Casino game · House-banked
In Pyramid Poker, each player and the dealer receive three cards and split them into a two-card hand and a one-card hand, with the single card lower than the pair of cards. A player who beats the dealer on both hands wins even money; winning one and losing one is a push. Identical hands go to the dealer.
Pyramid Poker is a house-banked game and a simplified relative of Pai Gow Poker. Each player plays only against the dealer.
The game is played with a single standard 52-card deck with no jokers. Aces are always high.
The game was recorded at the Bellagio in Las Vegas in 2004. No inventor is named in the sources consulted.
Each player places a wager before the deal.
The dealer deals three cards face down to each player and three to the dealer.
Each player divides their three cards into a two-card hand and a one-card hand.
The one-card hand shall be lower than the two-card hand. A pair always outranks a single card; otherwise the higher card of the two-card hand must not be lower than the single card.
There are no straights or flushes. A two-card hand is either a pair or two unpaired cards. Pairs rank from aces down to twos; unpaired hands are compared by the higher card and then the lower card.
The dealer sets the dealer's cards according to the casino's fixed house way.
Choosing a setting
The player holds A♠8♣3♦.
Legal settings are A-8 with 3, or A-3 with 8. Setting 8-3 with the ace is not allowed, because the single ace would outrank the 8-high two-card hand.
The player's two-card hand is compared with the dealer's two-card hand, and the player's one-card hand with the dealer's one-card hand.
If the player wins both comparisons, the wager pays 1 to 1.
If the player wins one comparison and loses the other, the hand is a push and the wager is returned.
If the player loses both comparisons, the wager loses.
Copies. A comparison in which the two hands are identical (a copy) is won by the dealer.
No commission is charged on wins. The house edge comes from the dealer winning copies.
Win one, lose one
Player: two-card K♠K♦, one-card 4♥. Dealer: two-card Q♣9♦, one-card 6♠.
The pair of kings beats queen-nine. The dealer's six beats the player's four. One each: the wager pushes.
A copy goes to the dealer
Player: two-card 9♣7♦, one-card 5♥. Dealer: two-card 9♠7♥, one-card 2♣.
The two-card hands are both 9-7, a copy, so the dealer wins that comparison. The player's five beats the dealer's two. One each: the wager pushes.
| Result | Payout |
|---|---|
| Player wins both hands | 1 to 1 |
| Player wins one hand, dealer wins one | Push |
| Dealer wins both hands | Wager loses |
Pay tables and side bets vary by casino. The sources consulted describe no side bets for this game.
The house edge on the main wager is about 3.5%.
You must beat the dealer on both your two-card hand and your one-card hand. Winning one and losing one is a push.
No. A two-card hand is either a pair or two unpaired cards, ranked by the higher card first.
The dealer. Identical hands, called copies, go to the dealer.
No commission is described in the standard rules. Wins are paid at even money.
Where any doubt remains in the application of this document, Rob is right.
Hand rankings, high to low: royal flush · straight flush · four of a kind · full house · flush · straight · three of a kind · two pair · one pair · high card. Suits never break ties.
Pyramid Poker Rules · OPR-807 · officialpokerrules.com/pyramid-poker/