Modified poker game with jokers

Abstract

A method of playing a wagering card game begins with a wager from each player, and is played in a predetermined maximum number of rounds, each round consisting of the deal of at least two cards to each player and the dealer. At the end of the first round, the game is over if the dealer's hand contains at least a minimum specified rank. Rankings, from minimum rank to maximum rank, consist of a Pair, 3-of-a-Kind, 4-of-a-Kind, 5-of-a-Kind, etc. Each player's hand is then compared to the dealer's hand, and the higher ranking hand wins. Winning player hands are paid according to a predetermined paytable. At the end of any round, a player's hand with one Joker may automatically bust; i.e., all of the player's wagers are lost, and his cards removed.

1 . A method of playing a wagering card game comprising:
 providing at least one standard deck of 52 playing cards with standard poker ranks that is augmented by at least one Joker;   a player placing at least one initial first round wager prior to viewing any cards in play during the wagering card game;   the player receiving a plurality of cards from the deck(s) of cards after placing the at least one first wager;   the dealer receiving at least a same plurality of cards from the remaining cards in the deck(s) of cards to complete a first round of play;   comparing the player's hand to the dealer's hand, using poker rank without consideration of straights, flushes and straight flushes as the criterion for comparison;   determining the winning hand according to the said comparison;   resolving the wager or wagers according to a predetermined paytable, with a potential for placing a second round wager for continued play in the wagering card game.   
   
   
       2 . The method of  claim 1  wherein an end of the game is declared if the dealer hand has at least a minimum predetermined specific rank. 
   
   
       3 . The method of  claim 1  wherein if the dealer hand does not have at least a minimum predetermined specific rank the game continues. 
   
   
       4 . The method of  claim 3  wherein the at least a minimum hand is selected from the group consisting of at least a preselected high card rank and a pair. 
   
   
       5 . The method of  claim 3  wherein the player makes one choice selected from the group consisting of a) folding, thereby losing all wagers made on the game; b) completing the game by accepting payment for a winning hand of a predetermined specific rank paid according to the predetermined paytable; and c) making an additional wager to continue the game and receive additional playing cards, placing all wagers at risk. 
   
   
       6 . The method of  claim 5  whereby the game continues wherein:
 a player places at least one additional wager prior to viewing any additional cards in play during the wagering card game;   the player receives an additional plurality of cards from the remaining cards in the deck(s) of cards after placing the at least one additional wager;   the dealer receives a same number of additional plurality of cards from the remaining cards in the deck(s) of cards to complete a second round of play;   declaring the end of the game if the dealer hand has at least a minimum predetermined specific rank;   comparing the player's hand to the dealer's hand, using poker rank as the criterion for comparison, excluding straights, flushes and straight flushes in the comparison;   determining the winning hand according to the said comparison; and   resolving a wager or wagers according to a predetermined paytable.   
   
   
       7 . The method of  claim 6  wherein, if the dealer hand does not have at least a minimum predetermined specific rank, the game continues. 
   
   
       8 . The method of  claim 7  wherein the player makes one choice selected from the group consisting of a) folding, thereby losing all wagers made on the game; b) completing the game by accepting payment for a winning hand of a predetermined specific rank paid according to the predetermined paytable; and c) making an additional wager to continue the game and receive additional playing cards, placing all wagers at risk. 
   
   
       9 . The method of  claim 8  whereby the game continues wherein:
 a player places at least one additional wager prior to viewing any additional cards in play during the wagering card game;   the player receives a final plurality of cards from the remaining cards in the deck(s) of cards after placing the at least one additional wager;   the dealer receives a same final number of plurality of cards from the remaining cards in the deck(s) of cards to complete a third round of play;   declaring the end of the game;   comparing the player's hand to the dealer's hand, using at least some poker ranks as the criterion for comparison;   determining the winning hand according to the said comparison; and   resolving the wager or wagers according to a predetermined paytable.   
   
   
       10 . The method of  claim 9  wherein if the player's hand contains exactly one Joker in any hand, the player's hand automatically loses and all wagers by that player with exactly one joker are lost. 
   
   
       11 . The method of  claim 9  wherein if the dealer's hand contains one Joker, the dealer's hand automatically wins over any player hand still in play, with the player losing all wagers. 
   
   
       12 . The method of  claim 9  wherein if the player's hand contains two Jokers, the player's hand automatically wins according to the predetermined paytable. 
   
   
       13 . The method of  claim 9  wherein if the dealer's hand contains two Jokers, the dealer's hand automatically loses against any player hand still in play, with the player automatically winning according to the predetermined paytable. 
   
   
       14 . The method of  claim 10  wherein if the player's hand contains one Joker and the dealer's hand contains two Jokers, the player's hand does not automatically lose. 
   
   
       15 . The method of  claim 12  wherein the player's hand containing two Jokers automatically wins according to the predetermined paytable even if the dealer's hand contains one Joker. 
   
   
       16 . The method of  claim 9  wherein a final player hand that does not contain at least a minimum predetermined specific rank loses. 
   
   
       17 . The method of  claim 9  wherein a final player hand that does not contain at least a minimum predetermined specific rank pushes. 
   
   
       18 . The method of  claim 9  wherein the player pushes his wager on ties between the player's hand and the dealer's hand. 
   
   
       19 . The method of  claim 9  wherein the player loses his wager on ties between the player's hand and the dealer's hand. 
   
   
       20 . The method of  claim 9  wherein the player wins his wager on ties between the player's hand and the dealer's hand. 
   
   
       21 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the presence of a single joker in a player hand or dealer hand may be treated in a step selected from the group consisting of:
 a) the player automatically losing all wagers placed during the game;   b) the player pushing on all wagers placed during the game; and   c) the player losing all wagers placed during the game, but being allowed to replace any part of the wagers placed during the game up to an amount equal to the amount of the wagers previously placed.