HA Downtown would be only .65% and only 8.28% of all BJ games would be 6:5.

    I’m not a big downtown guy – someone help me out…how do they get away with offering games that would make Gary Loveman blush when there are good games 100 feet away?
     
  11. merlin

    merlin MIA

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    Binions is among the worst DT, not one playable game under $25 in the place. haven't played a hand there in several trips(and I do check them out every time). 4 Queens does have a decent $10 2 deck game, but only one table - have to look for it.
     
  12. bringyogreenhat

    bringyogreenhat Tourist

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    Do the casinos with the lower house edge generally have higher table limits, since they're the more upscale establishments?
     
  13. Drambler

    Drambler High-Roller

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    Thanks for running these numbers and posting the results. I guess this shows that other than the El Cortez, the higher the minimum the better the game. The top casinos on your list are all very expensive to play.

    Not saying you should do this, but I'd like to see a chart that shows where the best rules and cheapest minimums intersect.
     
  14. gambler

    gambler VIP Whale

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    That's true. It was more a comment on how the casino's are scrambling the game by using different payouts. We've all heard of 6:5 but I've never heard of 7:5 before and was a bit surprised.

    From my experience at Binion's (and 4 Queens), most if not all tables are 6:5. If they do have a 3:2 table open, it's usually a large table minimum or you can only double on 10 or 11. It seems to me it's been like that for about the past 2 years.
     
  15. Big Tip

    Big Tip VIP Whale

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    Generally, yes.

    But don't say "casinos" say "individual tables within casinos" because rules vary greatly within the same casino. You must shop around, even within one casino, for the best rules at a level you are comfortable playing in.
     
  16. Viva Las Vegas

    Viva Las Vegas Elvis has left the building

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    Also a list of the lower end properties on the Strip and Downtown. They figure their guests will be less discriminating when it comes to gaming odds.

    Four Queens / Binion's is short on cash, but they do offer one of the best VP games in the Vegas area (FP Progressive DB) and solid $0.25 and $1 9/6 JOB.

    Binion's & Four Queens typically offer one or two 3/2 shoe tables at $10 or $25. The other non Casino Royale properties also offer a couple of decent tables. O'Sheas and I believe Bill's eventually became 100% 6/5 as well before they meet the wrecking ball.

    I miss my 2 deck S17 w/ surrender Stardust quarter game. :cry:

    Every time I got to thinking, then they disappear...

    [YOUTUBE]LqB9lhHqmsE[/YOUTUBE]
     
  17. Malibugolfer

    Malibugolfer High-Roller

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    thecarve, I want to thank you for time well spent. Very interesting stuff with a few surprises. Send it to Wong and see what BJ News says.
     
  18. thecarve

    thecarve Misanthrope

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    Okay, I took away all the games with minimums above $10.

    According to the survey, Golden Nugget and Golden Gate are the only DT casinos with minimums above $10 (I don’t always trust the minimums that the survey posts). So, those were the only two casinos affected by taking away the higher minimum.

    On the strip, it’s a different matter altogether. Palazzo falls out of the top ten because it does not offer a game at less than $15/hand. And, Encore moves…UP several spots in the HA category and ENTERS the “zero 6:5 games” list. LOL...I guess after a couple bottles of Goose, the club kids aren’t too picky about which games they play!

    Best Casinos For Low Rollers ($10 or under) By House Advantage:

    1. El Cortez .24%
    2. Aria .46%
    3. Bellagio .46%
    4. Wynn .46%
    5. Venetian .49%
    6. Encore .54%
    7. Vegas Club .58%
    8. Mirage .59%
    9. Plaza .61%
    10. The D .62%

    Casinos that only offer 3:2 at $10 or below:

    El Cortez, Aria, Bellagio, Wynn, Venetian, Encore, Vegas Club, Plaza, The D, Golden Gate

    Low Roller Hall of Shame – House Advantage over 1%

    Bally’s 1.07%
    Paris 1.08%
    Luxor 1.09%
    Tropicana 1.10 %
    Excal 1.16%
    MC 1.16%
    Caesars 1.17%
    Casino Royale 1.24%
    Strat 1.25%
    Flamingo/Marg. 1.34%
    Cosmo 1.45%
    Four Queens 1.59%
    Binion’s 1.59%
    Harrah’s 1.60%
    NYNY 1.71%
    The Quad 1.73%
    Palazzo No <$15 games

    Low Roller Hall of Shame – Over 50% Games 6:5

    Paris 58.62%
    Strat 61.90%
    Flamingo/Marg. 67.39%
    Four Queens 75.00%
    NYNY 80.00%
    Binion’s 81.82%
    Harrah’s 85.71%
    The Quad 90.0%
    Casino Royale 100%
    Cosmo 100%

    Downtown Average ($10 and under):
    .84% HA
    22.58% 6:5

    Strip Averages ($10 and under):
    .99% HA
    36.36% (!) 6:5
     
  19. Kickin

    Kickin Flea

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    A bit unrelated but I am looking at the sample CJBN on their site from 2010 and for some of the higher tier casinos it says they use a computer to evaluate your blackjack skill. Anyone know what they're referring to? They don't provide any further info.
     
  20. raspus

    raspus Tourist

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    the carve, thanks for posting this. Very interesting stuff. I'm sorry to read that the $25 DD S17 game at the Mirage is no longer there. I was planning on playing here next week.
     
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