Casino three-card poker explainer

If you’re a relative newcomer to the world of poker, you might fancy your chances at three-card poker. It’s a version of the super fun game that pits you directly against the dealer, meaning you don’t have to worry about your poker face.

Although the casino has a house edge in three-card poker, people who know the rules for Texas Hold’em have a better shot at winning. Let’s run through some rules and strategies to help you get started.

The rules of three-card poker

The main thing that stands out about three-card poker is that you’re competing directly against the dealer. So, while you might share a table with other gamblers, you’re not playing against one another. In this sense, three-card poker is a little like blackjack.

You’re required to place an ante bet to kick things off, and you then receive three cards face up. The dealer keeps their cards face down. The aim of the game is to bag the best possible three-card poker hand, based on the following rankings:

• Mini royal (Ace, King, Queen suited)
• Straight flush (running numbers of the same suit)
• Three of a kind
• Straight
• Flush
• Pair
• High card

Just as in other variations of poker, you need to begin by assessing your hand and deciding whether to play or fold. If the cards in front of you are far from favourable, it’s best to throw in the towel and wait for the next round. This means losing your ante bet.

However, if you fancy your chances, you can match your ante bet with a play bet. This means you remain in the game, and the dealer flips their cards before comparing them to each of the players’ hands.

How to win three-card poker

Your only concern when playing three-card poker is having a better hand than the dealer. No matter what you hold, if the dealer has worse than queen high, you will win the bet (see table below for how much you win). Here are some of the other circumstances you need to be aware of:

One thing that you will notice about three-card poker is that the payouts are pretty flat. But there’s a way to crank things up a notch when playing three-card poker, and they’re known as side, special or bonus bets. One side bet that is popular in three-card poker is known as pair plus. You automatically win your bet if you’re dealt a pair or better in your three cards.

The odds vary from casino to casino, so the Bellagio in Las Vegas might be different from the Empire in London. But a typical bonus bet structure looks something like this:

• One pair 1:1
• Flush 4:1
• Straight 5:1
• Trips 30:1
• Straight flush 40:1
• Mini royal flush 200:1

Some casinos also feature a betting type known as the six-card bonus, which can result in big payouts if you beat the dealer. The six-card bonus takes into account your cards alongside those of the dealer, and you may see odds represented in the following way:

• Three of a kind: 7:1
• Straight 10:1
• Flush 15:1
• Full house 20:1
• Four of a kind: 100:1
• Straight flush: 200:1
• Royal flush: 1000:1

However, six-cards bets aren’t available at every casino, so you’ll have to check before placing a bet.

Three-card poker betting strategy?

The beauty of three-card poker lies in its simplicity. While there are so many variables at work in Texas Hold’em, three-card deals allow you to focus on beating the dealer and nothing else. This makes it a great poker game for beginners.

As you get more games under your belt, you will get better at knowing when to hold’em and knowing when to fold’em (Kenny Rogers, anyone?). So, instead of expending your energy on working out whether someone is bluffing, you just need to think about the possible wins that your hand presents.

Of course, this takes time, but the more you play, the easier it will become! All that’s left is to sign into your account and try three-card poker online. You can enjoy three-card poker on virtual tables or via the immersive live dealer casino games, so you can mix things up until you find something that works for you. Good luck and happy betting!