• Learn the Rules: With online tri-card poker, you have the Ante-Play and Pair Plus options.
• In 3 Card Poker a straight beats a flush. All suits have the same value, and the rank of cards is: Ace (highest), King, Queen, Jack, Ten, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, and 2. The highest hand is Ace, King and Queen of the same suit, sometimes called a Mini Royal. The lowest hand would be 2, 3, and 5.

Three Card Poker, from Evolution Gaming Sweden AB, is a simple video poker game, and a chance to test out your skills in an innovative poker environment. As a live dealer game, you’ll find yourself playing against a real, live dealer, for an authentic casino experience from your living room (or from wherever you happen to be playing).

Table Of Contents

• Three Card Poker is a simple and fun Casino game based on Poker
• 3-Card Poker requires a strategy but a very straightforward one
• How to play Three Card Poker is explained in this article

Three Card Poker game has been around since the very beginning of the card game that is Poker.

Since its invention, it has grown in popularity and is fair to say Three Card Poker is among the most well-known Casino games in the world.

A few facts have helped the game grow in stature over the years:

• Three Card Poker is easy to learn and easy to play
• Unlike some Casino games, Three Card Poker is not just based on luck because there's an element of skill involved in your hand selection
• You can play Three Card Poker online for free and for real money right on this page

Three Card Poker is a fair slow-paced table game that is very simple to learn.

How to Play Three Card Poker

Three Card Poker, invented by Derek Webb in 1994, is the Poker version most people play when they head to their Casino.

Three Card Poker isn't played against other players. Instead, you play against the dealer.

You only have to be concerned with what your cards are and what the house's cards are. Making a mistake only punishes you and not your fellow players like at some other card game tables.

OK – so you want to try Three Card Poker? Good choice!

Here are the basics.

Three Card Poker Bets

In Three Card Poker game, the player makes an ante bet.

The dealer gives each player and themselves three cards. The dealer's cards are face down and you can only examine your own cards.

If you’ve made the ante bet then you must either fold or call.

Folding forfeits your ante wager, calling (raising) means you must make an additional play bet that is equal to your ante.

The dealer then turns over their cards.

Three Card Poker Outcomes

The dealer needs a queen-high or better to qualify:

• if the dealer doesn't qualify, you win even money on the ante bet and play bet is a push
• if the dealer qualifies, your hand is compared to the dealer's hand and the best hand wins

Whose hand is better?

• If it is yours, congrats! You win even money on the ante and play bets.
• If the dealer has a better hand, both your ante and play bets lose.
• If it is a tie, then both the ante and play bets are a push.

But that’s not all.

If you have a straight or better, you receive an ante bonus regardless of the value of the dealer's hand.

If you have placed a pair plus bet, it is paid based on the value of your hand. This pays out differently depending on where you play.

Play Three Card Poker Online - it's FREE!

Practice Three Card Poker online before you play for real money. Or claim a bonus (or two) and dive into the real money games.

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How to Win at Three Card Poker: The Strategy

Three Card Poker Rules Casino

Three Card Poker has a relatively small house edge, usually around 3.3 percent. If you play optimally, that is.

This edge can increase significantly with side bets or incorrect strategy.

To avoid this, follow a couple of simple Three Card Poker strategy tips:

1. Don’t Make The Pair Plus Bets

Betting on the pair plus increases the house edge by more than 2.3 percent.

It is tempting with big payouts (e.g. straight flush pays 40 to 1) but you’re bound to lose more making this bet even if you have a rare bigger payout from it.

So, forget about the times you could have won a big payout when you've not placed a pair plus bet. Simply try to play in a way that minimizes the house edge.

2. Remember One Strategic Combination of Cards

It’s not only the Three Card Poker rules that are easy to learn. So is the Three Card Poker strategy.

You only need to remember one combination of cards and base your decision to call or fold on it:

• Call with or higher hand
• Fold everything else

See, I’ve told you it was simple.

Because of it, you will find this game in a more relaxed setting as it’s pretty easy to avoid mistakes and nobody is worried about making mistakes that affect other players.

Where to Play 3-Card Poker Online

There are many options to play 3-Card Poker on the Internet, but some sites offer better bonuses and value than others.

As a new player at this online Casino, you’ll get some free spins for Slots on registration (before making a deposit) and extra cash as well as more free spins when you finally make a deposit.

That's a great way to earn some free money before hitting the 3-Card tables.

Three Card Poker Bonus Payout

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Three card poker is a popular casino table game. Since it is a variant of poker, you can easily learn to play this one if you are already familiar with the game of poker. Most of the casinos in the United States and many online casinos have started providing 3 card poker as a mandatory part of their table games. If you were looking forward to learning to play this game, this is your lucky day. This article tells you the easiest process, skills and strategy that you will ever need to play 3 Card Poker at any offline/online casino.

How to Play Three Card Poker in a Casino

The first thing you need to learn is the rules of the game.

Three Card Poker Rules and Facts

• The 3 card poker game was first proposed by Derek Webb in 1994. He wanted to develop a game that has the excitement of poker and was as fast as regular casino games.
• The game is played with a single deck of cards.
• Each hand consists of three cards, and so the ranking of cards and the odds are also different from a regular five-hand poker game.
• Most casino tables offer the following two options of how to play 3 card poker
  1. Pair Plus
  2. Ante-play

Also Read: How to Become An Expert In Video Poker?

Playing 3 Card Poker Online

The rules for online three card poker game are almost the same as in a live casino, except for a few things.

Difference between online and offline variants

Instead of playing with real chips at a live casino, you deal in virtual credits and chips at the online casino.

Free three card poker: Many online casinos will even let you play 3 card poker for free, which is a really good idea if you are looking to hone your skills.

Strategy to play 3 Card Poker

As we discussed above, the two basic options in this game are – Pair Plus and Ante-Play. Following are the strategies to play 3 card poker with these options.

Pair Plus Odds and Strategy

In both online casinos and live casinos, a Pair Plus hand of three cards is treated as a win in the following situations.

• A hand of Straight Flush – three cards of the same suit with numbers in sequence – such as 7, 8, and 9 of spade – possible number of hands is 48
• Three of a kind – three cards with the same unit – such as three 10s – 52 possible hands
• Straight – three cards with numbers in sequence, irrespective of the suit – such as 6, 7, and 8 of different suits – 720 possible combinations
• Flush – three cards of the same suit, irrespective of units – such as 3, 5, and K of heart – 1,096 possible hands
• Pair – two cards with the same unit, one different card – such as two 2s – 3,744 possible hands
• Any other combination (losing hands) – 16,440 possibilities

Since flushes have more probability than straights in a Pair Plus poker, they get you less payout.

Some casinos also have an extra option, called mini-royal, at the top of the pay table, which consists of a combination of Ace, King and Queen of the same suit. There are four such possible hands.

The biggest payouts are given to players who get a straight flush or three of a kind or a mini-royal. The basic payout is 1-1 which is given on a pair hand. A straight flush can give you as much as 40-1, while a three of a kind hand is usually paid 30-1. Mini royals are the highest paid hands.

A 40-1 payoff means that you will receive 40 times the money you bet if you get a straight flush.

As you can see in the table above, the probability of a player getting a winning hand in Pair Plus is around 1/4th (25.6 percent to be exact), which is still good enough since the payouts are quite high in this game.

The best strategy in this game is to check the house edge before joining a particular Pair Plus pay table and to choose the tables with the most favourable odds.

Ante-Play Odds and Strategy

This is a bet on getting a better hand than the dealer. Here’s how it is played.

The player is dealt three cards. After seeing his cards, the player can choose either to hold or to make a play bet equal to his ante. If the dealer doesn’t have a Queen or higher card to beat your bet, he won’t play and you win your ante with a 1-1 payoff.

However, if the dealer has a Queen or higher card, he shall play and you will then have to beat him to win the bet. If you win, you get a 1-1 payoff on both your play bet and ante. If the dealer wins, you will lose both bets.

The ante-play game paytable has almost the same hands with the same ranking as the pair plus. However, the hands without a pair or higher are usually ranked in order of the highest card, to compete against the dealer’s hand. For example, if you get a hand (without any pair or better) with the highest card better than the dealer’s highest card, you win the round. In the case, if your highest card is same as of the dealer, the second-highest card will be considered for the purpose of finding the winner.

The simplest strategy for ante-play poker is to:

• Bet only if you have a Q-6-4 or higher combination, or fold if you have lower than that.
• Bet on any pair or higher
• If you don’t have a pair but have an Ace or a King as high card, you should bet no matter what other two cards are.
• If your high card is lower or equal to a Jack, you should fold.
• If your high card is Queen or better (and do not have a pair), you should:
  • Bet if you have a 7 or higher second card, irrespective of the third card.
  • Bet if you have a 6 as second card and the third card is either a 4 or a 5.
  • Fold if the second highest card is a 6 and the third card is either a 2 or 3.
  • Fold if you get a 5 or lower second card, irrespective of the third card.

Some casinos also pay a special ante bonus for every hand that has a straight flush, three of a kind or a straight. These bonuses should also be considered when determining the house edge in a particular game.