Why Play Live Casino Hold'Em?

Thanks to the World Series of Poker and the World Poker Tour, Texas Hold’em quickly became the most popular form of poker in the world in the new millennium.

However, not everyone who watched the game on television felt comfortable testing their skills against other players at their local casinos. That left many casino owners with a question: how best to capitalize on Hold’em’s popularity, even if many of their customers didn’t want to play it?

Casino Hold'em was devised as a simpler version of Texas Hold'em. It's one of the most popular online table games you will find at most casinos. Live Casino Hold'em gives you the chance to enjoy this popular table game without leaving your front room.

Check out the key differences between regular online Casino Hold'em and live dealer Casino Hold'em, to understand the many benefits of the live version.

Top Tips and Strategies for Live Casino Hold‘Em

Like all gambling games, you can use some strategy when playing live dealer Casino Hold'em. Here are a few of our expert Casino Hold'em tips for players to beat the house:

• Play lots of hands: The most important Casino Hold'em strategy is that you should play far more hands than you would in a normal poker game, even in heads-up play. According to analysis, the optimal strategy is to raise about 82 percent of the time. 18 percent of hands should be folded.

  Start with playing pocket pairs, high suited connectors, and medium pairs. If your hole cards are lower than the flop cards, you should probably fold.

• Always bet pocket pairs: When you connect with the flop, you’ll want to make a Call bet. Making a pair is always good enough to go with. Similarly, any pocket pair is likely good enough to Call with, even if your pair is lower than anything that appears on the board.

  What you should do when your hand is less than a pair is a bit trickier. There are still some hands that should obviously be played. For instance, having even one over card – that is, a card higher than anything which appears on the flop – is enough to continue on in a hand.

• Bet four cards to a straight or flush: Let's say you are dealt 10-9 clubs and the flop comes 7-J-2 with two clubs. You have an open-ended straight draw, and the Ante win payout for a straight is 1/1. However, you also have four clubs and the Ante win payout for a flush is 2/1. While a winning straight only earns you even money, the 2/1 on a flush makes a Call the smart move.

• Understand the odds of side bets: In Live Casino Hold'em online, you will oftentimes find special side bets that can improve your win. The regular AA bonus pays 7/1 if you have pocket aces up to a straight from your first five cards. You can also win 100/1 on a royal flush. Evolution Gaming's live dealer Casino Hold'em game has a Jumbo 7 progressive with a linked jackpot for a straight flush.

  The question is: how good are the odds? The chances of hitting a straight flush are in the millions and may not reflect the actual odds of you winning the biggest prize.