Casino Poker games are usually listed under Table games at online casinos. They are different from Video Poker games. In Video Poker games the player is competing against a payout table only. In Casino Poker games the player mainly competes against the dealer’s hand and, in some games, may place a side bet against a payout table. Most of the Casino Poker games at online casinos are stud poker games. In these games players are dealt the hand in stages followed by betting rounds in between.

Draw poker is an earlier form of poker that is not so popular in land casinos. In draw poker games players are dealt a complete five card hands up front and can try to improve the hand by discarding some cards and drawing fresh ones as replacement. The only major software providers to offer draw poker games Realtime Gaming and Microgaming. The games are titled Caribbean Draw Poker. Realtime Gaming Caribbean Draw Poker can be played in online casinos like Club World Casino, Slots Jungle Casino and Win Palace Casino. Microgaming Caribbean Draw Poker is live at online casinos like Spin Palace Casino, Roxy Palace Casino and Platinum Play Casino. There are many similarities and some differences in the games from the two software providers.

The brief common rules are as follows. Caribbean Draw Poker is played with a standard deck of 52 playing cards. Players first place the ante bet, and can place the optional side bet as well. Then five cards are dealt face up to the player and the dealer is dealt one card face up and four cards face down. The options differ slightly in the Microgaming and the Realtime Gaming versions. In the Microgaming game the player has three options. By clicking the Stand button a play bet equal to double the ante bet is placed and the dealer’s cards are revealed. Players can select up to two cards for replacement by clicking on them. Along with the cards replacement the play bet is placed and the dealer’s hand is exposed. By clicking the Fold button the player concedes and loses his ante bet. In the Realtime Gaming version, players who want to stick with their dealt hand should click the Draw button without selecting any cards.

The payout rules are identical in Caribbean Draw Poker games from both software providers. If the player’s hand is lower ranking than the dealer’s hand then he loses both bets. If the player’s hand is higher ranked, but the dealer does not qualify then the ante bet pays even money and the play bet pushes. If the player’s hand is higher ranked, and the dealer qualifies then the ante bet pays even money and the play bet pays as per a payout table. The dealer requires a pair of eights or better to qualify. The payout table for the play bet is the same for both software providers.

The optional side bet pays out according to another payout table. The original dealt hand before drawing is considered. This table is different for the Realtime Gaming and Microgaming games. The Microgaming table starts with a 4 to 1 payout for a two pair and goes to a 2,500 to 1 payout for a straight flush with the progressive jackpot for a royal flush. The Realtime Gaming table starts with a 75 to 1 payout for a flush and goes to 10% of the progressive jackpot for a straight flush with the full progressive jackpot for a royal flush.