Three Card Poker is one of the most fun and popular land-based casino games, and now one of the most fun and popular games at NJ online casinos, where you can also play Live Dealer 3 Card Poker.
The game has gained popularity since its inception in the UK in 1994, invented by Derek Webb. There are many reasons why players flock to 3 Card Poker Online:
How to play 3 Card Poker is easy. Whether you’re just getting into playing poker, or have been a poker player for a while but never ventured into Online Three Card Poker, here are some of the basics to follow:
Here is the breakdown for the bonus payouts:
Hand |
Payout |
---|---|
Straight |
1 to 1 |
Three of a Kind |
4 to 1 |
Straight Flush |
5 to 1 |
Hand |
Payout |
---|---|
Pair |
1 to 1 |
Flush |
3 to 1 |
Straight |
6 to 1 |
Three of a Kind |
30 to 1 |
Straight Flush |
40 to 1 |
Hand |
Payout |
---|---|
Three of a Kind |
8 to 1 |
Straight |
9 to 1 |
Flush |
15 to 1 |
Full House |
20 to 1 |
Four of a Kind |
100 to 1 |
Straight Flush |
200 to 1 |
Royal Flush |
1,000 to 1 |
Check Out The Best NJ Online Casinos For 3 Card Poker!
These are the hand rankings for 3 Card Poker Online, from highest to lowest. Note that they’re slightly different in value from standard Five Card Poker, such as Straights being worth more than Flushes since it’s harder to get a straight with three cards compared to a flush.
There are a handful of bets a player should be aware of when playing Three Card Poker online:
Playing the Ante is how you begin a round of Online 3 Card Poker. Place your Ante wager and you will receive three cards, while the dealer will be dealt three cards face down.
Based on the strength of your three cards (based on the hand rankings in 3 Card Poker Hand Rankings and the Three Card Poker Odds and Payouts,) decide whether or not you would like to place a Play bet (by matching your Ante wager) or Fold. Check out the Online 3 Card Poker Strategy below to gain an edge on the dealer.
If you play, the Play bet matches your Ante bet and is added to the Play spot on the table. Then the dealer’s cards are turned over and a final judgment is made in comparison. Unlike Pair Plus, your winnings are completely contingent on the hand the dealer has. The dealer needs to have a Queen or higher in order to qualify.
If the dealer doesn’t qualify, you will be paid 1 to 1 on your Ante play, but a push on your Play bet, which means it is just returned to you. If your Ante bet was $5, then you would have won an additional $5 by beating the dealer. If the dealer qualifies and you win, you are then paid even money back on both your Ante bet and your Play bet. If you also have a straight, three of a kind, or a straight flush, you can earn additional payouts based on the Ante bonus payouts listed under Three Card Poker Odds and Payouts.
Pair Plus is a side bet on whether or not you will make at least a pair in your hand. You place your wager in the Pair Plus spot on the table and are dealt three cards. If you have a Pair or up, you win! You get a payout based on the table under 3 Card Poker Odds. If you don’t have a Pair or more, you lose your wager.
Playing Pair Plus can make for some big winnings if you hit the right combination! Just add a wager in the Pair Plus spot on the table, along with your Ante bet to make the side bet. When the three cards are dealt, you’ll win both by getting a Pair or more, as well as having better cards than the dealer (or the dealer not qualifying.) The beauty of adding a Pair Plus bet is even if you lose against the dealer, you can still win the Pair Plus bet if you have a Pair or more.
The Six Card Bonus isn’t found at every Three Card Poker online table, but when it is available, it can give you another major way to win big on each dealt hand. 3 Card Poker online casinos with this bonus will put your three cards in play in conjunction with the dealer’s three cards. If those six cards combined gives you three of a kind combination or more, whether or not your hand beats the dealer’s hand, the payout can be massive! It starts at 8 to 1 for a Three of a Kind and goes all the way to a 1,000 to 1 payout for a Royal Flush.
Hand |
Chance |
---|---|
High Card (no pair) |
74.44% |
Pair |
16.94% |
Flush |
4.90% |
Straight |
3.26% |
Three of a Kind |
0.24% |
Straight Flush |
0.22% |
Most players like to play regardless of the cards they’re dealt, and while you’ll win a bit of money thanks to the dealer not having a qualifying hand, the house advantage still goes up if you play that way, even more than double the normal 3 percent house edge up to 7 percent. Luckily there is a standard rule of thumb that lots of players abide by to shrink that house advantage.
In order to keep the house advantage low at land-based casinos as well as online casinos, experienced players use the Q64 strategy. While it sounds mysterious and coded, it really only stands for “Queen, Six, Four.” This means when you’re dealt your three cards, if you have a Queen high, followed by at least a Six and a Four or higher in the next two cards, you should place a Play bet. This will give you the best chance at beating the dealer’s hand as well as allow you to receive payouts every time the dealer does not qualify.
While the payouts are very alluring for both the Pair Plus Bet as well as the Six Card Bonus, the odds aren’t really in your favor to land it. However, if you can stomach the risk or keep your bet (and your expectations) low on these bonus bets, you still have a chance of getting some huge payouts.
Looking at our hand probabilities table, you can see that the chances of getting a pair or better with your three cards are around 25 percent. And if we aim for a flush or higher, it’s right around 8 percent. With the Six Card Bonus, the hit frequency for three of a kind or higher is around 7.28 percent, giving the house an advantage of 6.74 percent based on our payout table listed under Three Card Poker Odds And Payouts. Strategy for both the Pair Plus Bet and the Six Card Bonus really depends on how much action you desire and how much you’re able to lose. While the risk for losing streaks grows with each of these bets, if you can hit on any of the hand combinations, there’s a chance to pull in five or six figures there depending on the casino.