Bust and Push BJ

[aslan]

I ran into a friend from Oceanside. CA. He told me about a game near him. You don't play against the house; instead, there is a banker. I forget how the house gets paid, but that's neither here nor there. In this game, if you bust, you still have not lost. You get to wait until the dealer's hand. If the dealer busts with more than you, then you push. If, however, the dealer busts with less than you, you lose. I tried to pin down other rules. They pay 3 to 2 on BJ, allow DD on anything, allow splitting of aces, dealer stands on soft 17, but he wasn't sure about DD after splitting. I told him the bank must have some edge in order to offer this game, but he couldn't think of anything different about this game, other than the bust/push rule, which favors the player. Is anyone here familiar with this Indian casino? What's the catch? I know they must have an advantage; my friend just wasn't player enough to understand it.

[avs21]

Originally Posted by aslan

I ran into a friend from Oceanside. CA. He told me about a game near him. You don't play against the house; instead, there is a banker. I forget how the house gets paid, but that's neither here nor there. In this game, if you bust, you still have not lost. You get to wait until the dealer's hand. If the dealer busts with more than you, then you push. If, however, the dealer busts with less than you, you lose. I tried to pin down other rules. They pay 3 to 2 on BJ, allow DD on anything, allow splitting of aces, dealer stands on soft 17, but he wasn't sure about DD after splitting. I told him the bank must have some edge in order to offer this game, but he couldn't think of anything different about this game, other than the bust/push rule, which favors the player. Is anyone here familiar with this Indian casino? What's the catch? I know they must have an advantage; my friend just wasn't player enough to understand it.

The California games that I have come across that have bankers charge an ante every hand.

[aslan]

Maybe they're using CSM's to ensure their advantage, whatever it is. How much advantage does the "bust/push or lose" rule give the player?

[Sonny]

I’ve seen a few of those games but never played one. I think the house edge is around 1-2% and the player-banked versions usually charge an ante. There is also a casino-banked version but it isn’t much better.

http://wizardofodds.com/nobust21
http://wizardofodds.com/californiablackjack

-Sonny-