Why Caribbean Hold’em Poker is Hot-Stuff at the Online Casino

Caribbean Hold’em Poker is Texas Hold’em with a twist.  It is a super-cool version of the community card game that has taken the world by storm.  Instead of bluffing your way to the big time with a legion of players breathing down your neck, you go head-to-head against the online casino!

What makes Caribbean Hold’em so darn hot?  Well, besides standard winnings that are paid out at odds of up to 100:1 and a mediocre house edge, there is an added cash incentive in the form of a progressive jackpot – and a network funded linked jackpot at that!

The Mechanics of Caribbean Hold’em Poker   

The card game you can play right here at Springbok Online Casino has all the signature features of its land-based equivalent.  There are the two hole cards for the player, two cards for the dealer and the flop, which are the first three community cards that you assess to determine whether you want to call or fold.

If you think you have a good chance of creating a better five-card poker hand than that of the dealer – using one or both of your hole cards and the flop – you hit the call button.  That involves placing an additional wager valued at two times that of the original ante bet.

The machine deals two more community cards – the turn and river – which you can also use to create a paying poker hand… and hopefully beat the dealer in the process. 

What adds a bit of spark to proceedings is the fact that there is a juicy RTG network-linked progressive jackpot up for grabs.  That is the twist we were referring to earlier and it’s a ‘lekker’ one at that.  We’ll get into the progressive side of things a little bit further down the page.

Right now, we are focussing on what you can win at the online casino when the progressive jackpot is not in play.

What You Can Win Playing Caribbean Hold’em Poker at Springbok Online Casino  

Unlike Texas Hold’em Poker where the player with the best five-card poker hand wins the pot, and the value of the winnings is the collection of all the players’ ante and call bets in that round, combined – Caribbean Hold’em Poker pays out structured winnings according to the paytable posted below:

Caribbean Hold’em Poker Standard Paytable

Although many of the poker hand rankings pay out even money, the odds or probability of hitting a pair, two pair, three of a kind and so on are relatively high.  What’s more, you can win cash on a high card, something the dealer can’t do as the dealer qualifies with a pair of fours or better!

That is how the game pays out on the ante bet.  The call bet pays at odds of 1:1.

Optional Progressive Jackpot Side Bet 

Now to the progressive jackpot.  As we have already mentioned, the major money prize is funded by all the players in the Real Time Gaming (RTG) online casino network. 

That means the jackpot can and does reach astronomical heights.  Right now, it is tipping the scales at more than R500k… that’s half a million rand in hard cash!

To qualify for the big cash kahuna, you have to click on the progressive jackpot icon on the gaming interface and place an optional side bet at the same time as the ante bet.  If you are lucky enough to hit a flush or better you are deep in the money and smiling all the way to the bank!

Caribbean Hold’em Poker Progressive Jackpot Paytable  

Here’s the progressive jackpot paytable at Springbok Online Casino:

Ok, we have now determined that you can win plenty of money playing Caribbean Hold’em Poker at the online casino.  The question is what does the online casino skim off the top in terms of profit and what is the average return to player or payout rate?

Exploit the House Edge and Return to Player  

In statistical terms, the house edge – or the percentage of all bets on a particular game that the online casino banks before it pays out winnings – is 2,16%.  That is lower than what the online casino takes on roulette, craps, Pai Gow poker, Caribbean Stud poker and the vast majority of slots.

That of course means that the rest of the money wagered on Caribbean Hold’em poker by all the players at all the online casinos in the RTG network is paid out as winnings.  That slice – and it’s a significant slice – clocks in at 97,84%.  That, my friends, is the average RTP for Caribbean Hold’em over time, which is not bad by any standard.

Progressive Side Bet - Yes or No?  

You now know what you can win when you hit a high ranking five card poker hand with an optional progressive side bet in play.  You also know that the probability of hitting the likes of a flush, full house and four of a kind is relatively low.

Should you take the R8 side bet?  That is really up to you.  If you are a high-risk kind of player, then you will want as many opportunities as you can to hit the jackpot.  If you are risk averse, then you will probably be quite happy to build a balance in your online casino account… slowly but surely!

On the positive side, you can of course choose to bet with the lowest available chip value, which at Springbok Online Casino is R2 a round.  That means if you do call, your total outlay is R6.  Take the progressive jackpot side bet – and the wager increases to R14.  Whether you are willing to spend that kind of money on one round of poker is really a decision you have to make for yourself!