Caribbean Poker is one of the most popular games at Jackpot Capital Casino. It gives gamers the feeling of playing poker similar to the feeling they get when they play video poker.
In both Caribbean Poker and video poker, there is no bluffing. This is a big draw for a lot of gamers who feel that they are rather transparent when they play poker. With friends, their lack of a good poker face is not a big problem, but against strangers, a lot of players feel that they are an open book bound to lose.
So, video poker and Caribbean Poker give gamers the feeling that they are playing poker, which they love, and not the feeling of being an open book ready to be taken.
Three Different Caribbean Poker Variations
Here, we would like to talk about Caribbean Poker. The three variations are Caribbean Stud, Caribbean Draw, and Caribbean Hold’em.
Caribbean Poker was developed as Caribbean Stud Poker on a cruise, in the Caribbean, of course, by a man called James Suttle in the 1980’s. Another man, David Sklansky, also takes credit for inventing Caribbean Poker in 1982.
As such, Caribbean Poker is a really new poker game and perhaps has not been analyzed as much as standard poker, which is what gamers play when they play video poker.
The Rules of Caribbean Poker
In the following list, there are 9 entries, but there really are just a couple of rules that apply to all three variations of Caribbean Poker:
- Players play against the house only.
- Players place an ante bet.
- The dealer deals cards.
- The player has to decide to continue or fold.
- If the player folds, he loses the ante bet right away.
- If the player decides to continue, he has to place a second bet that is double the ante bet.
- The player can win both bets, the house can win both bets, or the player can win 1-1 on the ante bet.
- The dealer has to have a minimum qualifying hand to win both bets.
- If the player continues and places the second bet, he can win the 1-1 on the ante if the dealer doesn’t qualify, even if the dealer’s hand is better than the player’s hand.
Caribbean Stud Poker
The dealer deals five cards to each player and five cards to herself. One of the dealer’s cards is dealt face up. Caribbean Poker is a fast-paced game. Basically, since you are playing against the house, you simply decide to raise or fold, and then the hands are revealed.
In order to know whether to fold or raise, you have to fully understand the implications of both actions. A fold is simple; you give up the ante bet even though you could win it back on a 1-1 basis if the dealer doesn’t qualify.
If you choose to fold, it should never be because you think you know what the dealer has. This is similar to the blackjack fallacy of standing with 12 points at all times.
We have to look at the possibility that the dealer will qualify. Many analysts have tried to calculate this variable, and most come up with 56.3%. If you do not have a hand equal to the dealer’s qualifying hand, you should fold since you will lose about 56.3% of the time if you raise with a weak hand.
Some players choose to “protect” the ante bet by raising on all or almost all hands. This is incorrect thinking. Instead of protecting the ante bet, this action endangers the raise bet, and the raise bet is double the ante bet.
Caribbean Draw Poker
This variation is quite different than Caribbean Stud since you can draw up to two cards to improve your hand. The dealer also draws cards based on a strict formula, so there can never be any conflict as to how the dealer handled his hand.
The dealer needs a pair of eights or better to qualify.
The best strategy for Caribbean Draw Poker is much harder to calculate than the best strategy for Caribbean Stud. This is because both the player and the dealer can draw up to two cards to improve their hands.
It is interesting that the best strategy for discards in Caribbean Draw is similar to the best strategy in video poker. This makes a lot of sense since video poker is basically draw poker. The big difference is that in video poker, you can discard all five cards, while in Caribbean Draw, you can discard only up to two cards.
Some analysts have tried to calculate the house edge in Caribbean Poker. The most common result is that the player has to make absolutely the best decisions on all hands. This includes folding when the player’s hand is truly hopeless. Then the house edge is about 1%.
Caribbean Hold’em
In this variation, the player decides to fold or raise after each player and the dealer have received two cards, and three community cards have also been dealt.
After the player makes his or her decision, the two remaining community cards are dealt.
The house edge in Caribbean Hold’em has been calculated to be about 3%. The house needs at least a pair of fours to qualify.
It is much easier for a player to decide to fold or raise when they already know five of the seven cards. The basic logic that prevails in Texas Hold’em applies here as well. In Texas Hold’em, most players fold about 70% of all hands before the flop.
There are some variables in Texas Hold’em that don’t apply to Caribbean Hold’em, such as the blinds and position, but the basic idea is the same: you know fairly well what kind of hand you might end up with when you already know five of the seven cards.
Caribbean Poker Has a Variable Pay Table
When the player raises, the dealer qualifies, and the player wins, they win based on a graduated pay scale.
- Pair or high card 1-1
- Two pair 2-1
- Three of a Kind 3-1
- Straight 4-1
- Flush 5-1
- Full House 7-1
- Four of a Kind 20-1
- Straight Flush 50-1
- Royal Flush 100-1
Caribbean Poker is a Great Three-game Package for Gamers
Gamers love Caribbean Poker because the house edge is low and the variation in gameplay makes for an exciting alternative to the other online casino games they like to play. Given that the house edge is not 0.05% like it is in video poker, we recommend playing Caribbean Poker as a sideline rather than as the main attraction.
Gamers who like the slots also like Caribbean Poker for its variability and because it plays fast, as slots do.
Always keep in mind that Jackpot Capital Casino offers some 400 games, so you can realistically never run out of games to check out. Gaming at Jackpot Capital is safe as we protect your money behind a firewall of encryption software that hackers cannot break.