As mentioned earlier, the rule is that you are not supposed to show your cards to any other players. Some people, however, are sloppy card handlers and it is sometimes easy to get glimpses of other cards. How helpful is this? Sorry to say, but most of the time it is not very worthwhile, and sometimes can even lead you into making incorrect strategy decisions.

 

This happens because, although you know the playing strategy, you may not know the statistical basis for it. For instance, you hold a four card straight flush and see one of the cards you need in another player’s hand. As a result, you decide to pull your second bet. This is a wrong decision because your hand still has a positive expectation of winning. If you don’t make the straight flush, you still have a good chance of getting a flush.

 

On the other hand, if you are holding a four card outside straight and see one of the cards you need, the situation is so marginal that how you play it depends on the strength of your straight. If the straight contains a ten or higher, let it ride; if it doesn’t, pull the bet. This is because you also have a chance of hitting a high pair if your straight contains one or more high cards.

 

A hundred card combinations could be enumerated along with the practical effect of seeing additional cards, but the list would be almost impossible to memorize. The bottom line is that, unless you do memorize such a list, your judgment call is as likely to be wrong as it is to be right. In the long run, you are better off to just ignore the other player’s cards.

 

conclusion

 

Let It Ride has two interesting characteristics that sets it apart from other table games. The first is that the players have to put up three equal wagers before the first card is dealt. This intimidates many beginning players until they get used to the idea. Of course, they can always get back two of those three bets if their hand doesn’t develop well.

 

The second is that the dealer is not an adversary player, but only distributes the cards and makes the payoffs. This seems to have a positive effect on the table atmosphere. Furthermore, playing against a fixed payout schedule rather than an unknown quantity (the dealer’s hand) seems to reduce overall tensions. Consequently, the game is usually pretty relaxed and more sociable than most other table games. Even with a house edge of 3.5%, I find the game restful and rather enjoyable. Of course, I never make the bonus bet.