Three Card Poker as dealt in UK casinos and on UKGC licensed sites is two games sharing one hand: an Ante and Play contest against the dealer, carrying a 3.37% house edge per Ante under correct play, and a separate Pair Plus wager that pays on the player's hand alone, at 2.32% on the common 1, 4, 6, 30, 40 paytable. The two bets are settled independently and the rules below treat them that way.
The Deal and the Deck
Deck and hand size
A single 52 card deck is used and is shuffled before every round, so no card counting or deck tracking applies. Each player and the dealer receive three cards, and the dealer's cards stay hidden until all player decisions are made.
Hand rankings
Three card rankings differ from five card poker. With only three cards, a straight is harder to make than a flush, so the order runs: straight flush, three of a kind, straight, flush, pair, high card. Ace counts high or low in a straight, so both A, K, Q and A, 2, 3 are valid. Where a table ranks A, 2, 3 differently from other straights, the rule card or help screen states it.
Of the 22,100 possible three card hands, 48 are straight flushes, 52 are three of a kind, 720 are straights, 1,096 are flushes and 3,744 are pairs. The remaining 16,440 hands are high card only.
Ante and Play
The decision
After seeing the three cards, the player either folds, forfeiting the Ante, or places a Play bet equal to the Ante. There is no other decision in the game. The Play bet cannot be larger or smaller than the Ante.
Dealer qualification
The dealer qualifies with queen high or better. Where the dealer does not qualify, the Ante pays 1 to 1 and the Play bet is returned as a push. Where the dealer qualifies, the higher hand wins: a winning player is paid 1 to 1 on both Ante and Play, and a losing player loses both. A tie returns both bets.
The Ante Bonus
An Ante Bonus pays on the Ante for a strong player hand regardless of the dealer's hand, provided the player made the Play bet. The standard schedule is straight 1 to 1, three of a kind 4 to 1 and straight flush 5 to 1. A flush earns no Ante Bonus. A small number of operators vary this schedule, and any change moves the 3.37% figure.
Where the 3.37% comes from
The 3.37% edge assumes the established decision rule: play any hand of queen, six, four or better, and fold anything lower. Q, 6, 4 is the threshold hand; Q, 6, 3 is folded and Q, 7, 2 is played. A player who plays every hand faces a higher edge. Measured against the total amount wagered rather than the Ante, the same edge is roughly 2.0%, because the Play bet is placed on most hands; UK rule cards and most published figures quote the per Ante number.
No decision rule turns the bet positive. The threshold only stops the edge rising above its minimum.
Pair Plus
What it pays on
Pair Plus is settled on the player's three cards alone. The dealer's hand and qualification are irrelevant, and on many tables the bet can be placed with or without an Ante. A pair or better wins; high card loses.
Paytable variants and their edges
The house edge depends entirely on the schedule printed on the table or help screen. Using the hand counts above, each variant's return is the sum of each payout multiplied by its number of hands, less the 16,440 losing hands, divided by 22,100.
| Hand | 1, 4, 6, 30, 40 | 1, 3, 6, 30, 40 |
|---|---|---|
| Pair | 1 to 1 | 1 to 1 |
| Flush | 4 to 1 | 3 to 1 |
| Straight | 6 to 1 | 6 to 1 |
| Three of a kind | 30 to 1 | 30 to 1 |
| Straight flush | 40 to 1 | 40 to 1 |
| House edge | 2.32% | 7.28% |
Last verified 20 October 2026. On the first schedule, winning hands return 15,928 units against 16,440 lost, a net loss of 512 units per 22,100 hands, or 2.32%. Cutting the flush from 4 to 1 to 3 to 1 removes 1,096 units, raising the net loss to 1,608 units and the edge to 7.28%. One payout step on one line more than triples the cost, which is why the paytable, not the game name, is the figure to read before any stake.
Comparison with the main bet
The 2.32% Pair Plus figure is lower than the 3.37% per Ante edge, but the two are measured differently and Pair Plus loses on 74.4% of hands (16,440 of 22,100). A lower edge on a bet that loses three hands in four remains a negative expectation.
UK Operator Differences
UK land based casinos and online operators set their own Pair Plus schedules and Ante Bonus terms within UKGC rules, and these differ between operators rather than following one national standard. Some tables add a six card bonus side bet combining player and dealer cards; its edge depends on its own paytable and is not covered here. Electronic and live versions follow the rules in their help screen, which takes precedence over any general description, including this one.
Responsible Gambling
Every Three Card Poker wager carries a negative expectation, including the lower edge Pair Plus schedule and correctly played Ante hands. Gambling in Great Britain is for adults aged 18 and over and is regulated by the UK Gambling Commission. GAMSTOP offers free self exclusion from all UKGC licensed online operators, BeGambleAware provides information and support, and the National Gambling Helpline, run by GamCare, is available on 0808 8020 133.