Live Casino Hold’em
GAME FEATURES
From the leader in live casino, Casino Hold’em is a faster, simpler version of Texas Hold’em played against live dealers in a high-grade experience typical of Evolution Gaming. Learn the hand rankings, place your bets and we’ll see you at the river card!
Why play Live Casino Hold’em?
✔ Premium live casino game
✔ Payouts up to 100 to 1
✔ 50p minimum bet
What we think about Casino Hold’em
“If you don’t have time for multiplayer Texas Hold’em, this is a great alternative with all the same drama of flop, turn and river.”
Is Casino Hold’em the right game for you?
Casino Hold’em is a relatively new card game that takes its rules from the iconic Texas Hold’em made famous by the World Poker Tour and World Series of Poker in the late 2000s. It’s fast, fun, easy to learn and you can play it for low stakes.
This particular game - Casino Hold’em by Evolution Gaming - is a live dealer version with super high quality live streams and staff. If you’re going to play live Casino Hold’em online, Evolution Gaming are a great choice, as they are in my view still the best provider of UK live casino software.
Live dealer games can be a bit slower than traditional computer-powered table games, but each hand lasts only about 40 seconds, so it’s a fairly fast-paced table game.
There are 2 moments in a hand of live Casino Hold’em where you’ll face a decision, the start of the hand where you decide to place an Ante bet and any side bets, and once you’ve seen the flop, when you choose to Call or Fold.
Like Blackjack, there’s a small element of strategy in deciding whether to Call or Fold in live Casino Hold’em online, but the game is much less well studied than Blackjack, so there is no settled strategy, and in reality, the outcomes are still almost entirely based on luck.
Features
Live dealer environment
Like most of Evolution’s live casino tables, their live Casino Hold’em game has an upmarket casino vibe, a conveyor belt of pro dealers who prioritise efficiency over small talk, a couple of camera views and a chat box so you can enjoy the idle ramblings of your table mates.
Hold’em rules
Hold’em is a game where players make the best 5 card poker hand from their 2 initial cards and the 5 community cards in the middle of the table. In Evolution Gaming’s Casino Hold’em, you get to see your hand and the flop – the first 3 community cards – before choosing whether to Call or Fold.
If the dealer qualifies i.e. makes at least pair of 4s, and you win, you get paid out according to the paytable, where odds go right up to 10 to 1 for 4 of a Kind and 100 to 1 for a Royal Flush.
Aces or Better Bonus
Most live card games in OJO’s online casino have side bets these days, mostly to add a bit extra fun on the side, and usually some bigger payout odds than are available on your main bet. In this Casino Hold’em Bonus side bet, you make a 5 card poker hand from your 2 cards and the 3 flop cards.
Payouts in live dealer Casino Hold’em start at 7 to 1 for a pair of Aces and go up to 100 to 1. Bear in mind that as well as placing a Bonus bet, you have to place an Ante bet and also Call, if you want to be eligible to win.
Other games like this
Casino Hold’em by Playtech
Playtech’s hold’em game uses identical rules and payouts for the Ante bet, so why play it instead? It is a bit less glitzy than Evolution’s version, but it has a whopping 99% RTP and it also has the Casino Razz side bet, which I’ve always liked. Your goal is to make the worst possible 5 card hand using your 2 cards and the flop. Payouts range from 2 to 1 for Jack-high up to 200 to 1 for a suited wheel (Ace-to-5).
Texas Hold'em Bonus Poker
There are 8 different live poker and video poker games in the Evolution Gaming lobby at PlayOJO, and if you want something closely related to Casino Hold’em, try Texas Hold’em. Same game, but there are 3 betting rounds – pre flop, flop and turn – and the Ante bets are paid out at 1 to 1 odds. If you want bigger odds, there’s a Bonus bet with odds of up to 1000 to 1.
My verdict
If you want bells, whistles, bonus rounds and small talk, go for Crazy Pachinko or Lightning Dice. Casino Hold’em by Evolution is pure, unbridled, no-frills live casino action for card game enthusiasts. It’s a game where all the focus is on the flop, turn and river, just as it should be.
If you'd like to play Live Casino Hold’em online, or explore a vast selection of live casino games, PlayOJO is a great place to start. You get money back on every hand of Casino Hold’em with OJOplus, and you’ll also get a casino welcome package with no wagering requirements when you make your first deposit (terms apply).
FAQs
Can I play Live Casino Hold’em for free?
Because all Casino Hold’em online games are live dealer games, rather than real money tables against the computer, there are no Casino Hold’em demo versions at PlayOJO. That said, Casino Hold’em has a relatively low 50p minimum bet, though don’t forget you’ll need another £1 if you want to Call and see the showdown.
How do you play Casino Hold’em?
Despite its use of community cards and poker hand rankings, Casino Hold’em is a fairly simple card game with just 1 decision. Once you’ve placed your bet, received your 2 cards and seen the first 3 community cards, you must decide whether to Call or Fold.
Calling costs twice your Ante, and if you Call, the dealer will then deal the turn card and river card, and turn over their own 2 card starting hand. If your best 5 card hand is better than the dealer’s, you win! For specific rules including info on the ‘dealer qualify’ rule and the payout odds, see the Casino Hold’em by Evolution game rules.
What’s the best Casino Hold’em strategy?
There’s no official strategy for Casino Hold’em, so it’s down to the player to decide if their hand has enough potential to make a good hand. In general, most players look to Call if they have any pair, any draw or 2 high cards, and fold if they don’t. Casino Hold’em is a game of luck, so the decision to call or fold is much less significant than the randomness of the outcome. Beyond Call or Fold, the best strategy is always to play safely, whether that’s the amout of time or money you spend.
What is the house edge in Casino Hold’em?
When I last played Evolution’s tables, the Live Casino Hold’em RTP was 97.84% for the Ante bet and 93.74% for the Bonus bet. Bear in mind that those are optimal theoretical returns over a very long time period, and don’t have any impact in the short term. Luck is the only factor in any single hand of Casino Hold’em online.
