Playing Caribbean Stud Poker

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Caribbean Stud Poker, also known as Caribbean Stud or Caribbean Poker,  is a table based card game offered by most land based and online casinos.  Each player and the dealer are dealt five cards.  Like other stud poker variations no cards are discarded and no drawing occurs.

What stands Caribbean Poker out from the other casino table games is that it offers the chance to win a very large progressive jackpot.  This jackpot is played for by placing an optional $1 bet before the hand is dealt.  The jackpot is won when someone is dealt a Royal Flush.

There are a few key phrases that are used during a game of Caribbean Stud.  If you do not know what they are, it can be difficult to play the game or understand what is going on.

ANTE - a forced bet equal to at least the table minimum

BET - an optional bet equal to 2 times the ANTE.  This options is given after you have been dealt and have evaluated your cards.

If you want to be dealt cards, you must place an ANTE.  The BET does not have to be placed if you want to fold your hand.

QUALIFY - dealer's term for continuing the hand after the dealer has evaluated their hand.  The dealer must have at least an Ace AND a King to qualify.

If the dealer does QUALIFY, the hand continues.  If the dealer does not Qualify, the hand is over and the players ante are paid out 1 to 1.  The BET is returned to the player unpaid.

Basic strategy for Caribbean Stud Poker is very simple:

- If you have a pair or better, place a BET in the bet circle

- If you have Ace-King, BET if
        - You also have a queen or a jack
        - The dealers UP card is a queen or lower and matches a card in your hand

- Fold all other hands  

Pictured above is an example hand of Caribbean Stud.  Here is what happened from beginning to end:

1.  The player placed an ANTE of $25 in the ANTE circle on the table and an optional $1 bet in the gold rectangular slot above the ANTE circle.

2.  5 cards were dealt to the player and the dealer. 

3.  The player looks at their cards and has a pair of 8s.  The player decides to continue the hand and places $50 in the bet circle.

4.  The dealer looks at their cards and declares if they QUALIFY or not.  The dealer has a pair of 6s (which is better then Ace-King), so they do QUALIFY.

Note - if the dealer did not qualify here, the player's ANTE would win $25 and the players BET would be returned to them unpaid.  Once the dealer QUALIFIES, the BET is in play to win or lose.

5.  The dealer evaluates their hand versus each players hand.  The player has a pair of 8s, which beats the dealer's pair of 6s.

6.  The player is paid 1 to 1 on the ANTE and 1 to 1 on the BET for having a pair that beats the dealer's hand after he has QUALIFIED.

Below are the odds and payouts from a typical Caribbean Stud game.  They can be different at different casinos: