3-5-7 variation seems to draw happy medium
The surge in popularity of live poker has done
more than create a new generation of players. It
has spurred casino game manufacturers to invest
in the research and development of new table
games designed to attract people who may be
intimidated by participating in the “real
thing.”
There’s always a price to pay. In the live poker
room version, people play against one another.
The casino makes its money by extracting a
percentage from each pot called the “rake.” In
the table game variations, people play against
the dealer. The casino makes its money from the
mathematical house edge that’s built into each
game.
One new game that seems to have struck a happy
medium is 3-5-7 Poker. The dealer acts as host
while people play their cards against a pay
table that’s structured to generate money for
the casino. That’s the bad news. The good news
is that the game’s house edge is less than
Caribbean Stud Poker, Let it Ride and other
games, including roulette.
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Here’s how it
works: The game is played with a 52-card deck. There are three
betting spots in front of each player position, the first for
a 3-card hand, the second for a 5-card hand, and the third for
a 7-card hand. Players have the option of wagering on all
three spots or just on the first two.
When a new
game begins, each player is dealt three cards. The dealer
deals himself four cards that are placed face down in front of
him. The first round of betting is based upon the three cards
each player has been dealt. Hands are paid off at 40-1 for a
straight flush, 25-1 for three-of-a-kind, 6-1 for a straight,
4-1 for a flush, and even money for any pair.
During a
short period of time I observed the game being played at the
Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, I witnessed a
player dealt a straight flush in diamonds (A-2-3) and another
player dealt three-of-a-kind in queens. The straight flush
bettor had $10 in chips in the first circle, which paid $400.
The three-of-a-kind bettor also had a $10 bet on the table,
good for a $250 payout.
Anyone who
has played Let It Ride knows that winning hands when you are
dealt three cards are few and far between. I was quite
surprised when I saw the big 3-5-7 Poker winners.
The second
round of betting is settled after the dealer flips over two of
the community cards in front of him. Winning hands are paid
based on each player’s 5-card hand comprised of the three
cards he’s holding and the two community cards. The payoffs
are 500-1 for a royal flush, 100-1 for a straight flush, 40-1
for four-of-a-kind, 12-1 for a full house, 9-1 for a flush,
6-1 for a straight, 4-1 for three-of-a-kind, 3-1 for two pair,
and even money for a pair of sixes or better.
The player in
my example who won 25-1 for his three-of-a-kind in the first
round, collected another 4-1 for the hand in the second round.
Had the dealer flipped over the fourth queen, he would have
collected 40-1 for four-of-a-kind. As it was, another player
at the table had the queen.
The third and
final betting round is settled after the dealer flips over the
remaining two community cards. Players make their best
five-card hands among the seven cards they have (four
community and three dealt cards). The payoffs are 100-1 for a
royal flush, 20-1 for a straight flush, 7-1 for
four-of-a-kind, 5-1 for a full house, 4-1 for a flush, 3-1 for
a straight, 2-1 for three-of-a-kind, and even money for two
pair with the high pair being tens or better.
The house
advantage boils down to 3.49 percent on the 3-card hand, 4.12
percent on the 5-card hand, and 3.28 percent on the 7-card
hand.
