Oasis poker was found in real casinos of the former Europe and was the most popular game at that time. Currently, its popularity is still preserved in online casinos. This type of poker is also called Caribbean poker, the only difference between them is that in Oasis poker you can not change cards.
All players play against the dealer and as a result, bluffing and other tactics are not effective, unlike other types of poker, where such tools of the game will bring the player a decent advantage. The dealer shuffles the deck of cards before each new hand. The game involves a standard deck without jokers of fifty-two cards and the game is played at a semicircular table, where the number of playing places is limited to the number of boxes on the table layout, often six such places.
The player’s task is to win against the casino dealer by collecting a higher-value poker hand. Of course, as in other types of poker, there is a variation of winning if You have the highest card in your hands, and no one has collected high-value combinations.
Combinations
In oasis poker is played with a standard poker hand. Let’s list them in descending order of seniority.
- Royal Flush-from a ten to an ACE of the same suit.
- Straight Flush – any five cards in order of the same suit, including ACE, 2, 3, 4, 5.
- Four of a Kind (quads) – four cards of the same rank.
- Full House – three cards of the same value and two cards of a different value (Tris and pair).
- Flush – any five cards of the same suit.
- Straight – any five cards in order.
- Three of a Kind – three cards of the same value.
- Two Pairs – two cards of the same value and two cards of another value.
- Pair – two cards of the same value.
- Ace King – an ACE and a king of any suit.
- No Hand – the cards don’t have any of the above combinations.
Comparison of combinations
If a player and a croupier have combinations of the same value, the comparison takes place according to the rules established in this casino. However, the following are generally accepted. As a rule, card suits do not differ in value, so, for example, a straight of diamonds from ACE to five is equal in strength to the same straight of the club suit.
- When comparing ACE-king combinations, the advantage of the highest card that is not included in the combination is taken into account. In some casinos, you can find the rule that the player’s ACE-king always wins.
- Identical pairs are compared according to the value of the card that is not included in the combination, up to thirds of the card. For example, 2, 2, 3, 4, 7 older than 2, 2, 3, 4, 5.
- The same two pairs are compared according to the value of the card that is not included in the combination. For example, 2, 2, 3, 3, 7 older than 2, 2, 3, 3, 6.
- Straights and flash straights from cards of the same value are not compared and a draw is declared. The same applies to Royal flushes, which can only be collected from cards of the same value.
- Flushes are compared according to the value of the highest cards included in the combination.
- Full houses are compared according to the value of the cards that make up the Tris in the combination. For example, 2, 2, 4, 4, 4 older than 10, 10, 3, 3, 3.
- Tris and quads cannot consist of cards of the same value, so comparing them is not difficult. 5, 5, 5 is older than 3, 3, 3 and so on.
Once again, the popularity of oasis poker has led to the fact that the casino can meet the rules of the game with their own nuances, so it is advisable to clarify them in each new institution for you.
Game
On the oasis poker table, each of the boxes has three betting fields: ante, bet and bonus. At the beginning of each hand, the player makes an ante bet (we’ll talk about the bonus bet later), after which the dealer hands him and himself five cards each. The dealer puts one of his cards face down. Sometimes, for security reasons, the croupier puts the top card in the bump before the start of the hand and each round of exchanges.
In most casinos, the croupier opens his last card, but you can find places where the first card is opened, and the rest are put under it. This is done to combat card sharps who mark cards, because it is almost impossible to see the edges on the dealer’s cards. Usually, if one of the dealer’s cards is accidentally turned over during the hand, it remains open, and the other cards are dealt face down.
After receiving the cards, the player can make three types of decisions: fold, bet and compare their hand with the dealer’s hand, or make a trade. In the first case, the player simply refuses to continue playing, losing the ante bet.
If he believes that his hand can be stronger than the dealer’s, he places a bet equal to two ante bets on the bet field. After that, the dealer opens his cards and compares the available combination with the player’s combination. If the dealer’s hand is higher, the player loses both of their bets. If a player wins,he gets a payout based on the combination he has. If the croupier does not have a hand, he pays the player an ante regardless of the hand he has (in some casinos, in this case, the player’s cards are not even opened).
The player also has the option to swap cards. The rules and cost of card exchange vary from casino to casino. It is almost always possible to change one card for one ante. In most real casinos in our country, it was also possible to change five cards for one ante. Some establishments offered the option to swap two or four cards for two antes and three cards for three antes. Sometimes players are offered two rounds of exchanges, but in the second round, the cost of any exchanges increases twice. In some casinos, you must bet after exchanging your cards.
The size of the payoffs
The payout ratios for different combinations are shown below. Payouts are shown relative to the bet plus ante bet. That is, with an ante of $10 and a bet of $20, the payout for a Royal flush, if the dealer has a game, is 20 * 100 + 10 = 2010. In addition, the player still has his ante bet and bet.
- Royal Flush (Royal flush) – 100:1
- Straight Flush – 50:1
- Four of a Kind (quads) – 20:1
- Full House (full house) – 7:1
- Flush (flush) – 5:1
- Straight (straight) – 4:1
- Three of a Kind – 3:1
- Two Pairs (two pairs) – 2:1
- Pair – 1:1
- King Ace (ACE-king) – 1:1
The game is on some boxes
The number of boxes where a single player can raise cards also varies from casino to casino. It is usually allowed to look at cards on no more than two boxes, and on the rest ante and bet are automatically placed and the game is played in the dark. The size of one player’s bets on different boxes does not have to be the same. On open boxes, decisions need to be made sequentially, which limits the ability to exchange information.
If several players are playing at the same table, sharing information about the contents of their cards is prohibited. For this purpose, special exchange rules may even be introduced. For example, alternate exchange of cards on the boxes.
Additional features
- Purchase of the sixth card-sometimes a player has the opportunity to buy a sixth card to his five cards (usually for two antes), after which you need to discard one of the cards.
- Insurance against the dealer’s lack of a combination is a fairly common rule in real casinos, according to which a player can insure the collected combination from the straight and older for the amount of at least the ante bet and no more than the payout for this combination without taking into account the ante. In this case, if the dealer does not have a game, insurance and ante are paid 1:1. if the dealer has a game, the insurance loses, after which the combinations are compared.
- Buying a game is also a fairly popular rule that allows you to replace the dealer’s highest card (if there is no combination in them) with a new one from the deck for a certain fee (usually two antes). If the dealer makes a combination, it is compared with the player’s combination. If the player still doesn’t have a game, the ante is not paid.
- Bonus bet – according to this rule, a player can place a fixed bet on a special field at the beginning of each hand. It wins if a player receives a combination set by the rules from the hand (sometimes also from the exchange of five cards). In this case, he gets a certain payout, which does not depend on whether the dealer has a combination and its value. Sometimes a progressive jackpot is played in this way, which is accumulated from bonus bets and paid out for the largest poker combinations.
- Wild card-usually hands with a wild card occur at a set time. It can replace any card. All other details are discussed in the rules of the casino.
Basics of the strategy
Oasis poker is an interesting game, but not the most profitable for visitors. The following are some basic rules that will allow you to significantly reduce the advantage of the casino.
- Never play the boxes in the dark.
- Never bet on a bonus. An exception may be a situation where a very large progressive jackpot is played, and the size of your main bets disproportionately exceeds the size of the bonus bet.
- Do not play at tables where there is no exchange of cards at all.
- Do not play at tables where you cannot discard cards after an exchange.
- Bet on any combination of cards from a pair or higher.
- Discard cards if you don’t have any combination.
- If you have an ACE-king, play if the dealer’s open card matches one of your cards; if you have a Queen or Jack, and the dealer has a king or ACE open.
- Change your Bank card in the following cases::Â you have four consecutive cards in a straight (without breaking a pair), four cards in a flush (without breaking a pair), a straight flush, or a Royal flush (either way).
These rules can not be called universal, because any changes in the rules (exchange of several cards, the second round of exchange, the sixth card, the Joker, and so on) affect the strategy of the game. In addition, you should always take into account all known cards that you have in your hands or opened at the dealer, as well as those that were discarded on other boxes, and so on.
