Patent Application
20080169606
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of wagering games, wagering games using playing cards, wagering games using a point count system of evaluating hands, and a game played by one player's hand against a dealer's hand or banker's hand to determine winning events.
2. Background of the Art
There are essentially three types of casino card game formats that are available to players. A first format is based on poker ranks, in which individual cards and combinations of cards have ranks or strength based upon the relative probability of a hand being provided with a specific number of cards. For example, the least frequent (lowest probability) hand in a five-card poker game that is readily identifiable is the Royal Flush comprising the Ace, King, Queen, Jack and Ten of a single suit. This low probability hand is deemed the highest ranking hand because it is readily identifiable, even though the actual probability of that hand occurring is identical to the probability for specifically any other predetermined five cards, such as the 2 of clubs, 4 of diamonds, 5 of spades, 10 of diamonds and Queen of hearts. Other ranked low probability hands are Four-of-a-kind, Full House, Flush, Straight, Three-of-a-kind, Two Pair and Pair. Different numbers of cards dealt to players can be used as the hand-forming basis and the probability of different hands occurring may vary among different games and different numbers of cards, but the hands are generally referred to in terms of Poker ranks, whether 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 or more cards are used. Casino war is a one-card poker game variant, for example.
A second format of game is based on the count or point value of individual cards and the collective value of points counted in hands, usually played against a dealer or banker. The most common games using point count systems are blackjack (twenty-one) and baccarat. In blackjack, the value of cards are based on their numerical value shown, with face cards (Jack, Queen and King) counting as 10 value or point cards and Aces being 1 or 11 at the option of the card holder. In baccarat, cards again have their face values, but Aces are always a value of 1 and face cards are always valued at 0 (zero) points.
A third format of casino table games is fairly rare and is often found as a side bet event, where cards are matched in suit, rank or suit and rank to establish winning events. Some games combine these games with side bet wagers in blackjack or baccarat hands that player's cards and/or dealer's cards alone or in combination can provide poker ranks of high rank out of specific combinations or total combinations of cards in the hands. Alternatively, in the play of Casino War™ games, wagers may be placed on the total point count of the players initial card, the sum of the player's and dealer's initial cards, and the like.
A playing card game is played between a player making an Ante wager and a dealer/banker. Player hands and dealer/banker hands are compared on the basis of total point counts. Pairs in hands may remove the cards in the pairs from any contribution to the total point count, so that pairs are disadvantageous. Certain side bets may also be made in the play of the game. The game is preferably played with three cards initially dealt to the player and 5 cards to the dealer/banker. There are mandatory discard and replacement events for the player's hand. The dealer's/banker's hand will play with the cards they are dealt.
The preferred game described herein within the generic scope of the game play and rules and events disclosed in this document is referred to as Three-Card Draw™ non-poker game, or 3 Card Draw™ game for short. 3 Card Draw™ game is a card game played against the dealer using a standard 52-card deck or a deck with one or more jokers or specialty cards. The winning events in the play of the game include creating a 3-card hand that contains “high cards” and no pairs. A high card is defined as any 10, Jack, Queen, or King. In 3 Card Draw™ games, suits are irrelevant and individual cards are scored at face value, with Aces being the lowest card (e.g., with a score or count of 1) and Kings, the highest card (with a score or count of 13). When a hand contains a pair, the pair of cards are ignored and effectively removed from the scoring of that hand.
At the start of each round, players make a single wager (e.g., an Ante wager) for the ultimate result of their 3-card hand. They may also place a wager on an optional 21+ (or Twenty-One Plus™ bet) side bet (described later herein). The dealer then deals 3 cards to each player, face down. The dealer (or banker in a player-banked game) also deals himself 5 cards face down. Players then examine their cards and determine how they wish to proceed with their hand. Players have the following playing options:
The 21+ bet is a side bet that pays for certain combinations of the player's first 3 cards. To win, a player needs 3 dealt cards that contain at least 2 high cards and no pairs. The following table shows the different hands on the pay schedule and the house advantage of the bet.
The following table gives the expected values of all ways to play any dealt hand and shows the optimal playing strategy. Note: Although the table shows the value of keeping all 3 original cards for all hands, in most cases, this is not a valid option.
The 21+ bet is a side bet that pays for certain combinations of the player's first 3 cards. To win, a player needs 3 dealt cards that contain at least 2 high cards and no pairs. The following table shows the different hands on the pay schedule and the house advantage of the bet.
The following table gives the expected values of all ways to play any dealt hand and shows the optimal playing strategy. Note: Although the table shows the value of keeping all 3 original cards for all hands, in most cases, this is not a valid option.
Table 3: Expected values of all ways to play all hands and optimal playing strategy.
The following examples are used to illustrate play of the game, with the suit of playing cards not being indicated as the suits have no bearing on the play of the basic game of 3-Card Draw™ casino game.
A game with three players and a dealer will be reviewed. Players 1 and 2 wager a $10.00 Ante wager each, and Player 3 makes a $25 Ante wager and a $5 21 Plus™ wager. The players dealt hands are as follows:
Player 1 does not have a dealt qualified hand, and would elect to replace the 2 by discarding it. It is a possible option in the play of the game that when a player discards, a second or Play wager may be made. In this version of the game, no such option exists, so the player discards the 2 and receives a Jack.
Player 2 likewise does not have a dealt qualified hand, even though the hand is otherwise quite good. The player would likely not discard (if discarding is not automatic) or discard the 6. The decision to not discard would be based on the fact that K Q is a high hand, and the hand would be improved with only a 7, 8, 9, 10 or J, only a 40% probability; while the hand would be devalued with any other cards. In this example, the Player 2 elects to take a hit and receives a Q. This reduces the Player 2's 3 Card Draw™ game hand to a single King.
Player 3 has no dealt qualified hand and loses the 21 Plus™ wager. Player 3 could discard 1 or 2 cards and chooses to discard the 7 and 9. The player receives an Ace and Jack, to provide a final hand of A-J-10.
The dealer's initial five cards are revealed as:
According to various house rules, the dealer hand may be allowed to discard zero, one, two or three cards. This game will be played by way of example with the dealer allowed to discard a maximum of two cards, discarding the Ace and 4, receiving a Queen and 7 as replacement cards. This leaves the dealer with a hand of Q J 10, the 7s being discarded as a Pair.
Against this dealer hand, Player 1 loses, Player 2 (even though a single card hand of a King) wins the Ante bet at 1:1 odds, and Player 3 loses.
A game with three players and a dealer will be reviewed. Players 1 and 2 wager a $10.00 Ante wager each, and Player 3 makes a $25 Ante wager and a $5 21 Plus™ wager. The players dealt hands are as follows:
Player 2 doesn't have a qualifying hand. Player 3 has a dealt qualifying hand and has a hand that wins on the 21 Plus™ side bet. Player 1 effectively has a single card hand of a Jack. Player 1 would discard or be required to discard one 10 (although in some rule variants, the player may be required to discard both cards of a Pair to receive any replacement cards). Player 1 receives a 7 for the discarded 10. Player 2 discards the 6 and receives a 4. Player 3 stands with the 10 J Q hand.
The dealer's five card hand is:
It does not matter what the dealer does, with the single King, the dealer's hand beats all three of the players' hands. Only Player 3 is paid for the 21 Plus wager, having been dealt three initial high cards, receiving a 20:1 payout or $100.00 on the $5.00 wager. It is to be noted that the Player 3 hand is not a poker rank, but is ranked card by card, highest card first against the dealer's hand, without consideration of the suit or pairs or straights. The King may be considered a 13 value card, and by having the highest value card versus the player's highest value card, the dealer wins with the 13 value card. Any other card may be designated the highest value card, and one or more jokers may be provided to the set of cards as the highest value cards, such as a 14 count card. Special game events may be associated with the Joker such as excluding a win on the 21 Plus wager (since with a single Joker in the deck, a win is guaranteed for the player), or that the presence of the Joker in the dealer's hand is an automatic push or an automatic loss, or the Joker in the player's hand is an automatic push or an automatic loss.
The following table summarizes these results. See Appendix A for complete analysis details and the optimal playing strategy.
The technology of the present system therefore includes a method of playing a wagering game comprising: at least one player placing an Ante wager to compete against a dealer in a playing card game; the at least one player receiving a player initial hand of multiple cards of number n and evaluating the playing cards according to rules comprising:
