A fresh side bet option for baccarat table play introduced to the Macau market – known as ‘Small 6/Big 6’ – can currently be seen at the mass and high-limit areas of casino properties operated by MGM China Holdings Ltd and Wynn Macau Ltd, based on GGRAsia’s site checks on Tuesday and Wednesday.
The bet option offers attractive payout to winning customers but is likely to boost house edge overall, say investment analysts and a gaming research specialist.
Small 6/Big 6 pays 22 to 1, if the winning ‘banker’ hand with a face value of six is composed of two cards. The side bet pays 50 to 1 for a winning ‘banker’ hand with a face value of six, composed of three cards.
In early May, when GGRAsia walked Macau casino floors to observe customer traffic during mainland China’s five-day May holiday break, Small 6/Big 6 was available at Sands Macao Ltd and Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd casinos, but there was no obvious sign of it being used at that stage either at MGM Macau or MGM Cotai; nor at Wynn Macau downtown, or Wynn Palace in the Cotai district.
In MGM China properties, based on Tuesday and Wednesday’s observations, the same side bet is currently being presented on table baizes with a tiger head illustration. In the Singapore casino market, the bet is being referred to as ‘Small Tiger/Big Tiger’, according to a document lodged online by that city-state’s Gambling Regulatory Authority.
Citigroup said in a recent note on the Macau market it believed this side bet option could help enhance operator hold rates.
Ryan Ho, a gaming research specialist, separately told GGRAsia: “Statistically, the Small Tiger side bet exhibits a house edge of 14.33 percent, while the Big Tiger side bet demonstrates a slightly higher house edge of 15.25 percent.”
The average monthly statewide hold percentage – another indicator of house performance – for baccarat in Nevada in the United States, for a period from 2004 up to this year, was 12.73 percent. That is according to an April paper from the University of Nevada Las Vegas Center for Gaming Research.
Research specialist Ryan Ho mentioned to GGRAsia, referring to another popular side bet offered for baccarat: “For the Lucky Six bet in Macau, the edge is around 16.68 percent.”
He noted: “In practice, it is often observed that the hold surpasses the theoretical edge, and this can vary depending on the popularity of the betting options among players.”
Mr Ho further observed: “Based on my discussions with frontline operations [staff], it appears that players are being drawn to the perceived advantages of these bet options, particularly due to the attractive payouts and the option to hedge their ‘player’ bets by placing wagers on ‘Tiger’ bets. These factors contribute to the appeal and popularity of these betting options among players.”
In the high-limit baccarat play area of MGM Macau – all equipped with ‘smart’ gaming tables – the Small 6/Big 6 option was available across all tables, according to GGRAsia’s observations on Tuesday and Wednesday.
In a number of MGM Cotai’s mass and high-limit baccarat tables – also all being smart tables – that side bet option was also available.
The Encore Casino at Wynn Macau – a high-limit baccarat play zone – was observed on Tuesday as offering the ‘Small 6/Big 6’ option across its baccarat table inventory. Its sister property in Cotai, Wynn Palace, also had that side bet option across its high-limit baccarat zone, the Diamond Club.
