How to Play Teen Patti: Rules and Strategies

For those unfamiliar, Teen Patti may seem like a chaotic, hard to understand game. However, the truth is that it is a bright, colourful, fun game that is relatively easy to play, but perhaps more difficult to master!

Here we examine the Teen Patti rules, its cultural significance and how Teen Patti Live may have even improved upon its offline predecessor.

What is Teen Patti?

Teen Patti is an incredibly popular card game, most commonly played in India and Indian communities around the world. The game itself is thought to have its origins in Europe, as it strikes a strong resemblance to the British game “Three Card Brag”.

Although there is no confirmed record of when Teen Patti came to prominence in India, it is assumed that Three Card Brag was introduced by the British when the first landed in the country in the early 17th century.

Teen Patti is also referred to as “Indian Poker”, as traditional poker has had a clear influence on the Indian variant. Teen Patti rules likely would have evolved from both Poker and Three Card over the years, decades and centuries that have followed and is now recognised as a stand-alone game.

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The Cultural Significance of Teen Patti

In modern day India, Teen Patti is played amongst friends and families and all generations. This is especially true during religious festivals such as Diwali, when Teen Patti is believed to have great importance, not only in bringing generations together, but also as a way to teach younger generations about religion. During Diwali, Shiva is even believed bless those who gamble on Teen Patti!

A month before the Hindu festival of Janmashtami, people also celebrate by playing Teen Patti – although for slightly different reasons. Those who celebrate Janmashtami, do so in tribute of Lord Krishna’s birthday. It is believed that Krishna rid India of taboos such as gambling and alcohol, except for during certain periods in the calendar. As a tribute to Krishna, people will gamble and play Teen Patti throughout the month prior to his birthday. Once the festival of Janmashtami begins, the gambling will stop, and “normal” society resume.

How To Play Teen Patti

One of the reasons for Teen Patti’s evergreen popularity is how simple it is to play. In order to play Teen Patti, you need just three to six players and a standard 52-card deck. You are also going to need to bring a serious amount of bluster; an inherent talent for bluffing is almost a pre-requisite!

Of course, bluffing is a commonly used strategy in poker as well as in Teen Patti, and the two games share other similarities as well. Players have a buy-in, referred to as an ante, and the pot can be raised as the game continues. Of course, those who raise the stakes may be bluffing, but there is always a chance that they truly have a strong hand, so it is important to be cautious when calling bets!

Teen Patti Rules

Teen Patti is not a terribly difficult game to understand. In fact, it is probably one of the easier card games to comprehend. Of course, you can try to jump straight in on the action and learn the game “on the job”. However, we would suggest that there are some Teen Patti rules that you should have at least a basic grasp of before you sit down to play.

The Deal

The play begins by deciding who will be the dealer. Each player will draw a card from the deck and the player with the highest ranked card will be the dealer. Players will post their ante and the dealer will deal. Cards are dealt clockwise from the dealer, and each player will receive three cards. All three cards are dealt face down.

Hand Rankings

When it comes to the ranking of the different hands, the influence of poker on Teen Patti becomes apparent – even if the game is played with just three cards! The hand rankings are below, from strongest to weakest:

• Trio (Three of a Kind)
• Pure Sequence (Straight Flush)
• Sequence (Straight)
• Colour (Flush)
• Double (Pair)
• No Pair (High Card)

The Bets

Once the antes have been posted and the cards have been dealt, the action begins! Players have a choice to either play blind (without seeing their cards) or seen (seeing their cards). If a player decides to play blind, they retain the option to play seen later in the game. Should you wish to see your own cards before betting you should be aware that there is a cost! Playing seen means that you must bet a minimum of twice the minimum stake, whereas blind players only need to bet the minimum.

Side-Shows

The side show adds some spice to the game! This is when one seen player can challenge another to secretly show each other their cards. Once seen, the player with the worse hand will be forced to leave the game. The challenged player can accept or reject the duel. At this stage the challenged player must carefully consider whether they think their competitor is bluffing to avoid elimination.

Final Showdown

Through a series of sideshows and folds, the number of players will eventually be whittled down to two – and this is when the final showdown can occur. At this stage one of the final two players can demand that the showdown occur.

If the opponent is playing blind, the player will have to bet four times the current bet. Conversely, if both players are playing seen then the bet amount is double. His opponent then has one of two options; he can call or fold. If he decides to call, then the player with the best hand wins the entire pot.

Play Teen Patti Live at Casino.com

Teen Patti Live is available in the Casino.com Live Casino lobby, and it is a faithful adoption of the traditional Indian game. Players can choose to play seen or blind, as is the case in the offline version of the game. However, as is to be expected by a game developed by PlayTech, there are some very interesting additions to the online version that you will not see anywhere else! The main difference is the side bets that are available in the online game: Pair Plus and Mega Bonus.

Teen Patti Live: Pair Plus Bet Pay-Out

In the Pair Plus side bet, the player can win if they hold a pair, flush, straight, straight flush or three of a kind. What is interesting in this side bet is that it renders the dealer’s hand irrelevant as it depends solely on the hand the player is dealt.

Teen Patti Live: Mega Bonus Pay-Out

The Mega Bonus is the second side bet available. Here, the player’s cards and the dealer’s cards are combined to produce the best possible five card hand. It is important to note at this point the Mega Bonus bet has a lower RTP (92.28%) than both the Pair Plus (95.8%) and regular Ante bets (97.74%). However, this side-bet does have a potential maximum win of 2000:1!

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