Blackjack Bet Behind Strategy
- What Is The Best Blackjack Strategy
- What Is Free Bet Blackjack
- Blackjack Bet Online
- How To Win Blackjack Strategy
Bet Behind is a side bet in Live Blackjack where a limitless number of players can bet behind the main seven seated players. This adds large multiplayer scalability and big winning potential. While they wait for one of the seven seats to become free, players can bet behind. The casino management - who are always very superstitious - decided I was 'unlucky' and put me on the blackjack tables. Before long I noticed that a few players seemed to frequently get a blackjack - two cards with a face value of 21 - after placing large bets.
- Appendices
- Miscellaneous
- External Links
On This Page
Introduction
Much like Red Dog, the goal is for one card to fall between two others in rank. In this case, the primary goal is the dealer's up card to fall between the player's initial two cards. As of 2019, this side bet is becoming popular, with several placements I'm aware of.
The name of this bet is rather unclear. Judging by the table felt, it would seem to be titled just 'In.' However, the AGS web site, the company that markets the game, refers to it as the 'In BETween.' So, I'm going to go with that.
Rules
The side bet is based on standard blackjack rules. The primary object is for the dealer's up card to fall between the player's two initial cards in rank. For tight spreads of three ranks or less, the pays get larger. There is also a premium win for a three of a kind. The full pay table is below. All wins are on a 'to win' basis.
In BETween — Pay Table
| Event | Pays |
|---|---|
| Triple match | 30 |
| One-card spread | 10 |
| Two-card spread | 6 |
| Three-card spread | 4 |
| All other spreads | 1 |
Analysis
The following table show the probability and contribution to the return for the In BETween bet using one deck of cards. The lower right cell shows a house edge of 10.46%.
In BETween Return Table -- One Deck
| Event | Pays | Permutations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Triple match | 30 | 312 | 0.002353 | 0.070588 |
| One-card spread | 10 | 1,408 | 0.010618 | 0.106184 |
| Two-card spread | 6 | 2,560 | 0.019306 | 0.115837 |
| Three-card spread | 4 | 3,456 | 0.026063 | 0.104253 |
| All other spreads | 1 | 29,184 | 0.220090 | 0.220090 |
| Loss | -1 | 95,680 | 0.721569 | -0.721569 |
| Total | 132,600 | 1.000000 | -0.104615 |
The following table show the probability and contribution to the return for the In BETween bet using two decks of cards. The lower right cell shows a house edge of 7.76%.
In BETween Return Table -- Two Decks
| Event | Pays | Permutations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Triple match | 30 | 4,368 | 0.003998 | 0.119931 |
| One-card spread | 10 | 11,264 | 0.010309 | 0.103091 |
| Two-card spread | 6 | 20,480 | 0.018744 | 0.112463 |
| Three-card spread | 4 | 27,648 | 0.025304 | 0.101217 |
| All other spreads | 1 | 233,472 | 0.213680 | 0.213680 |
| Loss | -1 | 795,392 | 0.727965 | -0.727965 |
| Total | 1,092,624 | 1.000000 | -0.077582 |
The following table show the probability and contribution to the return for the In BETween bet using four decks of cards. The lower right cell shows a house edge of 6.04%.
In BETween Return Table -- Four Decks
| Event | Pays | Permutations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Triple match | 30 | 43,680 | 0.004925 | 0.147742 |
| One-card spread | 10 | 90,112 | 0.010160 | 0.101597 |
| Two-card spread | 6 | 163,840 | 0.018472 | 0.110833 |
| Three-card spread | 4 | 221,184 | 0.024937 | 0.099750 |
| All other spreads | 1 | 1,867,776 | 0.210583 | 0.210583 |
| Loss | -1 | 6,482,944 | 0.730923 | -0.730923 |
| Total | 8,869,536 | 1.000000 | -0.060417 |
The following table show the probability and contribution to the return for the In BETween bet using six decks of cards. The lower right cell shows a house edge of 5.42%.
In BETween Return Table -- Six Decks
| Event | Pays | Permutations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Triple match | 30 | 157,872 | 0.005248 | 0.157453 |
| One-card spread | 10 | 304,128 | 0.010111 | 0.101107 |
| Two-card spread | 6 | 552,960 | 0.018383 | 0.110298 |
| Three-card spread | 4 | 746,496 | 0.024817 | 0.099268 |
| All other spreads | 1 | 6,303,744 | 0.209567 | 0.209567 |
| Loss | -1 | 22,014,720 | 0.731874 | -0.731874 |
| Total | 30,079,920 | 1.000000 | -0.054182 |
The following table show the probability and contribution to the return for the In BETween bet using eight decks of cards. The lower right cell shows a house edge of 5.10%.
What Is The Best Blackjack Strategy
In BETween Return Table -- Eight Decks
| Event | Pays | Permutations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Triple match | 30 | 386,880 | 0.005413 | 0.162389 |
| One-card spread | 10 | 720,896 | 0.010086 | 0.100863 |
| Two-card spread | 6 | 1,310,720 | 0.018339 | 0.110032 |
| Three-card spread | 4 | 1,769,472 | 0.024757 | 0.099029 |
| All other spreads | 1 | 14,942,208 | 0.209061 | 0.209061 |
| Loss | -1 | 52,342,784 | 0.732344 | -0.732344 |
| Total | 71,472,960 | 1.000000 | -0.050970 |
The following table summarizes the house edge by number of decks.
House Edge Summary
External Links
What Is Free Bet Blackjack
Discussion about the In BETween bet in my forum at Wizard of Vegas.
Written by:Michael Shackleford
- Appendices
- Miscellaneous
- External Links
Introduction
It is generally allowed to bet behind another player in blackjack. This is done by placing a bet behind that of the player with control of the hand. You see this often in crowded casinos, but it can happen anywhere. It is especially common on Macau.
Blackjack Bet Online
When this happens, and the player in control splits, the back-player has the choice to match his original bet and play out both hands, or keep only his original wager on the table and play it out on the first of the split hands. This is a valuable option to have, as this appendix will show.
The first table below shows the number of hands the back-player should choose to play. This is based on infinite decks, and is the same regardless of whether the dealer hits or stands on a soft 17. It does assume that double after a split is allowed. It also includes obviously bad splits, which are included for the sake of completeness, rather than to imply that the player in control should split. The table also assumes that the front-player will keep resplitting, even if it is a bad play.
With a selfish player in control, splitting only when it is in his best interest, following the back-splitting strategy above will lower the house edge against the back-player by 0.08%.
The next table shall refer to an unselfish player, who will split or not split according to the benefit of the back-player. This could happen if the two players are in collusion, and the back bet is significantly larger than that of the acting player. The table shows when the acting player should split, assuming double after split is allowed and an infinite number of decks. It does not matter whether the dealer hits or stands on a soft 17.
Following this strategy the house edge of the back-player is reduced by 0.20%. Combining the benefit of both players, some kind of hybrid splitting strategy would be in order, according to the ratio of the back back to the front bet. This is an area for future addition to this page.
This topic is also addressed in chapter 6 of Basic Blackjack by Stanford Wong.
How To Win Blackjack Strategy
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Written by: Michael Shackleford