Play
begins with each player making three bets of equal
denomination in spaces labeled (1), (2) and ($).
The dealer then gives each player three cards,
and two community cards are dealt face down. After
seeing his or her first three cards, each player
has the option of pulling back their first bet,
or, as the game is eponymously named, saying “Let
it ride.”
The
dealer then exposes one of the two community cards.
Each player now has the option to remove the second
bet or to "let it ride," regardless
of the first decision. Finally the second community
card is flipped over. Losing bets not meeting
the payout criteria are collected, and the winning
wagers are paid, based on the ranking of the player's
hand and a payout schedule. Typically a Royal
Flush pays 1,000 to 1, a Straight flush: 200 to
1, Four of a kind: 50 to 1, Full house: 11 to
1, Flush: 8 to 1, Straight: 5 to 1, Three of a
kind: 3 to 1, Two pair: 2 to 1, and a pair of
10s or better: 1 to 1.
I’ll
be the first to agree the game is fun to play,
slow enough for the gambling neophyte, and does
allow you to pull back two of the three bets,
but my problem, Tom, is that even when played
flawlessly, the casino's edge on Let-It-Ride is
3.51%, which is almost six times what it is in
blackjack when using perfect basic strategy. That’s
well above my gambling grade. Recall, Tom, my
recommendation: “Never make a wager that
has higher than a 2% house edge.”
Worse
yet, Tom, are the Let-It-Ride side bets where
for $1 you are offered an additional payoff with
certain paying hands; these bets carry a double-digit
casino edge making them, “too good to be
true," -- Oh,Yeah! -- and they should labeled
for what they are; sucker bets.
Email to a friend 
More
Columns By Mark Pilarski
Have a question? Ask Mark pilarski@markpilarski.com
Related
Articles
Mississippi
Stud Poker
Mississippi Stud is but another poker variant
in which each player receives a mix of face-down
and face-up cards.
Your
Odds Doubling Up Playing Video Poker
Like the odds bet in craps, the Double Up wager
is one of the few casino bets offered that doesn't
have a house edge.
Pokers
Handy Glossary
A quick refresher of these contentious poker rules
that seem to pop up at some not-so-friendly kitchen
table games.
Pyramid
poker
A simplified version of Pai Gow poker, where,
instead of seven cards, three cards are dealt
to each player.
Good
Casinos Home
