Did you know that you can play blackjack with a $1 minimum bet on the Las Vegas Strip? It is available 24 hours a day and spread on as many as four tables. The chance to play $1 blackjack on the Strip is coming to an end though. That is because the game is spread at Riviera, which is closing on May 4. It will be imploded and replaced by an expansion of the Las Vegas Convention Center.
While Riviera is scheduled to close at noon on May 4, employees have been told to expect the table games to be shuttered by 9am.
There is always at least one $1 blackjack table running at Riviera. There are four tables set aside for the game. Blackjack only pays even money on wagers under $5 at these tables. An extra dollar is paid for every increment of $5 wagered, making it a 6-5 game that rounds down. Players can double down after splitting but cannot surrender or re-split aces. Pairs may be split into four hands. The dealer hits soft 17. The game uses eight decks.
The house edge on this game is an atrocious 2.92%. We would normally not recommend playing such a terrible blackjack game that equals about three pennies per dollar, per hand. That edge per hand is equal to playing a standard 3-2 game on a $5 bet. Assuming 70 hands per hour, the theoretical loss would only be about $2 per hour. That is what makes it a decent deal.
This game is perfect for low rollers that are looking to enjoy a table game experience for a small buy-in. The drink service at Riviera is exceptional. It will be easy to out drink the house edge on the game. It is also a great way to see a classic property for the last time before it is lost from Las Vegas forever. You may not want to wait until the weekend though as the big Mayweather-Pacquiao fight is this weekend and the Las Vegas Strip will be chaos. Riviera is sold out and got five times its normal rate for the weekend on many rooms.
Riviera may have gotten the idea for this $1 blackjack game from Sahara. Sahara closed in May 2011 and spread $1 blackjack with the same rules for the last few years of its life. Considering Riviera did the same thing, one has to wonder if spreading $1 blackjack is a signal that a casino is in the last years of its life.
