After you see your three cards you either make a Play bet equal to your ante, or fold and lose your ante. There is one correct rule for this, and it is all you need.
Play any hand of Queen-6-4 or better. Fold anything worse.
In plain terms: any pair or better is always a Play. With a high-card hand, play if your highest card is an Ace or King. If your highest card is a Queen, play only when your next card is a 7 or higher, or it is a 6 with a 4 or higher behind it. A Jack-high hand or lower is a fold.
Note the order: a straight beats a flush here, the opposite of regular poker, because three-card straights are rarer than flushes. The Ace plays high (A-K-Q) or low (A-2-3) for straights.
The dealer needs Queen high or better to qualify. If the dealer does not qualify, your ante wins even money and your Play bet pushes. The ante bonus and Pair Plus pay on your hand no matter what the dealer has.
| Straight | 1 to 1 |
| Three of a kind | 4 to 1 |
| Straight flush | 5 to 1 |
| Pair | 1 to 1 |
| Flush | 3 to 1 |
| Straight | 6 to 1 |
| Three of a kind | 30 to 1 |
| Straight flush | 40 to 1 |
This free Three Card Poker trainer drills the one decision that matters: whether to make the Play bet or fold after you see your three cards. The optimal rule is Q-6-4, meaning you play any hand of Queen-6-4 or better and fold anything worse. The trainer deals a real hand, grades your choice against that rule, and explains the borderline cases so it becomes automatic. It plays out the dealer, handles qualification, pays the ante bonus, and resolves the optional Pair Plus bet, with the correct hand rankings where a straight beats a flush and the ace plays high or low.
Is the Three Card Poker trainer free?
Yes. It runs in your browser with nothing to download, and it is free to use.
What is the Q-6-4 rule?
Make the Play bet with any hand of Queen, 6, 4 or better, and fold anything worse. Any pair or better is always a play.
Does a straight beat a flush in Three Card Poker?
Yes. With only three cards a straight is harder to make than a flush, so a straight ranks higher, the opposite of regular poker.
What is Pair Plus?
An optional bet that pays based only on your three cards, regardless of the dealer. It pays on a pair or better.
The house edge on the ante bet is about 3.37 percent with optimal Q-6-4 play. The Pair Plus bet carries an independent edge of about 7.28 percent on the standard pay table and can be placed regardless of what you plan to do on the ante. Because the two bets are resolved separately, practicing them together in the same hand is the most efficient way to learn the game.
For practice and training only. No real-money wagering. 21+. Gamble responsibly. Call 1-800-GAMBLER.