How to Play Ultimate Texas Hold'em 

If you know how to play online poker, you will love to play Ultimate Texas Hold’em online. One of the freshest variations of the game, Ultimate Texas Hold’em has become widely popular among casinos in the US. In Las Vegas and many other states, it is currently one of the most sought after niche table games. When Ultimate Texas Hold’em was launched, it could only be played on multi-player electronic machines. However, as time passed, the popularity of the game skyrocketed and some casinos decide to expand it into a table game.

About Ultimate Texas Hold’em

Invented by Roger Snow of Shuffle Master, Ultimate Texas Hold’em is a poker-based casino game wherein the player plays only against the dealer with the freedom to make one raise at any point during the course of the hand. It is important to note that when the raise is made earlier, its value is higher.

Players begin by making an ante and blind bet. Players also have an optional Trips side which allows them to receive a payout regardless of whether their hand wins or loses. It is different from other poker-based game in a way that the ante still have action even after raises have been made and even if the dealer does not open. Moreover, both of the ante and blind bets should be equal.

Aside from featuring the best poker sites, we also take time to review the newest formats of the game. We’ve taken the legwork off your shoulders and compiled all the details you need to know if you want to learn Ultimate Texas Hold’em.

How to Play Ultimate Texas Hold'em

The format of this game is a lot similar to the usual Texas Hold'em games that are available in most online poker sites. You will get two cards and so does the dealer. You will be given the freedom to look at your cards so you can decide if you want to check or raise four times the ante. The option to raise three times will also be available to you. However, it is important to note that there is never really a hand where you can incorporate this move as a basic strategy. If at any point in the hand you raise, the action from your end will end.

After you make this decision, you will be shown three cards which are known as the "flop." If you did not raise before the flop, you will be given the option to raise two times the ante. In this scenario, another option available for you is checking.

The last two cards will be shown once the post-flop betting has been resolved. This is the time when players are required to either fold or match their ante. This will be followed by the dealer exposing his two cards and grading the hand. To qualify, the dealer must have at least a paired board. The ante pushes if the dealer does not qualify. This will still be true even if the player has a hand that loses to the dealer. On the other hand, if the dealer qualifies, the one with the best hand wins the ante bet. The same rules apply whether you're playing in a casino or playing online poker for real cash.

The blind and raises remain in play even if the dealer qualifies or not. Meanwhile, if the player gets beaten by the dealer, both the raise and the blind bet lose. On the other hand, if the dealer gets beaten by the player, the raise will be matched. The blind bet and the raise are pushed by ties.

Ultimate Texas Hold'em Rules

1. Like the common variations of poker, Ultimate Texas Hold'em is played with a single ordinary 52-card deck.
2. Players are required to make an equal bet on both the blind and the ante, and they can also place an optional Trips bet.
3. The dealer places two cards face down to the player and the player is allowed to look at them.
4. The player will then decide to make or check a Play bet equal to four or three times the Ante.
5. Three community cards are then turned over by the dealer.
6. A player will be allowed to make a Play bet equal to twice their ante if they previously checked. On the other hand, if the player already made a Play bet, they will not be allowed to go further.
7. Two final community cards will then be turned over.
8. If the player previously checked two times, then they must decide make a Play bet equal to exactly their Ante, or fold, losing both their Ante and Blind bets. On the other hand, if the player already raised, they will not be allowed to place wagers any further.
9. The player and dealer will then work to come up with the best possible hand using any combination of from their own two cards and the five community cards.
10. At least a pair will be necessary for the dealer to open.
11. Take a look at the table below to see how the blind, ante and play bets are scored, depending on who wins, and whether the dealer opens:

Ultimate Texas Hold'em Rules for Scoring

WINNER DEALER OPENS BLIND ANTE PLAY
Player Yes Win Win Win
Player No Win Push Win
Dealer Yes Lose Lose Lose
Dealer No Lose Push Lose
Tie Yes or No Push Push Push

12. Ante and Play bets that win pay 1 to 1. Blind bets that win pay according to the pay table below.

Pay Table for Blind Bets

Player Hand Pays
Royal flush 500 to 1
Straight flush 50 to 1
Four of a kind 10 to 1
Full house 3 to 1
Flush 3 to 2
Straight 1 to 1
All other Push

13. The Trips bet's payout will depend on the poker value of the player's hand - regardless of the value of the dealer's hand. These are all according to one of the Trip bet pay tables illustrated below.

Ultimate Texas Hold'em Return Analysis

Each hand presents about 52 possible outcomes. Assume that a player is using optimal Ultimate Texas Hold'em Strategy. Look at the table below to see the each hand's probability and its contribution to the total return. A 4x raise is also known as a "large raise," a 2x raise as "medium," and 1x as "small."

RAISE DEALER
QUALIFY
PLAYER HAND WINNER PAYS COMBINATIONS PROB. RETURN
Large Yes Less than straight Player 5 3,671,050,165,880 0.13199 0.659933
Large Yes Straight Player 6 246,174,692,160 0.00885 0.053105
Large Yes Flush Player 6.5 241,047,929,080 0.00867 0.056332
Large Yes Full house Player 8 295,405,180,920 0.01062 0.084966
Large Yes Four of a kind Player 15 23,008,208,760 0.00083 0.012408
Large Yes Straight flush Player 55 1,818,135,760 0.00007 003595
Large Yes Royal flush Player 505 596,356,920 0.000021 0.010828
Large No Less than straight Player 4 1,556,797,035,840 0.05597 0.223888
Large No Straight Player 5 81,416,649,960 0.00293 0.014636
Large No Flush Player 5.5 50,874,988,680 0.00183 0.010060
Large No Full house Player 7 0 0.00000 0.000000
Large No Four of a kind Player 14 0 0.00000 0.000000
Large No Straight flush Player 54 229,686,840 0.00001 0.000446
Large No Royal flush Player 504 90,386,280 0.00000 0.001638
Large 0 Push 0 285,142,270,600 0.01025 0.000000
Large Yes Dealer -6 3,931,554,359,920 0.14135 -0.848116
Large No Dealer -5 102,655,952,400 0.00369 -0.018454
Medium Yes Less than straight Player 3 2,114,839,654,764 0.07604 0.228107
Medium Yes Straight Player 4 133,100,158,992 0.00479 0.019142
Medium Yes Flush Player 4.5 152,618,008,784 0.00549 0.024692
Medium Yes Full house Player 6 289,401,836,880 0.01041 0.062430
Medium Yes Four of a kind Player 13 18,537,793,620 0.00067 0.008664
Medium Yes Straight flush Player 53 2,704,129,504 0.00009 0.005153
Medium Yes Royal flush Player 503 112,333,500 0.00004 0.002031
Medium No Less than straight Player 2 1,083,763,469,592 0.03897 0.077930
Medium No Straight Player 3 45,053,788,356 0.00162 0.004860
Medium No Flush Player 3.5 38,820,798,396 0.00139 0.004885
Medium No Full house Player 5 0 0.00000 0.000000
Medium No Four of a kind Player 12 0 0.00000 0.000000
Medium No Straight flush Player 52 358,131,456 0.00001 0.000670
Medium No Royal flush Player 502 8,830,620 0.00000 0.000159
Medium Push 0 191,611,691,060 0.00688 0.000000
Medium Yes Dealer -4 1,841,155,221,088 0.06619 -0.264783
Medium No Dealer -3 7,978,353,108 0.00029 -0.000861
Small Yes Less than straight Player 2 1,375,033,295,072 0.04944 0.098874
Small Yes Straight Player 3 395,087,247,768 0.01421 0.042614
Small Yes Flush Player 3.5 190,959,227,136 0.00685 0.024030
Small Yes Full house Player 5 43,297,986,840 0.00156 0.007784
Small Yes Four of a kind Player 12 859,737,984 0.00003 0.000371
Small Yes Straight flush Player 52 1,962,591,576 0.00007 0.003669
Small Yes Royal flush Player 502 42,135,660 0.00000 0.000760
Small No Less than straight Player 1 720,579,458,748 0.02591 0.025907
Small No Straight Player 2 136,018,223,484 0.00489 0.009781
Small No Flush Player 2.5 40,911,000,804 0.00147 0.003677
Small No Full house Player 4 0 0.00000 0.000000
Small No Four of a kind Player 11 0 0.00000 0.000000
Small No Straight flush Player 51 269,696,304 0.00001 0.000495
Small No Royal flush Player 501 6,109,020 0.00000 0.000110
Small Push 0 418,339,128,088 0.01504 0.000000
Small Yes Dealer -3 2,700,150,685,692 0.09707 -0.291238
Small No Dealer -2 47,223,220,344 0.00169 -0.003396
Fold -2 5,335,144,079,760 0.19182 -0.383633
Total 27,813,810,024,000 1.00000 -0.021850

At the lower right cell, you can see a 2.185% house edge per ante bet. For instance, if you initially place a $1 wager on both the Ante and Blind, then expect an average of 2.185 cent in loss. However, if you want to compare Ultimate Texas Hold'em to other games, it would be more appropriate to look at the Element of Risk. By the end of the hand, the total average amount of the bet is 4.152252 times the ante bet. In this case, the element of risk would be 0.526% as illustrated in the calculation below:

2.185% / 4.152252 = 0.526%

Poker players who tend to bet largely should be careful when dealing with possible maximum payouts. If the ante bet is larger than 1/500 of the maximum payout, then the player will have insufficient funds on a royal flush. There will be a 0.308% increase on the house edge with ever 100 effective payout on a royal going down.

Return Table for Ultimate Texas Hold'em

BET TYPE AVERAGE WAGER AVERAGE PAYS AVERAGE WIN
Ante 1 -0.165757 -0.165757
Blind 1 -0.314685 -0.314685
Play 2.152252 0.213076 0.458593
Total 4.152252 -0.02185

How to Win Ultimate Texas Hold'em

Ultimate Texas Hold'em Large Raise

There's a particular strategy you can follow if you want to win Ultimate Texas Hold'em. You always make a large raise (4x), when you have an Ace. On the other hand, when you have a King, you only make a raise with 2, 3, and 4 when it is suited. With a Queen, you never make a raise with 2, 3, 4, and 5 and rarely with 6 and 7. With a Jack, you only make a raise with a 10 and sometimes with an 8 and a 9. Never ever make a large raise when you have lower number card combination.

Ultimate Texas Hold'em Medium Raise

You make a medium raise (2x) whenever you have a two-pair or even better. You can also make the 2x raise when there's a hidden pair - at least one card in your hole card that is hidden to the dealer. However, pocket deuces are exempted when you're making a medium raise with a hidden pair. You also make the 2x raise with four to a flush which includes a hidden 10 or better to that flush. 

Ultimate Texas Hold'em Small Raise

When there's a hidden pair or something better you make a small raise (1x), otherwise you should fold. 

Trips Bet Payout

There are also different possible payouts for trips bets. As previously mentioned, Ultimate Texas Hold'em was invented by Roger Snow of Shuffle Master. They have illustrated four possible pay tables for the Trips bet.

Ultimate Texas Hold'em Trips Bet Pay Table 1

PLAYER HAND COMBINATIONS PAYS PROBABILITY RETURN
Royal flush 4324 50 0.000032 0.001616
Straight flush 37260 40 0.000279 0.01114
Four of a kind 224848 30 0.001681 0.05042
Full house 3473184 9 0.025961 0.233649
Flush 4047644 7 0.030255 0.211785
Straight 6180020 4 0.046194 0.184775
Three of a kind 6461620 3 0.048299 0.144896
All other 113355660 -1 0.8473 -0.8473
Total 133784560 1 -0.009018

Ultimate Texas Hold'em Trips Bet Pay Table 2

PLAYER HAND COMBINATIONS PAYS PROBABILITY RETURN
Royal flush 4324 50 0.000032 0.001616
Straight flush 37260 40 0.000279 0.01114
Four of a kind 224848 30 0.001681 0.05042
Full house 3473184 8 0.025961 0.207688
Flush 4047644 6 0.030255 0.18153
Straight 6180020 5 0.046194 0.230969
Three of a kind 6461620 3 0.048299 0.144896
All other 113355660 -1 0.8473 -0.8473
Total 133784560 1 -0.01904

Ultimate Texas Hold'em Trips Bet Pay Table 3

PLAYER HAND COMBINATIONS PAYS PROBABILITY RETURN
Royal flush 4324 50 0.000032 0.001616
Straight flush 37260 40 0.000279 0.01114
Four of a kind 224848 30 0.001681 0.05042
Full house 3473184 8 0.025961 0.207688
Flush 4047644 7 0.030255 0.211785
Straight 6180020 4 0.046194 0.184775
Three of a kind 6461620 3 0.048299 0.144896
All other 113355660 -1 0.8473 -0.8473
Total 133784560 1 -0.034979

Ultimate Texas Hold'em Trips Bet Pay Table 4

PLAYER HAND COMBINATIONS PAYS PROBABILITY RETURN
Royal flush 4324 50 0.000032 0.001616
Straight flush 37260 40 0.000279 0.01114
Four of a kind 224848 20 0.001681 0.033613
Full house 3473184 7 0.025961 0.181727
Flush 4047644 6 0.030255 0.18153
Straight 6180020 5 0.046194 0.230969
Three of a kind 6461620 3 0.048299 0.144896
All other 113355660 -1 0.8473 -0.8473
Total 133784560 1 -0.061808

Ultimate Texas Hold'em Small Progressive

A lot of tables in Las Vegas casinos offer progressive side bets worth $1. The highest win involves a royal flush with at least one card in a hole. If there's another player who receives a hidden royal, there will be a $100 bonus. Look at the table below to see the possible returns from fixed wins. It illustrates that there is a 45.68% return before envy bonuses and jackpots.

EVENT PAYS ENVY COMBINATIONS PROBABILITY RETURN
Hidden royal flush Jackpot $100 86,480 0.000031 ?
Community royal flush $1000 $0 4,324 0.000002 0.001539
Straight flush $250 $0 782,460 0.000279 0.069627
Four of a kind $75 $0 4,721,808 0.001681 0.126050
Full house $10 $0 72,936,864 0.025961 0.259610
All other $0 $0 2,730,943,824 0.972047 0.000000
Total 2,809,475,760 1.000000 0.456827 + ?

There is a 3.08% return per $1000 in a jackpot. For the envy bonus, the return is 0.308% for every additional player at the table. So in the meter, every additional player at the table is worth $100.

Ultimate Texas Hold'em Break Even Jackpots

In the table below, you will see what it takes for the small progressive to give exactly a 100% return.

OTHER PLAYERS JACKPOT
5 $17,146.07
4 $17,246.07
3 $17,346.07
2 $17,446.07
1 $17,546.07
0 $17,646.07

Ultimate Texas Hold'em Big Progressive

Given the fact that in order to win a Big Progressive, the player must flop, this type of jackpot tends to be bigger. In this scenario, the player is not allowed to use the River and Turn cards to win the jackpot. The Big Progressive does not feature an Envy Bonus.

Big Progressive Jackpot ($100,000)

EVENT PAYS PERMUTATIONS PROBABILITY RETURN
Player flops royal 100% of jackpot 1037760 0.000002 ?
Royal partially on board 5% of jackpot 19717440 0.000029 ?
Royal entirely on board 3000 1037760 0.000002 0.004617
Straight flush 250 187790400 0.000279 0.069627
Four of a kind 100 1133233920 0.001681 0.168067
Full house 10 17504847360 0.025961 0.25961
All other 0 655426517760 0.972047 0
Total 674274182400 1 0.502077

At any given time, there is a 50.19% return with an additional  3.00% for every $10,000 in the meter. For the house edge to exactly be at zero, the meter should be $165,959.74.

So there you have it - our ultimate guide to the Ultimate Texas Hold'em poker! Remember to have this page bookmarked so the next time you play the game, you will have an effective strategy in winning the Ultimate Texas Hold'em poker.


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