Casino Hold’em Poker isn’t as old as its more famous relative, Texas Hold’em, however it is similar. But it’s important to recognize it’s not the same. If you’d like to know more about Texas hold’em, you should take a look at our Texas Hold’em strategy articles here.
Here we’ll cover what casino hold’em poker is, what casino hold’em rules you need to know, and cover some casino hold’em strategy.
WHAT IS CASINO HOLD’EM POKER?
Casino hold’em poker is like Texas hold’em poker, but one of the most significant differences is that you’re not playing against other players, you’re playing against the house. Poker is such a great game because it involves skill, strategy and luck, but you’re playing against other players, and that’s what makes it especially challenging. With casino hold’em poker there’s no need to worry about bluffing, or being intimidated by other players; you can focus squarely on beating the dealer, like in most casino games, and that’s all.
That’s what makes casino hold’em poker an ideal game—you can focus on what you’re doing, and not concern yourself with where you are sitting in the hand. The hand rankings in casino hold’em poker are the same as the hand rankings in Texas hold’em poker too, so if you know them for one, you know them for both.
HOW DO YOU PLAY CASINO HOLD’EM POKER?
Some casino table games use multiple decks of cards (blackjack is played with up to eight decks of cards). Casino hold’em poker is played with a standard 52-card deck. As with Texas hold’em, the goal of casino hold’em poker is to produce the best five-card hand using a combination of two hole cards and five community cards.
The hand rankings of casino hold’em poker are the same as Texas hold’em poker, but let’s familiarize ourselves with them again. For an in-depth look at poker hand rankings, take a look at our handy poker hand rankings page here.
| HAND | EXPLANATION |
|---|---|
| ROYAL FLUSH | Ace, King, Queen, Jack, and 10 in the same suit |
| STRAIGHT FLUSH | Five cards in the same suit, all in a rank sequence |
| FOUR OF A KIND | Four cards of the same rank |
| FULL HOUSE | Three of a Kind and a Pair |
| FLUSH | Five cards in the same suit |
| STRAIGHT | Five cards in a rank sequence |
| THREE OF A KIND | Three cards of the same rank |
| TWO PAIR | Two pairs of different rank |
| PAIR | Two cards of the same rank |
| HIGH CARD | Highest card when no higher hand is available |
You start playing by placing an ante amount. It’s a forced play you need to make before the flop. Then both you and the dealer get two hole cards each.
Once the hole cards are dealt, the flop with three community cards follows.
After the flop, you have two options:
- Fold—discard your hand and wait for another round, forfeiting your ante in the process
- Raise—which requires you to double the ante amount
When you play casino hold’em online and you fold, the game skips to the next hand without revealing the remaining cards or the dealer’s cards.
When you call, the remaining two community cards are dealt, for a total of five community cards.
The dealer’s cards go face up and you see the outcome of the game—both hands are scored according to the highest poker value of the two hole cards and five community cards—and if you’ve got the better hand, you take home the pot.
To win more, not only you need a good hand, but also the dealer needs to have a decent hand. This is known as qualifying. The dealer’s hand must qualify. In casino hold’em poker, the dealer’s hand qualifies with a pair of fours or better. If your hand beats the dealer’s hand, but the dealer’s hand doesn’t qualify—it’s inferior to at least a pair of fours—the ante will be rewarded according to the table below, and the raise will push (i.e. be returned to you). You win the raise play only if the dealer’s hand qualifies and you beat it.
| HAND | AWARD |
|---|---|
| Royal Flush | 100-1 |
| Straight Flush | 20-1 |
| Four of a Kind | 10-1 |
| Full House | 3-1 |
| Flush | 2-1 |
| Straight | 1-1 |
| Three of a kind | 1-1 |
| Two pair | 1-1 |
| One pair or less | 1-1 |
Now you know how the game works, you can enjoy casino hold’em. Why not try out our casino hold’em now and take on the dealer? For more information, check out our Casino Hold’em Rules here.