How To Deal Three Card Poker

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One of the simplest variants of poker, and one that is many poker player's first introduction to the game of poker, is 5-Card Draw.

More common in home games than it is in casinos, 5-card draw has been overtaken in the popularity by games such as Texas hold'em and Omaha poker.

Main Features of 3 Card Poker. The player can play on up to four boxes in three card poker. The player can place an ANTE bet and/or a bet on the bonus (called Pair Plus) on any box. Each box in play is dealt three cards. The cards on all boxes are turned face-up immediately after the deal in 3 Card Poker. Three Card Poker is one of the simplest table games in Las Vegas to learn. There is only one rule related to skill to understand. #1: Place Your Bets – There are two bets on most Three Card Poker tables. One is the Ante. The other is Pair Plus. Players may bet on one of these or both. Unlike most poker table games, there is no obligation to.

But there are still plenty of 5-card draw fans around the world — particularly in the online world where several online poker sites offer cash games and tournaments.

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How to Play 5-Card Draw Poker

If you have played any other form of poker, 5-card draw rules are similar in that the aim of the game is to make the best five-card poker hand.

Like Texas hold'em, the poker hand rankings, from weakest to strongest, are as follows:

  • High card
  • One pair
  • Two pair
  • Three-of-a-kind
  • Straight
  • Flush
  • Full house
  • Four-of-a-kind
  • Straight flush
  • Royal Flush

When it comes to preflop betting, there are two different methods used in 5-card draw.

Either all players pay an ante before receiving their cards (this is more common in home games), or there is a small blind and big blind similar to hold'em and Omaha games (this is the most common on online poker sites and in casinos).

Three different betting structures exist for 5-card draw, too.

You can play 5-card draw poker as:

  • Fixed-limit
  • Pot-limit
  • No-limit

While all three formats play to the same poker rules, the different betting structures mean your strategy needs to be adapted.

For example, some hands that you wouldn't play in fixed-limit 5-card draw become playable in no-limit 5-card draw because in the latter you can bet enough to force your opponent to fold.

Regardless of the betting structure, this is how to play 5-card draw.

Five-Card Draw Basics

Once everyone has paid the ante or the blinds, each player receives five cards face down.

A round of betting then occurs.

If more than one player remains after that first round of betting, there follows a first round of drawing.

Each active player specifies how many cards he or she wishes to discard and replace with new cards from the deck.

If you are happy with your holding and do not want to draw any cards, you 'stand pat.'

Once the drawing round is completed, there is another round of betting.

After that if there is more than one player remaining, a showdown occurs in which the player with the best five-card poker hand wins.

As you can see, the rules for 5-card draw are simple and make for a fast-paced game, which is why the game is popular with new, less experienced players.

Basic 5-Card Draw Strategy

The fact you can learn how to play five-card draw poker in a few minutes doesn't mean that you will not need to practice to go from beginner to pro.

How To Play 3 Cards

The best way to do that, is to practice online — possibly with some free games. If you have a few minutes to try a game or two, have a look at 888poker.

You can play with a no deposit bonus on signup that you can use to discover 5-card draw poker and master all the basic and advanced strategy tips that follow.

One trap lesser-skilled 5-card draw players often fall into is playing far too many hands, particularly hands drawing to a straight or flush.

In many cases, the saying 'tight is right' applies when it comes to starting hand selection in 5-card draw.

As in games with community cards, your position in relation to the button is also important in 5-card draw poker.

The closer to the button you are, the wider the range of hands you can play profitably.

Regardless of your position, you should almost always enter the pot with a raise because limping in usually results in several other players limping behind, which in turn means you need a much stronger hand to win the pot.

Play tight from early positions and raise with hands such as aces or kings.

As your position improves, you can add other high pairs such as queens, jacks, tens, and nines, so long as the latter has a good kicker to back it up.

Those of you fortunate enough to have been dealt two pair or three-of-a-kind should always come out raising whether you're under the gun or on the button.

Meanwhile be wary of holdings such as four to a straight or flush, because these are hands with which some players bleed away their bankroll.

With one card to come, you're around a 4-to-1 underdog to hit your hand, and often you won't have the correct pot odds to attempt filling your straight or flush, particularly in a short-handed game.

What Should I Discard in 5-Card Draw?

Knowing what cards to discard during the drawing round is what makes and breaks a 5-card poker player.

On a basic level you should consider the following:

What you holdWhat you should do
One pairDraw three cards
Two pairDraw one card
Three-of-a-kindDraw two cards

The above list is only scratching the surface of what you should draw in 5-card draw. Adhering to it, particularly in low-stakes games, should yield positive results.

Advanced 5-Card Draw Strategy

Once you have a grasp of the basics and are feeling more confident with how to play 5-card draw, you can start applying some more advanced strategies to your game.

There is a large psychological element to 5-card draw thanks in large part to the drawing element of the game.

For example, while it is statistically the best play to draw three cards when you hold a pair, if you always make this play your opponents will be able to read your hand easily and alter their strategy to defeat you.

You need sometimes only to draw to one or two cards with a pair in your hand — or even to stand pat — in order to represent a holding stronger than what you actually have.

Unlike in games such as hold'em, there is rarely any stone cold bluffing in 5-card draw.

Players usually have at least a playable hand when betting even if they are indeed bluffing. This is why it is vitally important to take detailed notes when playing 5-card draw because they are extremely helpful.

Should you make a note that a player only opens with a pair of jacks or stronger on the button, you can easily fold a pair of nines in the blinds instead of calling.

Where Can I Play 5-Card Draw Online

As mentioned at the start of the article, 5-card draw is not a game that enjoys as much popularity as the likes of hold'em, but there are some places where you can play 5-card draw online.

How To Deal Three Card Poker

The safest option is to download PokerStars to play some games there.

PokerStars is your best bet for finding both 5-card draw cash games and tournaments at a variety of limits.

It is also possible to hone your skills at the play money tables there and play 5-card draw online poker free of charge with no risk to your bankroll.

Photo: Flush Poker Hand - Hearts, Guts Gaming. Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic.

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Nearly all Las Vegas casinos of any significance spread three Card Poker. The minimum bets range from $2 at Joker’s Wild to $15 at Aria. Players will need double the Ante bet to play, meaning that the true minimum bet is double the posted amount. This does not include the Pair Plus side bet, which may be bet by itself without an accompanying Ante wager.

The game’s appeal is its simplicity. While it has a small element of skill, it is easy to learn. The house edge is reasonable to most players. It is typically a friendly crowd at the tables.

How to Play Three Card Poker

Three Card Poker is one of the simplest table games in Las Vegas to learn. There is only one rule related to skill to understand.

#1: Place Your Bets – There are two bets on most Three Card Poker tables. One is the Ante. The other is Pair Plus. Players may bet on one of these or both. Unlike most poker table games, there is no obligation to bet the Ante.

#2: Raise or Fold – Players and the dealer are dealt three cards face down. Players look at their three cards and decide whether to raise. If the player has queen-six-four or higher, the player should raise. The Raise bet is equal to the amount of the Ante. If the player does not raise, he folds. The dealer then looks at the house hand and compares it to each player.

  • If the dealer beats the player, the Raise loses.
  • The Ante loses if the player has less than a straight, keeping in mind that a straight ranks higher than a flush in Three Card Poker.
  • Antes push if the dealer does not make at least queen-high.
Three

Flush or Higher Payouts

If the player makes a flush or higher, the Ante is paid based on the following chart, regardless of whether the player wins or loses:

  • Straight Flush: 5-1
  • Three of a Kind: 4-1
  • Straight: 1-1

How To Deal Three Card Poker Youtube

Pair Plus Payouts

The Pair Plus is paid whether the player wins or loses. It pays based on the following:

  • Straight Flush: 40-1
  • Three of a Kind: 30-1
  • Straight: 6-1
  • Flush: Either 4-1 or 3-1
  • Any Pair: 1-1
How to deal three card poker

If you are not in Las Vegas, you can still play Three Card Poker against a live dealer and get a Vegas experience.

Playing Three Card Poker at Las Vegas Casinos in 2018

Four Card Poker Rules

CasinoGameMin BetMax Bet# of TablesVideo
4 QueensThree Card Poker55001No
Aliante CasinoThree Card Poker51001No
AriaThree Card Poker1010003No
AriaThree Card Poker2510001No
Bally’sThree Card Poker55007No
Bally’sThree Card Poker105001No
BellagioThree Card Poker1510003No
Binion’sThree Card Poker55001No
Boulder StationThree Card Poker5501No
Caesars PalaceThree Card Poker55001No
Caesars PalaceThree Card Poker105007No
Caesars PalaceThree Card Poker155002No
CaliforniaThree Card Poker51001No
Casino RoyaleThree Card Poker510001No
Circus CircusThree Card Poker51002No
Club FortuneThree Card Poker51001No
CosmopolitanThree Card Poker155003No
CromwellThree Card Poker103002No
CromwellThree Card Poker153001No
Downtown GrandThree Card Poker51001No
El CortezThree Card Poker52001No
EncoreThree Card Poker105003No
ExcaliburThree Card Poker105003No
Fiesta HendersonThree Card Poker51001No
FlamingoThree Card Poker103007No
FlamingoThree Card Poker153001No
FremontThree Card Poker51001No
Gold CoastThree Card Poker51002No
Golden GateThree Card Poker52002No
Golden NuggetThree Card Poker55002No
Green Valley RanchThree Card Poker55001No
Hard RockThree Card Poker102001No
Harrah’sThree Card Poker53002No
Harrah’sThree Card Poker103005No
HootersThree Card Poker52001No
Joker’s WildThree Card Poker2251No
LinqThree Card Poker103003No
LuxorThree Card Poker105002No
M ResortThree Card Poker510002No
Main Street StationThree Card Poker5501No
Mandalay BayThree Card Poker1010002No
Mandalay BayThree Card Poker1510001No
MGM GrandThree Card Poker2510003No
MirageThree Card Poker1510003No
Monte CarloThree Card Poker55001No
NYNYThree Card Poker102002No
OrleansThree Card Poker51003No
O’SheasThree Card Poker103001No
Palace StationThree Card Poker510001No
PalazzoThree Card Poker1520003No
PalmsThree Card Poker52001No
ParisThree Card Poker55004No
ParisThree Card Poker105003No
Planet HollywoodThree Card Poker55004No
Planet HollywoodThree Card Poker105003No
PlazaThree Card Poker51001No
Railroad PassThree Card Poker31001No
Red RockThree Card Poker55002No
RioThree Card Poker55004No
RioThree Card Poker105002No
Sam’s TownThree Card Poker51001No
Santa Fe StationThree Card Poker51001No
Silver 7’sThree Card Poker51001No
SilvertonThree Card Poker51001No
Sahara Las VegasThree Card Poker103001No
South PointThree Card Poker51003No
StratosphereThree Card Poker51002No
SuncoastThree Card Poker51001No
The DThree Card Poker52002No
Treasure IslandThree Card Poker103002No
TropicanaThree Card Poker52001No
VenetianThree Card Poker105003No
WestgateThree Card Poker52001No
WynnThree Card Poker155004No