Triple Shot

Last update: June 13, 2004

Introduction

Triple shot is a new table game I noticed at Harrah's in Las Vegas. It it three games in one. The player may play War, Blackjack, Poker, or any combination of these games. The three bets are independent so the player may bet any amount on each one, subject to table limits. The game is played with a single deck. The player's and dealer's first card determine the outcome of the War bet. Then the player gets another card and plays out his Blackjack hand. Then more cards are dealt to the player to complete a 6-card Poker hand. Finally the dealer plays out is Blackjack hand, settles the Blackjack wagers, and then then pays players according to the value of their 6-card poker hand. Following are the specific rules of each game.

War

Player and dealer each get one card, high card wins. In the event of a tie the player loses half his bet (no, you can't go to war). The following return table shows the house edge is 2.94%.

Triple Shot - War
Event	Probability	Pays	Return
Win	0.470588	1	0.470588
Loss	0.470588	-1	-0.470588
Tie	0.058824	-0.5	-0.029412

Blackjack

The player will get a second card to play out his blackjack hand. The blackjack rules are:

One deck
Dealer hits soft 17
Player may double on any first two cards
Blackjack pays 3 to 2
Player may only split aces
One card only to split aces, no resplitting
Six cards automatically wins (6-card Charlie)

Before considering the splitting and 6-card Charlie rule the house edge is 0.18%. The restriction on splitting adds 0.35%. In a 6-deck game the 6-card Charlie rule is worth 0.16% but in a single-deck game it less valuable and only gives the player 0.08%. So the overall house edge is 0.45%.

Poker

There are two pay tables that I know. The following tables show the probability of each hand and the contribution to the total return. Overall the house edge is 3.20% or 5.78%, according to which pay table is used.

Triple Shot - Poker - Pay Table 1
Event	Probability	Pays	Return
Royal flush	0.000009	100 to 1	0.000923
Straight flush	0.000081	30 to 1	0.00244
Four of a kind	0.00072	15 to 1	0.010804
Full house	0.008153	7 to 1	0.057071
Flush	0.010108	5 to 1	0.050542
Straight	0.017763	4 to 1	0.07105
Three of a kind	0.035963	3 to 1	0.10789
Two pair	0.124411	2 to 1	0.248821
Queens or better	0.11064	1 to 1	0.11064
Nothing	0.692151	-1 to 1	-0.692151
Total	1	0	-0.031968

Triple Shot - Poker - Pay Table 2
Event	Probability	Pays	Return
Royal flush	0.000009	200 to 1	0.001847
Straight flush	0.000081	60 to 1	0.004881
Four of a kind	0.00072	20 to 1	0.014406
Full house	0.008153	6 to 1	0.048918
Flush	0.010108	5 to 1	0.050542
Straight	0.017763	4 to 1	0.07105
Three of a kind	0.035963	2 to 1	0.071927
Two pair	0.124411	1.5 to 1	0.186616
Jacks or better	0.147396	1 to 1	0.147396
Nothing	0.655396	-1 to 1	-0.655396
Total	1	0	-0.057814

There is also a similar game called Three Way Action.

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