A Casino Poker Guide for Beginners

Casino Poker is widely considered to be the most popular form of playing poker online. It eliminates the need to bluff other players or beat their hands. Instead, all you have to do is beat the house – the dealer. In this Casino Poker guide, we take a look at the basics you need to know about Casino Poker, the strength of hands, a few variants and some fun facts.

Our Casino Poker Guide: An Introduction

You probably picture people at a table trying to outsmart one another to win the pot when you think of poker. Players must be skilled at both card odds and bluffing to succeed in this kind of conventional poker, which includes games like Texas Hold’em and Omaha Stud.

Games of casino poker take other players out of the picture. You are competing against the house directly. By eliminating the need for deception, the games become entirely about odds and become much simpler.

However, there is still a component of skill at play because utilizing the right technique will allow you to lower the house edge. Furthermore, since the casino’s money is what you take home if you win, you don’t have to worry about winning someone else’s money.

The rules of casino poker games have been modified yet they are based on classic games like Texas Hold’em. Casino Poker comes in a variety of variations, and all of them are simple to master.

Each, however, calls for a distinct approach and presents its own special winning chances and payouts. The games are a great way to hone your poker skills because they make you very familiar with the common poker hands and the rules of a poker round, in addition to being a ton of fun and possibly lucrative.

We’ll introduce you to six of the most well-liked variations of casino poker in this guide. In each instance, we’ll give you a brief introduction to the game’s past before going over the fundamental guidelines and strategies. You will be completely ready to sit down at a table and put your newly acquired information to use after reading it. It won’t take long for you to start enjoying your first winning hands with a little bit of skill and good fortune.

Casino Poker Hands – From Strongest to Weakest

Here, we have a list of casino poker hands.

• Royal Flush– This is the strongest hand possible and it contains the cards 10, J, Q, K and A all from the same suit.
• Straight Flush – This is five cards from the same suit in numerical order; for example, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 of Hearts.
• Four of a Kind – This is a hand that contains four cards with same value, such as 3 Diamonds, 3 Clubs, 3 Spades, 3 Hearts.
• Full House – This is a hand that contains three of a kind and a pair, for example, three 4s and two Queens, the suit is irrelevant.
• Flush – This is a hand of five cards from the same suit, for example, 6, 8, 9, Queen and King of Spades.
• Straight – This is five cards in numerical order, regardless of suit. For example, 3 Diamonds, 4 Clubs, 5 Hearts, 6 Diamonds, and 7 Spades
• Three of a Kind – This is three cards of the same value and two unrelated cards. For example, 4 Diamonds, 4 Spades, 4 Hearts, 9 Clubs and Queen Diamonds.
• Two Pair – This hand that contains two separate pairs of cards and one unrelated card. For example, 3 Diamonds, 3 Spades, Jack Clubs, Jack Hearts, 4 Hearts.
• Pair – This is a hand that contains two matching cards and three unrelated cards. For example, Ace Clubs, Ace Diamonds, 7 Hearts, 5 Diamonds, 10 Spades.
• High Card – If a hand does not contain any of the above, then it is judged according to the highest value card in it.

In most games, if the player and the dealer have the same type of hand, such as a Pair, then the hand with the higher card values will win. For example, a pair of 9s beats a pair of 5s.

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Casino Poker Variants

When playing Casino Poker online, there are a variety of games that you could come across. Casino Poker includes many different versions, such as the ones listed below. For more information on these casino poker games, have a read through our best jackpot guides for more details.

Caribbean Stud Poker

To play Caribbean Stud Poker, the aim of the game is to beat the dealer’s hand. You have to form a strong five-card poker hand to win. The way of doing this is betting, receiving your five cards, looking at what hand you have and deciding to wager or to fold.

Casino Hold’em Poker

To win Casino Hold’em Poker, the basic aim of the game is to beat the dealer’s hand. To do this, you have to use the two cards served to you and five community cards. In order to beat the dealer, the player with the best five-card poker hand, using their held cards and community cards, wins the round.

Three Card Poker

As the name suggests, Three Card Poker is another variant of casino poker but only uses three cards, rather than the standard five-card poker games. There are no community cards in Three Card Poker, instead, you have to beat the dealer’s hand using the cards you hold. Naturally, as only three cards are in play, many poker hands (such as a Full House) do not exist in this variant.

Pai Gow Poker

In Pai Gow Poker, the player and dealer both receive seven cards. The aim of the game is to form two hands, the Top and Bottom, and for both of them to win. The Top claims five cards whilst the Bottom is worth two cards. In Pai Gow Poker, there are no community cards, rather, the dealer and the player go head-to-head with seven cards, aiming to form two hands each that will beat each other’s cards.

Red Dog Poker

Technically not a poker game, Red Dog Poker is a simple guessing game. The aim of the game is to guess whether a card will be in between two other cards or not. The dealer draws two cards, then the third card drawn should either bet to be within the spread or not. Naturally, the odds change depending on how large the spread is. For instance, a player will be paid more for predicting the third card would be inside the spread of a 6 and 8. The only card that can win is a 7. Thus, the player will be paid more than if the spread was 2 and 8.

Ultimate Texas Hold’em Poker

Last but not least, Ultimate Texas Hold’em Poker is similar to Casino Hold’em Poker but slightly more advanced. It is a five-card poker game that has a unique betting style. That is to say, players need to choose to bet during the round whether they want to put only double, triple or four times their initial stake or not.

How Online Casino Poker Compares to a Land-Based Casino

Rarely do the regulations for any of the aforementioned games vary when played online or in a physical casino.

There is one issue, though, that you need to be aware of. Every participant bets on the same hand when playing online, even in a game with a live dealer. Each player may be dealt their own hand when playing certain games at a land-based casino, most notably Three Card Poker. However, this doesn’t actually alter the approach in Three Card Poker.

The atmosphere will be the primary difference. Playing in a physical casino has a distinctive feel all of its own. You will be completely immersed in the casino atmosphere when seated at a table, which is a ton of fun. In many casinos, you may also take advantage of the refreshments that are being offered, and of course, you can talk to other players as you play.

Even with a live casino game that you play at home, the ambiance will never be exactly the same. It is, in the end, a far more lonesome experience. However, since it’s simpler to concentrate on the game, some individuals might prefer this. Furthermore, playing at home has additional benefits. You don’t have to worry about wasting time or money getting to and from the casino, and you don’t have to worry about dressing appropriately either.

Another benefit of playing at an online casino is that there are likely to be many more variations of the game available than at a land-based one, and very frequently, the progressive jackpots up for grabs are also larger.

To Sum Up

In essence, convenience and atmosphere make up the disparities. Online gaming is much more practical, but the mood is not the same. On the other side, you might prefer the environment found online and think that having more time and space to contemplate will help you choose your bets more wisely. Both can be quite entertaining, so if you can, you should definitely try both.

Casino Poker Guide: Fun Facts

Below, to wrap up, we have a list of casino poker fun facts for you. Let’s get into them.

Caribbean Stud Poker Facts

• Who invented Caribbean Stud Poker is a mystery. The Excelsior Casino was the first to successfully patent the game, although the present regulations were developed for a game played there.
• Caribbean Stud Poker is most popularly known in the UK as Casino Five Card Stud Poker or simply Casino Stud Poker.

Casino Hold’em Poker Facts

• Casino Hold’em was developed more as a teaching tool than as a stand-alone game. It first emerged in casinos in South Africa, Russia, and Egypt.
• After being featured at the 2002 International Casino Exhibition in London and the 2001 World Gaming Congress Expo in Las Vegas, Casino Hold’em’s popularity skyrocketed.

Three Card Poker Facts

• The game of Three Card Poker was first made illegal in the UK due to laws, but it was later promoted there through a company named Prime Table Games.
• The only way Derek Webb, the game’s inventor, was able to convince a casino to use his game was by offering to train the dealers personally and then remain on the casino floor to supervise play.
• Three Card Poker was introduced in the UK in 2002 thanks to a change in gambling laws.
• There have been many legal disputes involving Three Card Poker-related patents, some of which have been resolved for as much as $20 million.

Pai Gow Poker Facts

• Pai Gow Poker was created by Sam Torosian in an effort to draw more customers to his casino and revive the failing institution.
• Torosian failed to file a patent for Pai Gow Power after receiving inadequate legal advice, hence he never made any money from it. He ultimately decided to shut down his casino.
• If Torosian had been successful in patenting Pai Gow Poker, he might be worth over $100 million today.

Ultimate Texas Hold’em Poker Facts

• The game Ultimate Texas Hold’em Poker was developed by Roger Snow for Bally Gaming. One of the newest variations of the game, it is incredibly well-liked in US casinos.
• Initially only accessible on multi-player electronic machines, Ultimate Texas Hold’em quickly gained popularity and was adopted by numerous casinos as a table game.

The Bottom Line

Thus, to conclude this Casino Poker guide, we hope that you have enjoyed learning more about the popular casino game. Playing poker online is far different than in a land-based casino. Casino Poker is a fair representation of this. Have a check through our jackpot games for alternative titles that you can play online rather than in a land-based casino.

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