In Four Card Poker players are dealt 5 cards and they have to make the best possible hand using only 4 cards. Where as Three Card poker players dealt 3 cards and the dealer need a queen high or higher to qualify to play. A wild card is specified by the holder to be a card of any rank or suit, such as a fifth queen, or the card needed to combine with the other four in a player's hand to form a straight or a flush. Wild cards in a Poker game add variety, and of course, they greatly increase the chances of getting a rare combination such as a full house or a straight flush. The only advantage dealer is having one extra card than the player. Four card poker are the two games combined in a one. There are two combined games “Aces Up” and “Ante”. Dealer is dealt with 6 cards while player is dealt with 5 cards. Five cards are face down with 1 face up card of the total six cards of dealer.
General Description
The inventor of this game is Roger Snow from Shuffle Master. This game is similar to Three Card Poker, but it has a number of significant differences. A standard 52-card deck and a table with a special layout are used in this game.
Aim of the Game
The aim of the game is to beat the dealer by collecting a higher-ranking hand or choosing the right time to make an Aces Up bet.
Hands
Since the players use only four cards, the ranks of hands in this version of poker differ from the standard ones that are adopted in five-card variations of this game. The hands that are valid in Four Card Poker are listed below in descending order.
- Four of a kind is a hand that contains four cards of one rank.
- Straight flush is a hand consisting of four cards of one suit in sequence.
- Three of a kind (tris) is a hand that contains three cards of one rank.
- Flush is a hand consisting of four cards of one suit.
- Straight is a hand that contains four cards of different ranks in sequence.
- Two pairs is a hand that contains two matching cards of one rank and two matching cards of another rank.
- Pair is a hand that consists of two cards of the same rank.
- High card is a dealer's or player's hand that contains the highest-ranking card.
It is easy to notice that the main differences in the ranks of hands include: a four of a kind beats a straight flush; a three of a kind beats a flush and straight. This is explained by the high frequency of the appearance of them in four-card hands.
Types of Bets
It is allowed to make two independent kinds of bets in Four Card Poker.
- Ante/Play are basic bets, which win or lose after the comparison of the player's cards with the dealer's hand. When the player makes them, he or she hopes to get a hand whose rank is higher than the dealer's hand. The ante is the initial bet. The Play bet is made when the player decides to continue the game. The Play bet size is selected by the player. It varies from one to three antes. Their sizes are equal. If you win, these bets are paid 1:1.
- Aces Up is an optional bet that wins if the player receives a pair of aces or better. It can be made without the ante, and if you make both of bets, its size should be equal to the size of the ante. This payout is made even if the initial bet loses.
Payouts for the Aces Up bet can vary significantly (the multipliers for hands are not always proportional), so that the range of possible multipliers is available below:
- Four of a kind - 50:1
- Straight flush - 30-40:1
- Three of a kind - 7-9:1
- Flush - 6:1
- Straight - 4-5:1
- Pair of aces - 1:1
Information about multipliers should be clarified at a casino that you have chosen for gambling.
Gameplay
The game starts when the players make independent antes or Aces Up bets, or they place bets directly on both fields (in this case, the bets should be equal.) The croupier thoroughly shuffles the cards and deals five cards to players (despite the fact that this version of poker is called Four Card Poker) and six cards to himself, placing one of them face up.
The dealer and players form hands. However they can use only four cards for that. One of the main features of this variation of poker is that the term 'dealer's hand' is technically not used here, i.e. the comparison of dealer's and player's cards will occur in any case unless all players fold.
Players evaluate the rank of their cards, taking into account the rank of the dealer's upcard, and make the decision whether to fold, losing all their bets, including an Aces Up bet, or to call, making an additional Play bet. As soon as all players have made their decisions, the dealer reveals his cards. If the Aces Up bet wins, it is paid at once.
Then the dealer compares his cards with the player's cards. If the player wins, the ante and Play bet are paid 1:1. If the player loses, money goes to the casino. If the hands are equal, the player usually wins. Only the four highest-ranking cards are taken into account, and the rank of the other cards is irrelevant.
Bonus
Four Card Poker allows players to get a bonus without making a side bet. The bonus is paid if the player collects one of the following hands: four of a kind, straight flush, or three of a kind.
Bonus payouts vary at different casinos. Users can become familiar with the possible range of multipliers (for the ante) in the following table:
- Four of a kind - 25-30:1
- Straight flush - 20-15:1
- Three of a kind (tris) - 2:1.
The bonus is paid without taking into consideration the fact whose hand will be higher.
Basic Strategy
The strategy for Four Card Poker does not seem to be complicated.
- A pair of tens and higher - it is necessary to make a Play bet in the amount of three antes,
- From a pair of threes to a pair of tens - it is necessary to make a Play bet in the amount of one ante.
- A pair of deuces and lower - it is necessary to fold.
Four Card Poker Rules Strategy
The house edge for Ante/Play bets is about three per cent (the range depends on the size of bonus payouts.) When you make an Aces Up bet, the house edge varies between four and six percent.
Five-card draw (also known as a Cantrell draw) is a pokervariant that is considered the simplest variant of poker, and is the basis for video poker. As a result, it is often the first variant learned by new players. It is commonly played in home games but rarely played in casino and tournament play. The variant is also offered by some online venues, although it is not as popular as other variants such as seven-card stud and Texas hold 'em.
Gameplay[edit]
In casino play the first betting round begins with the player to the left of the big blind, and subsequent rounds begin with the player to the dealer's left. Home games typically use an ante; the first betting round begins with the player to the dealer's left, and the second round begins with the player who opened the first round.
Play begins with each player being dealt five cards, one at a time, all face down. The remaining deck is placed aside, often protected by placing a chip or other marker on it. Players pick up the cards and hold them in their hands, being careful to keep them concealed from the other players, then a round of betting occurs.
If more than one player remains after the first round, the 'draw' phase begins. Each player specifies how many of their cards they wish to replace and discards them. The deck is retrieved, and each player is dealt in turn from the deck the same number of cards they discarded so that each player again has five cards.
A second 'after the draw' betting round occurs beginning with the player to the dealer's left or else beginning with the player who opened the first round (the latter is common when antes are used instead of blinds). This is followed by a showdown, if more than one player remains, in which the player with the best hand wins the pot.
House rules[edit]
A common 'house rule' in some places is that a player may not replace more than three cards, unless they draw four cards while keeping an ace (or wild card). This rule is useful for low-stakes social games where many players will stay for the draw, and will help avoid depletion of the deck. In more serious games such as those played in casinos it is unnecessary and generally not used. However, a rule used by many casinos is that a player is not allowed to draw five consecutive cards from the deck. In this case, if a player wishes to replace all five of their cards, that player is given four of them in turn, the other players are given their draws, and then the dealer returns to that player to give the fifth replacement card; if no other player draws it is necessary to deal a burn card first.
4 Card Poker Play
Another common house rule is that the bottom card of the deck is never given as a replacement, to avoid the possibility of someone who might have seen it during the deal using that information. If the deck is depleted during the draw before all players have received their replacements, the last players can receive cards chosen randomly from among those discarded by previous players. For example, if the last player to draw wants three replacements but there are only two cards remaining in the deck, the dealer gives the player the one top card he can give, then shuffles together the bottom card of the deck, the burn card, and the earlier players' discards (but not the player's own discards), and finally deals two more replacements to the last player.
Sample deal[edit]
The sample deal is being played by four players as shown to the right with Alice dealing. All four players ante $1. Alice deals five cards to each player and places the deck aside.
Bob opens the betting round by betting $5. Carol folds, David calls, and Alice calls, closing the betting round.
Bob now declares that he wishes to replace three of his cards, so he removes those three cards from his hand and discards them. Alice retrieves the deck, deals a burn card, then deals three cards directly to Bob, who puts them in his hand. David discards one card, and Alice deals one card to him from the deck. Alice now discards three of her own cards, and replaces them with three from the top of the deck (Note: in a player-dealt casino game there is often a rule that the dealer must discard before picking up the deck, but this is a home game so we won't worry about such details).
Now a second betting round begins. Bob checks, David checks, Alice bets $10, Bob folds, David raises $16, and Alice calls, ending the second betting round and going directly into a showdown. David shows a flush, and Alice shows two pair, so David takes the pot.
Stripped deck variant[edit]
Five-card draw is sometimes played with a stripped deck. This variant is commonly known as 'seven-to-ace' or 'ace-to-seven' (abbreviated as A-7 or 7-A). It can be played by up to five players. When four or fewer players play, a normal 32-card deck without jokers, with ranks ranging from ace to seven, is used. With five players, the sixes are added to make a 36-card deck. The deck thus contains only eight or nine different card ranks, compared to 13 in a standard deck. This affects the probabilities of making specific hands, so a flush ranks above a full house and below four of a kind. Many smaller online poker rooms, such as Boss Media, spread the variant, although it is unheard of in land casinos.
4 Card Poker Hands
Math of Five-card draw[edit]
- Pre-draw odds of getting each hand
- Royal flush <0.001%
- Straight flush (not including royal flush) <0.002%
- Four of a kind 0.02%
- Full house 0.14%
- Flush (excluding royal flush and straight flush) 0.20%
- Straight (excluding royal flush and straight flush) 0.39%
- Three of a kind 2.11%
- Two pair 4.75%
- One pair 42.30%
- No pair / High card 50.10%