Cajun Stud

Introduction

Cajun Stud is a table game by Galaxy Gaming that is the same as Mississippi Stud except with the side bets. In Cajun stud, a five-card player hand is revealed gradually. At three decision points along the way, the player may either raise his Ante bet by one to three times or fold.

Rules

 

Following are the rules for Cajun Stud.

1. The game uses any number of ordinary 52-card playing cards.
2. The Ante is the primary initial bet. In addition, the following side bets are available:
    
   • Board Bonus
   • Pocket Bonus
   • Lo Ball
3. After bets are made, the players will each be dealt two cards. In addition, three community cards will be dealt face down.
4. With the knowledge of two cards, the player may raise 1x to 3x his Ante bet or fold.
5. The dealer shall deal reveal the first community card.
6. With the knowledge of three cards, the player may again raise 1x to 3x his Ante bet or fold.
7. The dealer shall deal reveal the second community card.
8. With the knowledge of four cards, the player may again raise 1x to 3x his Ante bet or fold.
9. The dealer shall deal reveal the third community card.
10. All Ante and Raise bets shall be paid according to the pay table below.
11. The Board Bonus shall be paid based on the three community cards.
12. The Pocket Bonus shall be paid based on the player's two community cards.
13. The Lo Ball shall be paid based on the player's final five-card hand, with the object being a low-scoring hand.

         

Strategy

 

For purposes of strategy, I introduce the following terms:

• High card = jack to ace
• Medium card = 6 to 10
• Small card = 2 to 5

 

Here is the strategy for the first decision point, which is as follows:

• Make large raise with any pair.
• Make medium raise with any of the following:
  • At least one high card
  • Two medium cards
  • 5/6 suited
• Fold with any of the following:
  • Two small cards
  • A small card and medium card, except 5-6 suited

 

You can find strategy for the second and third decision points in my page on Mississippi Stud.

Ante & Raise Analysis

 

The following table shows the probability and contribution to the return for all possible outcomes of the Ante and Raise bets. The lower right cell shows a house edge of 4.91% with optimal player strategy.

 

By the end of the hand, the average wager will be 3.589772 times the Ante bonus. That makes the Element of Risk, defined as the ratio of the expected loss to the total amount bet, 4.9149%/3.589772 = 1.37%.

Pocket Bonus Analysis

 

The following table shows the probability and contribution to the return for all possible outcomes of the Pocket Bonus. The lower right cell shows a house edge of 6.79% with optimal player strategy.

 

Lo Ball Analysis

 

The following table shows the probability and contribution to the return for all possible outcomes of the Pocket Bonus. The lower right cell shows a house edge of 6.79% with optimal player strategy.

 

External Links

 

• Play for fun at Galaxy Gaming's web site.
• Discussion about Cajun Stud at Wizard of Vegas

Written by: Michael Shackleford