How to play Caribbean Stud Poker

HISTORY
Caribbean Stud Poker, a variation of Five-Card Stud Poker, is a game that was invented and first played on the Caribbean Island of Aruba in 1988. The popularity of this game has experienced rapid growth and is now being played in casinos throughout the world.

OBJECT
The object of the game is to bet when you think you have a better five-card Poker hand than the dealer will have.

OVERVIEW
The game is relatively simple: put up your Ante, receive your five cards and either Bet or Surrender. The house also receives five cards: four face-down and one face-up.

If you opt to Surrender, the hand is over and you lose your ANTE.

If you BET, your hand is compared to the house hand and the higher ranked hand wins the ANTE bet (The rank of hands is shown in the Payoff Schedule in the Hand column.). In order for your BET to be paid, the house hand must Qualify AND your hand must out-rank the house hand. If this is the case, you will be paid according to the rank of your hand. See the Payoff Schedule below. If the house hand qualifies AND out-ranks your hand, you lose your ANTE and BET. If the house hand does not qualify, there is no action on your BET.

If you have the same Poker hand as the house, then any remaining cards in the hand are taken into consideration and the highest ranking hand wins. Suits are not counted. For example, if you have a Pair of Kings, 10, 8, 4 and the house has a Pair of Kings, 10, 6, 5, then you win. (Your 8 is higher than the house's 6.) If your hand ties with the house hand (all five cards are identical in rank), your ANTE and BET are a push and no action is taken.

TABLE CONDITIONS

• Minimum bet is $5.

• Maximum bet is $100.

• ANTE bet must be at least $5 and cannot exceed 1/3 of your current balance. This is because if you opt to BET, you must double your ANTE bet. Don't worry about the calculations, the game will not allow you to ANTE more than 1/3 of your balance. (If you attempt to do this, the game will automatically place 1/3 of your balance for you; leaving you enough to BET if you so desire.)

• Bet amount must be double your Ante bet.

• A single deck of cards is shuffled after each hand.

QUALIFY
A qualifying hand is an Ace and King or better. The house hand must qualify before your BET can be paid. If you BET and the house hand contains an Ace and King or better, your BET will be paid if your hand out-ranks the house hand. ANTE bets are not affected by this qualifying factor; your ANTE bet will be paid if your hand out-ranks the house hand.

PAYOFF SCHEDULE
All five-card hands are paid according to the following schedule.

Hand	Payoff Odds
Royal Flush	200:1
Straight Flush	50:1
Four of a Kind	20:1
Full House	7:1
Flush	5:1
Straight	4:1
Three of a Kind	3:1
Two Pair	2:1
One Pair	1:1
Less than one pair	1:1

PLAYING THE GAME
The game starts when you place your ANTE. The details of placing bets can be read in Placing Bets on Table Games. It is strongly recommended that you read these Common Factors before playing. Left-click the Deal button or hit Enter on your keyboard to deal the cards. Assess your hand and decide if you want to BET or Surrender. If you opt to Surrender, left-click the Surr button. This ends the hand and you lose your ANTE. Place another ANTE to play again. If you decide to BET, left-click the Bet button. Your BET will be automatically placed for you from your bankroll.