Lesson description
5-Card Charlie: is it a rule, a side bet, or a player with surplus cards? Mr Blackjack explores the history, payouts, and gameplay behind the 5-Card Charlie side bet.
5/6/7 card Charlie is a very old table rule, and sometimes played as a side bet. Lesson 4, 5/6/7 card Charlie. It started off as a table rule where if you got five cards without going over 21, you would automatically win. It was quickly removed from casinos though as it lowered the house edge by 1.5%, and instead introduced as a side bet.
This bet is one when you make any hand under 21 with a combination of five cards for five card Charlie, six four six card Charlie, and seven cards under 21 for seven card Charlie. You usually make this hand by drawing a combination of Aces and low cards that get the highest number of cards without going over 21. If you're playing this side bet, it may be advantageous for you to make a bad math decision in order to get a six or seven card Charlie and get a 30 to one payout. Or if you have a total of 13 on a dealer's six, you may want to make a basic strategy no-no to have a chance at that 30 to one payout and hit that 13 against the dealer six.
The odds of getting lower than an eight are better than the odds of getting higher than an eight in this situation. As a side bet, it'll typically pay out five to one for five card Charlie, 10 to one for six card Charlie, and 30 to one for a seven card Charlie. Keep in mind that you will see five cards under 21 every 30 minutes or so, six cards under 21 every hour, and 7 cards under 21 maybe once every three to four-hour session.
If you want to make this bet, online blackjack games will give you the option to wager on it when the opportunity arises in the game. Like I said earlier, not all casinos offer this wager. Based on the math, the house always has the advantage with the side bets. It's up to you if you want to gamble.
