Ride Em Poker is one of several popular online table games at Juicy Stakes Casino. It is available in single and multi-hand configurations. As a player, you may want to know whether there are advantages to playing three hands over one.
Ride Em Poker or Let It Ride – Different Sides of the Same Coin
Before we delve into the pros and cons of playing one versus two or three simultaneous hands, here is a heads-up. Ride Em Poker is also known as Let It Ride – both of which are featured at Juicy Stakes Casino. The object of the game is to form a winning five-card hand according to the conventional poker rankings.
What makes Ride Em Poker unique is you have to predict whether the dealer’s hole cards will give you a paying poker hand. If there is any doubt, you can mitigate the potential losses by pulling back two of the three ante bets made at the beginning of the round.
How to Play Ride Em Poker at Stakes Casino
Here is how it works. Once you have placed three bets of equal value on the table, three cards are dealt face up. Two concealed cards are dealt to the dealer’s position. At that point, you can Pass and lose one of the three bets or Ride and leave all the bets in place.
Two Opportunities to Pass or Ride
The first of two hole cards is then revealed. Based on the perceived value of the card to your hand, you can either Pass – and relinquish a second bet – or Ride. Thereafter, the second card is flipped over.
When a paying poker hand is formed using any of the five cards on the table, you are paid out according to the pay table. Otherwise, you forfeit one or more bets, depending on your actions during play. That is the online Ride Em Poker game mechanics in a nutshell.
More Hands, Better Odds?
To the uninitiated, it may seem like a great idea to play three hands of Ride Em Poker simultaneously. You will have a higher probability of hitting a paying poker hand, right? Wrong. Whether you play one, two or three hands at the same time, the odds are exactly the same.
You will still have around a 1 in 650,000 chance of hitting a royal flush and 1 in 72,000 shot of forming a straight flush, notwithstanding the number of hands in-play. All you are doing is playing three individual hands of Ride Em Poker… at the same time.
Does the House Edge and RTP Go Up or Down?
There is no impact whatsoever on the house edge or the average return to player. If you play each hand according to the optimal strategy, it is possible to reduce the edge – and that is the only way you can improve the theoretical payout rate of the game.
It is worth pointing out that reducing the edge is only likely over the long-term. You basically have to play tens of hundreds of hands of Ride Em Poker at Juicy Stakes Casino to reap the benefits. Even then, the bankroll gains are usually infinitesimal unless you happen to hit a hot run of cards.
What is the Optimal Strategy for Ride Em Poker?
The best way to maximise the payout probability at Stakes Casino is to adopt the Ride Em Poker strategy. In this case, the strategy defines exactly when to Ride on the first and second bets, respectively:
Hit the Ride tab on the first bet when you have:
- A winning hand in three cards – 10s or better or three of a kind
- Three cards to a straight flush higher than 2-3-4
- Three cards to a straight flush with one card missing but only if there is a 10 or higher
- Three cards to a straight flush with two cards missing and two cards of 10 or more
Ride on the second bet when your three cards and the dealer’s hole card forms:
- A winning hand
- Four cards to a straight flush
- Four cards to a flush
- Four cards to an outside straight
What is an outside straight? It is numerical run of cards, such as 6-7-8-9, where either 5 or 10 can create a paying five-card poker hand.
Pros of Playing Three Hands of Ride Em Poker
If the odds, edge and payout rate remain static, what is the point of playing more than one hand of Ride Em Poker at a time? Well for one, it maximises the time spent gambling online at Juicy Stakes Casino. It also enhances the interest factor as you have to make several decisions each round, all of which can be quite different.
Expect a Higher Volatility
That said, there is one element of gambling that does change – and that is volatility. The more hands of poker you play at Stakes Casino, the higher the financial outlay and the greater the potential gains and losses.
If multi-hand Ride Em Poker is your preference, you require a well-funded bankroll to keep you in the game. What is the upshot of higher volatility? It adds more risk to the equation.
Ride Em Poker Pay Tables at Juicy Stakes Casino
There is one other component to Ride Em Poker and it is in the form of an optional side bet. For the additional cost of $1 you have access to a bonus pay table featuring eye popping rewards at odds of up to 20,000 to 1!
Here is a look at what you can win playing Ride Em Poker online at Stakes Casino:
Ante Bet | Side Bet | |
Royal Flush | 1,000 | 20,000 |
Straight Flush | 200 | 2,000 |
Four of a Kind | 50 | 400 |
Full House | 11 | 200 |
Flush | 8 | 50 |
Straight | 5 | 25 |
Three of a Kind | 3 | 5 |
Two Pair | 2 | - |
Tens or Better | 1 | - |
Is the Ride Em Poker Optional Side Bet a Good or Bad Bet?
When you view the optional side bet through the statistical lens, it is best avoided. How come? The edge is heavily skewed in the casino’s favour.
In fact, the advantage to the house is pegged at around 25.5% and that of course means the average return to player (RTP) is just 74.5%. Compare that with the 3.51% edge and 96.49% RTP for the standard Ride Em Poker bets and you can see why a more cautious approach is required.
That said, there are two factors counting in the side bet’s favour – the nominal cost of the wager and the fact you can win up to 20 times more for the same poker combinations. A good tactic would be to take the side bet after winning the previous round or when you gut tells you to!
Ride Em Poker is a fast-moving Stakes Casino game with all the ingredients of a blockbuster. Sign up at Juicy Stakes Casino now and put your poker playing skills to the test.
