- Like a live straddle, a Mississippi straddle must be at least the minimum raise. The player to the right of a Mississippi straddle may “re-straddle” by placing a blind bet raising the original straddle. Why would you straddle? Well, it’s a form of gambling to be sure.
- The point of a Mississippi straddle is to use the well-known, stigmatized -EV play of an utg straddle when you have the best position at the table and get the blinds to act first. You are also raising the stakes of the game when you are on the button.
Usually, a Mississippi straddle can be made from any position, although some house rules only permit the button or the player to the right of the button to place a Mississippi straddle. Like a live straddle, a Mississippi straddle must be at least the minimum raise. Action begins with the player to the left of the straddle.
Texas Hold’em and Mississippi Stud are two very different games, but with over 120 table games and 50 traditional poker tables at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Tampa, we figured it would only be appropriate to share the rules on how to play in the big games.
One of the biggest differences between the two games is when playing traditional Texas Hold’em, you’re playing against all of the players on the entire table, but when playing Mississippi Stud you’re playing against the dealer.
Texas Hold’em & Texas Hold’em Bonus Poker
Texas Hold’em is one of the most popular traditional poker games today…one of the reasons is that “any two cards can win.” The same holds true for the new table game Texas Hold’em Bonus Poker, which is where players play against the dealer not against each other. In either game, the best “hole cards” (2-card starting hand) sometimes will not win and the worst starting hand (hole cards) sometimes become the winning poker hand after all of the community cards are exposed.
Ranking of Hands
- Royal Flush
- Straight Flush
- Four of a Kind
- Full House
- Flush
- Straight
- Three of a Kind
- Two Pair
- One Pair
- High Card
HOW TO PLAY TEXAS HOLD’EM BONUS POKER:
Two cards are dealt to each player; Two cards to the dealer and Five Community Cards are dealt face-up in the center for both Players and Dealer to use in any combination (3,4 or all of the 5 Community Cards may be used) to make the highest ranked poker hand.
How the Betting works:
- Ante– Each Player makes an Ante wager to receive 2 cards
- Bonus– Players also have the option to place a Bonus Jackpot wager
- 2-cards– A two-card hand is dealt to each Player and the Dealer
- Flop or Fold– Players wishing to continue to play must wager twice the amount of the Ante wager on the Flop wager; Players not wishing to continue may hand-in their 2-cards and forfeit the Ante wager
- 3-cards– 3-Community cards are now placed “face-up” on the table. Players now have the option to not bet or bet equal to the Ante.
- Turn– A 4th Community Card is turned face-up on the table. Players now have the option to not bet or bet equal to the Ante.
- River– A 5th Community Card is turned face-up on the table
Each player uses his/her 2-card hand along with 3, 4, or all of the 5-Community cards to make the best poker hand.
* Any two cards can win
* No Player to Player competition
* Each Player plays against the Dealer
* Best Poker-ranking hand wins
* Optional side-bet Bonus wager plays against a posted pay table (not the dealer hand).
When a Player wins, the Player retains his/her Ante and is paid even money on the Flop + Turn + River wagers.
When a Player’s winning hand is a “Flush” or greater, the Ante + Flop + Turn + River wagers are paid even money.
All poker-ranked hands of equal value between the Player and the Dealer will be considered a “tie” or “push” whereas no money will be collected or paid.
Players who have made an Ante Wager have the option to make a Bonus Jackpot wager. Bonus Jackpot wagers are paid no matter who wins the hand (Player or Dealer).
BONUS PAYOUT ODDS:
Player’s Hand/ Hole Cards Payout odds
A-A 30 to 1
A-K (Suited) 25 to 1
A-Q or A-J (Suited) 20 to 1
A-K (Unsuited) 15-1
K-K or Q-Q or J-J (High Pairs) 10 to 1
A-Q or A-J (Unsuited) 5 to 1
10-10 through 2-2 (Low Pairs) 3 to 1
Mississippi Stud
Mississippi Stud is a five-card poker game that lets you bet up to 10 units on a single hand. In Mississippi Stud, you compete against a paytable, not against the dealer, and you win if your hand is a pair of Jacks or better (pairs of 6s-10s push). The top payout is 500 to 1 for Royal Flush- and it pays on all bets.
GETTING STARTED
Make an Ante bet to receive your first two cards. The dealer will place three community cards face down in the middle of the layout.
PLAY OR FOLD
At this point, you may either fold or make the 3rd street bet of 1x to 3x your Ante. The dealer then reveals the first community card. Once you see the first community card, you have a choice: fold or make the 4th street bet to 1x to 3x your Ante. The dealer then reveals the second community card. Once again, you can fold or stay in the game by making the 5th street bet from 1x to 3x your Ante.
Note: When you fold, you forfeit all bets left in action.
WINNING AND LOSING
After the dealer turns over the final community card, he resolves all wagers left in action. You win if your five-card hand is a pair of jacks or better (pairs of 6s-10s push). See paytable for odds.
THREE CARD BONUS WAGER
You may also place a separate 3 Card Bonus Wager that is based solely on the 3 community cards and paid out with the table below.
Ranking of Hands
Mini Royal 100 to 1
Straight Flush 50 to 1
Three-of-a-Kind 25 to 1
Straight 5 to 1
Flush 3 to 1
Pair 1 to 1
Texas Holdem Mississippi Straddle Game
Rules provided by: Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Tampa
Texas Holdem Mississippi Straddle Rules
When playing Texas Holdem, 7 cards are used, in which two are called hole cards and the other five are community cards. The game is played in four phases and the player with the best two cards by the end of the game becomes the winner. For a game of Texas Holdem to be successful, the game should be well organized, have good structure and use of quality poker supplies. When we speak about straddling in Texas Holdem, we mean doubling the big blind into the pot before the start of the game. Straddling is common in Omaha and Texas Holdem, but can be done in all the branches of poker. If a player wants to straddle, they should do it before the game starts or before any player looks at their cards.
The purpose for straddling in a Texas Holdem game varies depending on the player. Reasons for straddling include:
It gives you the right to be the last to act during the game, like you were the one on the big blind even if you were not. This can be advantageous to the player who straddles especially if the doubling of the big blind does not favour the other players. If the straddle does not favour any of the players including the one who straddles, the player that straddles is likely to win the game because they are the last to act. The player may straddle with this intention in mind, but may not be in their favour at times because the straddle may favour another player.
Straddling makes the game more lively because the option of calling is taken away from most players. When a player’s chance comes, they have only two options left, which are to fold or raise. In this kind of tension, the game becomes more interesting because the players will make unexpected moves to ensure they remain in the game. However, if the player who straddles does it blindly, then it may end up becoming a disadvantage.
In conclusion, the reasons why some players straddle when playing Texas Holdem are clear. Straddling makes the game interesting, and the player has a better opportunity of winning if they play their cards right. However, straddling can be a disadvantage to the player who straddles and may favour the opponent players. It all depends on the cards the opponents have. At this point, a players luck is usually at work.