It is common knowledge that the casino has the house edge in every one of their games. That means on average they will end up in profit.
However, many gamblers have made a living and a fortune from their casino winnings. Some of them have done it using strategies such as the Martingale System.
This system dates back to 18th century France, but the fact that it is still deployed today suggests that it has helped many punters make some serious dough.
Using the Martingale System requires even money bets. It is most commonly used in casinos though can also be used in sports betting too where there are two outcomes.
Here are four popular casino games that offer even money, or near even money bets:
Blackjack
Your starting bet in Blackjack is even money. You can actually double your bet by splitting your cards if you get a double, whilst a Blackjack in two cards pays out a stake and a half.
Blackjack is another common casino game played by those using betting strategies that require even money bets in their theory to make profit.
You can save yourself travel expenses by playing blackjack online instead of at a land-based casino in the nearest city. The game is becoming more and more popular online year after year. An example of an online casino that offers blackjack is: https://casino.betfair.com/c/blackjack.
Roulette
The roulette table offers a number of even money bets. You can double your money by betting on black or red, odds or evens, or a straight: covering numbers 1-18 or 19-36 with one chip.
Though it’s worth noting, that whilst these bets all pay 1 to 1, the chance isn’t 50/50. As European Roulette has a 0 slot and American Roulette has both a 0 and 00 it means your odds are slightly below 50%.
The house edge with one zero is 2.7% and two zeroes give the house a 5.26% advantage.
Baccarat
This easy to play casino table game allows you to place a bet on the banker, the player, or on a tie. Wagers on the banker and the player are close to even money bets, but when the two tie you lose. However, the tie and the commission you pay on winning banker bets make baccarat wagers not true even money bets.
The house edge on a banker bet in baccarat is 1.06%. On the player it is 1.24% and the tie bet is over 10%. Therefore, you are advised to ignore the latter option.
Craps
A popular game that is found in most land-based casinos and most online, Craps actually offers a true even money bet. However, it comes with a catch.
In order to get an even money bet you’re forced to make a bet that is not even money. Therefore, creating an edge for the casino.
The ‘don’t pass’ bet in Craps gives the house an edge of around 1.35% whilst the ‘pass’ bet raises the house edge to around 1.4%.
Once the pass line wager has been resolved you then get the opportunity to place your even money bet. Some casinos will accept up to 100x your stage from your previous pass line bet on this wager.