The rules of Vegas Three Card Rummy are quite easy to learn, and most people find this satisfying game a lot harder to stop playing. If you know the rules of Three Card Poker you’re halfway to being able to play this Poker variation already, although here the hands are scored quite differently and there is no Ante Bonus. Playing both of these develops and rounds off your skills in each one, and online you can do that without moving a muscle!
Vegas Three Card Rummy Basics
Like Three Card Poker at Spin Casino NZ, this game follows a Player versus Dealer format. A standard 52-card deck is used, and each card carries its Poker value except the Ace card which have a value of 1. Any Pair, Any Three of a Kind, and 2- or 3- card suited runs are all worth 0. Rather than the high score objective of other games, your goal here is to collect less points than the Dealer.
To begin a round you need to place your initial bet, called an Ante, and an optional Bonus bet. You and the Dealer are then both given a hand of 3 cards. Your cards are dealt face-up, but the Dealers are dealt face-down. Once you’ve seen your card you can decide to Raise and place a bet equal to your Ante, or Fold and forfeit your hand. If you Raise, the Dealer hand is revealed and the outcome of the round is determined.
The Dealer hand total needs to be 20 or less to qualify. If the Dealer hand doesn’t qualify, your Ante is paid out to you with even money and your Raise bet is pushed, meaning it is returned to you. If the Dealer hand does qualify and ties with your hand, your Ante and Raise are both pushed. If the qualifying Dealer hand is less than yours you lose all bets, and if it’s higher you win. Payouts are made according to specific pay tables, with the Ante always being paid with even money and the Raise being paid out according to the final hand total. The optional Bonus Bet pays out according to your hand total regardless of what the Dealer hand was or whether you won, and is also detailed in pay tables.
Strategy for Vegas Three Card Rummy
The game actually has very simple strategic principles, which is one of the things that makes it so enjoyable. Basically, you need to Raise on any hand of 20 points or less and Fold on any hand with 21 or more. With the Dealer’s qualifying point being 20, the best you can hope for with a total over this is to have your bet returned to you if the round doesn’t qualify, and the worst is that you lose your Raise if it does.
The compulsory Raise offers you better odds of winning, but you should also always place a Bonus Bet. The payouts for Bonus Bets are much higher than for Ante and Raise bets, and they’re not influenced by whether you won or lost against the Dealer hand.
Great in All Playing Experiences
Although there are many possible outcomes, the basics and game development of Vegas Three Card Rummy are actually quite uncomplicated and the immediacy of the results adds a real element of excitement. It’s perfect when you feel like a change of pace but would still like to play something that makes you think.
