Ultimate Texas Holdem
If you are looking for a fun poker game to play against the house, Ultimate Texas Holdem is an excellent choice. Just like world series poker, you get two hole cards and five community cards with a flop, a turn, and a river.
Unlike no-limit Holdem, you only have to beat the dealer, and the game rewards you for better ranking hands. Plus, you only get a couple of key opportunities to bet and raise.
This Ultimate Texas Holdem guide covers everything you need to know to start playing like a pro. Learn the rules, hand rankings, how to play, strategy, odds, and much more!
Ultimate Texas Holdem Rules
Ultimate Texas Holdem rules are simple. The game utilizes a standard 52 card deck of playing cards, and all cards hold their traditional poker values, so 2s are the lowest rank and Aces are the highest. A single deck is used and reshuffled upon the completion of each hand, rather than a multiple deck shoe.
The game’s objective is to beat the dealer by combining two hole cards with five community cards to form the highest-ranking five-card poker hand. For readers who haven’t found a flush or tallied two pairs in a long while, take a look below for the traditional poker hand hierarchy.
Ultimate Texas Holdem Hand Rankings
The infographic below illustrates the Ultimate Texas Holdem hand rankings from highest to lowest and examples of winning card combinations. Download and save this chart on your cell phone or computer to access the ranking information whenever you need it.
Download the Ultimate Texas Holdem Poker Hands Chart
Ultimate Texas Holdem Table Layout
Ultimate Texas Holdem table layouts are similar at every casino, but it is essential to know where things go. Take a look at the following table chart to understand the layout for this type of game entirely:
How to Play Ultimate Texas Holdem
This game variation preserves the essential structure of Texas Holdem, where it challenges players to combine two “hole” cards with five “community” cards to create the best possible five-card poker hand. However, the way the cards come out and the betting structure are a bit different.
Playing Ultimate Texas Holdem | Step by Step Guide
How much you raise in a hand depends on when you choose to do it. Let’s look at a hand’s progression from start to finish depending on your decisions along the way.
Initial Bets
The game begins when players up the mandatory Ante and Blind bets. At this time, you may also put up an optional wager for the Trips side bet. A stake here can get you a payout on your final five-card hand, even if you lose or fold. There is a paytable specifically for this bet that awards you more for better hands.Pocket Cards & First Round of Betting
When all bets are on the table, the dealer will deal two cards face down to each player and two cards face down to themselves. You can take a peek at your hand, of course, but no sharing of hole card information between players will be permitted.
Based on your two hole cards, you can check to see the flop, or you can make a play bet and raise 3x-4x your ante to see all five community cards.The Flop & Second Round of Bets
After primary player decisions, the dealer reveals the flop. If you chose to check in the first round, you now have three community cards to help you decide whether or not to stake more on the hand.
This time around, you can only raise 2x your ante. If you make the play bet at this level, you’ll see the end of the round with no more decisions. Alternately you can check to see the final two community cards at no additional cost.The Turn/River & Final Round of Betting
After the second round of player decisions, the dealer will flip over the turn and river together and complete the five community cards. Now you have all the information for the hand at your disposal.
Now, to put your hand against the dealer’s and see their cards, you must raise 1x your original ante. If you think you have a losing hand, you can fold and not spend the extra money.Cards Revealed and Winners
After everyone raises or folds, the dealer will reveal their hole cards. Their hand must qualify with at least a pair for you to win or lose on all bets. Any outcome against a non-qualifying hand returns your ante as a push.
Dealer Qualification Hands
Dealer qualification is essential because when the dealer doesn’t showdown, only specific bets will be paid out – so when you have a good hand, you’re hoping to see the dealer qualify. Conversely, when you hold a losing hand, you’ll be wanting to see the dealer produce a non-qualifying hand.
When the dealer qualifies –and you beat the dealer– you’ll win even money on the Ante and Play bets, and you’ll win the paytable result on the Blind. When the dealer doesn’t qualify, and you win, you’ll win even money on the Play bet, the Ante bet is returned as a push, and the Blind wager is paid as per the paytable.
Ultimate Texas Holdem Payouts
The odds on Ultimate Texas Holdem are among the best at the casino. The trips side bet and hand strength payout bonuses are key to the games ~98% return to player (RTP) percentage.
Payouts: Blind and Trips Side Bets
The ante and play bets in UTH pay out 1:1 if your hand beats the dealer and they have at least a pair. The real money comes from the massive prizes on the trips and blinds paytables. Check out the charts below to see just how much you stand to win with a strong hand.
Blind Bet Payouts
The Blind bet paytable is where the true excitement of Ultimate Texas Hold’em is born. That’s because you get rewarded for making a stronger 5-card hand. The standard payouts are:
| Hand | Payout |
|---|---|
| Royal Flush | 500 to 1 |
| Straight Flush | 50 to 1 |
| Four of a Kind | 10 to 1 |
| Full House | 3 to 1 |
| Flush | 1 to 1 |
| Straight | 3 to 2 |
| All Other Hands | Even Money |
Trips Side Bet
The trips side bet also has a paytable, and as the name suggests, you need three of a kind to earn a payout. Better still, you get the payout even if you lose or fold. These are the typical payouts:
| Hand | Payout |
|---|---|
| Royal Flush | 50 to 1 |
| Straight Flush | 40 to 1 |
| Four of a Kind | 30 to 1 |
| Full House | 3 to 1 |
| Flush | 1 to 1 |
| Straight | 3 to 2 |
| Three of a Kind | 3 to 1 |
| All Other Hands | Even Money |
Ultimate Texas Holdem Strategy
While there is no bluffing or weighing the strength of the dealer’s hand, there is enough strategy in Ultimate Texas Holdem to make it exciting and challenging.
Here are some Ultimate Texas Holdem strategies that you can use to start winning big:
4x Play Bet
You should always make the maximum 4x Play bet raise when holding the following two-card starting hands:
- Any pair
- An Ace with any other card (A 2 through A K); suited or unsuited
- K 5 through K Q; suited or unsuited
- K 2 through K 4; suited only
- Q 8 through Q J; suited or unsuited
- Q 6 and Q 7; suited only
- J 10; suited or unsuited
- J 8 and J9; suited only
2x Play Bet
After seeing the flop, you should always make the 2x Play bet raise when holding the following five-card poker hands:
- Two pairs or better
- Any pocket pair except for 2 2
- Any one pair hand which uses one hole card combined with one community card
- Any four cards to a flush
Ultimate Texas Holdem Strategy Chart
Below we included a 4x Play Bet Strategy Chart with a detail of when to raise and fold.
Live Ultimate Texas Hold’em vs. Regular Texas Hold’em
Players must understand the difference between the traditional Texas Hold’em Poker and the Ultimate Texas Hold’em version. Below we provide a few comparisons so you can see the difference.
Ultimate Texas Hold’em
- Single-player game with RNG.
- No bluffing is required since you play against the dealer.
- Adding a strategy is challenging but doable.
- You can play Ultimate Texas Hold’em with side bets for more win potential.
- This version has a house edge of around 2.9% since it is considered a casino game.
Traditional Texas Hold’em
- There is no house edge since you play against other poker players.
- Side bets are not included.
- Players tend to bluff while competing against others.
- There is no opportunity to earn a bonus payout.
- Strategy is more difficult because every competitor will act differently to play a single hand.
Best Places to Play Ultimate Texas Holdem Online
Several online casinos offer Ultimate Texas Hold’em or a close variation of the game.
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| 1 |
Betway Casino |
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Hellspin |
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Try Ultimate Texas Holdem Online for Free
Play Ultimate Texas Holdem for free and practice before gambling for real money. Do you have what it takes to win?
Live Dealer Ultimate Texas Holdem
If you prefer playing with real cards and interacting with a human dealer and other players, then live dealer Ultimate Texas Hold’em is the perfect fit. Think of it as a best of both worlds solution where you get to play against the house but remove the RNG from the equation.
Can You Play Ultimate Texas Holdem Games in the USA
The international sites above feature the branded “Ultimate Texas Hold’em.” Still, plenty of US online casinos have different names for table poker versions of Texas Hold’em. Try any of the following titles for nearly the same rules and betting structure.
The Ultimate Experience in Texas Holdem
Ultimate Texas Holdem is an excellent bet for fast, fun, and ripe returns at a real money online casino. Try it, and you are sure to be hooked. And bookmark this page for your guide to the ultimate experience!
The game is exciting, entertaining, and an interactive gambling experience, where players can win based on their card sense and ability to assess situations, along with a bit of luck.
Ultimate Texas Holdem FAQ
Below are some of the frequently asked questions our readers have about Ultimate Texas Holdem.
What is Ultimate Texas Holdem?
Ultimate Texas Holdem is a Texas Holdem variant where players have to play against the dealer.
How to play Ultimate Texas Holdem?
To play Ultimate Texas Holdem you should follow this step-by-step guide.
How to win at Ultimate Texas Holdem?
To win at Texas Holdem you need to beat the dealer’s hand.
What is the difference between Texas Holdem and Ultimate Texas Holdem?
In Ultimate Texas Holdem players play exclusively against the dealer. This variant also offers side payouts and has a slightly different betting structure than regular Texas Holdem.
Is UltimateTexas Holdem beatable?
Yes, UltimateTexas Holdem is beatable. You can use some basic strategy to improve your chances of having a winning session by lowering the house edge as much as possible.
Is Ultimate Texas Holdem Available Online?
Yes, Ultimate Texas Holdem is available online. You can play it at our recommended online casinos.
Where can you Play Ultimate Texas Holdem?
You can play Ultimate Texas holdem at top-rated online casinos. You’ll be able to the find the game available in fully digital format, and more recently, as a live dealer game.
