Mini-Baccarat Side Bets Are Tempting, But It’s a Bad Bet For Players

Mini-Baccarat was developed as a floor table game in casinos to accommodate the average player. Along with that however, optional side bets were also introduced to increase the house edge. Before I detail them, I’ll explain how the game is played is played.

Objective

The objective of this table game is the same as original Baccarat where player must come as close to the number nine as possible. Aces count as one, two’s through nines are face value, and Tens through Kings count as zero. Regardless of the number of players, the dealer only deals two hands from a 6 or 8 deck shoe. Prior to the deal, players must place one bet on either the Bank hand, player hand, or tie.

When a hand is totaled, it cannot exceed nine. If the two cards total more than nine, the first digit (number one) is dropped. The second digit becomes the total. A few examples are:

7, 8 = 15 (drop 1) total = 5
4, 3 = 7 (two cards, face value)
10, 6 = 6 (10 is zero, 6 is face value)
K, 9 = 9 (King is zero, 9 is called a natural)

Baccarat requires no skill on the part of the player. All s/he needs to do is decide where to place one bet before the deal. The dealer examines both hands and then decides if a third and final card should be drawn for either hand. The determination is made according to a fixed set of game rules.

A bet on the player’s hand returns even money if won. A bet on the Banker’s hand returns even money minus a 5% commission to the house if won. A tie bet returns 8 to 1 if won, otherwise it is a push when not bet. The reason for the 5% commission on the Bank’s win is that the drawing advantage is with the Bank, according the following game rules:

Player

The player position always draws on a 0, 1, and 2,3,4,5 unless the Banker has a natural 8 or 9. The player always stands on 6, 7, 8, and 9. When a player has a natural 8 or 9, the game is over.

Banker

The Banker position always draws on a 0, 1, 2 unless the player has a natural 8 or 9.

The Banker always stands on 7, 8, and 9. When a Banker has a natural 8 or 9, the game is over.

Baccarat Side Bets

There are a number of optional side bets available at Mini Baccarat tables everywhere and like any side wager, all of them exist to increase the house edge. Nevertheless, Players are attracted to them because of the hefty winning payouts. Here are some of the popular ones:

Dragon Bonus

The bettor may wager on the Player or Banker side that the hand will win by a natural or by 4 or more points. The bet must be made before the hand is dealt. The greater the number that the hand wins by, the greater the payout:

Win By: Payout

9 – 30/1
8 – 10/1
7 – 6/1
6 – 4/1
5 – 2/1
4 – 1/1
Natural – 1/1

The house edge for this bet is 2.7%.

The payouts are the same for a bet on the Bank side however the house edge jumps to 9.7% if chosen.

4-5-6

This is a side wager that the total number of combined cards to complete the Player and Banker hand will be 4, 5, or 6.

# Cards Payout House Edge
4 – 1.5/1 – 5.3%
5 – 2/1 – 8.9%
6 – 2/1 – 4.7%

3 Card Six

This is a bet for a winning 3 card six. If player and banker have a 3 card six, the wager pays 100/1. If there is only one three card six, the bettor wins 8/1. The house edge is a whopping 13.4%!

Royal Match

Wagering that the player or banker hand will have a king and queen on the first two cards drawn, called the Royal Match. Not to be confused with the option of the same name found in the game of Blackjack. The bet pays 75/1 for a suited king & queen, and 30/1 for an unsuited royal match. The house edge has been calculated at about 2.1%.

Dragon 7

Dragon 7 is an optional side bet found in EZ Baccarat, which is played the same as regular Mini-Baccarat except the game has a commission free bank hand with one exception: A winning bank hand with a three-card total of seven will push instead of paying even money. A player may wager on that outcome for which the winning payout is 40/1. The house edge is about 7.6%.

Panda 8

The Panda 8 side bet is sometimes found in EZ Baccarat games. The wager pays 25/1 if a player hand has a three card total of eight. As for the house edge, it’s 10.2%.

Tie Bet

The Tie Bet is not considered a side wager, as it is included on all Baccarat table games. However, due to the atrocious house edge of 14%, it should be avoided at all times.

Remember that Baccarat, next to Blackjack, has a very low house edge of 1.2% when the Play bet is chosen, and a lower edge of 1.06% when betting the Bank when you avoid the side bets.

Riverboat Roulette – New Spins on an Ancient Table Game

Before we delve into the alternate wagering options available on Riverboat Roulette, let’s first review how the traditional game is played.

In today’s casinos the basic version is played at a table with a house dealer and a wheel with 38 pockets. 18 red, 18 black and 2 green colors containing the numbers zero and double zero. A single zero wheel also exists and is popular in European casinos. The table has a felt betting layout with numbers and colors corresponding to the wheel.

There are two sets of wagers called Inside, and Outside. The inside bets are various ways to play the numbers only as follows:

Inside Bets

A bet on one number (straight up) pays 35/1. Two numbers (split) pays 17/1. Three numbers (street) pays 11/1. Four numbers (corner) pays 8/1. Five numbers (basket) pays 6/1. Six numbers (line) pays 5/1.

Outside Bets

A bet on Red or black, odd or even, pays even money at 1/1. First eighteen or second eighteen also pays 1/1. First twelve, second twelve or third twelve, pays 2/1. First, second, or third column, also pays 2/1.

Riverboat Roulette

Double Luck Gaming Co. launched its award-winning Riverboat Roulette exclusively at the Golden Gate casino in downtown Las Vegas. The game has been crowned “One of the Top New table Games” by Casino Journal, and it looks like a real winner for players. In addition to the traditional wagers players can make, seven additional colored sections have been added to the wheel pockets. There are five blue, four purple, and three teal. These are known as the cool sections. Also included are three hot sections, five orange, four pink, and three yellow along with one white section that has eight pockets. The sections are referred to as neighborhoods.

The seven colors are also positioned on the felt so players can make wager choices other than, or in addition to, the traditional bets. Winners will be paid the following odds if the ball lands on the selected color(s):

· Blue – 7 to 5

· Purple – 8 to 5

· Teal – 2 to 1

· Orange – 7 to 5

· Pink – 8 to 5

· Yellow – 2 to 1

· White – 7 to 2

The colored sections are multi-spin wagers in that the bet will not lose if it lands on a color other than your choice except for white. For example, if you wager $5 on pink and it lands on one of the yellow numbers, your $5 is still in play. This is known as a push. (No win, no loss.) However, if the ball lands on one of the white numbers, you lose. If you like white you can bet it. A push also occurs if the ball should land on one of the two green numbers, (0, 00) or one of the two remaining red (25, 36) or black (26, 35) numbers. The bet is player friendly in that a bettor has three options in a push result. He or she can let it ride, add to it, or take it down. The color selections are outside wagers so the table minimum is required per wager. In summary there are only eight ways to lose with a color bet on a thirty eight number wheel.

For those of you who are devoted roulette players, Riverboat roulette does not alter any wager or outcome of traditional roulette. The 5.26% house edge does not increase when playing the colors. It remains at 5.26% for white, teal, and yellow, 4.21% for purple and pink, and 2.63% for blue and orange.

High Five Poker: The Casino Table Game Where the Joker Is Wild

High Five Poker is a casino table game originally developed and marketed by SHFL entertainment. The objective is to have a better five card poker hand than the dealer. If you ever played Pai Gow Poker you’ll find some similarities in that it uses a 53-card deck, where the 53rd card is a Joker. This lone semi-wild card can be used to complete a Straight, Flush, Straight Flush, or Royal Flush; otherwise it can be used as an Ace.

High Five Poker tables are currently at The Brass Ass (real name) Casino in Cripple Creek, CO, which also offers a progressive version.

How High Five Poker is Played

The table has seats for up to six players. Players must first make an Ante wager. The dealer will then deal seven cards face down in a clockwise manner to each player, and seven to him or herself. Each player then examines his or her cards and makes one of the following decisions:

- Fold, forfeiting the Ante bet.

- Discard two cards while keeping the best five card poker hand and make a Play bet equal to the Ante wager.

The dealer then reveals the house cards to make the best five card poker hand. The dealer qualifies if he or she has at least a pair of sixes or against a player who has a straight.

For example, if the dealer has a pair of deuces and player number 1 has a straight, and player number 2 has a pair of three’s, the dealer qualifies against player 1 but not against player number 2. So, what happens to the payouts when the dealer does or does not qualify?

- If the dealer does not qualify, the Ante bet pays even money, and the Play bet pushes.

- If the dealer qualifies and beats the player, the player’s Ante and Play bets lose.

- If the dealer qualifies and is beaten by the player, the player’s Ante and Play bets pay even money.

- If the dealer qualifies and ties the player, the player’s Ante and Play bets push.

The dealer works counter-clockwise when determining the outcome of all of the remaining players’ wagers. The house edge is about 3.6%.

Trips Side Bet

The Trips side Bet pays for a player hand with Three of a Kind or better, regardless if the player wins or loses the hand, according to the following table:

Three of a Kind pays 1/1

Straight pays 2/1

Flush pays 4/1

Full House pays 7/1

Full House (Aces Full) 20/1

Four of a Kind pays 40/1

Straight Flush pays 50/1

Royal Flush pays 100/1

Five Aces (Four Aces w/Joker) 200/1

Pay tables may vary slightly between jurisdictions.

Strategy

The strategy for this game is quite basic in that the dealer does not qualify if he or she has less than a pair of sixes, then you should fold with less than a pair of sixes. Otherwise make a play bet.