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Dragon Tiger
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Introduction
Dragon Tiger is about as simple as gambling gets. It is essentially a two-card comparison game similar to baccarat. Two cards are drawn, one to the Dragon and one to the Tiger, and the player bets on which one will be higher. There are also proposition bets on the individual cards. The game is offered at land-based casinos, including Deltin's casinos in Goa, and in online versions from providers including Pragmatic Play, SA Gaming, and OneTouch. LCB also maintains a directory of live-dealer casinos.
Rules
- The number of decks varies by version. The analysis below assumes eight decks unless otherwise stated. Pragmatic Play and SA Gaming specify eight decks, while Deltin's published rules specify a shoe of six to eight decks.
- Cards are ranked from ace, the lowest card, through king, the highest card: A, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, J, Q, K.
- A single card is given to each of the Dragon and Tiger hands.
- The primary bet is on which hand will get the higher card.
- Other proposition bets are available, as explained below.
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Dragon/Tiger
The Dragon and Tiger bets will win if the chosen hand gets the higher card. Under the rules analyzed here, ties lose half. The following return table shows a house edge of 3.73%.
Dragon and Tiger
| Event | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 1 | 39,936 | 0.462651 | 0.462651 |
| Tie | -0.5 | 6,448 | 0.074699 | -0.037349 |
| Loss | -1 | 39,936 | 0.462651 | -0.462651 |
| Total | 86,320 | 1.000000 | -0.037349 |
Tie
The Tie bet wins if the Dragon and Tiger cards are equal in rank. The payout varies by version. The eight-deck, 8-to-1 version analyzed immediately below has a house edge of 32.77%.
Tie
| Event | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 8 | 6,448 | 0.074699 | 0.597590 |
| Loss | -1 | 79,872 | 0.925301 | -0.925301 |
| Total | 86,320 | 1.000000 | -0.327711 |
For an eight-deck shoe, the following table shows the house edge at Tie payouts from 8 to 12 to 1. Current examples include SA Gaming at 8 to 1, Deltin at 10 times the Tie bet, and Pragmatic Play at 11 to 1.
Tie House Edge
| Pays | House Edge |
|---|---|
| 12 | 2.89% |
| 11 | 10.36% |
| 10 | 17.83% |
| 9 | 25.30% |
| 8 | 32.77% |
Rule Variations
Rules and payouts vary among Dragon Tiger providers. Pragmatic Play uses eight decks, returns half of a Dragon or Tiger wager on a tie, pays 11 to 1 on Tie and 50 to 1 on Suited Tie, and offers Big/Small, Odd/Even, and Red/Black side bets. Its listed side bets are disabled after 50 rounds of a shoe.
SA Gaming uses eight decks and also returns half of a Dragon or Tiger wager on a tie. Tie pays 8 to 1. Its Dragon- and Tiger-specific side bets include Big/Small at 1 to 1, Odd at 0.75 to 1, Even at 1.05 to 1, and Red/Black at 0.9 to 1. These side bets are available for a maximum of 25 rounds per shoe.
Deltin's published rules specify six to eight decks, return 50% of the initial Dragon or Tiger wager on a tie, and pay 10 to 1 on the Tie wager. At six decks, a 10-to-1 Tie bet has a house edge of 18.65%; at eight decks, the house edge is 17.83%.
Suited Tie
The Suited Tie bet wins if the Dragon and Tiger cards are equal in both rank and suit. In the eight-deck, 50-to-1 version analyzed here, the following table shows a house edge of 13.98%.
Suited Tie
| Event | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 50 | 1,456 | 0.016867 | 0.843373 |
| Loss | -1 | 84,864 | 0.983133 | -0.983133 |
| Total | 86,320 | 1.000000 | -0.139759 |
Big/Small
The player may bet whether a particular card will be over or under seven. If the chosen card is exactly seven, then the wager will lose. Wins pay even money. The following table shows a house edge of 7.69%.
Big/Small
| Event | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 1 | 192 | 0.461538 | 0.461538 |
| Loss | -1 | 224 | 0.538462 | -0.538462 |
| Total | 416 | 1.000000 | -0.076923 |
Odd/Even
Odd/Even rules vary by provider.
In Pragmatic Play's version, Odd wins on A, 3, 5, 9, J, or K, while Even wins on 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, or Q. A 7 loses both bets. Both Odd and Even pay 1 to 1. Since six of the 13 ranks win and seven lose, either bet has a house edge of 1/13, or 7.69%. Pragmatic Play disables its Big/Small, Odd/Even, and Red/Black side bets after 50 rounds have been played from the shoe.
SA Gaming uses different Odd/Even rules and payouts. Cards are ranked from Ace = 1 through King = 13. Thus, Odd wins on A, 3, 5, 7, 9, J, or K, while Even wins on 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, or Q. Odd pays 0.75 to 1, giving it a house edge of 5.77%. Even pays 1.05 to 1, giving it a house edge of 5.38%. SA Gaming makes these side bets unavailable after 25 rounds of the shoe.
Advice
For the non-counter who must play, I would stick to the Dragon and Tiger bets since they offer the lowest house edge among the bets analyzed here. The house edge on the standard Banker and Player bets in baccarat is lower than the 3.73% house edge on Dragon or Tiger. The counter will have no trouble noticing that the Big and Small bets would be highly countable.
Practice Game
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