Three card Poker
Introduction
With over 120 variants of the poker game, you can be forgiven if you’ve never heard of three card poker. A relatively new addition to the list of poker games three card poker, with similarities to Caribbean Stud Poker, can be played in side-games, casinos or at online poker tables and basically pits you against the dealer, or possibly the odds.
Three card poker basics
A Three Card Poker table.
Three card poker is played with one 52 card deck with up to seven players and a dealer. All the players are dealt three cards face down – including the dealer. Your aim is simply to beat the dealers hand in terms of having the winning poker hand. The ranking hands in this game are three cards with either; a straight flush, three of a kind, a straight, a flush or a pair. Before the cards are dealt you bet in the Ante spot against the dealer’s hand on the assumption that yours will be better. If you think you’ll receive a pair – then the bet is placed on the Pair Plus spot. To stay in the game after viewing your cards you have to make another wager or fold by placing the cards face down. When all the betting is done the dealer reveals his/her cards, if the dealer has a Queen or better their hand is called a ‘qualifier’ and the dealer turns over the players cards to see if they’ve been beaten. If you beat the dealer you win even money for the antes and play bets, anything less and the dealer takes it all. However, the best bit in three card poker is if the dealer hasn’t at least a Queen – all the players still in get even money on the ante and the play wager becomes a push.
Three card poker strategy
When it comes to betting - play like the dealer. If you have a Queen or better then play other wise fold. Pair plus betting is risky, you only stand a 25% chance of winning. If pairs get thrown up a lot it might be worth it, otherwise best to skip it. Expect the dealer to get a Queen on about two thirds of the hands and forty percent of the ante hands will make an ante bonus. Bonus payouts are: Straight 1:1, for Three of a kind 4:1 and a Straight Flush 5:1.