Oasis Poker Caribbean Stud is very popular among gamblers because it combines strategic play with a great jackpot bonus. However, this game can be a little bit repetitive because the strategy is pretty straightforward. That’s where Oasis Poker comes in. The variation on the theme adds a discard round to the mix, complicating matters while also giving players a better chance of winning with each hand.
At the beginning of each hand, the player must make an ante bet. They also have the option of making a bonus bet, a side wager we’ll talk about more below. The player and dealer are then each dealt five cards. The player may examine their own cards, but only one of the dealer’s cards is face up, while the rest are face down. The main difference between Oasis Poker and Caribbean Stud comes at this point. The player now has the option to discard any number of cards and have them replaced by new cards in the deck in an attempt to improve their hand. However, the player must pay for this switch, with the cost varying depending on how many cards they wish to exchange. Of course, the player may also choose not to make an exchange at all. The costs of switching are listed down below:
• One Card: Equal to the Ante Bet
• Two Cards: 2x Ante Bet
• Three Cards: 3x Ante Bet
• Four Cards: 2x Ante Bet
• Five Cards: Equal to the Ante Bet
After the player exchanges cards, they must then decide to raise or fold. If the player folds, they forfeit their ante bet and the hand ends immediately. If they raise, they must make a raise bet of twice the size of the ante bet. Once the player has raised, the dealer’s hand will be revealed. In order to make a qualifying hand, the dealer must have at least ace-king high. If the dealer fails to qualify, then the player wins even money on their ante bet, and the raise bet pushes. If the dealer qualifies, the two hands are compared. If the dealer has the better hand, then all player bets lose. On a tie, all bets push. If the player wins, then they win even money on their ante bet, and win money on the raise bet based on the strength of their hand. Pay tables for this bet can vary, but a typical one looks like this:
• Royal Flush: 100-1
• Straight Flush: 50-1
• Four of a King: 20-1
• Full House: 7-1
• Flush: 5-1
• Straight: 4-1
• Three of a Kind: 3-1
• Two Pair: 2-1
• One Pair or Less: 1-1
Many versions of this game also offer a jackpot progressive side bet that is based solely on the strength of the player’s hand, and usually only the initial five cards, before the player makes any switches. This bet also has various pay tables at different casinos, but one common pay table offers the following odds:
• Royal Flush: 100% of Progressive Jackpot
• Straight Flush: 10% of Progressive Jackpot
• Four of a Kind: $100
• Full House: $75
• Flush: $50
Oasis Poker is a great game for those who want to play a slightly more complicated version of Caribbean Stud. The same progressive jackpot is available, and the basic flow of the game is identical. But the addition of a discard round makes this game take on a bit of a video poker machine feel.