Caribbean Stud Poker

By Will Veda

Caribbean Stud Poker is the slot machine of table games.  CSP is based on five-card stud poker, meaning each player gets five cards with no draws.  There is another variation of the game called Caribbean Draw Poker where you can discard cards and draw. 

The object of the game is to beat the dealer’s poker hand with standard poker hand rankings.  Before the cards are dealt each player places an ante bet, like poker.  After the dealer deals each player five cards, he turns his final card face up.  If the player feels he has a good enough hand to beat the dealer, he places a call bet that is double the ante.  If he doesn’t like his hand he folds and forfeits the ante.  After all the players decide on either to fold or call, the dealer turns his other four cards over and sets his poker hand.  To go into combat with the dealer, his hand must “qualify” with at least an Ace and a King (his next highest hand is a pair of deuces) for the player to win the ante and the call bets. 

If the dealer qualifies he turns over the players’ cards that placed a call bet and determines who, if anyone, has beaten him.  If the player’s hand does not beat the dealer’s he loses both the ante and the call bets.  If he beats the dealer’s qualified hand he wins even money on the ante and is paid off on the call bet according to the following pay table: 

Ace/King with a higher third or fourth or fifth card: even money
One Pair: even money 
Two Pair: 2 to 1 
Three of a Kind: 3 to 1 
Straight: 4 to 1 
Flush: 5 to 1 
Full House: 7 to 1 
Four of a Kind: 20 to 1 
Straight Flush: 50 to 1 
Royal Flush: 100 to 1 

If the dealer does not qualify, each player who made a call bet wins even money only on the ante bet.  The call bet is returned to the player.  So, unfortunately, if you are dealt a royal flush and the dealer does not qualify, you are out of luck. 

But, all is not lost.  Included—and here’s where the game becomes a slot machine of sorts—is a progressive money meter.  For a dollar cheque placed in a slot located in front of the ante betting area on each round, the player becomes eligible for a share (or the whole amount) of the progressive payout.  Each wager triggers the amount to climb, but the progressive payout is only eligible for the following hands: 

Flush: $50 sometimes $75 
Full House: $100 
Four of a Kind: $250 sometimes $500 
Straight Flush: 10% of the meter 
Royal Flush: 100% of the meter 

The dealer does not have to qualify to win any progressive payout.  At the Golden Gate Casino in downtown Vegas, I once received four threes that paid only the $250 and what’s worse, the dealer did not qualify.  If you must play, the strategy is simple.  Only place a call bet if your hand consists of these four cards: Ace, King, Queen and Eight.  You may be able to steal a few non-qualifying ante wins, but beware; there is no bluffing in this poker game.  Also, any pair, including a pair of deuces, should always get called.  If the dealer receives that Ace and King, you will win the ante and the call bets.  This game is known to eat up a person’s bankroll.  The allure is the chance for a life-changing payout of six figures.  Keep in mind, however, that the odds of receiving a dealt royal flush is somewhere around a 1 in 650,000!    

In poker-inspired games, I play what is called a mini-blind system. In actual poker, playing blind is betting without even looking at the cards. Playing mini-blind is calling the ante bet after seeing the minimum amount of strategy-satisfied cards is present. In CSP, if my first two, three, or four cards include at least a pair of deuces, I don’t even look at the remaining cards. You know you’re going to continue anyway, so why not add a little more excitement and anticipation to the game. 

In the aforementioned quad-threes I received at the Golden Gate, I turned over my hand and called the ante after seeing only two threes. I never knew that two more existed until the dealer revealed the rest of my hand. A pair of deuces is the lowest hand that I play mini-blind. The only royal flush I ever experienced watching was at Caesars Indiana and the player noticed his four to the royal and did not look at his fifth card. I felt so proud for the man when he received the fifth card and later a check for over $100,000.

Feel lucky? 

Play Caribbean Stud. 

Caribbean Stud Poker Glossary

ANTE - A bet made before cards are dealt.  Has to be at least table minimum. 

CALL BET - “A call to the dealer.”  A bet that is twice as much as the ante to allow the layer to have a showdown against the dealer’s hand.  The dealer must qualify and the player must have a higher-ranking hand to be paid according to the pay table listed above. 

CARIBBEAN DRAW POKER - Similar to CSP, but players can discard and receive additional like in Draw Poker.  The player must place a draw bet before receiving any more cards.  The dealer’s qualifying hand has to be at least a pair of eights. 

PROGRESSIVE JACKPOT - A side bet of $1 to be eligible for payouts for any flush, full house, four of a kind, straight flush, or royal flush hands.  The table will have a meter nearby that will indicate the progressive total.  Similar to slot machine progressive meters. 

QUALIFIED DEALER HAND - The dealer must have at least an Ace and a King to play his hand against the players to determine a winning hand or not.   

09/09/05