How Do You Play 3 Card Poker In A Casino?

Playing 3 Card Poker is much simpler than it first appears - which shouldn’t be surprising since it’s just another poker variation, and poker is an inherently simple game. Three Card Poker does, if you want the best possible results, require the use of a strategy - but this strategy can be picked up and learned very quickly by even the novice. This particular variation of the world’s second-most famous table game (after Blackjack, or 21) manifested itself shortly after the inception of Poker, itself.

Perhaps the best thing about this variation is that although luck plays a huge part, there’s quite a bit of skill involved in Three Card Poker. It all emanates from your hand selection, which is why perusing the rules beforehand is even more important here than in understanding video slot pay tables. Although the option to play for fun money is available at any online casino worth its salt, you should not tally too long here beyond the need to practice and get a feel for gameplay; otherwise, you could miss out on a streak of good luck that results in some really big payouts.

Three Card Poker Playing Method

Although poker is one of the oldest gambling games ever conceived, Three Card Poker has risen to the top to be the most played version - even over the original. In this variant, yu do not play against other online casino gamers, but against the virtual House dealer. The benefit of this is that now, unlike in the other versions, you need only be concerned with your own cards and the cards held by the Casino House dealer. As such, no other player (you included) suffer from poor hand decisions made by other players at the table.

To start things off, your the player puts down something called the “ante” bet. Then, the virtual dealer lays down three cards to each player - which, in this particular variant, is just you and him/her. Of course, you cannot see which cards the dealer has; once you make your ante bet you now can choose to call or fold as in straight poker. What do these mean? Well when you call, you are signaling your intent to make another play that’s equal to your original ante bet. When you fold, you’re pretty much saying “no mas” and forfeiting the ante bet. It is only after either of these options that the dealer finally shows his own cards.

The Winning Plays

So, what’s the point of all this? Well, when the virtual dealer reveals his cards, you can discern whether or not he has a Queen, King, or Ace. Anything lower than these and he loses; a Queen is the minimum needed to qualify. If he fails to qualify, then the victory is yours and you keep the results of the ante bet. If he does qualify with a card equal to a Queen or higher, then the two hands are compared and the winner is determined. If equal, this is called a push and you can play again without loss (or win). The beauty of Three Card Poker is that you can actually win on both the ante and the play bets if your hand is better than the Dealer’s. Additionally, a straight or better hand offers you an ante bonus no matter what hand the dealer played.

A Three Card Poker Strategy

Even though three Card Poker is a great casino game and the player has a very good chance, the House still has an edge of at least 3.3% under the best of circumstances for the player. It takes both strategy and side bets to negatively influence this edge, so pay attention to what’s going on and give yourself a fighting chance to limit the ravages of the Casino House. First of all, avoid any and all pair plus bets; if you choose to bet on the pair plus, you are literally adding an extra 2.3% to 3.3% minimum House Edge. It is, of course, tempting to do so when the odds of a straight flush may be on the table and you can win 40 to 1; but this is quite rare and, in the long run, you stand to lose - it is better to play statistically in games of chance.

There are a few seminal rules when trying to give yourself the best chance to win at 3 Card Poker. Given that the Casino House possesses that 3.3% edge that we spoke of earlier, you need to do your best to play optimally to avoid giving them a significantly higher advantageous percentage. The best thing you can do to avoid this is to skip out on all opportunities to make a pair plus bet; this alone adds a 2.3% House advantage on top of the 3.3%. Sure; if you’ve got the straight flush going you may be tempted to go the pair plus route; but in the long term, this strategy is a loser. Instead of worrying about how much more you could win, work to minimize the House edge - this is a consistently better strategy than the converse.

Lastly, always be mindful of the “magic” card combination of Queen, 6, 4 or upper hand. Why is this so important? Because it represents the comparison: all of your decisions on whether to raise or fold hinges on this. If this combo is not present, fold. If it is, then don’t. Three Card Poker is simple if you remember that this strategy keeps the House Edge to the lowest amount possible, and allows the laws of probability to better work in your favor (relatively). Remember; Tri Card Poker only concerns you and the Casino House dealer, which is what makes it so popular. You don’t need to depend on the plays of the other players - which only complicates matters.

Ultimately, if you want a winning strategy that has a very good shot at seeing you to a favorable ending, then the Three Card Poker strategy of calling when your hand is at least Queen x 6 x 4 or higher is a good bet. Fold all other combinations. All that’s left to do now is to find an online casino that offers bonuses and promotions for patronizing their table games section.