The bets and the goal
You can bet the Ante, the Pair or Better bet or both. Each player plays only against the dealer.
- Ante
- A bet against the dealer, made before the cards. The best three-card hand wins.
- Play
- A bet equal to the Ante, made after you see your cards, to stay in the hand.
- Pair or Better
- A bet on your hand alone, made before the cards: it pays if you have a pair or better, whatever the dealer holds.
The deck and the deal
The game uses one 52-card deck, shuffled before every hand. Each player gets three cards face down, seen only by that player, and the dealer gets three cards face down.
Hand rankings
With three cards, the order changes from five-card poker: a straight beats a flush, and three of a kind beats a straight, because they're harder to get. From highest to lowest:
- Straight flush
- Three cards in sequence, all the same suit.
- Three of a kind
- Three cards of the same rank.
- Straight
- Three cards in sequence, mixed suits.
- Flush
- Three cards of the same suit, not in sequence.
- Pair
- Two cards of the same rank.
- High card
- None of the above: the highest card counts.
The ace is the highest card, but it also plays low: A-2-3 is the lowest straight and A-K-Q the highest. K-A-2 isn't a straight.
Breaking ties
- Pair against pair: the higher pair wins; with the same pair, the higher third card wins.
- Flush and high card: compare the highest card, then the second, then the third. Queen-7-3 beats queen-6-4.
- Straight, three of a kind and straight flush: the higher one wins.
- Hands with the same ranks tie. Suits never break a tie.
Play or fold
If you only bet Pair or Better, there's nothing to decide: the bet wins or loses on your hand alone.
- Play
- You put the same amount as the Ante on Play and stay in the hand.
- Fold
- You drop out of the hand and lose the Ante. Under New Jersey rules, you also lose your Pair or Better bet, if you made one.
When the dealer qualifies
The dealer needs queen high or better to qualify. If the dealer doesn't qualify, the Ante pays 1 to 1 and the Play bet pushes.
If the dealer qualifies, the hands are compared. If yours is higher, Ante and Play each pay 1 to 1. If the dealer's is higher, you lose both. On a tie, both push.
The Ante bonus
If you played with one of these hands, you get a bonus on the Ante, even if the dealer doesn't qualify and even if the dealer wins. On the most common paytable:
- Straight flush
- 5 to 1.
- Three of a kind
- 4 to 1.
- Straight
- 1 to 1.
Pair or Better
The Pair or Better bet looks only at your hand and comes with several paytables. The original one pays:
- Straight flush
- 40 to 1.
- Three of a kind
- 30 to 1.
- Straight
- 6 to 1.
- Flush
- 4 to 1.
- Pair
- 1 to 1.
Many tables now pay only 3 to 1 on a flush. In New Jersey, the reference paytable pays 1, 3, 5, 25 and 35, with 35 to 1 also for a suited A-K-Q. Without a pair, the bet loses.
Strategy and house edge
- The right play is to play with queen-6-4 or better and fold anything less. That way, the house edge on the Ante is about 3.37%.
- Mimicking the dealer (playing any queen high or better) pushes the edge to about 3.45%. Always playing pushes it to about 7.65%.
- The Pair or Better bet has no decisions. On the original paytable, the house edge is about 2.32%; with the flush at 3 to 1, it rises to about 7.28%.
- With three cards, a straight beats a flush: it's worth memorizing the rankings.
Variations
Tables vary from casino to casino: the Pair or Better paytable, the Ante bonus amounts, which at some tables pay more for a suited A-K-Q, and extra bets such as the six-card bonus, which combines your cards with the dealer's, or progressive wagers.
On Selminha.com
The rules in Queen High Poker on Selminha.com
Queen High Poker on Selminha.com follows casino rules: the dealer qualifies with queen high, the Ante bonus pays 1, 4 and 5, and PAIR OR BETTER uses the original paytable. Here's what it uses and where it differs.
- Game mode
- Just you against the dealer. There are no difficulty levels and no playing with friends. Before you sit down, the only choice is the card design.
- The deck
- One 52-card deck, shuffled for every hand by the browser's random number generator. Your cards show face up to you; the dealer's stay face down until you decide.
- Bets
- The ANTE is required, from 5 to 100. PAIR OR BETTER is optional, also from 5 to 100. Unlike many casinos, you can't bet PAIR OR BETTER on its own.
- Covering the PLAY bet
- The table only takes an ANTE you can cover twice, plus your PAIR OR BETTER. That way, a hand never stalls for lack of chips.
- Paytables
- PAIR OR BETTER: 1, 4, 6, 30 and 40 to 1. ANTE bonus: 1, 4 and 5 to 1. There's no six-card bonus and no progressive wager.
- FOLD
- You lose the ANTE and PAIR OR BETTER, as under New Jersey rules.
- HINT
- Tells you the right play: play with queen-6-4 or better, fold anything less.
- Chips
- You start with 500 play chips, which can't be bought or cashed in for money.
- End of the night and score
- CASH OUT ends the night, and the chips you have become your score on the TOP 5 leaderboard. If you can't cover the 10-chip minimum for ANTE and PLAY, the night is over.