There are many different versions of poker games online. Besides online poker games played between other players, there are also numerous casino poker games played against the casino. Three live casino poker games stand out in particular with their popularity: 3 Card Poker, Casino Hold’em and Ultimate Texas Hold’em. All games are played with one deck of cards that are shuffled after each hand.
If you’ve ever played Evolution Gaming games, then you’ll know that they have a wide variety of live games in their casino lobby. Moreover, when you head to the Poker lobby, you’ll notice that 3 Card Poker, Casino Hold’em and Ultimate Texas Hold’em are the 3 most popular poker games.
In this casino poker games comparison, we will explain how to play each game and compare game rules, explore the side bet options and payouts. Furthermore, we’ll also determine which is the best game to play.
What is Casino Hold’em Poker Game and How Is It Played
Casino Hold’em is a poker game played against a casino dealer. Evolution has two variations of this game, regular and 2 handed casino hold’em. Like in normal Texas Hold’em, every one receives 2 cards and then there are 5 community cards dealt thereafter.
All active betting players play the same hand versus the dealer. Your goal is to make the best 5 card poker hand from your 2 cards and the five community cards.
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Betting Structure and Game Rules
Casino Hold’em is played with a single deck of cards (52 cards). In Casino Hold’em there are two betting options: Ante Bet and Bonus Bet. Ante bet is your main game bet and Bonus bet is a side bet for a poker hand made from your 2 hole cards and first 3 community cards.
In order for your Ante bet to be paid out, you need the dealer to have a qualifying hand, which is a pair of 4’s or higher.
So, let’s see how a game round plays out.
- Playing Stage 1 – Betting Stage: Players place an Ante bet and optional Bonus bet.
- Playing Stage 2 – Dealing Cards: After Ante bets are posted, the dealer deals 2 cards to you and to himself, and a Flop (3 community cards). Now you can choose if to Play or Fold. If you opt for Play, then you need to place a 2x bet.
- Playing Stage 3 – Turn & River : After players have acted the Turn and River are dealt (last 2 community cards).
- Playing Stage 4 – Results and Payouts : Once cards are dealt, hand strength is compared and a winner is declared. Ante bets are paid out 1:1 for winning hands, but Play bets require the dealer qualifying for a payout.
Game Bet Payouts & RTP
Unlike other casino poker games, in Casino Hold’em the dealer needs at least a pair of 4’s to qualify and be eligible for a winning hand. Therefore, the full RTP of the game is 99.18% and you can win a lot of high card hands, when the dealer doesn’t qualify. Separate RTPs for Ante bets and Bonus bets are 97.84% and 93.74%, respectively.
Call bets are paid out 1:1 for every winning hand. Whereas Ante and Bonus bets have a range of payouts based on your hand strength.
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As you can see, Bonus bets pay out better odds for made hands. This is because Bonus bets only relate to hands made from your hole cards and the first 3 community cards. However, you need at least a pair of Aces to qualify for a Bonus bet pay out. Whereas, Ante bet payouts relate to hands made from all 5 community cards and 2 hole cards. The max payout possible per bet is 100x.
What is Ultimate Texas Hold’em and How Is It Played
Next up we have Ultimate Texas Hold’em. This classic card game has been around for many years and is a gambler’s favourite at local casinos, cruises and online casino. Like Casino Hold’em both you and the dealer or dealt two cards with an extra 5 community cards.
Betting Structure and Game Rules
However, in Ultimate Texas Hold’em there are two mandatory bets each round: Ante and Blind. There is also an optional side bet called Trips. But essentially, you are betting 1x more per round than in Casino Hold’em. But, big bonus payouts are awarded for both the Trips and Blind Bets.
Poker Playing Stages
Here too, the action unfolded in 3 streets: Pre-Flop, Flop and River.
- Playing Stage 1 – Betting Stage: Players place an equal Ante and Blind bet and optional Trips bet.
- Playing Stage 2 – Dealing Cards: After Ante and Blinds are placed, the dealer deals 2 cards to you and to himself, face down. In the live casino version, your cards are exposed. In land based casinos, where each player plays their own hand, you’re not supposed to you’re your cards to them, to avoid hand manipulation or card counting. Now you can choose if to place a “Play” bet or “Check”. If you choose to Play, then you need to place a 3x or 4x bet. Checking is free.
- Playing Stage 3 – Flop : After players have acted, a Flop is dealt. Here you can choose to Play or Check again. Playing after the Flop costs 2x while Checking is free.
- Playing Stage 4 – Turn & River: The Turn and River cards are dealt to complete the Board. If you feel that your hand is strong enough or that the dealer doesn’t qualify, then you can Play for 1x or Fold your hand.
- Playing Stage 5 – Results and Payouts : Once all betting action is completed, then hands are compared and a winner is determined. Play bets are paid out 1:1 for winning hands, but Ante bets require the dealer qualifying for a payout. Ante bets Push if a dealer doesn’t have at least a Pair.
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Side Bets and Payouts (RTP)
In Ultimate Texas Hold’em the dealer needs at least a pair to qualify, but he can still beat your hand if he has higher cards or kickers. Here, the full RTP of the game is 99.47%, which is higher than the other two casino poker games. Furthermore, RTPs for Ante bets and Trips bets are 97.82% and 96.50%, respectively. So, you can see that Ultimate Texas Hold’em’s bet has a lesser house edge than the other games.
Ante and Play bets pay out 1:1. Whereas, Blind and Trips bets have a range of payouts based on your hand strength.
What is 3 Card Poker and How Is It Played
Lastly, we have 3 Card Poker which is another popular casino poker game played online and at land-based casinos. This game too, features a main bet and side bet options. However, you need to make the best 3 card poker hand to best the dealer’s hand, instead of a 5 card hand.
For Indian gamblers, this game is very similar to Teen Patti, with an added side bets twist. 3 of a kind are considered very strong hands, only losing to a Straight Flush or Mini Royal Flush. All participating players at the table play the same hand versus the dealer, but each player can make their own decision on how to act in each hand. Side bets are optional bets and have bigger payouts.
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Betting Structure and Game Rules
Playing 3 Card Poker is very simple. You place your bets and 3 cards are dealt to you and to the dealer. Based on your hand strength, you can decide if to play on or fold your hand. Whoever has the best 3 card hand, wins. It should be noted that poker hand rankings differ in this game, as a 3 card Flush is easier to achieve than a 3 card Straight. Therefore, Flushes are lower in the rankings and do not qualify for an Ante bonus payout.
Like all casino poker games, you have an Ante bet. But here you also have 2 side bet options: Pairs Plus and 6-Card. The Pairs Plus bet relates to your 3 card hand only, whereas the 6-Card bet is for a 6 hand combination (your 3 cards and the dealer’s 3 cards). There are no community cards and betting streets in this game. Therefore, 3 Card Poker is a much faster game.
Lastly, a dealer needs at least a Q high hand to qualify for the round. But unlike, Casino Hold’em the Ante Bet is paid out for all wins and the Play option is not paid out when the dealer doesn’t qualify.
A Round of 3 Card Poker
So, let’s take a look at a round of 3 Card Poker.
- Playing Stage 1 – Betting Stage : Players place an Ante bet and optional Pairs Plus and 6 Card side bets.
- Playing Stage 2 – Dealing Cards: After bets are posted, the dealer deals 3 cards each to you and himself. But your cards are face up and his cards are face down. Now you can choose if to place a “Play” bet (1x) or fold your hand, based on your hand strength.
- Playing Stage 3 – Hand Outcome : Once action is completed, the dealer reveals his hand and both hands are compared to see who is the winner. If you win the hand, then your Ante bet is paid out. Furthermore, if you achieve a 3 card Straight or higher, then you also receive an Ante Bonus payout. Any winning side bets are paid out too.
If a dealer doesn’t qualify but you still win the hand, then only the Ante bet is paid out.
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Game Bet Payouts & RTP
In 3 Card Poker you can receive payouts for winning hands and 2 side bet options. As mentioned, Straights and 3 of a Kinds, are considered higher in ranking than Flushes. This is because there are more ways to make 3 card Flushes than 3 card Straights and Sets.
Dealers also have less stricter rules for qualification, and they can still win a hand when not qualifying. The 6 Card bonus bet is the only hand that pays out according to normal 5 card poker rankings, with a max win of 1,000:1 for a Royal Flush. At land based casinos, you can often find 3 Card Poker tables that award a progressive jackpot for a 6 card Royal Flush (9, 10, J, Q, K, A of the same suit).
Therefore, the full RTP of the game is only 97.99%. Separate RTPs for Ante bets, Pairs Plus and 6-Card bets, are 96.63% and 95.51% and 91.44%, respectively. So, the house edge in this game is significantly higher.
Play bets can only be equal to the Ante bet size and are paid out 1:1.
Casino Poker Games Comparison – Key Differences
There are a few important differences between each game. Firstly, Casino Hold’em and Ultimate Texas Hold’em play out the same way but differ with their online betting options. Whereas, 3 Card Poker plays out differently, with only 3 cards dealt to dealers and players, and there are no community cards.
| Casino Hold’em | Ultimate Texas Hold’em | 3 Card Poker | |
| No of cards dealt | 2 each and, 5 community cards | 2 each and, 5 community cards | 3 cards each, no community cards |
| Overall RTP | 99.18% | 99.47% | 97.99% |
| Min. qualifying dealer hand | Pair of 4’s | A Pair | Q High |
| Dealer can win if not qualifying | No | Yes | Yes |
| Max Payout | 100:1 | 500:1 | 1,000:1 |
| Streets of Action | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| Side Bet Options | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Min Bet per Round | 1x | 2x | 1x |
| Highest Side Bet RTP | 93.74% | 96.50% | 95.51% |
Secondly, Casino Hold’em is the only game where the dealer can’t win a hand if he doesn’t qualify. Furthermore, Casino Hold’em has the highest qualifying threshold at a Pair of 4s. Whereas, Ultimate Texas Hold’em and 3 Card Poker have lower thresholds.
Thirdly, although Ultimate Texas Hold’em has a 2x min bet requirement per round, it still has a higher RTP than the other 2 games.
Lastly, 3 Card Poker offers the highest payout for a Royal Flush at 1,000:1, with its 6 card bonus bet. Therefore, this game also has the lowest RTP overall.
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Which Casino Poker Game Offers Better Odds?
If we base our answer purely on max payout potential, then 3 Card Poker has the highest win potential with 1,000x. However, you need to complete a 5 card Royal Flush, with your 3 cards and the dealer’s 3 cards. So, you only have 6 cards to complete it with, rather than 7 in the other 2 games.
Ultimate Texas Hold’em offers a 500x payout for a Royal Flush on the Blind bet. However, you need the dealer to qualify and you need to win the hand, for it to be paid out. But you can still get a 50x payout for a Royal Flush from the Trips bet, regardless of dealer qualifying.
Casino Hold’em pays out 100x for a Royal Flush on both the bonus and ante bet. But the latter required the dealer to qualify.
Lastly, if we put the bonus payout options aside, then Ultimate Texas Hold’em and Casino Hold’em offer the best payouts. As you can 4x your main bet before the Flop and cash in on a 4x win, compared to 3 Card Poker’s 1x.
Casino Poker Game Comparison Conclusion
To determine which casino poker game is best for you, there are numerous factors to take into consideration. Which game has the best RTP? Which Side Bets have the highest RTPs? How many hands will I win with unmade hands?
If we take all of these factors into consideration then Ultimate Texas Hold’em is the best game to play. Although we have a mandatory bet of 2x (1x Ante and 1x Blind), we are still going to be winning a lot of hands in the game. Moreover, the Trips bet RTP of 96.50% is the highest among all casino poker games’ side bets. So, you’ll be winning extra money quite often too.
Therefore, Live Casino India recommends Ultimate Texas Hold’em as the best casino poker game to play online.
Frequently Asked Questions
Each casino poker game requires a mandatory ante bet. In Ultimate Texas Hold’em an equal sized Blind bet is accompanied with the Ante bet. After placing these mandatory bets, you can also place side bets if you want.
In each casino poker game, there are unique side betting options. Casino Hold’em has a Bonus bet that offers payouts up to 100x. Ultimate Texas Hold’em has a Trips bet that pays out up to 50x. And 3 Card Poker has 2 side bet options: Pairs Plus which pays up to 100x and 6-Card that pays up to 1,000x.
3 Card Poker offers the highest payout 1,000x. But ultimate Texas Hold’em has the best combination of RTP and payouts (99.47% and a 500x max payout).
Ultimate Texas Hold’em has the highest RTP of the three with 99.47%. Casino Hold’em follows closely in 2nd place with 99.18%. Whereas, 3 Card Poker has a significantly higher house edge, with an RTP of 97.99%.
Before you play any casino game for real money, it’s important that you understand the rules of the game. 3 Card Poker is a slightly harder game to grasp, than the other 2 games, because the poker rankings are different from regular poker games.
