Browse · MATH
Printjmc
counting and probability senior
Problem
I draw a card from a standard 52-card deck. If I draw an Ace, I win 1 dollar. If I draw a 2 through 10, I win a number of dollars equal to the value of the card. If I draw a face card (Jack, Queen, or King), I win 20 dollars. If I draw a , my winnings are doubled, and if I draw a , my winnings are tripled. (For example, if I draw the , then I win 16 dollars.) What would be a fair price to pay to play the game? Express your answer as a dollar value rounded to the nearest cent.
Your answer should be a number with two digits after the decimal point, like .
Your answer should be a number with two digits after the decimal point, like .
Solution
Let be the expected winnings if a or is drawn. Since the probability that any particular rank is drawn is the same for any rank, the expected value is simply the average all the winnings for each rank, so Let be the expected winnings if a is drawn and the expected winnings if a is drawn. Since drawing a doubles the winnings and drawing a triples the winnings, and . Since there is an equal chance drawing each of the suits, we can average their expected winnings to find the overall expected winnings. Therefore the expected winnings are or about \boxed{\15.48}$, which is the fair price to pay to play the game.
Final answer
\$15.48