How To Play 3 Card Poker At The Casino
How To Play 3 Card Poker At A Casino

Sep 19, 2018 If you haven’t played three card poker before rest assured it’s a fun and popular new casino table game to play.What makes the game even more interesting is that new versions of the game such as three card poker with a 6-card bonus keeps on hitting the market on a regular basis. The best place to play three card poker in Vegas depends on the player. If you are looking for tables at $15 minimum bet, you will find the game at most every casino along the Las Vegas Strip. If you want to play at lower minimums, you want to travel to the north end of the strip. How to Play Three Card Poker By Henry Tamburin The object of the game is to hope your three-card poker hand beats the dealer's three-card poker hand (the classic 'you against the dealer'). Or, if you do not want to bet against the dealer, you can bet instead that your three-card hand will.

By Henry Tamburin
The object of the game is to hope your three-card poker hand beats the dealer's three-card poker hand (the classic 'you against the dealer'). Or, if you do not want to bet against the dealer, you can bet instead that your three-card hand will be at least a pair or higher.
The game is played on a blackjack size table using a single deck of cards. Prior to the cards being dealt by the dealer you must decide whether you want to bet against the dealer's hand or bet that your hand will be at least a pair or higher. You also have the option of betting both ways - against the dealer and against the pay schedule.
If you want to compete against the dealer's hand you must make a bet on the Ante. If instead you want to bet that your three-card hand will be at least a pair or higher, then you would wager on the Pair Plus. The betting spots for making these wagers are located directly in front of each player.
Let's assume that you wager on the Ante. Here's what happens next. The dealer will deal each player and himself three cards face down. You pick up your cards, look at them, and decide whether you want to stay in the game or fold. If you want to stay, you must make another equal wager in the Play betting spot. If you decide instead to fold, you would place your cards face down on the layout toward the dealer. If you fold, the dealer will remove your cards and you lose your Ante bet.
After every player has decided whether to fold or Play, the dealer will face his cards and check whether it contains at least a queen or higher. If it does the dealer's hand is said to 'qualify' and he will then face each player's hand that decided to stay in the game. If your hand has a higher poker rank than the dealer's hand, you win your Ante and Play wagers at even money (if you bet $5, you will win $5). If instead the dealer's hand beats the player's hand, the player's Ante and Play wagers are lost.
What if the dealer's hand doesn't qualify? This occurs if the dealer's hand does not have at least a queen or higher. When this occurs, the dealer will automatically pay each player who stayed in the game (i.e. wagered on the Play) even money on the Ante wager and return the Play wager to the player (it's a push)
Players who make an Ante wager are also eligible for a bonus payout that will be paid regardless of whether the dealer qualifies or whether your hand beats the dealer's hand. The latter point is not trivial. Many players are turned off to Caribbean Stud Poker because if the dealer doesn't qualify they get nothing for having a premium hand. This is not the case with Three Card Poker. If you have a straight, three-of-a-kind or a straight flush you will automatically be paid a bonus according to the following schedule:

Ante Bonus
Hand	Payout
Straight Flush	5 to 1
Three-of-a-Kind	4 to 1
Straight	1 to 1

If you don't want to compete against the dealer's hand, your other betting option is to wager on the Pair Plus. You win if your three-card hand contains at least a pair or higher. The higher the poker rank, the greater the payout. You lose the Pair Plus bet if you end up with less than a pair. A typical payout schedule for Pair Plus is:

Pair Plus Payouts
Hand	Payout
Straight Flush	40 to 1
Three -of-a-Kind	30 to 1
Straight	6 to 1
Flush	3 to 1
Pair	1 to 1

As mentioned earlier you could wager on both the Ante and Pair Plus from the get go (in fact in some gaming jurisdictions, you must wager on both). If you play both, you can bet different amounts. However, keep in mind this rule. If you decide to fold your hand, you would not only lose your Ante wager but also your Pair Plus wager if you made it as well. That seems like a bummer but in actually it's not because if you had a pair or higher and thus eligible for the Pair Plus payout you should not fold these hands.
The only playing decision involved in Three Card Poker is whether or not to make the Play wager or to fold. A simple basic playing strategy is to just mimic the dealer, that is make the Play wager if your hand contains a queen or higher, otherwise fold.
Stanley Ko in his excellent booklet Mastering the Game of Three Card Poker mathematically computed a more optimum playing strategy. He recommends making the Play wager only if you hold a Queen-6-4 hand or better. Since it's not that difficult to memorize Q-6-4, I'd suggest using Ko's optimized strategy.
The casinos edge for the Pair Plus is 7.27 percent and for the Ante wager it's 3.37 percent based on the initial bet. Note: Some casinos pay 4-1 for the flush on the Pair Plus and the house edge is lowered to 2.32%). Compared to the similar Caribbean Stud Poker and Let it Ride poker games, Three Card Poker is a better gamble.

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Three-card poker, or tri-card poker, is a unique poker variant available at top online casinos as well as land-based venues. The game is easy to play, with a moderate house edge so players actually have a shot at earning a win.

There are two basic ways to play the game, Ante-Play and Pair Plus.

Five Strategies to three-card poker Play like a Pro:

1. Learn the Rules:

With online tri-card poker, you have the Ante-Play and Pair Plus options. Learn and understand the rules to both options so you know which way you want to bet.

• Pair Plus: you will win any time your three cards have a pair, flush, straight, straight flush or three of a kind.

• Ante-Play: you will want to bet if you have a Queen-6-4 or better. Learn the hands to fold or bet on with Ante-Play to make the right moves during game play.

2. Practice Three-Card Poker Games Online:

Once you have learned the rules, you will need to practice putting what you have learned into action. Find an online casino that offers the game in Play Mode, so you can try a few hands and get comfortable with the format before betting for real money.

3. Set Your Bankroll:

Be sure to set an amount you will play with and stick to it. If you are beginner, choose to wager with a lower denomination. Most online casino games offer wagering of $1, $5, $25, and so on. Stick to $1 and $5 wagers until you feel more comfortable with the rules and betting strategies, then try wagering larger amounts.

How To Play 3 Card Poker At The Casino

4. Play Two Games at Once:

If you want to keep your win/loss record relatively even, it can be smart to play two real money three-card poker games at one time. Play the Pair Plus and the Ante-Play bet on the same hand.

Say you have a pair of sixes and the dealer has eights. You win if you choose the Pair Plus wager but then you lose the

How To Play 3 Card Poker At Casino