Oasis Poker takes the classic game of Caribbean Stud Poker, but adds a new dimension. The player is allowed to exchange cards before choosing whether to raise or fold. However, the player must pay for the right to do this. After this, Oasis Poker is very similar to Caribbean Stud, with the goal being to have a better hand than the dealer.
How to Play Oasis Poker
The game begins with the player making an ante bet. The player also has the option to make an optional bonus bet. The game is dealt from a regular 52-card deck, and the player and dealer are dealt five-card hands. All cards are face down, except for one dealer card, which is exposed.
The player may look at their own hand, but isn’t allowed to share information with any other players at the table. At this point, the player may keep his hand, or exchange as many cards as they wish. However, there is a fee to do this. For each card the player wishes to discard, they must pay a fee equal to the ante bet. For instance, if the player wishes to get three new cards, they must pay a fee equal to three times the ante bet.
After discarding and paying the fee, the player will receive new cards to replace those they discarded. The player now had the choice to fold or raise. If the player chooses to fold, they forfeit their hand and all bets made, including the bonus bet. If the player raises, they must make a bet equal to twice their ante bet. In some casinos, the only option available is to switch one card for a fee equal to the ante bet.
Once all players have made their decisions to raise or fold, the dealer reveals their hand. The dealer first checks to see if he qualifies; in order to do so, he must have a hand of at least ace/king high. If the dealer does not qualify, all players remaining in the hand will win even money on their ante bet, and all raise bets will push.
If the dealer does qualify, he now checks to see if the player can beat the dealer’s hand. If the dealer has a better hand, the player loses both the ante and raise bets. If the player has a better hand, the player wins even money on the ante bet, while the raise bet pays out according to a posted pay table. Most casinos use the following pay table, though it can vary:
- Royal Flush: 100-1
- Straight Flush: 50-1
- Four of a Kind: 20-1
- Full House: 7-1
- Flush: 5-1
- Straight: 4-1
- Three of a Kind: 3-1
- Two Pair: 2-1
- Pair or Less: 1-1
The bonus bet is usually the same as the progressive side bet seen at most Caribbean Stud Poker tables. This bet can have any number of pay charts, but they usually look something like the following:
- Royal Flush: 100% of Jackpot
- Straight Flush: 10% of Jackpot
- Four of a Kind: $100
- Full House: $75
- Flush: $50
Oasis Poker Tips
With perfect play, the house edge is pretty small: just 1.04%. However, the decision of when to switch and when to hold your original hand can be fairly complex. Michael Shackleford’s
After switching, the strategy is the same as in Caribbean Stud Poker. Players should always raise with a pair or better, and always fold with less than ace/king high. With ace/king high, your decisions won’t have a dramatic impact on your overall win rate. However, some good rules of thumb are to raise when you have a card that matches the dealer’s up card, or when your cards are mostly higher than the dealer up card.
Finally, the progressive side bet is usually a sucker bet, but can be lucrative if the jackpot amount gets large enough: generally, around $200,000-$250,000 on most pay charts. However, if a casino allows you to switch cards and still win the progressive side bet, this greatly increases the value of the progressive side bet for the player!
