Beat the dealer with three cards. One decision — Play or Fold — and a coach that teaches the winning line.
Three Card Poker is a fast, beginner-friendly table game where you play against the dealer, not other players. You each get three cards, and the best three-card hand wins. The whole game comes down to one decision — Play or Fold — and the correct rule fits in a single line.
You start by placing an Ante. After you see your three cards (the dealer's stay hidden), you either Play — matching your Ante with an equal Play bet — or Fold, giving up the Ante. Then the dealer's cards are revealed and the hands are compared.
With only three cards, the rankings flip from regular five-card poker — a straight is harder to make than a flush, so it ranks higher:
| Rank | Hand | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1 (best) | Straight Flush | 4♥ 5♥ 6♥ |
| 2 | Three of a Kind | 7♠ 7♥ 7♦ |
| 3 | Straight | 9♣ 10♦ J♠ |
| 4 | Flush | K♦ 9♦ 4♦ |
| 5 | Pair | Q♠ Q♥ 5♣ |
| 6 (worst) | High Card | A♠ J♦ 8♣ |
The optimal strategy is famously simple:
There are two bets. The math ranks them clearly:
| Bet | House Edge | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Ante / Play | 2.01% (element of risk) | 3.37% per Ante; 2.01% per dollar actually wagered — the figure that compares to other games |
| Pair Plus (1-4-6-30-40) | 2.32% | Pays on your three cards alone, dealer irrelevant |
Pair Plus paytable (1-4-6-30-40): Pair 1:1, Flush 4:1, Straight 6:1, Three of a Kind 30:1, Straight Flush 40:1. (Some casinos use a stingier flush-pays-3:1 table, which raises the edge to about 7.28% — always check the felt.)
Play any hand of Queen-Six-Four or better, fold everything worse. Play every pair or better, and for high-card hands play if your three cards are at least Queen, Six, Four. This single rule is optimal and holds the house edge near 2% (element of risk).
The Ante-Play game is 3.37% per Ante wagered, or about 2.01% as an element of risk (per dollar actually wagered). Pair Plus on the standard 1-4-6-30-40 table is 2.32%.
With only three cards a straight is harder to make than a flush, so the rankings invert from five-card poker: straight flush, three of a kind, straight, flush, pair, high card.
An optional side bet that pays on your three cards regardless of the dealer. On the 1-4-6-30-40 table: pair 1:1, flush 4:1, straight 6:1, trips 30:1, straight flush 40:1 — a 2.32% house edge.