Blackjack 3x7 bonus.

Hi all,

I'm still figuring out the search function of this forum, so please don't be angry if this has been asked and answered before.

I have encountered a game where you get a free bonus if you get 3 7s (of any different suit). Once you hit the third seven they pay out 3x your bet, and if you win the hand (dealer no BJ or 21) you get paid a fourth time.

Would this affect the strategy? If so, how? You would be less inclined to surrender against 10 or to split them up if 1 in 13 you hit a 3 or 4x payout.

Game rules: 6 decks shoe, no hole card, s17, surrender.

Quote: Lonestarr777

Hi all,

I'm still figuring out the search function of this forum, so please don't be angry if this has been asked and answered before.

I have encountered a game where you get a free bonus if you get 3 7s (of any different suit). Once you hit the third seven they pay out 3x your bet, and if you win the hand (dealer no BJ or 21) you get paid a fourth time.

Would this affect the strategy? If so, how? You would be less inclined to surrender against 10 or to split them up if 1 in 13 you hit a 3 or 4x payout.

Game rules: 6 decks shoe, no hole card, s17, surrender.
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Sounds like Spanish 21, strategy and more info here: https://wizardofodds.com/games/spanish-21/

Back in the 1990's there was a video Blackjack game at Sams Town that paid a small progressive on hitting three sevens. I don't know how long it was there before I found it but there was a bug that if you hit three sevens (single deck) it paid the progressive but it mistakenly would pay it even if you busted. It only lasted about a week after I found it. It was a $1 denom bet but the progressive started at $50. That definitely changed the strategy.

Quote: Lonestarr777

Hi all,

I'm still figuring out the search function of this forum, so please don't be angry if this has been asked and answered before.

I have encountered a game where you get a free bonus if you get 3 7s (of any different suit). Once you hit the third seven they pay out 3x your bet, and if you win the hand (dealer no BJ or 21) you get paid a fourth time.

Would this affect the strategy? If so, how? You would be less inclined to surrender against 10 or to split them up if 1 in 13 you hit a 3 or 4x payout.

Game rules: 6 decks shoe, no hole card, s17, surrender.
link to original post

I'd have to do some math on that to give a definitive answer, but I'm pretty sure it would change the strategy. Being it would be extraordinarily unlikely to have a situation where you stand on 77, it would probably change the marginal splits of split 77 vs. 7 and 77 vs. 2 to hits.

That's assuming you only get the bonus for 7-7-7. Your description of the game leaves room for busting on the 3rd 7. (e.g., you get 7-7-2-7 vs. dealer 10.)

No no no, it needs to be 7-7-7, 21. And there's no extra bet required, it's just an extra bonus.

I don't think Spanish 21 strategy would be any good, since that has several cards removed from each deck before you start.

Thanks for the help!

Double post

Quote: Lonestarr777

No no no, it needs to be 7-7-7, 21. And there's no extra bet required, it's just an extra bonus.

I don't think Spanish 21 strategy would be any good, since that has several cards removed from each deck before you start.

Thanks for the help!
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OK. I see your game has surrender, so that's another play it would affect, surrender 77 vs. 9-A. In a shoe game there is not much difference between surrendering 77 and any other 14. But that's assuming you are counting and you didn't say anything about counting.

So it's just those plays that would change, surrender and a couple of split plays.

Instinct tells me (and this is JUST instinct, I didn't do a bit of work on this) that the surrender plays would move to the play index for 13 rather than 14, you would always hit rather than split 77 vs. 7, and you would hit rather than split 77 vs. 2 except at high counts.

Quote: Lonestarr777

Hi all,

I'm still figuring out the search function of this forum, so please don't be angry if this has been asked and answered before.

I have encountered a game where you get a free bonus if you get 3 7s (of any different suit). Once you hit the third seven they pay out 3x your bet, and if you win the hand (dealer no BJ or 21) you get paid a fourth time.

Would this affect the strategy? If so, how? You would be less inclined to surrender against 10 or to split them up if 1 in 13 you hit a 3 or 4x payout.

Game rules: 6 decks shoe, no hole card, s17, surrender.
link to original post

The answers you seek are given in Table 96 of Wong's seminal work Professional Blackjack.

Dog Hand

I always have the impression that Wong’s strategy tables do not include the double-down-after-split (DAS) rule. If DAS is allowed, the split/hit deviation indices will be a lot different. In Spanish 21, you only hit (7,7) vs. 7 only when you have a lower bet amount.