Let It Ride Poker Strategy
Let It Ride poker is a cross between 5-card draw poker and video poker. You win a game based on the rank of your five-card poker hand, but you win money based on the kind of hand. What is unique to Let It Ride poker is that, as the name suggests, you let your bets "ride".
Popular poker games like Texas Hold'em, 7-card stud, Omaha hi/lo, and Caribbean stud poker do not have the same bet riding characteristic, so Let It Ride poker offers a refreshing way to boost your earnings from poker. With an estimated 50 million players in the United States alone, poker itself is regarded as America's most popular card game.
Let It Ride Poker Strategy
The ability to let a bet ride is what differentiates Let It Ride poker from other poker games, including video poker which is the variation closest to this table card game. Clearly, a good let it ride poker strategy has everything to do with betting. Beyond this, there is little you can do to influence the cards you are dealt, and your five-card hand will practically make itself.
Your key areas of concern are when to scratch a bet and when to let it ride. In addition, you should learn how much to bet in order to gain the most advantage from a series of three bets that are paid according to fixed payouts.
Optimal Let It Ride Poker Strategy
Let It Ride poker has a house edge of 3.5%. Before anything, here is a typical payout table for Let It Ride poker, whether in land-based or online casinos.
| Winning Poker Hand | Typical House Payout |
| Pair of 10 or Better | 1 :1 |
| Two Pair | 2 :1 |
| Three of a Kind | 3 :1 |
| Straight | 5 :1 |
| Flush | 8 :1 |
| Full House | 11 :1 |
| Four of a Kind / Quad | 50 :1 |
| Straight Flush | 200 :1 |
| Royal Flush | 1000 :1 |
Circle 1 Bet. Optimal strategy dictates that the only times you should let this bet ride are if your first three cards are:
Pair of 10's or better
Three of a kind
Three cards to a Flush, with two high cards (10 or higher)
Three cards to a Straight Flush
Three cards to a Royal Flush
10, Jack, Queen
Circle 2 Bet. Optimal strategy dictates that the only times you should let this bet ride are if your first four cards are:
Pair of 10's or better
Two pair
Three of a kind
Four of a kind / Quad
Four cards to a Straight (open end)
Four cards to a Flush / Any four cards of the same suit
Four cards to a Straight Flush
Four cards to a Royal Flush
Four high cards (10 or higher)
Related Pages: Let It Ride Poker | Let It Ride Poker Game Books | Let It Ride Poker Game Sites | Let It Ride Poker Game Lessons