Internet poker has become globally acclaimed recently, with televised competitions and celebrity poker game shows. Its popularity, though, stretches back in fact a bit further than its television scores. Over the years numerous variants on the earliest poker game have been developed, including a handful of games that are not in reality poker anymore. Caribbean stud poker is one of these games. Regardless of the name, Caribbean stud poker is most closely related to vingt-et-un than traditional poker, in that the players bet against the casino rather than the other players. The succeeding hands, are the long-standing poker hands. There is little bluffing or different types of concealment. In Caribbean stud poker, you are expected to ante up just before the croupier announcing "No more wagers." At that moment, both you and the dealer and of course every one of the other gamblers are given five cards. Once you have seen your hand and the dealer’s initial card, you must either make a call bet or give up. The call bet’s amount is akin to your original bet, indicating that the stakes will have doubled. Giving Up means that your bet goes instantaneously to the house. After the bet comes the face off. If the house doesn’t have ace/king or greater, your wager is given back, with a figure on par with the ante. If the dealer has a hand with ace/king or greater, you win if your hand defeats the dealer’s hand. The bank pays out money even with your bet and fixed odds on your call bet. These expectations are:
- Equal for a pair or high card
- two to one for 2 pairs
- three to one for 3 of a kind
- four to one for a straight
- five to one for a flush
- 7-1 for a full house
- 20-1 for a 4 of a kind
- 50-1 for a straight flush
- one hundred to one for a royal flush