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Help » Casino » Showdown Poker
Showdown Poker is a variation of a popular poker game, Texas Hold'em, where the object of the game is for the player to obtain a higher-ranking poker hand than the dealer.
Bet Types | Game Rules | Payout Information | House Way | Hand Rankings | Betting Strategy
Bet Types
- Ante Bet: Mandatory initial bet, which is placed prior to the dealing of the hand; amount equal to at least the minimum bet amount, which is stated on the table
- Showdown Bonus Bet: Optional bet, allowing the player to bet that there will be, depending on the Casino's pay table, a Three of a Kind (or Flush) or higher within some combination of the 5 community cards and the player's 2 cards
Game Rules
- Game uses a six-deck shoe.
- Cards are re-shuffled after each round.
- Cards are dealt in the following way:
- Alternating between player and dealer, starting with the player.
- Four player cards are dealt face down, then exposed to begin play.
- Four dealer cards are dealt face down, then exposed once the player card selections are made.
- Once the dealer is finished selecting the house's two cards, five face up cards are dealt as community cards.
- Ante bet required.
- Showdown Bonus bet optional.
- From the four cards they're dealt, players can do one of the following:
- Select the two cards they wish to play, discarding the other two.
- Split their four cards into two hands.
- If players split their four cards into two 2-card hands:
- A bet equal to their Ante bet is placed on the second hand.
- If they had originally placed the optional Showdown Bonus bet, the Showdown Bonus bet shall also be placed on the split hand.
Payout Information
- If players have a hand higher than the dealer, players are paid 1 to 1 (even money).
- If the dealer has a higher hand than the player, the player loses.
- If dealer and player hands tie, the player loses, as pushes go to the dealer.
- Players can win the Showdown Bonus bet even if their poker hand loses against the dealer's.
House Way
The dealer shall play the two-card hand appearing highest on the following list. In the event that two hands of the same rank are possible, then the dealer will play the cards with the higher individual rank. In the event the dealer's initial hand consists of Four of a Kind involving two suited pairs, (e.g. 8H, 8H & 8C, 8C) the decision on which suited pair to play shall be based on the alphabetical ranking of the suit (e.g. Clubs, Diamonds, Hearts, Spades). In the preceding example, the 8C, 8C would be selected and the 8H, 8H discarded.
| Rule | Hand Example |
|---|---|
| A pair of 8's or higher | |
| High card is an Ace and low card is Jack or higher | |
| Any suited pair 2's thru 7's | |
| Any unsuited pair 2's to 7's | |
| Ace high and suited | |
| Both cards ten or higher and suited | |
| Both cards ten or higher and unsuited | |
| Ace high unsuited | |
| Face card high suited | |
| Face card high unsuited | |
| Connected cards suited | |
| Connected cards unsuited | |
| Two highest cards suited | |
| Two highest cards unsuited |
Showdown Poker Hand Rankings
Each player still in the game at the end will determine the highest poker value among his own two cards and the five community cards. Players are not requireed to both, or any, of their own cards.| Hand | Card Examples | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Five of a Kind, suited | Five cards of the same rank in the same suit | |
| Royal Flush | A 10, Jack, Queen, King, Ace in the same suit | |
| Straight Flush | Five consecutive cards of the same suit in a sequence | |
| Five of a Kind | Five cards of the same rank | |
| Four of a Kind | Any hand of four like cards and any fifth card | |
| Full House | Three of a kind with a pair | |
| Flush | Any five cards of one suit | |
| Straight | Five cards in sequence of any suit | |
| Three of a Kind | Any hand of three like cards and two unmatched cards | |
| Two Pair | Two pairs of different rank and any fifth card | |
| One Pair | Any hand of two cards of the same denomination and one unmatched cards | |
| High Card | Any hand of five cards of different rank and a variety of suits |
Betting Strategy
The player should play the 2-card hand which appears highest on the following list. If the remaining two cards form a hand with expected value greater than zero (rank 26 or higher) then the player should split and play it as well.
| Ranking of Two-Card Hands | ||
|---|---|---|
| Rank | Hand | Card Examples |
| 1 | Suited A's | |
| 2 | Unsuited A's | |
| 3 | Suited K's | |
| 4 | Unsuited K's | |
| 5 | Suited Q's | |
| 6 | Unsuited Q's | |
| 7 | Suited J's | |
| 8 | Unsuited J's | |
| 9 | Suited 10's | |
| 10 | Unsuited 10's | |
| 11 | Suited 9's | |
| 12 | Unsuited 9's | |
| 13 | Suited 8's | |
| 14 | Suited A,K | |
| 15 | Unsuited 8's | |
| 16 | Suited 7's | |
| 17 | Suited A,Q | |
| 18 | Suited 6's | |
| 19 | Unsuited 7's | |
| 20 | Unsuited A,K | |
| 21 | Suited A,J | |
| 22 | Suited 5's | |
| 23 | Suited K,Q | |
| 24 | Suited A,10 | |
| 25 | Unsuited A,Q | |
| 26 | Unsuited 6's | |
| 27 | Suited K,J | |
| 28 | Unsuited A,J | |
| 29 | Suited 4's | |
| 30 | Suited A,9 | |
| 31 | Unsuited 5's | |
| 32 | Suited K,10 | |
| 33 | Unsuited K,Q | |
| 34 | Unsuited A,10 | |
| 35 | Suited A,8 | |
| 36 | Suited Q,J | |
| 37 | Suited 3's | |
| 38 | Suited A,7 | |
| 39 | Unsuited K,J | |
| 40 | Suited Q,10 | |
| 41 | Suited K,9 | |
| 42 | Unsuited 4's | |
| 43 | Suited A,6 | |
| 44 | Suited A,5 | |
| 45 | Unsuited A,9 | |
| 46 | Unsuited K,10 | |
| 47 | Suited A,4 | |
| 48 | Suited J,10 | |
| 49 | Suited 2's | |
| 50 | Suited K,8 | |
| 51 | Unsuited Q,J | |
| 52 | Suited Q,9 | |
| 53 | Suited A,3 | |
| 54 | Unsuited A,8 | |
| 55 | Suited K,7 | |
| 56 | Unsuited 3's | |
| 57 | Suited A,2 | |
| 58 | Unsuited A,7 | |
| 59 | Unsuited Q,10 | |
| 60 | Suited K,6 | |
| 61 | Suited J,9 | |
| 62 | Unsuited K,9 | |
| 63 | Suited Q,8 | |
| 64 | Suited K,5 | |
| 65 | Unsuited A,6 | |
| 66 | Unsuited A,5 | |
| 67 | Suited 10,9 | |
| 68 | Suited K,4 | |
| 69 | Unsuited J,10 | |
| 70 | Unsuited 2's | |
| 71 | Suited J,8 | |
| 72 | Unsuited A,4 | |
| 73 | Suited Q,7 | |
| 74 | Unsuited K,8 | |
| 75 | Suited K,3 | |
| 76 | Unsuited Q,9 | |
| 77 | Suited Q,6 | |
| 78 | Unsuited A,3 | |
| 79 | Suited 10,8 | |
| 80 | Suited K,2 | |
| 81 | Unsuited K,7 | |
| 82 | Suited 9,8 | |
| 83 | Suited Q,5 | |
| 84 | Suited J,7 | |
| 85 | Unsuited A,2 | |
| 86 | Unsuited J,9 | |
| 87 | Unsuited K,6 | |
| 88 | Suited Q,4 | |
| 89 | Unsuited Q,8 | |
| 90 | Suited 9,7 | |
| 91 | Suited 10,7 | |
| 92 | Suited 8,7 | |
| 93 | Unsuited K,5 | |
| 94 | Suited Q,3 | |
| 95 | Unsuited 10,9 | |
| 96 | Suited J,6 | |
| 97 | Suited Q,2 | |
| 98 | Suited J,5 | |
| 99 | Unsuited K,4 | |
| 100 | Unsuited J,8 | |
| 101 | Suited 8,6 | |
| 102 | Suited 9,6 | |
| 103 | Suited 7,6 | |
| 104 | Suited 10,6 | |
| 105 | Unsuited Q,7 | |
| 106 | Suited J,4 | |
| 107 | Unsuited K,3 | |
| 108 | Unsuited Q,6 | |
| 109 | Unsuited 10,8 | |
| 110 | Unsuited 9,8 | |
| 111 | Suited J,3 | |
| 112 | Suited 7,5 | |
| 113 | Suited 6,5 | |
| 114 | Suited 9,5 | |
| 115 | Suited 8,5 | |
| 116 | Unsuited K,2 | |
| 117 | Suited 10,5 | |
| 118 | Unsuited Q,5 | |
| 119 | Unsuited J,7 | |
| 120 | Suited J,2 | |
| 121 | Suited 10,4 | |
| 122 | Suited 5,4 | |
| 123 | Unsuited 9,7 | |
| 124 | Unsuited Q,4 | |
| 125 | Unsuited 10,7 | |
| 126 | Suited 6,4 | |
| 127 | Unsuited 8,7 | |
| 128 | Suited 7,4 | |
| 129 | Suited 8,4 | |
| 130 | Suited 9,4 | |
| 131 | Suited 10,3 | |
| 132 | Suited 9,3 | |
| 133 | Unsuited Q,3 | |
| 134 | Unsuited J,6 | |
| 135 | Suited 10,2 | |
| 136 | Suited 5,3 | |
| 137 | Suited 9,2 | |
| 138 | Unsuited 9,6 | |
| 139 | Unsuited 8,6 | |
| 140 | Unsuited J,5 | |
| 141 | Unsuited 7,6 | |
| 142 | Unsuited Q,2 | |
| 143 | Suited 6,3 | |
| 144 | Unsuited 10,6 | |
| 145 | Suited 7,3 | |
| 146 | Suited 8,3 | |
| 147 | Unsuited J,4 | |
| 148 | Suited 4,3 | |
| 149 | Suited 8,2 | |
| 150 | Suited 5,2 | |
| 151 | Unsuited 7,5 | |
| 152 | Unsuited 6,5 | |
| 153 | Unsuited 9,5 | |
| 154 | Unsuited 8,5 | |
| 155 | Unsuited J,3 | |
| 156 | Suited 6,2 | |
| 157 | Suited 7,2 | |
| 158 | Unsuited 10,5 | |
| 159 | Suited 4,2 | |
| 160 | Unsuited J,2 | |
| 161 | Unsuited 10,4 | |
| 162 | Unsuited 5,4 | |
| 163 | Unsuited 6,4 | |
| 164 | Unsuited 7,4 | |
| 165 | Suited 3,2 | |
| 166 | Unsuited 9,4 | |
| 167 | Unsuited 8,4 | |
| 168 | Unsuited 10,3 | |
| 169 | Unsuited 9,3 | |
| 170 | Unsuited 10,2 | |
| 171 | Unsuited 5,3 | |
| 172 | Unsuited 9,2 | |
| 173 | Unsuited 6,3 | |
| 174 | Unsuited 7,3 | |
| 175 | Unsuited 8,3 | |
| 176 | Unsuited 4,3 | |
| 177 | Unsuited 8,2 | |
| 178 | Unsuited 5,2 | |
| 179 | Unsuited 6,2 | |
| 180 | Unsuited 7,2 | |
| 181 | Unsuited 4,2 | |
| 182 | Unsuited 3,2 | |
Blackjack Terms and Lingo
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Blackjack | A two-card hand of 21 points. |
| Bust | A hand in Blackjack that goes over 21. If you bust, you lose. |
| Double | Allows you to double your initial bet. The bet is placed after the first two cards are dealt. Your bet will be placed automatically and you will be dealt another card. This is also known as doubling down. |
| Double down rescue | Allows you to surrender half of your total bet. |
| Face-up card | The card in the dealer’s hand that is face up for you to see before you play your hand. This is also known as the open card or up card. |
| Hard hand | Any hand, that does not contain an ace, or a hand, that contains one or more aces, which count as only one point. |
| Hit | To ask the dealer for another card. |
| Insurance | If a dealer is dealt an ace face up, you may buy insurance. You are buying insurance against the dealer’s odds of having Blackjack. Insurance is a side bet that equals half your original wager. If the dealer is dealt an ace face up and has Blackjack, it is an automatic loss and the round ends. If you placed an insurance bet, you are paid back at odds of 2:1. This payment equals your original bet. If you have placed an insurance bet and the dealer does not have Blackjack, you lose your insurance bet, but retain your original wager and continue to play. |
| Natural | A two-card hand of 21 points. This is known as Blackjack. |
| Push | A tie hand between you and the dealer. A push occurs when you and the dealer have un busted hands with the same total points. |
| Re-double | Allows you to double after you have already doubled your original bet. |
| Soft hand | Any hand, that contains an ace, that can be counted as 11. For example, an ace and a 6 is known as a soft 17. |
| Split | If you are dealt two cards of identical value, you can split them into two new hands of one card each. Each new hand can then be played out in turn. You may only split a hand once. The wager placed on each new hand is equal to the original bet. You may double down on one or both of your new hands. When aces are split, only one card is dealt to each new hand. A split hand resulting in blackjack pays out at 1:1 rather than the normal 3:2. |
| Stand | To be satisfied with your hand and refuse another card. |
Options Toolbar
Spanish Blackjack Options toolbar gives you access to Help, Cashier, and game settings.
Click the following icons to access Spanish Blackjack options:
| Icon | Description |
|---|---|
| Opens Casino’s Help | |
| Opens Casino’s Cashier | |
| Opens the Options window where game settings can be changed | |
| Turns the game’s background music on or off | |
| Changes the game table’s color scheme and dealer hands. |
Contact Us
Certain issues are best handled through contact. From the drop down menu, select the issue you would like help with, and then complete the corresponding form that appears.
If your concern is of a general nature or is not listed in the drop down menu above, proceed to email / telephone / chat support.

