Hi,
with optimal strategy, the house edge (defined per initial bet) of Casino Hold'em is 2.16%. However, the average bet size is 2.64x the initial Ante bet, making the house edge per unit wagered 0.82%. The latter value of 0.82% is more appropriate for estimating expected loss while completing a wagering requirement.
Does it mean that this is the game to play when blackjack counts 1/3 towards a playthrough?
This concept is discussed on the wizardofodds website (wizardofodds.com) and is often referred to as "degree of risk". For most games, this is the same as the house edge, but for games where players may increase their initial bet after being dealt their cards, this is not the case. Normally, the degree of risk reduces below the house edge, as the player can use skill to determine the next move, raise, continue, or fold. There are mathematical rules that can determine a table of actions from the initial deal that offers players the best chance of winning, often called "perfect strategy".
Many casinos have trouble understanding house edge, let alone the complexities involved in such part skill based games.
The 0.82% quoted refers to the expected loss if you follow "perfect strategy", and means that for every $100 wagered, you should expect to lose 82cents. If this game counts 100%, and Blackjack counts as only 33%, then Blackjack would have to have a degree of risk less than a third of 0.82%, or 0.27%. Only Microgaming Classic Blackjack meets this, other blackjack games have degrees of risk of around 0.3% to 0.4%, so there is not much in it. The casino, however, may be looking for "blackjack players" when it comes to identifying "bonus abusers", and have probably based their allowance of this game on the 2.16% house edge. If too many players beat the bonus on the game though, they will soon figure out their mistake, and this game too will change to counting only a third.
You have to make sure this is a genuine card game, and not something a bit "odd" like the version that Cryptologic have where you play against more than one "computer player", or "bot". There were suspisions that this game had something of a "slot game" about it.
