Live table games with a forced side bet first appeared in Las Vegas in the late 2010s. Today, five casinos deal them. It started with blackjack and eventually spread to other games like pai gow poker and High Card Flush. This is not an ante. It is a live wager with real payouts. However, there are negatives related to forced side bets.
Side bets have been around for decades. These are wagers unrelated to the main action. For example, 21+3 is a popular blackjack side bet. In the past, players could make only the main blackjack bet or make both. This allowed players who want more variance that option, while others who only want to play the main game can opt out. While that is still the case at most casinos, some tables at five Las Vegas casinos require the player to make this type of side bet.
Side bets increase the house advantage
Side bets were created to increase table game revenue. A standard 3:2 blackjack game only holds about 0.6%. A $10 player at this game using basic strategy only loses $0.06 per hand. A side bet with a 10% house edge theoretically earns the casino another $0.10 per hand off that player on a $1 bet.
Downtown Las Vegas casinos saw an opportunity. Many players avoid table game side bets because of the high house edge. Forcing them to make the side bet increases revenue while driving away low-value players, freeing up seats for ones who do not mind making wagers with a high house advantage, or do not know any better.
Most forced side bets have little to do with hand strength
Most side bets reward strong hands with larger payouts. For example, the jackpot on a pai gow poker side bet is usually a seven-card straight flush. In Ultimate Texas Hold’em, it is a royal flush. However, most mandatory Las Vegas side bets use the Bonus Spin side bet. While a strong dealt hand triggers the jackpot at most games, the payout is entirely random.
The Bonus Spin wheel has separate sections for payouts. The spot where the spinner arm lands is not entirely random. The wheel is weighted like a slot machine. In other words, a random number generator determines the outcome. The Bonus Spin wheel is little more than a way to display it. Lower payouts occur far more frequently than large ones. However, the exact weights are unknown. These can only be estimated.
Examples of forced side bet games
The worst example of a forced side bet is High Card Flush at Golden Nugget. The game has a $10 minimum bet. Of that, $5 is part of the Bonus Spin side bet. This side bet has nothing to do with the strength of the hand. The wheel spin occurs when the dealer qualifies with exactly a three-card nine-high flush. That is the minimum hand the dealer opens with. Players spin the wheel when this happens. Their return is displayed, and the dealer pays it out in chips.
When accounting for raises, the main High Card Flush game holds 1.54% with perfect play. This author estimated the Bonus Spin side bet to hold 23%. That is $1.15 on the forced $5. At the minimum bet, the game holds an estimated 12.28%.
The player loses $1.28 per hand at this game, on average. A $10 High Card Flush game without the side bet theoretically costs about $0.15 per hand. The forced side bet game costs about 8.5 times more per hand to play. At 30 hands an hour, the forced side bet player expects to lose about $38.40 per hour. The player at the standard game has an expected loss of about $4.50. It does not take many hands for that disadvantage to add up to real money.
There Are Always Other Games to Play
While five Las Vegas casinos deal games with forced side bets, there are always better options in the same pit. At Binion’s, players can choose Blackjack Switch or Double Up Blackjack. Both are the best blackjack variants in Las Vegas. Four Queens is another forced side bet casino. It also deals Blackjack Switch and Double Up Blackjack.
Golden Nugget has several poker pit games without side bets. Fremont has better blackjack in the same price range as the forced side bet game. New York-New York, the only Las Vegas Strip casino with a mandatory side bet game, only has it at one table. Simply play anything else there.
All five of these casinos have live craps games. Sticking with the main line bets and taking odds is one of the best table game bets that can be made.
Play all games responsibly and intelligently
The forced side bet tables are made to exploit players who do not understand how unfriendly the math behind the games is. Now that you know to avoid these games, you are one step ahead. When choosing better games, always study the basic strategy and the best bets to make at the table. Play within your bankroll, and stop when it is no longer fun. Taking breaks and having the discipline to leave when it is time ensures more enjoyable casino visits in the future.
