Blackjack Side Bets
- Appendices
- Miscellaneous
- External Links
- Blackjack Side Bets Names
- Blackjack Side Bets Payouts
- Blackjack With Side Bets Free
- Blackjack Side Bets List
- Blackjack Trainer With Side Bet
- Blackjack Side Bets Worth It
BLACKJACK SIDE BETS In an effort to encourage more players to play blackjack, and also to improve their margins, many land-based and online casinos have added side bets on their blackjack tables.
Introduction
Lucky Ladies is one of the most popular blackjack side bets ever. It started in Washington state and now can be found in casinos all over the place. The idea is that any player 20-point hand wins something. Certain twenties, especially those involving two queens pay more. I've seen various versions through the years, which I label as A, B, C, D, and E. There is also a progressive version called Bonus Lucky Ladies.
A word about terminology. A 'matched pair' means the same card in both rank and suit.
Lucky Lucky Blackjack: You get extra payout for reaching 19,20,21 with specific cards. 2-3%: x200: Guts Casino: Match the Dealer Blackjack: Bet if on of your initial cards matches the dealer’s. This blackjack side bet, which has been spotted in Las Vegas, Atlantic City, and Tunica, is one of the better side bets in blackjack from the player’s perspective. The expected return ranges. Each-Way – This is a combination of both win and place bets of equal value. Each-Way bets may be placed on a single event or on two or more picks in a multiple bet. Single - A bet on an individual selection or result. Double – A bet on two selections. Both must win to get a return. Treble – A bet on three selections. All selections must.
Lucky Ladies — Pay Tables A and B
| Hand | Table A | Table B |
|---|---|---|
| Q of hearts pair & dealer has BJ | 1000 to 1 | 1000 to 1 |
| Q of hearts pair | 125 to 1 | 200 to 1 |
| Matched 20 | 19 to 1 | 25 to 1 |
| Suited 20 | 9 to 1 | 10 to 1 |
| Unsuited 20 | 4 to 1 | 4 to 1 |
Lucky Ladies — Pay Table C
| Hand | Table C |
|---|---|
| Pair of queens with dealer BJ | 250 to 1 |
| Pair of queens | 25 to 1 |
| Ranked 20 | 9 to 1 |
| Suited 20 | 6 to 1 |
| Any 20 | 3 to 1 |
Lucky Ladies — Pay Table D
| Hand | Pays |
|---|---|
| Queen of hearts pair | 100 to 1 |
| Matched 20 | 30 to 1 |
| Suited 20 | 10 to 1 |
| Any 20 | 3 to 1 |
| One queen | 1 to 1 |
Lucky Ladies — Pay Table E
| Hand | Pays |
|---|---|
| Queen of hearts pair | 100 |
| Matched 20 | 25 |
| Suited 20 | 10 |
| Any 20 | 3 |
| Queen of hearts | 2 |
| Any other queen | 1 |
Following is the pay table for the progressive Pay Table F.
Lucky Ladies — Pay Table F
| Hand | Pays |
|---|---|
| Queen of hearts pair + dealer BJ | Jackpot |
| Queen of hearts pair | 25 |
| Suited 20 | 10 |
| Unsuited 20 | 2 |
Analysis of Pay Table A
The next table is an analysis of pay table A with six decks. The lower right cell shows a return of 75.29%, or a house edge of 24.71%.
Lucky Ladies Pay Table A — 6 decks
| Hand | Permutations | Probability | Pays | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q of hearts pair & dealer has BJ | 135360 | 0.000015 | 1000 to 1 | 0.014563 |
| Q of hearts pair | 2738340 | 0.000295 | 125 to 1 | 0.036827 |
| Matched 20 (same rank and suit) | 43105500 | 0.004638 | 19 to 1 | 0.088115 |
| Suited 20 | 193112640 | 0.020777 | 9 to 1 | 0.186990 |
| Unsuited 20 | 744863040 | 0.080139 | 4 to 1 | 0.320554 |
| Non-20 | 8310740400 | 0.894138 | Loss | -0.894138 |
| Total | 9294695280 | 1.000000 | -0.247089 |
Analysis of Pay Table B
The next table is an analysis of pay table B with six decks. The lower right cell shows a house edge of 17.64%.
Lucky Ladies Pay Table B — 6 decks
| Hand | Permutations | Probability | Pays | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q of hearts pair & dealer has BJ | 1,000 | 135,360 | 0.000015 | 0.014563 |
| Q of hearts pair | 200 | 2,738,340 | 0.000295 | 0.058923 |
| Matched 20 (same rank and suit) | 25 | 43,105,500 | 0.004638 | 0.115941 |
| Suited 20 | 10 | 193,112,640 | 0.020777 | 0.207767 |
| Unsuited 20 | 4 | 744,863,040 | 0.080139 | 0.320554 |
| Non-20 | -1 | 8,310,740,400 | 0.894138 | -0.894138 |
| Total | 9,294,695,280 | 1.000000 | -0.176391 |
Analysis of Pay Table C
The next table is an analysis of pay table C with one deck, which is what pay table C was designed for. The lower right cell shows a house edge of 29.89% (ouch!).
Lucky Ladies Pay Table C — 1 deck
| Hand | Permutations | Probability | Pays | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pair of queens with dealer BJ | 1344 | 0.000207 | 250 to 1 | 0.051713 |
| Pair of queens | 28056 | 0.004318 | 25 to 1 | 0.107951 |
| Ranked 20 | 88200 | 0.013575 | 9 to 1 | 0.122172 |
| Suited 20 | 137200 | 0.021116 | 6 to 1 | 0.126697 |
| Any 20 | 411600 | 0.063348 | 3 to 1 | 0.190045 |
| Non-20 | 5831000 | 0.897436 | Loss | -0.897436 |
| Total | 6497400 | 1 | -0.298858 |
Analysis of Pay Table D
The next table is an analysis of pay table D with six decks. The lower right cell shows a house edge of 13.34%.
Lucky Ladies Pay Table D — 6 decks
| Hand | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Queen of hearts pair | 100 | 15 | 0.000309 | 0.030918 |
| Matched 20 | 30 | 225 | 0.004638 | 0.139129 |
| Suited 20 | 10 | 1,008 | 0.020777 | 0.207767 |
| Any 20 | 3 | 3,888 | 0.080139 | 0.240416 |
| One queen | 1 | 5,184 | 0.106851 | 0.106851 |
| Loser | -1 | 38,196 | 0.787287 | -0.787287 |
| Total | 48,516 | 1.000000 | -0.062206 |
Analysis of Pay Table E
Following is my analysis of pay table E, based on six decks.
Blackjack Side Bets Names
Lucky Ladies Pay Table E — 6 decks
| Hand | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Queen of hearts pair | 100 | 15 | 0.000309 | 0.030918 |
| Matched 20 | 25 | 225 | 0.004638 | 0.115941 |
| Suited 20 | 10 | 1,008 | 0.020777 | 0.207767 |
| Any 20 | 3 | 3,888 | 0.080139 | 0.240416 |
| Queen of hearts | 2 | 1,296 | 0.026713 | 0.053426 |
| Any other queen | 1 | 3,888 | 0.080139 | 0.080139 |
| Loser | -1 | 38,196 | 0.787287 | -0.787287 |
| Total | 48,516 | 1.000000 | -0.058682 |
House Edge Summary
The next table summarizes the house edge for versions A through D for one to eight decks.
Lucky Ladies — Summary
| Decks | Pay Table A | Pay Table B | Pay Table C | Pay Table D | Pay Table E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 29.89% | ||||
| 2 | 30.05% | 24.94% | 25.51% | 12.66% | 11.37% |
| 4 | 26.04% | 19.46% | 23.35% | 7.82% | 7.24% |
| 5 | 25.24% | 18.37% | 22.92% | 6.86% | 6.42% |
| 6 | 24.71% | 17.64% | 22.64% | 6.22% | 5.87% |
| 8 | 24.05% | 16.73% | 22.28% | 5.42% | 5.19% |
Bonus Lucky Ladies
Bonus Lucky Ladies is a $1 progressive side bet. I first noticed it on June 5, 2015 at the Palace Casino in La Center, Washington. Following is the pay table table. All wins are on a 'for one' basis, meaning the player does not get his original wager returned on a win.
Bonus Lucky Ladies — Pay Table
| Player | Dealer | Pays |
|---|---|---|
| Queen of hearts pair | Dealer BJ in hearts | 100% of Jackpot |
| Queen of hearts pair | Dealer suited BJ (not hearts) | 25% of Jackpot |
| Queen of hearts pair | Dealer BJ (not suited) | 5% of Jackpot |
| Queen of hearts pair | Anything else | $125 |
| Matched 20 | Anything | $19 |
| Suited 20 | Anything | $9 |
The next table shows the probability and return of each event, based on six decks. A question mark means a variable win, depending on the jackpot size.
Bonus Lucky Ladies — Return TableExpand
Blackjack Side Bets Payouts
| Player | Dealer | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Queen of hearts pair | Dealer BJ in hearts | ? | 1,980 | 0.0000009 | ? |
| Queen of hearts pair | Dealer suited BJ (not hearts) | ? | 6,480 | 0.0000028 | ? |
| Queen of hearts pair | Dealer BJ (not suited) | ? | 25,380 | 0.0000109 | ? |
| Queen of hearts pair | Anything else | $125 | 684,585 | 0.0002946 | 0.0368267 |
| Matched 20 | Anything | $19 | 10,776,375 | 0.0046376 | 0.0881153 |
| Suited 20 | Anything | $9 | 48,278,160 | 0.0207767 | 0.1869899 |
| Loser | $0 | 2,263,900,860 | 0.9742765 | 0.0000000 | |
| Total | 2,263,900,860 | 1.0000000 | 0.3119318 |
The table above shows the fixed wins return 31.19%. Each $10,000 in the meter will add 2.13% to the return. To reach break-even the jackpot would need to reach $328,372.59.
Analysis of Pay Table F
Following is my analysis of the progressive pay table F, based on six decks. Wins are on a 'for one' basis.
Pay Table F Analysis ‐ Six Decks
| Event | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Queen of hearts pair + dealer BJ | Jackpot | 33,840 | 0.000015 | ? |
| Queen of hearts pair | 25 | 684,585 | 0.000295 | 0.007365 |
| Suited 20 | 10 | 59,054,535 | 0.025414 | 0.254143 |
| Unsuited 20 | 2 | 186,215,760 | 0.080139 | 0.160277 |
| Loser | 0 | 2,077,685,100 | 0.894138 | 0.000000 |
| Total | 2,323,673,820 | 1.000000 | 0.421785 + ? |
The following table shows a return to player of 42.18%, not including the value of the jackpot. For every 10,000 bets units in the jackpot, the return increases by 14.56%.
I saw this as a 'red light' $1 bet at the Rampart on January 29, 2021. At the time, the jackpot was $17,347.43. That would make the return at that time and place 42.18% + 14.56% × $17347/$10000 = 67.44%.
Written by: Michael Shackleford
Analyses of Over/Under 13
The Over/Under 13 side bets are actually two separate side bets with different probabilities and house edge. Alongside, there is another Exactly 13 side bet that some casinos allow to be placed by the players.
Under 13 Side Bet
Blackjack With Side Bets Free
In the under 13 side bet, the player bets that his first two cards will have a sum total that is below 13. The betting amount can be anything but not higher than the original betting amount. The payout is 1:1 if the player wins. The below table shows the probabilities and house edge of Under 13 side bet with the different number of decks of cards.
Over 13 Side Bet
Blackjack Side Bets List
The Over 13 side bet is the exact opposite of the Under 13 side bet. With the basic rules remaining the same, this side bet is placed on the expected outcome of the sum total of the first two cards of the player being over 13. The Over 13 side bet is more popular because it has the lowest house edge and the best odds of winning, especially when played using the card counting strategy.The following table shows the statistics in detail:
Blackjack Trainer With Side Bet
Exactly 13 Side Bet
Blackjack Side Bets Worth It
Some casinos allow the Exactly 13 side bet too. In this, the player bets that the sum total of his first two cards will be exactly 13 and not anything under or over it. The probability is definitely lower but the winnings pay 10:1. Here are the details with thedifferent number of decks of cards in blackjack.