You would think that with only three cards to play with this would be an easy game to learn, right? The thing is…three card poker is actually two games in one: Pairplus and Ante-and-Play. (It’s also an American version of the English game “Brag”.)

Here’s how to play 3-Card Poker:

Each player is dealt three cards. The hand rankings in 3-Card Poker is a little different than regular (5-Card Poker) because you’re limited to the following: Straight Flush, Three of a Kind, Straight, Flush, One Pair, High Card.

For the first type of game, Pairplus, it’s pretty straight forward. You place a bet on the cards with a payout for all hands of a pair or better.

For ante-and-play, you placesan ante bet before receiving your cards with the hopes of beating the dealer (who must qualify in order to play). After you’re dealt your cards and have had a chance to look at them, you can either fold your cards and lose the ante bet, or raise by placing out a bet of equal money to the ante bet.

If you want to learn how to play 3-card poker for free, the Wizard of Odds has an easy Java game available. For more free poker games, check out this reputable poker room.