Four Las Vegas casinos deal table games with forced side bets. All are in downtown Las Vegas at the intersection of Fremont Street and Casino Center Blvd.
Mandatory side bet games started at blackjack in 2019. In recent years, poker pit games joined the list. The house edge for these games is as high as 12.28%, based on Vegas Advantage’s calculations of the forced Bonus Spin side bet holding approximately 23%.
These are not typical side bets that reward top hands. All are based on the Bonus Spin side bet. Players spin the wheel when a certain hand is dealt. It is a player blackjack in 21 games. In Texas hold’em games, it is a dealt pocket pair. In High Card Flush and Pai Gow Poker, it is tied to flushes.
When a qualifying hand is dealt, the player spins the virtual weighted wheel. A random number generator determines which prize is selected.
The house edges listed below assume the minimum bet is placed. The hold percentage decreases on larger bets.
Golden Nugget
Golden Nugget was the first Las Vegas casino to deal table games with mandatory side bets. It started with Lucky Cat Blackjack in 2019. It has the highest house edge among Las Vegas blackjack games. Today, Golden Nugget deals four mandatory side bet games. The worst holds 12.28% at the minimum bet.
High Card Flush – 12.28%
High Card Flush is usually a decent table game for players. It holds 1.54% when accounting for raises, according to Wizard of Odds. The slow game speed and the chance for large payouts usually make it a reasonable choice for players.
Golden Nugget has a $5 minimum bet for the main game. The side bet is also $5, which allows players to spin the virtual wheel when the dealer plays a three-card nine-high flush.
The game holds $0.077 from the $5 flat bet and $1.15 from the Bonus Spin side bet, based on our 23% house edge calculation. The hold is $1.227, making the house edge 12.28%. Big wheel is the only table game with a worse house edge in a table game pit.
Lucky Cat Blackjack – 8.95%
This game pays 6:5 and has an odd rule that the dealer shakes four dice when their hand makes 22. Each die has a “Lucky Cat” on one side and is blank on the other five. This determines the payout, resulting in a push nearly half the time and paying up to 50/1 if all four “Lucky Cats” appear.
The minimum main bet is $5, which holds $0.167 at the 3.33% house edge. The mandatory Bonus Spin side bet is $2. The house holds approximately $0.46 of that. This game holds 8.95% at the minimum bet.
Face Up Pai Gow Poker – 6.05%
Face Up Pai Gow Poker also requires a $5 Bonus Spin side bet. The minimum bet for the main game was $20 during our last Golden Nugget visit. The house edge is 1.81%. The main bet holds $0.362, while the side bet holds $1.15. This totals $1.512 on a $25 bet, for a house edge of 6.05%.
6:5 Bonus Spin Blackjack – 5.5% or 8%
All traditional 6:5 blackjack tables at Golden Nugget require a $2 Bonus Spin side bet. That is in addition to the $10 main bet. The $2 side bet holds about $0.46, while the flat bet holds $0.20. The $0.66 total is 5.5%. When the Lucky Cat tables are closed, the minimum on these games may be $5+2. That holds $0.56 on a $7 bet, making the house edge 8%.
Binion’s
Binion’s has three games that require the Bonus Spin side bet. One is 6:5 blackjack. The others are Three Card Poker and Xtreme Hold’em, an Ultimate Texas Hold’em clone.
6:5 Blackjack – 4.18% or 5.5%
The 6:5 blackjack game is identical to the traditional one with the $2 side bet, except only $1 is required. The minimum bet is usually $6 or $11. When $6, the main bet holds $0.10. The $11 game holds $0.20 on the main bet. The $1 Bonus Spin side bet is an estimated $0.23 for both instances. This results in a house edge of 5.5% on the $6 game and 4.18% on the $11 game.
Three Card Poker – 5.5%
Three Card Poker has a $6 minimum bet. That is $5 for the main and $1 on the Bonus Spin side bet. The $5 bet holds $0.10 when accounting for raises. The side bet holds $0.23. That totals $0.33, making the house edge 5.5%.
Xtreme Hold’em – 4.32%
Xtreme Hold’em is an Ultimate Texas Hold’em clone. It also has a $5+1 minimum bet. The main bet holds $0.029 with perfect play. The side bet has the same $0.23 house edge as the others. The casino’s advantage is 4.32% at the minimum bet.
Four Queens
Four Queens deals three mandatory side bet games. One is 6:5 blackjack. The others are Take 2 Back (Let It Ride clone) and Three Card Poker.
6:5 Blackjack – 4.18%
Four Queens has the same 6:5 blackjack game with a required Bonus Spin side bet. The minimum is usually $11, making the house edge 4.18% at that level.
Three Card Poker – 5.5%
Four Queens also has the same $6 Three Card Poker game as Binion’s. The house edge is 5.5% at the minimum bet.
Take 2 Back (Let It Ride) – 6.22%
Take 2 Back is usually $6, including the forced $1 side bet. The main bet holds $0.143 when accounting for the average number of bets made. The side bet holds $0.23. The house edge is 6.22% at the minimum bet with perfect play.
Fremont
Fremont has the 6:5 blackjack game found at Binion’s and Four Queens. The minimum bet is $11, including the mandatory $1 Bonus Spin side bet. At that amount, the house edge is 4.18%.
Each casino offers a good alternative to these games
Golden Nugget offers a variety of $5 poker pit games that do not require a side bet, including Let It Ride, Three Card Poker, and Ultimate Texas Hold’em. Choosing the $25 3:2 blackjack game in the back of the pit lowers the expected loss per hand to about $0.16, as opposed to about $0.56 on the $7 Lucky Cat game.
At Binion’s and Four Queens, choose the Blackjack Switch games or the standard 6:5 tables for a much better return. Four Queens also deals 3:2 Double Up Blackjack, the best variant in the market. Fremont deals $15 and $25 3:2 double-deck blackjack. All these casinos offer craps games where the house edge is well below 1% when making line bets and taking maximum odds.
Bonus Spin calculation disclosure
Vegas Advantage first calculated the mandatory Bonus Spin side bet’s house edge at 23% in 2019. A second version is now available for certain games. Since wheel bonuses are typically programmed to hold the same, Vegas Advantage assumed that these games match the original calculation, which has not been disputed since we first published our numbers in 2019.
The High Card Flush and Pai Gow Poker house edge estimations were first published in January 2025 and have not been disputed. Vegas Advantage welcomes any additional information to help calculate the exact payout.
