Can "Let It Ride" Poker be 'Broken' ?

The Game Room
1

Let me state at first that I don’t believe in gambling systems in general. Ideas such as the martingale and others immediately flag “Does not work!” for me.

However, I decided to let this recent idea lose on the Dope and see what discussion it can generate.

Let It Ride poker is one of the more exotic games offered at casinos, but captivates players due to the fact that you can take back 66% of your original bet. Full rules can be found here:

A pair of 10s or better pays 1:1 [This is the lowest payout offered, better hands pay off more]

My question combines a system and basic math.

In short, what is wrong with the following?

Start play with a $1 dollar bet (3 dollars total)

If you didnt win, double the bet (6 dollars total)

Now, I’m working on if you should do it a third, and fourth time.

At the end of the third or fourth, you must start over with a $1 dollar (3 Total) bet.
You must also start over after you win any hand.

Now, given that the lowest win is 1:1, wouldn’t that synergize with the fact that 3 dollars is 2 plus 1 dollars, and if the game was gauranteed to win 33% of the time, you would break even.

I read that on average, you will lose 75% of all let it ride hands. (This factors into my deciding if you need a 4th round of betting, at 12 bucks total.)

Anyway, I’m fairly sure that this will not work 100% of the time. However, I am asking for comments on how close to ‘breaking’ Let It Ride that this gets.

How far off base am I here?

2

Sounds like a Martingale with a self-imposed limit.

3

While it’s interesting to look at the maths, any casino gambling game will give the House a clear edge.
Las Vegas is founded on this policy - bring millions of visitors annually and you make enough money to pay for staff, heating, lighting, taxes, maintenance and still make a massive profit. (Every few years, they spend millions putting up a new hotel!)

From your link:

'The House Edge for the basic game is approx. 3.5% when you play the correct strategy.

There is an extra side bet you can make for a dollar when playing Let It Ride.
…
The House Edge ranges from 15 to 30 % on these bets.’

So if you play the basic game perfectly, you lose $3.50 for every $100 wagered.

4

That, with the house’s natural advantage, is all the casino needs to rake in the dough.

If anything were anywhere close to “breaking” the game, the casino would never have let it in the door in the first place.

(Too bad they didn’t do that for Casino War, the most awesomely stupid table game I’ve ever seen in my life.)