General Principles for Casino Poker Table Games

Published: February 6, 2014

A lot of players like to get into different types of games and try different things, and casino poker games are one of those genres that adventurous players usually get around to testing out. While there are a number of casino poker games that have somewhat different rules, there are a lot of similarities between them. While these games include a definite need for strategic play, they aren't usually as in-depth as video poker or blackjack, and that makes them a lot more appealing to players who don't want to have to spend hours practicing strategy just to see a good payout rate.

There are two basic principles at work for deciding how your payouts are given in casino poker games. The first is the group of scenarios where your hand is compared to a paytable. This influences strategy by having you play your hand in a way to maximize your expectation based on that table. If you have drawing options, you'll need to maximize your worth that way. When it comes to the option to bet or fold, sometimes you'll be able to see the first few cards of your hand before you put in all of your chips, and that can lead to strategic decisions as well.

The other way that payouts are determined, and sometimes these two methods are mixed, is by comparing your hand with a hand that the dealer has. The dealer will usually have to qualify in some way before this comparison can happen, and that puts you at a little bit of a disadvantage since you don't have to qualify. The key here is that you'll often win a small payout when the dealer doesn't qualify, so you should be more aggressive with the hands you have when it comes to deciding when to raise with medium-strength holdings because you get value from the times the dealer doesn't qualify.

Overall, the easiest table poker game to start with is three card poker. Learn the three-card hand rankings (they're different than the five-card rankings), and start playing. Your decisions are simple in this game, and strategy is based on only calling when you have Q64-high or better and folding when you have a worse hand than that. The right strategy is simple to learn, and you can get a feel for how the mechanics of casino poker work without having to get in over your head.