Let It Ride has become popular partly because it’s easy to understand and start playing quickly. In some ways, the game is even simpler than blackjack. You’ve likely witnessed blackjack players staring at their strategy grid, trying to keep the combinations straight, knowing when to hit and when to stand, when to double and when to split.

1. Let It Ride Card Game Strategy
2. Let It Ride Strategy Card Games

As we touched on in our Let It Ride strategy section, knowing which hands to let ride is crucial. With only two community cards to help you make a strong five-card hand, you don’t have any room to maneuver. If you make the correct calls and stick to basic strategy, you can reduce the house edge to just 3.51%. Get Started with a Generous Bonus.

• Four Card Poker Introduction. Four Poker is a new poker variation invented by Roger Snow and marketed by Shufflemaster. The game is similar to Three Card Poker but as the title suggests, four cards are used instead of three.
• Let it Ride Poker Strategy. The best Let It Ride Strategy is the following: After your first 3 cards have been dealt, you should only Let It Ride (stay in the hand) if you have: Any paying hand, so a Pair of 10’s or better. Any 3 cards that make up a Royal Flush. Three suited cards in a row except for 2-3-4 or A-2-3.

Let It Ride poker strategy is far easier to remember.

If you can commit a few card combinations to memory, you’ll be able to enjoy playing the game knowing that you’re making the right decisions. Below, we’ll explain basic Let Em Ride poker strategy and reveal one of our favorite online casinos at which to play the game.

Basic Let It Ride Poker Optimal Strategy

We’ll break down the proper let it ride strategy based on each betting round. Each hand is comprised of two bets after the ante. Your decision to move forward with Bet #1 will depend on whether you have 1 of 3 different hands. Because a pair of tens pays 1:1, you should definitely bet if you have tens or higher, this is the minimum that gets you paid and is a ‘no brainer’. You should also bet if you’re holding a 3-card Royal Flush or a 3-card Straight Flush.

On the first round you should bet (raise) with the following.

Let It Ride Card Game Strategy

• 10’s or better pays 1:1 so always raise when you have this
• Raise if you get 3 cards of the royal flush
• Raise if you have 3 cards of a straight flush

For Bet #2, you’ll need to remember six card combinations.

Aside from a pair of tens or better, you should bet on a 4-card flush (Royal, Straight, or otherwise), 4 high cards, or a 4-card open straight. By “open,” we mean the 4 cards are in sequence (for example, 6, 7, 8, and 9).

• Bet 10’s or better
• Bet 4-card flushes (including straight flushes obviously)
• Bet 4 high cards 10 or better
• Bet 4 card open ended straights

If you play according to this basic Let it Ride strategy, you’ll lower the house edge to 3.5%. That said, a lot of players are seduced into making the side bet offered on your first three cards, aka the let it ride 3 card bonus bet. Not all casinos offer it, which is strange because the edge is astronomical. It can spiral up to 36.52%!

Our advice? Never take the side bet on your first three cards. (this bet is different than the $1 jackpot bonus bet offered, the side bet is for your first three cards only and is not player friendly, the jackpot can be depending on it’s size.) Part of the thrill of playing let it ride is the possibility of hitting the jackpot, and the house edge on the jackpot depends on how big of a jackpot is offered.

Putting Let It Ride Strategy To The Test

We’ve played at a number of online casinos, including many of the most popular. Our favorite place to play Let It Ride is Bovada Casino.

The Bovada Let it ride game offers clear, crisp graphics, which have a huge influence on the playing experience. They offer attractive odds and their payout tables are tops online. We suggest that you visit Bovada Casino, register your account, and claim your free 10% deposit bonus. Take a few minutes to put Let It Ride strategy to the test.

Let it Ride Poker Strategy Articles

We’ve gone more in depth with our Let em ride strategy with a handful of different articles including a look at the official rules of let it ride, a list of the most common payout tables, a look at the let it ride poker odds, how the bets work in let it ride and a few more let it ride tips.

Additionally, you can practice let it ride for free at one of our many no download flash let it ride games or get signed up with the Bovada casino and you have the option of downloading a let it ride game or just playing through their flash, instant play casino that you can play in your browser, from a Macintosh or PC without downloading a casino software to your system.

It’s funny…

The more casino games you play, the more similarities or overlap you can spot between them.

That’s certainly the case here with let it ride. We see elements of Caribbean stud, 3-card poker, and casino hold-em.

Or maybe those games have elements of let it ride?

Who knows? The point is that there are similarities. And chances are that if you like one of those games or think that you would, you’ll probably like let it ride, too.

Our game guide will help you out. Below, we’ll tell you where let it ride comes from, how to play it online and offline – because it’s slightly different – and the proper strategy for beating the house.

Sound good?

Let’s get into it, then.

Let It Ride’s Short History

Let it ride is a poker game slightly based on five-card poker games that use community cards.

It’s owned by Shuffle Master (who’s owned by Bally Technologies). It was invented by Shuffle Master founder John Breeding in 1993.

Let it ride used to be an extremely popular game. But experts say it’s died down some due to the relatively high 3.51% house edge.

It’s still a fun game to play, and it’s slow paced, which is great for older players or table game enthusiasts.

It’s easy to learn, too.

Let it ride is played two different ways. Sort of.

There are two core let it ride games: the legit option – which is owned by Bally – and the version that everyone else who can’t get permission for the real game offers.

In let it ride, all three bets are made at once. You place them on the 1, 2, and $ marker. The $ bet is mandatory. That’s your ante, your table stakes.

Then during each betting round, you’ll have the option to withdraw your bet or “let it ride.” Once the hand’s over, you’ll be paid according to the pay table, based on your hand and what bets you still have on the table.

Let’em ride is the online version. Everything about it is the same, other than how the betting is handled. It’ll make more sense once we walk you through a hand.

Your objective is simple. You want to use the five community cards to make a pair of 10s or better.

The first thing you’ll do is make your ante bet. This is the (only) mandatory bet. You can also make the optional $1 progressive bet.

Once you make the bet, five cards are dealt. Three cards – your cards – are dealt face up.

Then two more cards are dealt face down. These are the community cards.

At this point, you’ll have two choices:

• You raise. You like your hand, or the potential your hand has. The raise bet has to match your ante bet.
• You continue. You think your hand needs improvement. You’re not willing to bet more on it.

Once you decide, one of the two cards is flipped over (face up). Again, you’ll have the following decisions:

• You raise. Your bet has to match your ante bet.
• You continue. You don’t bet.

Now the last card is flipped over. Here’s what happens based on the strength of your hand:

• Pair of 9s or worse – You lose.
• Pair of 10s or better – You win and are paid according to the pay table.

Here’s an example (Bovada) payout table:

• Royal flush – 1,000:1
• Straight flush – 200:1
• Four of a kind – 50:1
• Full house – 11:1
• Flush – 8:1
• Straight – 5:1
• Three of a kind – 3:1
• Two pair – 2:1
• 10s or better – 1:1

And that’s for each bet you make.

For example, if you have a pair of 10s and only one bet left on the table, you’ll receive $20 – $10 for winning and your original bet back. But if you make two bets (your ante plus a bet during one of the betting rounds), you’ll receive $40 – your original $20 back and the $20 you won.

You’ll also be paid if you made the progressive bet. Here’s one example of a progressive payout table:

• Royal flush – 100%
• Straight flush – 10%
• Four of a kind – $500
• Full house – $100
• Flush – $75

Keep in mind that payout tables will differ from casino to casino.

And that’s all there is to playing let it ride or let’em ride.

There aren’t nearly as many variations or side bets when compared to other games. Here’s what we managed to dig up, though:

• 5-Card Bonus Bet – This is a $1 side bet. This pays on the value of the final five-card hand. The house edge varies from 13.77% to 36.52%, depending on where you play it.
• 3-Card Bonus – This is similar to the five-card bonus, but only on the value of your three cards. It’s also similar to the pairs plus bet in blackjack. This pays out as much as 50:1 for a mini royal down to 1:1 for a pair.
• 6-Card Bonus – This is found in lots of games from Scientific Games (formally Bally Gaming and Shuffle Master). You’re dealt one additional (6^th) dummy card.

The optimal strategy is pretty straightforward. Here’s what experts recommend you do:

Let it ride if you have:

• Any paying hand (tens or better).
• Any three to a royal flush.
• Three suited cards in a row (except 2-3-4 and A-2-3).
• Three to a straight flush, spread four, with at least one card of 10 or better.
• Three to a straight flush, spread five, with at least two high cards.

With four cards, you should only let it ride when you have:

Let It Ride Strategy Card Games

• Any paying hand (tens or better).
• Any four cards of the same suit.
• Any four to an outside straight with at least one high card.
• Any four to an outside straight with no high cards (zero house edge).
• Any four to an inside straight with four high cards (zero house edge).

Spread four or five means the cards span four to five ranks. For example, 5,6,8 (four-spread) or 5,7,9 (five-spread).

Though you’re not supposed to, another strategy is to talk about or share your cards with the other players. According to the book Beyond Counting by James Grosjean, if you saw every player card in a seven-player game and made perfect use of the information, you’d lower the house edge from 3.51% to 2.34%.

Playing Let’Em Ride Online

You won’t find let it ride at many casinos online. It’s a trademarked game, and not every casino has the permission to offer it.

What you’ll find instead is a near-identical game called let’em ride. The betting is different, as mentioned earlier in the how-to-play section. Otherwise, it’s the same game.

You might also want to look for these titles:

• Let It Ride
• Let’Em Ride
• Let Them Ride
• Keep ‘Em Going
• Free Ride

The most important thing to note about playing this online, other than the name change, is how casinos treat poker in regard to casino perks and promotions.

Most casinos will prohibit poker or card games from participating in their bonuses or cash-back schemes. Others will make it harder for you to earn them.

For example, slots players may receive a bonus with a 30x playthrough. But let it ride players will never get that.

Instead, let it ride players may get the same (or, more often, a smaller) bonus, which they’ll have to earn by rolling it over 50x, 100x, or even 300x.

It’s a big difference. You’ll want to make sure you’re up for that (wagering tens or possibly hundreds of thousands of dollars for a small $500 to $4,000 deposit bonus or cash back) before you make your first deposit. Otherwise, cashing out may be difficult.

That’s about it. Almost everything else outside of promotions will be the same for let it ride players as it is for blackjack, craps, video poker, and – even in most cases – slots players.

Conclusion

Let it ride’s a fun game where you can take away or “let it ride” based on how strong you think your hand is…and how much better you think it’ll get by the time you see the fifth community card.

The house edge is a bit high, though it still pales in comparison to total games of chance like keno or slots. And with optimal strategy and a bit of luck, you can get the house edge down even further.

Other players have nothing but nice things to say about it, too. In fact, according to SmartGaming.com, players love this game because:

• The playing rules and playing strategy are not complicated.
• You can remove up to two thirds of your bets if you feel your chance of winning are not good.
• You can win a large amount of money for a relatively small bet.
• There is no frustrating dealer-qualifying rule like there is with Caribbean Stud Poker.
• The game returns more than slots.
• You can sometimes recoup your losses quickly.

So it’s sort of surprising to hear that let it ride’s popularity has gone down some because its house edge is a tad higher compared to other table games.

Especially since a couple of percent points is not going to be noticed by most players in the short run when playing $1, $3, $5, or even $10 per hand.

What we’re trying to say is that we don’t think the house edge is bad enough to advise not playing it. So give it a shot and let us know what you think.

Here are some commonly asked questions and answers about let it ride.

We found a couple.

• Let It Ryde – This is a free app for Android.
• Let It Ride – This is a free app for iOS.

Keep in mind that with apps and other non-casino game apps or websites, you won’t be able to play for real money.

Yes. It’s a 1989 comedy that starred Richard Dreyfuss, David Johansen, Teri Garr, (poker player) Jennifer Tilly, Cynthia Nixon, and Robbie Coltrane.

It’s not about a poker or card game, though it is about gambling. You can learn more about it on Wikipedia.

The house edge is 3.51%. But between strategy, chatty players, and finding casinos with better payouts, you might be able to reduce it.

Yes, there’s a game golfers play called Let It Ride. It’s played over eighteen holes. At the end of the hole, each player has the option to bank the points he won on that hole, or let them ride.

If he lets them ride, any points he earns on the next hole will be doubled. A bogey becomes ten points, par becomes thirty points, and so on.

But if he lets the points ride and doesn’t score any points, he loses all the points he left riding. Which means scoring a double bogey loses them all.

You can find a description of the game here on Golf Monthly or on Golf Digest.

It depends on the blackjack game you play. But it will vary from .03% to as high as 2.45%. The ideal blackjack game will have fewer decks, dealer stands on 17, the player can split aces, double on any two cards, can hit split aces, surrender (early), and will receive 3:2 on blackjacks.

In a game like that, you can get the house edge to .25%-.50% on a single-deck game.

Here are how other games’ (lowest) odds compare to let it ride’s 3.51% house edge:

• Baccarat – 1.06%
• Caribbean Stud Poker – 5.22%
• Casino War – 2.88%
• Craps – 1.41% or 1.36% (pass/come or don’t pass/come)
• Keno – 25%
• Pai Gow – 1.50%
• Red Dog -2.8%
• Roulette – 2.7%
• Slots – 2-15%
• Video Poker – .46%