Learn to Play Crazy 4 Poker

Crazy 4 Poker is another game invented by Roger Snow, inventor of Ultimate Texas Hold'em, 4 Card Poker and a handful of others. Distributed by Shuffle Master, a subsidiary of Scientific Games, Inc., Crazy 4 Poker has been around for about a dozen years and has a fairly strong presence in casinos with a lot of tables, like casinos on the Las Vegas strip. It's not a top tier game like Three Card Poker or Ultimate Texas Hold'em, but would be on a list of second tier games for those that have the floor space.

Crazy 4 Poker is played against the dealer and players do not play against each other during any part of the hand. The game is similar to Three Card Poker and Four Card Poker, except in Crazy 4 Poker, all players and the dealer get dealt five cards and use their best four of the five for a poker hand.

Step by Step Guide to Playing Crazy 4 Poker

1. Prior to play all players will place the required Ante bet and Super Bonus bet. These bets also must be equal to each other. On the layout above, the Ante bet and the Super Bonus bet are connected with an equal sign.
2. An optional side bet called Queens Up is also available. This side bet pays, whether you win or lose the hand against the dealer, if you get a pair of Queens or better as your final hand.
3. Five cards will be dealt to each player as well as to the dealer spot.
4. Players may not touch their cards until the dealer has completed the deal and signals that picking up the cards is now ok.
5. Once the dealer notifies all players that they can touch their cards, players look at their cards and have to decide if they would like to Play or Fold their hand. These are the only two options. The dealers cards have not yet been revealed, so the decision is just based on the strength of the players best four cards of the five dealt to them.
6. There are two options if the player wants to Play. If the player hand contains a pair of Aces or better, the player may bet up to three times their Ante bet for their Play bet. If the player hand does not have a pair of Aces or better, the player may bet an amount equal to their Ante bet on the Play bet.
7. If the player chooses to fold, the player places his cards face down next to the Ante Queens Up betting circles and the player loses the Ante and Super Bonus bets.. The Queens Up bet can still be in action, but a player would never fold with a pair of Queens or better in their hand.
8. Once all players have decided to Play or Fold the dealer will turn over the dealer cards. The dealer must have at least a King high to qualify.
9. If the dealer does have at least a King high, then one by one starting on the dealers right, each players hand will be compared to the dealers hand. If the hand beats the dealers hand, the Ante and Play bets will win. Ante and Play bets always pay even money. The Super Bonus bet only pays on a straight or better. If the players hand is not a straight or better, the Super Bonus is a push. If the hand is a straight or better, the Super Bonus gets paid odds. The Super Bonus odds chart is shown below. The Queens Up bet also wins if the player hand is at least a pair of queens or better. The Queens Up pay table is also shown below.
10. If the dealer did not have a King high or better, then all Ante bets will be a push. The Play bet still pays even money and the Super Bonus and Queens Up bets still pays odds on a straight or better for the Super Bonus and pair of Queens or better on the Queens Up bet.

Rules and Odds

The house advantage on the Ante, Super Bonus and Play combination is 3.42% Near optimal play can be accomplished by playing the three times bet on the Play anytime you have a pair of Aces or better. Play one times your Ante with a K,Q,8,4 or better as your four best cards. Anything less than K,Q,8,4 should be folded.

The Queens Up side bet with the above pay table has a house advantage of 4.52%, which is pretty fair for a side bet. Available pay tables can go as high as 6.77% if the Three of a Kind only pays 7-1 instead of 8-1. But even the worst pay table at 6.77% is not a terrible side bet house hold, although the lower the better of course.