2 3 5 Stud Poker is a relatively new house-banked casino game. As with many casino-banked poker games, you get paid based on the strength of your hand. How it compares to the dealer’s hand isn’t an issue in this game.
I learned about 2 3 5 Stud Poker via an article on Wizard of Odds. Michael Shackleford saw it at the 2022 Global Gaming Expo and later saw it being played at the Plaza Casino in Vegas. According to Shackleford, Light and Wonder has the trademark for this game. But I’ve also seen a page with the trademark for 235 Stud Poker that attributes the trademark to Sg Gaming.
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These house-banked poker games aren’t really poker at all, though. Usually, there’s little to no skill element, and you’re competing with the casino rather than with other players. These games do have betting structures, though, to make them more interesting. In 2 3 5 Stud Poker, you get to check or raise twice as the cards get shown.
In this post, I explain 2 3 5 Stud Poker rules and offer some insights into the game’s strategy and odds.
Table of Contents
2 3 5 Stud Poker Rules (How to Play)
Learning how to play 2 3 5 Stud Poker couldn’t be much easier. This section explains the rules for the game. It uses a traditional deck of 52 cards. You start by making 3 bets (all the same size). These bets have the following names:
- 2 Card Poker
- 3 Card Poker
- 5 Card Poker
You can see from the names of the bets how the game gets its name, can’t you?
The game also offers an optional side bet called Win ‘Em All. You place this bet before getting any cards, too.
Once you’ve placed your bets, the dealer gives you 2 cards. Once you’ve looked at those cards, you have the option of raising or checking the 3 Card Poker bet. Raising doubles the size of the bet, while checking neither raises nor lowers the size of that bet.
After this decision, you get another card. After looking at that card, you can raise or check the 5 Card Poker bet.
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When this is resolved, the dealer lays down 2 community cards. These are used to determine the value of your 5-card hand at the end.
The payouts for each bet are handled separately and are based on your hand at the time. In other words, the 2 Card Poker bet pays off based on the hand you have when you just have 2 cards, and the 3 Card Poker bet pays off based on the hand you have with 3 cards. The 5 Card Poker bet pays off based on the combination of your 3 cards and the 2 community cards.
2 3 5 Poker Pay Tables
Here are the 2 3 5 Poker pay tables for each bet:
The 2 Card Poker Bet Pay Table
With 2 cards, you don’t have a lot of poker hands you can make. The ones you can make pay out even money, so you don’t really need a pay table here — just a list of winning hands:
- Pair
- Straight
- Flush
The 3 Card Poker Bet Pay Table
With 3 cards, you get bigger payouts and more potential winning hands:
- Mini royal – 50 to 1
- Straight flush – 20 to 1
- 3 of a kind – 10 to 12
- Straight – 5 to 1
- Flush – 3 to 1
- Pair – even money
The 5 Card Poker Bet Pay Table
The 3rd bet is the one with the biggest potential payouts:
- Royal flush – 500 to 1
- Straight flush – 250 to 1
- 4 of a kind – 100 to 1
- Full house – 25 to 1
- Flush – 20 to 1
- Straight – 15 to 1
- 3 of a kind – 7 to 1
- 2 pair – 3 to 1
- A pair of 10s or better – even money
2 3 5 Stud Poker Odds and House Edge
According to Michael Shackleford, who’s the Internet’s resident expert on such things, the house edge for 2 3 5 Stud Poker varies by bet. The house edge for the 2 Card Poker bet is 17.65%. The house edge for the 3 Card Poker bet is -1.09% (which means you have an edge over the house with this bet.)
And, the house edge for the 5 card poker bet is -9.78%, which means you have a large edge over the house for this bet.
But the overall house edge for the game is based on all 3 bets. And it should come as no surprise that the game favors the house. The total house edge for the game is 5.9%, which is even higher than the house edge at roulette (5.26%).
But that doesn’t account for the raising options. When you raise optimally, the house edge goes down considerably when compared to the total amount of money you put into action. According to Shackleford, the total house edge (or “element of risk”) for the game is 1.63%.
(If you don’t know what “house edge” means, I explain it in my post about the house edge for slot machines.)
The Win ‘Em All Side Bet
If you’ve read much about casino games and side bets, you probably can guess that the house edge for the Win ‘Em All side bet is too high. First, understand that you only win this wager if you win all 3 of the other wagers. That’s not outrageously improbably like hitting the lottery, but it’s still unlikely.
The bet pays out 12 to 1, but you’ll only win this bet 1 out of every 14 or 15 hands on average. This makes the house edge 7.39%, which is too high. One of the best pieces of 2 3 5 Stud Poker strategy advice I can offer is to never make this side bet.
2 3 5 Stud Poker Strategy and Tactics (How to Win)
The first thing to understand about 2 3 5 Stud Poker strategy is that you can’t win in the long run. Like most casino games, the casino has a mathematical edge that you can’t overcome. This is true even if you play perfectly.
But you CAN win more often and lose less money in the long run if you raise when appropriate and check when appropriate.
Here’s the strategy for that:
After the First 2 Cards
Raise with any pair. Raise if you have 2 cards to a straight flush or 2 cards to an open straight draw. Otherwise, check.
After the 3rd Card
Raise if you have any of the following:
Any pair or 3 of a kind, any 3 suited cards, 3 cards to a straight with 0 gaps (but only if one card is a 10+), 3 cards to a straight with 1 gap (but only if you have 2 cards that are 10+), or any 3 cards to a straight where all 3 cards are 10+.
The relatively low house edge I cited earlier on this page assumes you’re making decisions using this perfect strategy. If you deviate, the house edge goes up. In that respect, 2 3 5 Stud Poker is a lot like blackjack.
You can find more detailed discussion of the strategy for 235 Stud Poker in this thread at Wizard of Vegas.
Conclusion
That’s all I know about 2 3 5 Stud Poker. If something is unclear about the rules, odds, or strategy for the game, please leave a comment. I’ll try to update the post accordingly.
It looks like a fun game, and I’d sure like to try it. I’m not sure that it’s been rolled out to many casinos yet. So, if you spot it somewhere, let me know about that, too. I can update the post with that information, too.
