It usually pays 1/1 for making a pair and up as high as 40/1 for a straight flush. The side bet pays increasingly higher returns, the stronger hand you have. Calling means you match the ante bet you’ve made and see if your hand beats the dealer’s hand.Ī standard side bet is available in 3-card poker called “Pair Plus.” This is a separate wager on whether or not your hand will be a pair or better. Folding means you forfeit the ante bet you’ve made, with no way to win the hand. Once you have received your hand, you need to decide whether to fold or call – this is the second betting decision. If multiple people are playing, you’re only allowed to look at your hand, not anyone else’s. The dealer then deals you your three-card poker hand and their hand face down. First, before the hand is dealt, you make an ante bet in the middle of your betting zone – this is your first betting decision. Now we know the aim of the game and the hands we can make how do we bet on it? 3-card poker has a two-part betting system. After the initial boom, it was only a matter of time before the government changed the UK gambling regulations in 2002 to allow for the introduction of 3-card poker. After Webb had personally trained the dealers to run the game, it became a massive success in the casino, and other properties started to accept the game in their establishments. So they needed convincing before they would look into making any rule changes.Īfter unsuccessful pitches in Las Vegas, Reno, and Atlantic City, Derek eventually found a casino that would host the game – the Grand Casino Gulfport in Mississippi.

The reason was that the UK had specific gambling regulations that restricted his ability to launch there. He wanted to develop a poker game that played at the same speed as the other popular casino table games but that incorporated aspects of poker.ĭespite being created in the UK, he was encouraged by the British Casino Association to market the game to US casinos first. It was created in 1994 by British inventor Derek Webb. While most casino games like blackjack and roulette have a long and storied history, often dating back to the 18th/19th century, 3-card poker is a much more recent invention.

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