Strategy in 4 Card Poker

Unlike 3 Card Poker, the strategy for 4 Card Poker is quite complex. James Grosjean wrote a book called ‘Beyond Counting’ that gives a complex ten-step strategy guide for playing 4 Card Poker. There are other simpler strategy guides available that have been written by experts.

The fundamental idea behind most strategies is to raise as high as possible when you have a good hand and to fold when you have no chance of winning. Determining those and determining what lies in the middle, however, is not easy. One strategy that is quite popular was written by Stanley Ko.

Raising Strategy

He suggests raising by three times with a pair of tens or higher. For a pair of twos to nines, he recommends raising the minimum raise of one times the ante. For anything less than a pair of twos, Ko said that it’s best to fold because the chances of winning are too low.

This strategy yields a house edge of 3.396 per cent when combined with the most popular pay-out schedule. If the pay-out schedule is different, the house edge can obviously be affected.

The most popular pay-out schedule for the aces up bet yields a house edge of 3.89 per cent, meaning the aces up bet is not a good bet in 4 Card Poker. Tempting as it might be because of the high jackpot, good play at the regular game will ultimately yield better results – so you should avoid the aces up bet.

Finding the Best Pay-Out

Since 4 Card Poker is relatively new and isn’t available in very many casinos, you can’t unfortunately go casino-hopping looking for the tables with the best pay-out schedule.

Very little statistical analysis has even been done to determine the difference in house edge between different pay-out schedules, so you might not end up coming out ahead by much even if you were able to find a casino with a better pay-out schedule for their 4 Card Poker game.

4 Card Poker Dos and Don’ts

If you want to win at 4 Card Poker, be sure to remember the basics of winning at a casino. Make sure to keep your wits about you and don’t play when you’re drunk or overtired.

Don’t play with money that you can’t afford to lose and remember to keep an upper and lower limit. If you reach either one, be sure to leave – this is especially important with an upper limit.

Hold on to some part of any major win so that you end up leaving the casino with at least a little bit more money than you came in with on a day when you had a major win.

Most importantly, remember that you’re playing for entertainment. If you want to earn money in a casino, become a dealer or a pit boss. Casino gambling is for fun. If you make money, enjoy it and be happy. If you don’t, remember that you were there to have fun and not to make a living.