San Gong

Introduction

San Gong, developed by Triple PG software, is a table game often found in casinos. It shares similarities with baccarat, but each player draws three cards instead of two. Additionally, there are numerous side bets you can place.

Rules

1. This game utilizes a standard deck of 52 playing cards.
2. The ranking of cards follows the baccarat system (aces count as 1 point, cards from 2 to 9 hold their face value, while 10s and face cards equate to 0).
3. Once betting has concluded, each side, known as the Dragon and the Phoenix, will be dealt three cards.
4. Here’s how each hand is ranked:
   • Three of a kind – the higher the rank, the stronger the hand.
   • Three face cards
   • Point totals range from 0 to 9 – the score of each hand is determined just like in baccarat, by adding the points in hand, dividing by 10, and using the remainder as the score. For instance, a hand consisting of 5, 7, and 9 would total 1 point (21 mod 10).
5. The hand with more points shall win.
6. If both hands tie in point totals, the hand with the highest single card wins.
7. Should the sixth rule not resolve the tie, the hand with the highest-ranked suit of its top card is the winner. The ranking of suits is spades > hearts > clubs > diamonds.
8. Wagers on either the Dragon or the Phoenix winning hand pay out at a rate of 0.94 to 1.
9. There are three side bets available for both the Player and Dragon hands:
   • Odd total — Pays 0.94 to 1
   • Even total — Pays 0.94 to 1
   • Pair among the three cards — Pays 0.94 to 1
10. You can place three different bets based on the total points of the winning hand. In case of a tie, the total value considered comes from either hand. All wagers are considered a tie if both hands have a score of zero. The three types of bets include:
11. Total of 1 to 6 — Pays 1 to 1
12. Total of 7 or 8 — Pays 2 to 1
13. Total of 9 — Pays 4

Analysis

The table below provides details on winning combinations, the likelihood of winning, and expected returns for all betting scenarios. Notably, most bets carry a house edge of roughly 3%, except for pair bets, which hold a staggering 67%! This is quite unfair; true odds should be around 4.8 to 1.

The following three tables display my insights into betting based on the point values of the winning hand (or either hand if there's a tie). Remember, a 0-0 tie leads to pushes for all bets. The bottom right sections indicate a house edge of 3.76% for a total of 9, 3.67% for totals of 7 or 8, and 2.63% for totals ranging from 1 to 6.

External Links

• Triple PG — Official website of the game developer where you can play San Gong at no cost.
• Discussion Join the discussions about San Gong on my forum at Wizard of Vegas, where we also talk about the significance of the 'gong' symbol in the game's name.

Written by: Michael Shackleford