Trivial Pursuit has been a huge part of many of our lives. We’ve played it, talked about it, watched it, and loved it. And now, it’s time to put our love to good use and find out which version has seen the most action at the bookies. We tracked down five different types of player, each with a different poker hand and gaming strategy, and we’ll teach you what they’re doing right now.
The Stud
Stud is the classic, everyday poker hands you’ll find at home. It’s always a pair of cards, a king-back hand, and is typically the lowest-ranking card in the deck. Your goal as a Stud player is to make the best hand you can out of what you are dealt, not necessarily beat your opponent. There’s also no “honour among thieves” in Stud – it’s all about what you can get away with.
The best thing about Stud is that it’s incredibly easy to play. You don’t need to strategize or calculate anything because all of the decisions have already been made for you. If the cards are dealt in a normal fashion, then the odds are already calculated and you can simply go with what you’re given. The worst thing about Stud is that it doesn’t offer the best odds of winning. The best poker hand wins in the long run, not the hands that are guaranteed to beat your opponent. That’s why this version of the game sees the least amount of action at the bookies. Just remember: it’s always better to be lucky than good.
The Royal Flush
Royal Flush is a hand sometimes used in Caribbean stud wagering or in Russian Poker. It is made up of all six same-ranked cards from a standard deck of playing cards. Like the name suggests, you win big if you have a full house, perfect straight, or flush. And just like those other poker hands you mentioned, there are no half measures when it comes to Royal Flush. You either go big or go home. What’s great about this version of the game is that it provides the best odds of winning the big pot. Plus, you’re always guaranteed to win something, even if it’s a tiny pot. The downside is that it’s not very common, so there aren’t very many people playing it. If you’re looking for a low-limit game where the house edge is minimal, then this is the version you should play.
The Straight
Straight is the opposite of a Royal Flush. It’s made up of five cards of the same rank, from a standard deck. What makes it different from the other four hands you’ve played on this list is that you can also win with a high-ranking card on the flop. So while the other four hands give you a better chance at winning the big one, a Straight gives you a fighting chance at winning the little one. A high-ranking card on the flop can also make up for a bad board and give you a chance to turn your bad hand into a good one. The downside to this version of the game is that there are only three possible hands you can make, and the first one is really bad. So it’s a crapshoot whether you’ll win or lose most of the time. The other two possible hands are pretty cool though – there’s always the possibility of getting a full house or a flush. But the odds of you winning are pretty low. Still, it’s a great game to play if you’re looking for a low-limit casino experience.
The Four Of Coins
Four Of Coins is similar to a Straight, but instead of five cards of the same rank, you get four of a kind. Like in a Straight, you can only make three possible winning hands – a full four of a kind, a flush, or a royal flush. The upside to the Four Of Coins is that there are more hands you can make than in a Straight. The downside is that the odds of you making any one of them are pretty low. Especially when compared to the other versions of the game you’ve played on this list so far. Even with the benefit of a good run of luck, you’re still looking at a long shot when it comes to winning the big one.
The Perfect Straight
Perfect Straight is similar to a Straight, but instead of containing five cards of the same rank, it has all six. Like a Six Of Hearts, it allows for the possibility of making a royal flush, four of a kind, or full house. There is also an opposite version of this hand called A Joker. Just like in a Royal Flush, if you have all six same-ranked cards, you win big. The downside, as you might have guessed, is that it’s incredibly difficult to make. There are actually only two possible hands you can make with all six cards – a full house or a perfect straight. And the odds of you making either one of them are incredibly low. If you’re looking for a relatively easy version of poker to play, where you can still have a decent chance of winning, then this is the hand you should play.
The Three Of Kinds
The Three Of Kinds is another six-card poker hand that also contains all six of the same rank. However, it’s a bit simpler than a Perfect Straight because the rank of the cards doesn’t matter. Like the name suggests, you make three of a kind whenever you get three cards of the same rank. The only difference is that each of the three possible hands has a special name. A full house is called a Royal Straight, three of a kind is known as a Three Of Kinds, and so on. The downside to this version of the game is that there are only two possible winning hands – a Royal Straight or a Three Of Kinds. If you want to win, you need to be dealt those two hands, which are both tough to pull off even with high odds of success.
The Two Pair
Last but not least, we have The Two Pair. This hand is typically made up of two pair – two cards of the same rank paired with two other cards of a different rank. Just like in regular two-player poker, each player gets two cards, and the object is to make a winning hand out of whatever is dealt to you. Unlike the other versions of the game you’ve played so far, this one allows for the possibility of making three different winning hands. A full house, a flush, or a straight. Unfortunately, similar to the other hands on this list, the odds of you making any one of those three hands are really low. This is also a low-limit game because the maximum bet is usually less than $2, which is why you don’t often see Three And Two Pair in tournaments or at the tables of high-stakes players.
Hopefully, this article has helped you discover a new way to play poker. We think that all of these versions of the game are incredibly fun to play and watch, and we’re sure that you’ll have a good time no matter which hand you pick!