The Royal Match Side Bet, more commonly found in a land-based casino will pay you 5:2 if you have two suited cards and 25:1 if you have a suited King. The Royal Match is a side bet in blackjack that is based on the first two cards dealt to the player. The rules of this side bet are quite simple, David. If the player's first two cards are suited, such as a queen and five of hearts, the player is paid 5 to 2. If the player has a royal match (a suited king and queen), the bet pays 25 to 1.
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Introduction
The royal match is a simple bet that pays a bonus if the first two cards are suited (an easy match) and a top bonus for a suited king and queen (a royal match). Below are probability tables for various versions I have seen through the years.
Royal Match — Version 1 — Six Decks
| Event | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Royal match | 25 | 144 | 0.002968 | 0.074202 |
| Easy match | 2.5 | 11,868 | 0.244620 | 0.611551 |
| No match | -1 | 36,504 | 0.752412 | -0.752412 |
| Total | 48,516 | 1.000000 | -0.066658 |
Royal Match — Version 2 — One Deck
| Event | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Royal match | 10 | 4 | 0.003017 | 0.030166 |
| Easy match | 3 | 308 | 0.232278 | 0.696833 |
| No match | -1 | 1,014 | 0.764706 | -0.764706 |
| Total | 1,326 | 1.000000 | -0.037707 |
The following table displays the house edge for each version given the number of decks used.
Royal Match House Edge
| Number of Decks | Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0.108597 | 0.037707 |
| 2 | 0.083271 | 0.008215 |
| 4 | 0.070792 | -0.006317 |
| 6 | 0.066658 | -0.011130 |
| 8 | 0.064597 | -0.013531 |
The probabilities for the royal match are easy to derive.Lets use n for the number of decks of cards. The number of two card combinations is combin(52×n,2). The number of ways to make a royal match is 4*n2. This is because there are 4 suits and n ways to choose the queen and n ways to choose the king. The number of ways to make an easy match is 4×(combin(13×n,2)-n2). The 4 is the number of suits and combin(13×n,2) is the number of ways to arrange 2cards from a given suit. You must also subtract the number of ways to make a royal match.
The probability of an easy match is 4×(combin(13×n,2)-n2)/combin(52×n,2).
The probability of a royal match is 4×n2/combin(52×n,2).
Royal Match - Version 3
In a third version there is a separate pay for a suited blackjack as follows.
- Royal Match pays 25 to 1
- Suited Blackjack pays 5 to 1
- Easy Match pays 5 to 2
The following table shows the expected value for a 6-deck game is -3.70%.
Royal Match Version 3- Six Decks
| Hand | Combinations | Probability | Pays | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Royal match | 144 | 0.002968 | 25 | 0.074202 |
| Suited blackjack | 576 | 0.011872 | 5 | 0.059362 |
| All other matches | 11292 | 0.232748 | 2.5 | 0.58187 |
| Loss | 36504 | 0.752412 | -1 | -0.752412 |
| Total | 48516 | 1 | -0.036977 |
The next table shows the house edge for various number of decks for version 3.
Royal Match Version 3- 1 to 8 Decks
| Decks | House Edge |
|---|---|
| 1 | 7.84% |
| 2 | 5.34% |
| 3 | 4.52% |
| 4 | 4.11% |
| 5 | 3.86% |
| 6 | 3.70% |
| 7 | 3.58% |
| 8 | 3.49% |
Royal Match - Version 4
The Shufflemaster TMS 300 is an electronic blackjack game, played facing a giant video screen of a dealer. It features a Royal Match side bet, adding a pay for the player and dealer both having a royal match. Following is the return table for six decks.
Royal Match — Version 4 — Six Decks
| Event | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player and Dealer Royal Match | 1000 | 19152 | 0.000008 | 0.008242 |
| Player royal match | 25 | 6877728 | 0.00296 | 0.073996 |
| Suited | 2.5 | 568417860 | 0.24462 | 0.611551 |
| Loser | -1 | 1748359080 | 0.752412 | -0.752412 |
| Total | 2323673820 | 1 | -0.058622 |
The next table shows the house edge by number of decks.
Royal Match — Version 4 — 1-8 Decks
| Number of Decks | House Edge |
|---|---|
| 1 | 10.14% |
| 2 | 7.59% |
| 3 | 6.73% |
| 4 | 6.3% |
| 5 | 6.04% |
| 6 | 5.86% |
| 7 | 5.74% |
| 8 | 5.64% |
Royal Match — Version 5
Version 5 of the Royal Match is a progressive jackpot on ShuffleMaster TableMax units. These are the electronic blackjack games with a big screen, usually showing a pretty and very buxom dealer.
In this version, the side bet is always $1. It pays a progressive jackpot for a 'Crown Treasure,' which is both the dealer and player having a Royal Match. Smaller pays are $60 for a player only royal match, and $10 for a player straight flush, which I assume means the player's first two cards are suited and consecutive, including A-2.
There is also a $500 envy bonus, which pays if you make the side bet, and another player gets a Crown Treasure. The other player does not have to make the side bet for other players to qualify for the Envy Bonus.
The following table shows a hypothetical return table, for six decks, a $10,000 jackpot, and no other players.
Six-Deck Progressive Royal Match — $10,000 Jackpot and No Other Players
Blackjack Royal Match Side Bet Poker
| Event | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crown Treasure | $10,000 | 19,152.00 | 0.000008 | 0.082421 |
| Royal Match | $60 | 6,877,728.00 | 0.002960 | 0.177591 |
| Straight Flush | $10 | 82,762,560.00 | 0.035617 | 0.356171 |
| Loser | $0 | 2,234,014,380.00 | 0.961415 | 0.000000 |
| Total | 2,323,673,820.00 | 1.000000 | 0.616183 |
The general formula for the return in a six-deck game is 0.533762 + 0.082421×j + 0.004121× p, where j is the jackpot divided by $10,000, and p is the number of other players (not counting yourself).
The next table shows the breakeven points, in which the expected return is exactly 100%, given the number of other players, in a six-deck game.
Progressive Royal Match Breakeven Points
Blackjack Royal Match Side Bet Results
| Other Players | Breakeven Point |
|---|---|
| 6 | $53,567.70 |
| 5 | $54,067.70 |
| 4 | $54,567.70 |
| 3 | $55,067.70 |
| 2 | $55,567.70 |
| 1 | $56,067.70 |
| 0 | $56,567.70 |