Ultimate Texas Hold’em (UTH) is a casino table game where you compare Texas Hold’em hands with the dealer, one on one. You don’t play against the other players.
Preflop is a choice between 4x and Check - never 3x. A chart decides which hands bet 4x; on the flop you bet 2x or check, and on the river you bet 1x or fold.
How a hand runs, and when to make the Play bet
First you put equal amounts on the Ante and the Blind (both required). Trips is an optional side bet.
You make the Play bet once per hand. The earlier you make it, the bigger it can be.
| When | Play bet | If you don’t bet |
|---|---|---|
| Preflop (your two cards only) | 4 or 3 times the ante | Check |
| Flop (three board cards) | 2 times the ante | Check |
| River (five board cards) | 1 times the ante | Fold (you lose the ante and blind) |
The dealer qualifies only with a pair or better in seven cards. If the dealer doesn’t qualify, the hand is still played out; only the ante changes (it is returned).
The full rules are in the rules guide, “Ultimate Texas Hold’em”.
4x or check preflop
If you play, bet 4x; if not, check. Even where you can choose 4x or 3x, don’t use 3x. When a hand is worth a Play bet at all, a bigger bet gives a better average result, so 3x is never better than 4x.
Hands to bet 4x (the published optimal chart):
| Hand | Always 4x | 4x if suited |
|---|---|---|
| Pairs | 33 or better (check 22) | - |
| Ace | A2 to AK, all | - |
| King | K5 to KQ | K2 to K4 |
| Queen | Q8 to QJ | Q6, Q7 |
| Jack | JT | J8, J9 |
Check every other hand.
Example. K4 offsuit: check. K4 suited: 4x. Q7 offsuit: check.
Counting from the chart, 500 of the 1,326 possible starting hands (about 38%) bet 4x.
2x or check on the flop
The simple strategy bets 2x with any of:
- Two pair or better
- A hidden pair (a pair that uses one of your hole cards), except when your hole cards are 22
- Four cards of one suit, with a ten or higher of that suit in your hand
Check otherwise. A pair on the board alone (a flop of 8-8-3, for example) does not use your cards, so it is not a hidden pair.
Example. You hold K♥ 9♥ and the flop is 9♣ 5♦ 2♠. Your 9 makes a pair.
| Choice | EV (per ante) |
|---|---|
| 2x | +1.34 |
| Check | +0.77 |
EV (expected value) is the average win or loss per hand if you keep playing from here. For this hand, 2x is higher.
Now and then, the simple strategy differs from optimal play.
1x or fold on the river
The simple strategy bets 1x with either of these and folds otherwise:
- A hidden pair or better
- Fewer than 21 dealer outs
Dealer outs are the cards that would beat you if the dealer held one. Of the 45 unseen cards, count those that combine with the five board cards to beat you. Don’t count cards that only tie, or losses that need both dealer cards together.
Example. You hold 6♠ 9♦ and the board is K♣ 7♠ 2♠ A♠ T♣. You have ace high.
| Dealer card | Count |
|---|---|
| K, 7, 2, A, T (pairs the board) | 15 |
| Q and J (a higher kicker) | 8 |
| Total | 23 |
That is 21 or more, so fold. The EV of 1x is −2.136; folding is −2 (you lose the ante and blind). Folding loses less.
House edge
| How you play | House edge (per ante) |
|---|---|
| Optimal play | 2.19% |
| Simple strategy | 2.43% |
Neither way brings the house edge to 0. Strategy only makes the loss smaller.
Per total amount bet (element of risk), optimal play comes to 0.53%. It looks lower than the per-ante figure because the Play bet is large.
What to look at on the table
Blind is paid by your hand, only when you win. Less than a straight pushes.
| Hand | Pays |
|---|---|
| Royal flush | 500 |
| Straight flush | 50 |
| Four of a kind | 10 |
| Full house | 3 |
| Flush | 3 to 2 |
| Straight | 1 |
| Anything else | Push |
Trips is an optional side bet, paid on your own seven-card hand only, and it stays even if you fold. Pay tables differ by casino.
| Hand | Table 1 | Table 2 | Table 3 | Table 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Royal flush | 50 | 50 | 50 | 50 |
| Straight flush | 40 | 40 | 40 | 40 |
| Four of a kind | 30 | 30 | 30 | 20 |
| Full house | 9 | 8 | 8 | 7 |
| Flush | 7 | 6 | 7 | 6 |
| Straight | 4 | 5 | 4 | 5 |
| Three of a kind | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| House edge | 0.90% | 1.90% | 3.50% | 6.18% |
Look at the full house, flush and straight rows. Whether or not you bet Trips, the 4x, 2x and 1x decisions stay the same.
Practice in the app
In Casino Edge’s Table games, Ultimate Texas Hold’em shows a verdict and a comparison of the choices after each preflop, flop and river decision while you play at the table. “UTH decisions” in Training lets you practice just the decisions.