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Copy Cat
Introduction
The Copy Cat is a blackjack side bet the wins of the player matches the dealer's up card with at least one of his initial two cards. It can mostly be found at some of the Station casinos around Las Vegas, namely the Red Rock, Sunset Station, and Santa Fe Station.
Rules
- The player shall be paid if at least one of his two initial cards matches the dealer's up card in rank.
- If both player cards match the dealer's up card in rank, then the dealer's hole will also be considered. If that matches in rank as well, the player shall be paid for three matches.
- There are two known pay tables as follows.
Copy Cat Pay Table 1
| Copies | Pay Table 1 | Pay Table 2 |
|---|---|---|
| 3* | 299 | 500 |
| 2** | 25 | 50 |
| 1*** | 5 | 6 |
| 0**** | -1 | -1 |
Notes
* For three copies, both the player's initial cards, as well as the dealer hole card, must match to the dealer's up card in rank.
** For two copies, both the player's initial cards must match the dealer up card in rank. The dealer hole card must different in rank.
*** For one copy, one of the player's initial cards must match the dealer up card in rank. The dealer hole card does not matter.
**** For zero copies, neither of the player's initial cards must match the dealer up card in rank. The dealer hole card does not matter.
Analysis
Following is my analysis of pay table 1, based on two decks of cards. The lower right cell shows a house edge of 7.43%.
Copy Cat Return Table
| Copies | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 299 | 105 | 0.000198 | 0.059174 |
| 2 | 25 | 2,016 | 0.003800 | 0.094995 |
| 1 | 5 | 67,872 | 0.127927 | 0.639634 |
| 0 | -1 | 460,560 | 0.868075 | -0.868075 |
| Total | 530,553 | 1.000000 | -0.074272 |
Following is my analysis of pay table 2, based on one deck of cards. The lower right cell shows a house edge of 6.78%.
Copy Cat Return Table
| Copies | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 500 | 3 | 0.000048 | 0.024010 |
| 2 | 50 | 144 | 0.002305 | 0.115246 |
| 1 | 6 | 7,056 | 0.112941 | 0.677647 |
| 0 | -1 | 55,272 | 0.884706 | -0.884706 |
| Total | 62,475 | 1.000000 | -0.067803 |