Bodog Casino's Three-Card Rummy

If you're a card player who grew up playing rummy or gin with your family and friends, but have morphed into a big fan of games such as Three-Card Poker, then Bodog Casino has the perfect game for you. Three-Card Rummy combines the rules of the two games and to make things even more interesting it has added a Bonus Bet that pays as much as 100-to-1 for an Ace-2-3 suited run.

The game is played between the dealer and the player with a 52-card deck. The player is dealt three cards face up and the dealer is dealt three cards face down. The goal is to get fewer points than the dealer.

The dealer's hand must have 20 points or less to qualify. If the dealer does not qualify, the player wins even money on the ante and the raise is returned. The payout for the Bonus Bet is determined independently from the dealer's hand.

The card values are the same as you would find in a regular game of Rummy with 2 through 10 equaling face value, face cards worth 10 points and aces one point. If you score a pair of three of a kind it makes the worth of those cards a zero. Same goes for any two- or three-card suited run. Keep in mind that Ace, King is not considered a run.

After placing an ante wager the player is dealt three cards face up and the dealer receives three cards face down. If the player does not believe their hand can beat the dealer, the player can fold the hand and forfeit the ante wager.

If the player believes the hand can beat the dealer's hand, the player must raise with a wager equal to the ante amount. After raising, the dealer's cards will be revealed. To qualify the dealer's hand must contain 20 points or less. If qualified, the dealer's hand will be compared to the player's hand, the winner having the lowest point total in their hand. If the dealer has the lowest point total the player loses both the ante and raise bets. If the dealer does not qualify, the player wins even money on the ante and the raise wager is returned. If the player has the lowest point total the ante is paid 1:1 and the raise wager is paid according to the pay-table.

The Bonus Bet is won if the player's hand contains 12 points or less. The Bonus Bet wager is a not measured against the dealer's hand, it is paid out based on the point total of the hand dealt. If the player wagers on the ante and folds the hand the Bonus Bet wager is also forfeited.

In our time playing this game, we found that the basic strategy to use is to raise when you have less than 20 and fold with anything else. Also, we found it beneficial to your bankroll to play the bonus bet for half the amount of your ante bet, thus not letting the missed opportunities drain your stash, but still allowing you to cash when dealt a good hand.