There are a few odd things about side bets in blackjack. The first is that they’re not always in the player’s favor.
For example, if a player bets $10 that the next card will be an Ace, the dealer has a 6-5 chance of giving her that card, which means the player would lose $6 if she was correct. However, if the player bets $5 that the next card will be a two, the dealer has a 2-1 chance of giving her that card, meaning she would win $7.
The second odd thing about side bets is that they can sometimes make more money for the player than any other bet. For example, if a player bets $10 that the next card will be an Ace and the dealer gives her that card, she has won $15 and the bet has turned into a lay bet (meaning she doesn’t have to put any money down).
However, if she bets $5 that the next card will be a two and the dealer also gives her that card, she has won $7 and the bet has turned into an odds bet (meaning she has to put down at least 1/2 of her bet). In both cases, her total winnings are $20 ($15 plus $7).
