Caribbean Stud Poker is a poker based table game that is offered at all Australian online casinos. The crucial decision that you have to make in Caribbean Stud Poker is whether to raise or fold after the cards have been dealt. This article first discusses the game play and then analyses the optimum strategy.

You start the Caribbean Stud Poker game by placing the ante bet. You will be dealt a hand of five cards and the dealer will be dealt one card face up. You now have to decide whether to fold or raise. If you fold then you lose the ante bet. If you raise then you have to place a second bet, which is twice the ante bet. The remaining cards are dealt to the dealer and the hands are compared based on the usual poker hand rankings. The dealer must have an ace and a king or better hand to qualify. If the dealer does not qualify then you win even money on the ante and the second bet pushes. If the dealer qualifies and has a better hand, then you lose both bets. If both hands are of the same rank, then both bets push. If your hand is higher ranked then you win even money on the ante bet and the second bet is paid according to a payout table.

The optimum Caribbean Stud Poker strategy is being explained in a simple manner for newbie Australian online casino players. The optimum strategy does not guarantee that you will always win, but the chances of winning in the long run are greater. If you do not have the dealer’s qualifying hand then you must fold, because if the dealer qualifies then you will lose both bets. If you hold a poker hand that is a pair or better then you must always raise.

This leaves the hand of the type ace and king with no ranking. This hand, surprisingly, is the most complicated part of the optimum Caribbean Stud poker strategy. It simply has to be memorized. You must raise only in any of the following three situations: the dealer’s card is a two through queen and matches one of the player’s cards; the dealer’s card is an ace or king and the player has a queen or jack in his hand; the dealer’s rank does not match any of the player’s cards and the player has a queen and the dealer’s card is less than the player’s fourth highest card.