7-Card Stud

7-Card Stud is probably the second most popular poker game.  This game is played with up to 8 players

Each player is dealt two hold cards face down.

3rd Street - The next card dealt is placed face up.

1st round of betting - The player who is showing the lowest ranking face-up card.  In the event that players      show cards of similar value the order is determined by the suit.

4th Street - The 4th street cards are dealt face-up.

2nd round of betting - In this round the player with the highest ranking exposed cards begins the betting round.

5th Street - The 5th street cards are dealt face up

3rd round of betting - Same as 2nd betting round

6th Street - The 6th street cards are dealt face up.

4th round of betting - Same as 2nd and 3rd betting rounds

River - The final "River" cards are dealt face down

5th round of betting - This final round of betting proceeds similarly to round 4

Showdown - After the 5th betting round has taken place, it is determine the winner.  The player with the highest ranking five card hand wins the pot.

This game is pretty good.  I recommend this for my die hard hold'em players.  Good Luck!

Sportsbooks

I know that I have been away for a while but I must say that I have been busy venturing out into virgin territory.  I have really started to enjoy sports betting.  At first I was kind of reluctant to participate in this type of gambling because I have never been a big sports fan.  Although sports betting is illegal in most states one in which I currently reside, yet I highly suggest you look into some of the online sportsbooks such as bet us, bovada, and 5dimes.  It may appear to be difficult but trust me it is not.  With a a little research and luck you can be a winner at it.  Good luck!

Limit Hold'em vs. No Limit Hold'em

Now by no means do I consider myself to be an outstanding poker player. I am still an amateur.  I am truly a witness to the maxim "all you need is some chips and a chair." I have been playing for about 3 years now.  One thing I can tell you about poker is it can be a costly learning experience.  Trust me I am telling you this from experience.  I started off playing Limit hold'em, which is the game I highly recommend you play to get your feet wet.  When it comes to No limit hold'em you can get your behind handed to you in a matter of minutes. Now in the game of Limit Hold'em people can really chip bully you like they can in No Limit.  In Limit it is not uncommon to to see more 9 handed play because people tend to play weaker hands.   It is good to watch videos and read literature on the game of poker but you will never get good at it unless you play.  I am talking about live play.  Playing on the internet does not truly give you a good feel on actual atmosphere of the game.  So in closing if you are an amateur like myself hit the tables and improve your skills and make sure you start off on the lower limit games.  Good Luck!

Buster Blackjack

Buster Blackjack is another form of blackjack with what is called a “Buster” side bet.  This bet allows you to win based on the number of cards in a dealers busted hand.  You play your hand like traditional blackjack but you are hoping that the dealer busts.  The more cards that the dealer busts with the more you win.

The rules of the game are as follows: The buster bet must be made along with your blackjack bet before any cards are dealt.  I made this mistake and it cost me almost $500.  So this is very important! Each player receives two cards.  The sealer also receives two cards, one up and one card down.  Each player has the stand on his hat or hit his hand.  After each player stands the dealer reveals his hole card.  If the dealer has 17 or more, he stands, 16 or less he hits his hand until it totals 17 or more.  As in most blackjack games the dealer must hit soft 17.  If the player card total is closer to 21 than the dealer’s the player wins his blackjack bet.  Of course if it is less than the dealer's hand the player would lose the blackjack hand.  If the player’s cards total up to the same amount as the dealers it is neither a win nor a loss but a push, which is another word for a tie.  If the player busts or go over a total of 21 if he bet on the buster side bet it still remains in action.  Your buster bet may not exceed your blackjack bet. 

The payment is as follows on the buster bet:

2 cards 2 to 1

3 cards 2 to 1

4 cards 4 to 1

5 cards 5 to 1

6 cards 16 to 1

7 cards 50 to 1

8 cards are more 250 to 1

With this game you can win lots of money in a short period of time but be careful because you can lose it just as fast.

Pai Gow Poker

Pai Gow Poker, which is also sometimes referred to as double handed poker.  The game is played with a standard 52-card deck plus a single joker.  The game can accommodate as many as six players.  It is the goal of every player to either defeat the banker (who may be the casino dealer or one of the other players at the table).  The object of Pai Gow Poker is for a player to create two poker hands out of the seven-card hand he/she is dealt by the dealer: a five-card hand, and a two card poker hand.  Keep in mind that this game still follows the poker hand ranking structure.  Now according to the rules, the five-card hand’s value must exceed the two-card hand’s, and that’s why the two card hand is after called the hand “in front” or  “on top”, the “small” or “minor” or “low” kind.  The –card hand is the hand “behind”, or the “bottom” or “high” or “big” as they are placed that way in front of the player when the players are done setting them.

When the game starts the cards are shuffled and then dealt to the table in seven face-down piles of seven cards per pile.  Four cards are unused regardless of the number of people playing.  The betting positions are assigned a number from 1 to 7, starting with which ever player is acting as banker that hand, and counting-clockwise around the table.  A number from 1 to 7 is randomly chosen either electronically or with dice then the deal begins with the corresponding position and proceeds counter clockwise.  One common way of using dice to determine the dealer starting number is to roll three six sided dice, and then count betting spots clockwise from the first position until the number on the dice is reached.  If a player is not sitting on a particular spot the hand is still assigned but then placed on the discard pile with the four unused cards.  This game may seem complicated but if you have a full understanding of poker hand rankings you shouldn’t have a problem.  Good Luck!!

Harlow's Casino in Greenville, MS

I had the opportunity to visit the Harlow's casino in Greenville, MS.  I did not have a chance to play any table games but I did play the slots.  First of all let me say that the atmosphere in Harlow's is very dull.  It does not have the same flare of the average casino.  It is a task just finding a $.25 slot machine.  They overwhelm you with both multi-denominational and $1 machines.  Unlike most casinos the bar is not located outside of plain view but instead it is right in the middle of the casino floor.  I even saw a waitress pre-making drinks for customers which probably explains why I heard a few people complaining about their drinks being watered down. If you ever travel to Greenville, MS save your money and by pass the Harlow's casino because it is a joke!

Happy New Year!

Hey everybody lets get out to some of these casinos and win some money.  Stay tuned my next casino visit is coming up in three weeks.