Three Card Poker

GEGA-003666

Rules & How to Play

Type of Game

The game of Three Card Poker 6 Card Bonus utilizes a player-dealer position and is a California game. The player-dealer shall collect all losing wagers, pay all winning wagers, and may not win or lose more than the original amount wagered. Once the player-dealer’s wager has been exhausted, the wagers not covered by the player-dealer shall be returned to the respective players. The player-dealer may only “bank” the hand (including bonus bets) for two consecutive rounds of play before it is offered in a clockwise fashion around the gaming table. The gambling enterprise does not participate in the actual play of the game and has no interest in the outcome of the play.

Object of the Game

The object of the game is to assemble a three card hand that beats the player-dealer’s three card hand.

Description of the Deck & Number of Decks Used

Shuffling Machine: Cards used to play Three Card Poker 6 Card Bonus shall be dealt from a single deck automatic card shuffling device (‘shuffler’).

Physical Characteristics

Cards used to play Three Card Poker 6 Card Bonus shall be in standard decks of 52 cards. No jokers shall be utilized.

Number of Decks

Cards used to play Three Card Poker 6 Card Bonus shall be played with two alternating decks, each consisting of a 52-card deck with backs of the same design.
  • The backs of each deck will be a different color;
  • One deck will be shuffled by the automated card shuffling device while the other deck is being dealt or used to play the game;
  • Both decks will be continuously alternated in and out of play, with each deck being used for every other round of play; and
  • The cards from only one deck shall be placed in the discard rack at any given time.

Card Values & Hand Rankings

Three Card Poker 6 Card Bonus Card Value
The rank of each card used in Three Card Poker 6 Card Bonus when forming a three card poker hand, in order of highest to lowest rank, shall be: ace, king, queen, jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 and all suits shall be considered equal in rank.

Three Card Poker 6 Card Bonus Hand Rankings

3-CARD HAND DEALT HAND RANKING
Mini Royal Flush A hand that consists of an ace, king, and queen of the same suit.
Straight Flush A hand that consists of three cards of the same suit in consecutive ranking, excluding ace, king and queen.
Three of a Kind A hand that consists of three cards of the same rank. Three aces is the highest ranked three of a kind and three 2’s is the lowest ranked three of a kind.
Straight A hand that consists of three cards that are in consecutive ranking, but that are not the same suit. Ace, king, and queen are the highest ranked straight and ace, 2, 3 is the lowest ranked straight.
Flush A hand that consists of three cards of the same suit, but that are not in consecutive ranking. An ace, king, and jack is the highest ranked flush and a 5, 3, and 2 is the lowest ranked flush.
One Pair A hand that consists of two cards of the same rank. Two aces is the highest ranked pair and two 2’s is the lowest ranked pair.
High Card A hand that consists of three cards that do not make any of the hands listed above. An ace, king, and jack is the highest ranked high card hand and 5, 3, and 2 is the lowest ranked high card hand.

Description of Table Used & Total Number of Seated Positions

Three Card Poker 6 Card Bonus shall be played on a standard blackjack style table having seven places on one side of the table for six players and a player-dealer, and a place for the house dealer on the opposite side. Each Three Card Poker 6 Card Bonus table shall have a drop box attached to it.

The wagering areas shall be designated as follows:
  • For Ante wagers the word “Ante”;
  • For Play wagers the word “Play”;
  • For the Bonus wager the word(s) “Bonus” or “Pair Plus.”
  • For 6 Card Bonus wagers on the words “6 Card Bonus.”

Dealing Procedures & Round of Play

  • All wagers in Three Card Poker 6 Card Bonus shall be made by placing gaming chips on the appropriate betting areas of the table layout keeping in mind the table minimum and maximum wagering limits.
  • Back-line betting is not permitted on the base game or the bonus bets.
  • At the beginning of each round of play, each player may place an Ante, Pair Plus or 6 Card Bonus wager. Each player will have the option to place a Play wager, after inspecting their hand, which must be equal to the Ante wager.
  • Each player at a Three Card Poker 6 Card Bonus table that places a Pair Plus or 6 Card Bonus wager is awarded a bonus payout for poker hands consisting of certain hand combinations as listed in the Bonus Bet Payout Table(s).
  • The house dealer shall wait for each player to place their Ante wagers as well as any bonus wagers. After each player has placed their wagers, the house dealer will announce, “no more bets.” No Ante or Pair Plus wagers shall be made, increased, or withdrawn after the house dealer has announced, “no more bets.”
  • After each round of play has been completed, the house dealer shall shuffle the cards by use of a shuffle machine so that the cards are randomly intermixed. Upon completion of the shuffle, the device shall dispense cards in stacks of three.
  • Prior to the commencement of play, the house dealer will determine where the action will begin on the table, as noted below:
    • Action Button Utilized: The Three Card Poker 6 Card Bonus game utilizes an action button to determine which player receives first action on their wagers. The player-dealer’s third card, which is dealt face-up, determines the position of the action button. The player-dealer position is not counted when determining where the action button shall be placed. The other seats, in clockwise rotation, starting with the player to the left of the house dealer and continuing left to right, respectively represent the numbers of the player-dealer’s face down card. When determining where the action button will be placed, cards will hold the following values; ace, is one, two through nine have their face value. Jack is eleven, queen is twelve, and king is thirteen. Wagers will be settled in the following order from player to player: the Ante wager, then the Play wager, then the Pair Plus wager (if placed), and then the 6 Card Bonus wager (if placed). Once the player-dealer’s wager has been exhausted, the wagers not covered by he player-dealer will be returned to the players.
  • After the stacks have been delivered to each player, face-down, the player-dealers bottom card will be turned face-up. The house dealer shall unload the remaining cards in the shuffler and place them into the discard rack without exposing the cards.
  • After the dealing procedures above have been completed, each player shall examine his/ her cards.
  • Each player who wagers in Three Card Poker 6 Card Bonus shall be responsible for his/ her own hand and no person other than the player or the house dealer may touch the cards of that player. Each player shall be required to keep his/ her three cards in full view of the house dealer at all times.
  • After examination of the cards, each player who has placed an Ante wager shall have the option to either make a Play wager in an amount equal to the player's Ante wager or forfeit the Ante wager and end his or her participation in the round of play. The house dealer shall offer this option to each player, starting with the player to the left of the player-dealer and moving clockwise around the table in order.
  • If a player has placed a Pair Plus wager, but does not make an Ante or Play wager, the player shall still be eligible for the Pair Plus payout If a player has placed a 6 Card Bonus wager, but does not make an Ante or Play wager, the plaers shall still be eligible for the 6 Card Bonus payout.
  • After each player has either placed a wager on the table in the Play wager area or forfeited his/her wager and hand, the house dealer shall collect all forfeited wagers and associated cards, placing them in the discard rack.
  • The house dealer shall then reveal the remaining player-dealer's cards and place the cards so as to form the highest possible ranking hand. The player-dealer must qualify to play with a minimum of queen-high.

How Winners are Determined & Paid

  • If the player-dealer’s hand does not have a minimum of a queen-high, the player-dealer does not qualify.
    • Play Bet Payout-The Play Bet receives no action. The house dealer shall immediately refund these wagers to players.
    • Ante Bet Payout-If the player-dealer’s hand does NOT qualify, the player-dealer will automatically pay each Ante, not surrendered by folding, even money regardless of whether the player’s hand ranks higher than the player-dealer’s or not.
  • If the player-dealer’s hand has a queen or better, the player-dealer’s hand qualifies, the house dealer shall immediately stack each player’s Play wager atop the Ante. The house dealer shall then reveal the three card hand of each active player, starting with the player to the left of the player-dealer position or the player that has the action button.
    • If the player’s hand beats the player-dealer’s hand, the player wins even money on the Ante and the Play wagers.
    • If the player-dealer’s hand beats the player’s hand, the player loses both the Ante and the Play wagers.
    • If the player’s hand and the player-dealer’s hand are equal in rank and value, the hand is considered a tie and the Ante and Play wagers shall push and be returned to the player.
  • All cards collected by the house dealer shall be picked up in order and placed in the discard rack in such a way that they can be readily arranged to reconstruct each hand in the event of a question or dispute.
  • Player-dealers are never required to cover all opposing players’ wagers. Payoffs of wagers are limited to the amount of the player-dealer wager. The house shall not participate as the player-dealer. The house shall not take a percentage of wagers placed in the game. There is no maximum on the player-dealer’s wager.

Bonus Bets

Pair Plus Wager
The Pair Plus is an optional bonus bet for Three Card Poker. The rules are as follows:
  • A player has the option to place a Pair Plus wager without placing an Ante wager prior to the initial deal.
  • Pair Plus wagers must be placed prior to the initial deal.
  • The Pair Plus wager only considers the three cards each player receives.
  • If the player’s hand qualifies for payouts, the player is paid by the player-dealer according to the posted pay table below.
  • If the player’s hand does not qualify for payouts, the player-dealer collects the Pair Plus wager.
  • The player-dealer will pay all winning Pair Plus wagers and will collect all losing Pair Plus wagers.
  • The Pair Plus wager may win or lose regardless of the outcome of the base game wager.
  • Once the player-dealer’s wager has been exhausted, the wagers not covered by the player-dealer will be returned to the players.
    • Backline betting is not permitted on the Pair Plus Wager. Winning Bonus/Pair Plus wagers pay as follows:
    • 3-CARD HAND PAYOFF
      Mini Royal Flush 200:1
      Straight Flush 40:1
      Three of a Kind 30:1
      Straight 6:1
      Flush 3:1
      One Pair 1:1

6 Card Bonus

The 6 Card Bonus is an additional optional bonus bet for Three Card Poker. The rules are as follows:
  • A player has the option to place a 6 Card Bonus wager without placing an Ante wager prior to the initial deal.
  • 6 Card Bonus wagers must be placed prior to the initial deal.
  • The 6 Card Bonus wager considers the three cards dealt to the player’s hand and the three cards dealt to the player-dealer’s hand. A player then uses any of those six cards, regardless of the number of cards used from their hand or the player-dealer’s hand, to make the best possible five card poker hand.
  • If the player’s hand qualifies for payouts, the player is paid by the player-dealer according to the posted pay table below.
  • If the player’s hand does not qualify for payouts, the player-dealer collects the 6 Card Bonus wager.
  • The player-dealer will pay all winning 6 Card Bonus wagers and will collect all losing 6 Card Bonus wagers.
  • The 6 Card Bonus wager may win or lose regardless of the outcome of the Ante wager.
  • Once the player-dealer’s wager has been exhausted, the wagers not covered by the player-dealer will be returned to the players.
  • Backline betting is not permitted on the 6 Card Bonus wager.
  • Winning 6 Card Bonus wagers pay as follows:
    • TCB-6B3
      Royal Flush 1000:1
      Straight Flush 200:1
      Four of a Kind 100:1
      Full House 20:1
      Flush 15:1
      Straight 9:1
      Three of a Kind 8:1

Table Layout

Three Card Poker 6 Card Bonus is owned, patented and/or copyrighted by Bally’s Technologies, Inc. Please note that the Bureau is making the details of this game available to the public as required by subdivision (g) of Business and Professions Code section 19826, but the posting does not waive any rights to the game content which may be held by Owner. The terms of any agreement with Owner are to be negotiated between the gambling establishment and Owner, and any dispute or asserted breach related thereto are private matters which will not be resolved by the Bureau.
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