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Let's Play
Introduction
Let's Play is a blackjack side bet mostly based on the player's initial two cards. I have seen placements at the Eureka in Mesquite and the Orleans and Arizona Charlie's Decatur in Las Vegas. They all had different pay tables. Here an explanation of the awards all pay tables have in common:
- Suited AKQJ: Between the player's and dealer's first two cards there must be an ace, king, queen, and jack, all of the same suit.
- Straight flush: Two suited consecutive cards. Aces may be high or low.
- Suited AK: Suited ace and king.
- Suited QJ: Suited queen and jack.
Following are all the rules and analysis.
Eureka Version
I saw this version of Let's Play at the Eureka Casino in Mesquite, Nevada on January 3, 2014. It was a double deck game. The following return table shows a house edge of 11.01%.
The following table shows the pay table, probability of each event, and its contribution to the return. The lower right cell shows a house edge of 11.01%.Eureka Version — Double Deck
| Event | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AKQJ suited | 250 | 384 | 0.000014 | 0.003480 |
| AK suited | 20 | 82,352 | 0.002985 | 0.059700 |
| QJ suited | 15 | 82,352 | 0.002985 | 0.044775 |
| Straight flush | 4 | 906,512 | 0.032858 | 0.131432 |
| Flush | 2 | 5,624,700 | 0.203877 | 0.407753 |
| Loser | -1 | 20,892,456 | 0.757282 | -0.757282 |
| Total | 27,588,756 | 1.000000 | -0.110142 |
The next table shows the house edge by number of decks for the Eureka pay table.
Eureka Version — House Edge
| Decks | House Edge |
|---|---|
| 8 | 9.50% |
| 6 | 9.67% |
| 5 | 9.80% |
| 4 | 10.00% |
| 2 | 11.01% |
| 1 | 13.07% |
Orleans Version
I saw this version at the Orleans casino in Las Vegas on November 4, 2016. The following return table shows a house edge of 10.15%, based on six decks.
Orleans Version — Six Decks
| Event | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AKQJ suited (player and dealer) | 1000 | 31,104 | 0.000013 | 0.013386 |
| Ace-king suited (player only) | 15 | 6,891,696 | 0.002966 | 0.044488 |
| Queen-jack suited (player only) | 15 | 6,891,696 | 0.002966 | 0.044488 |
| Straight flush (player only) | 4 | 75,860,496 | 0.032647 | 0.130587 |
| Flush (player only) | 2 | 485,639,748 | 0.208997 | 0.417993 |
| Loser | -1 | 1,748,359,080 | 0.752412 | -0.752412 |
| Total | 2,323,673,820 | 1.000000 | -0.101470 |
The next table shows the house edge by number of decks for the Eureka pay table.
Orleans Version — House Edge
| Decks | House Edge |
|---|---|
| 8 | 9.98% |
| 6 | 10.15% |
| 5 | 10.28% |
| 4 | 10.47% |
| 2 | 11.46% |
| 1 | 13.46% |
Arizona Charlie's Decatur Version
I saw this version at the Arizona Charlie's Decatur casino in Las Vegas in October, 2016. The following return table shows a house edge of 9.55%, based on six decks.
Arizona Charlie's Version — Six Decks
| Event | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AKQJ suited | 1000 | 31,104 | 0.000013 | 0.013386 |
| AK, AQ, AJ suited | 10 | 20,675,088 | 0.008898 | 0.088976 |
| Straight flush | 4 | 89,649,072 | 0.038581 | 0.154323 |
| Flush | 2 | 464,959,476 | 0.200097 | 0.400193 |
| Loser | -1 | 1,748,359,080 | 0.752412 | -0.752412 |
| Total | 2,323,673,820 | 1.000000 | -0.095534 |
The next table shows the house edge by number of decks for the Eureka pay table.
Arizona Charlie's Version — House Edge
| Decks | House Edge |
|---|---|
| 8 | 9.39% |
| 6 | 9.55% |
| 5 | 9.68% |
| 4 | 9.88% |
| 2 | 10.87% |
| 1 | 12.86% |
External Links
- turbogamingllc.com — Official web site for the game.
- Wizard of Vegas — Discussion about Let's Play