Vegas Advantage visited Green Valley Ranch in February 2025 as part of our normal casino survey route. We discovered a handful of tables in the last pit to open with mixed blackjack payouts. These pay 3/2 on bets of $25 and higher and 6/5 on smaller bets. These tables use six decks and permit surrender. The dealer hits soft 17.
The reaction was mixed when this was posted on X, formerly Twitter. While this would have been a poor idea last decade, Vegas Advantage thinks this is a smart move in this environment for several reasons.
These tables are only open during peak hours, mostly on weekend nights. This is the most difficult time of the week to schedule dealers because of the high demand. While Las Vegas unemployment is among the highest in the country, many casinos scramble to staff table game pits, especially during peak hours. This is one of several reasons smaller casinos have removed pits in recent years.
Offering hybrid payouts allows the casino to merge two different tables into one. Instead of having a low-limit and higher-limit table with two or three players, the house now has one full table. This cuts down on labor and other costs.
The minimum bet on these tables is usually $15 but may drop to $10. The house holds about the same on a $10 6/5 bet as a $25 3/2 one, allowing the house to offer two different types of action to players.
Friends and couples may disagree on a table to play. This is often caused by different comfort with betting limits. Green Valley Ranch solves this problem by allowing two types of players to sit at the same table.
Green Valley Ranch already had 6/5 tables
Some social media commenters suggested that Green Valley Ranch made a negative move by paying 6/5 on bets under $25 at select tables. Green Valley Ranch has a few tables where all bets receive 6/5. However, most are 3/2 payouts. Offering hybrid payouts is much better for the player than having all 6/5 payouts on peak-hour tables.
Electronic table games are the only other answer
As the labor cost and availability related to dealers became bigger problems for casinos, electronic table games took over parts of pits. Green Valley Ranch was no different. It has 6/5 heads-up blackjack machines near the craps tables. Green Valley Ranch tried a large stadium near the same area where the split payout blackjack tables are now. That lasted about a year.
While stadiums work at some Las Vegas Strip casinos, the downtown and locals markets have not embraced them. All Station Casinos properties removed Interblock stadiums that offered games like blackjack, craps, and roulette. Most other locals casinos and every downtown property that tried stadiums, except Plaza, did the same. Dynasty baccarat stadiums are still found at Durango and Palace Station.
This isn’t a new concept
Several examples of different payouts based on limits exist in Las Vegas. Downtown Grand offers $1 blackjack. Bets up to $4 pay even money on blackjack. The $5 and higher bets on the same table pay 6/5, rounded to the lowest dollar. In other words, the extra $1 is only paid in $5 bet increments.
California, Fremont, and Main Street Station had $3 6/5 tables until March 2020. However, the $3 and $4 bets paid even money. Like Downtown Grand, the bonus was paid on bets in $5 increments as coins were not used.
Craps has several similar situations
Some craps tables have a Big 6 and Big 8 bet on the felt. This is the same as placing the 6 or 8. The Big 6 and Big 8 pay even money and have a house advantage of 9.09%. This betting spot is meant for wagers of $5 and lower back when tables with those limits were widely available. Placing the 6 or 8 requires at least $6 as it pays 7 for every 6 wagered. That house edge is 1.52%.
Most craps tables offer a free buy on 4 and 10 for bets $20 and higher. These pay $39 on a win for every $20 bet. Bets of $25 and $50 are a little better for players as the 5% commission is rounded down, meaning $25 pays $49 and $50 pays $98. Placing a 4 or 10 pays $9 for every $5 bet. The house edge on buying the 4 and 10 when the commission is only paid on a win is 1.67% for $20 increments and a little lower if odd bets get rounded down. Placing the 4 and 10 holds 6.67%.
Crapless craps has the same 4 and 10 scenarios. It also offers buys and place bets on 2, 3, 11, and 12. Most casinos give free buys on these numbers on bets of $20 and higher. When bet in $20 increments, the 2 and 12 pay $119 and hold 0.71% and a bit less if you can get commission rounded down on $25 and $50 bets. The place bet on smaller wagers pays 11/2 and holds 7.14%.
On 3 and 11, buys in $20 increments pay $59 and hold 1.25%. Placing 3 and 11 for lower amounts pays 11/4 and has a house advantage of 6.25%.
It is not the last time we will see new split payouts
As table game pits shrink, more ideas like this will likely hit the market. There may be more split blackjack payouts for different bet sizes. Another possibility is pushing or returning half of larger bets when the pill lands in 000. Whatever it is, casino managers and game creators are looking for solutions to the high cost of offering live table games.
