Also referred to as Flush or Flash, Teen Patti is one of the most popular Indian card games with its resemblance to the western poker. The existence of Teen Patti is found in the 1970s and 1980s when it used to be an evening game, and people gathered with their friends in the evening to play Teen Patti.
Teen Patti had an undeniable presence in history and continues to rule the card games world in India even today. This is because recent advances in smartphone and gambling technology have allowed players to enjoy this game with others from the comfort of their home.
If you’re new to Teen Patti, read on to learn everything you need to know about the game.
What is Teen Patti?
Also known as tri-card, Teen Patti is defined as “three cards” in Hindi. The origins of Teen Patti can be traced back to 16th century Britain, where the game of Three Card Brag was first played. Three Card Brag was one of the first variants of Poker where each player received three cards face down and needed to bet or fold based on the quality of the hand.
Today, the game of Teen Patti as we know it, is a simplified version of Poker that is popular in India as well as South Asia. It is usually played in groups of 2 to 10 players and uses a standard deck of 52 cards without jokers. The length of time the game lasts depends on the number taking part and the direction in which the game takes.
How to play Teen Patti
As a simplified version of Poker, the game of Teen Patti comes with simple rules and features easy gameplay. In fact, Teen Patti is so simple that anyone can easily start playing it after watching just a few rounds of gaming action.
The game of Teen Patti is usually played in a group of 3 to 6 players and involves the use of a standard deck of 52 cards without jokers. As a player, your objective in the game is to form the highest-ranking hand as per the hand rankings.
Below is a complete step-by-step guide to playing the enthralling game of Teen Patti.
Step 1: Draw cards to select the dealer (डीलर का का चयन करने के लिए कार्ड ड्रा करें)
When playing Teen Patti, you first need to select a dealer to assist in the conduct of the game. Also, the dealer is the one from whom the dealing of the card begins and continues in a clockwise manner. To select the dealer, draw cards from the standard deck of 52 cards. Here, the highest drawn card gets assigned as the dealer.
डीलर को चुनने के लिए डेक से कार्ड निकालें। यहां, सबसे अधिक रैंक वाले हाथ को डीलर के रूप में चुना जाता है।
Step 2: Decide and place the initial wager (प्रारंभिक दांव तय करें और रखें)
After selecting the dealer, each player needs to place an initial wager in order to join the game. This initial bet is referred to as ‘ante’ in Teen Patti. If the game is played with a limit, the ante also caps the pot amount in every Teen Patti round to 1024 times the ante.
डीलर का चयन करने के बाद, प्रत्येक खिलाड़ी से प्रारंभिक पॉट बनाने के लिए एन्टे (न्यूनतम राशि) एकत्रित की जाती है।
Step 3: Dealer deals the cards (डीलर से अपने कार्ड प्राप्त करें)
The dealer then deals cards to himself and the players until everyone has three cards each. These dealt cards need to be facing down initially.
इसके बाद, डीलर खुद को और प्रत्येक खिलाड़ी को दक्षिणावर्त तरीके से तीन कार्ड फेस-डाउन देता है।
Step 4: Start playing with the player sitting next to the dealer (डीलर के बगल में बैठे खिलाड़ी के साथ खेल शुरू करें)
The player sitting next to the dealer is the one who will start acting in the game. The player can choose to play ‘seen’ or play ‘blind’. Seen means the player has viewed the three-face down cards before placing the wager, whereas blind refers to the player placing the wager without viewing the cards. If the player chooses to play blind, he has the option to call the ante or raise to double it. If he opts to play seen, he can double the ante or raise to quadruple it.
अब, डीलर के बगल में बैठा खिलाड़ी गेम खेलना शुरू कर देता है। यहाँ, खिलाड़ियों के लिए सीन या बलाईंड खेलने का विकल्प होता है।
Step 5: Continue the gaming action (खेलना जारी रखें)
The betting then continues in a clockwise manner, with each player having the option to fold, call, or raise as a blind or seen player. The amount the player needs to wager depends on the current stake set by the previous player and whether the current player is playing seen or blind.
If you haven’t seen your cards (playing blind):
1.You need to bet at least half of the current stake or the current stake if the player before you is seen.
2.You must bet at least the current stake or twice the current stake if the player that bet before you is blind.
If you’ve seen your cards (playing seen):
1.You must bet at least the current stake or twice the current stake if the player that bet before you is seen.
2.You must wager at least twice the current stake or four times the current stake if the player before you bet blind.
खेल तब एक दक्षिणावर्त तरीके से जारी रहता है, जिसमें प्रत्येक खिलाड़ी को सीन या बलाईंड खिलाड़ी के रूप में फ़ोल्द, कॉल या रेझ करने का विकल्प होता है।
Step 6: Players request a sideshow (साईढशौ का अनुरोध करे)
If a seen player is playing after another seen player and there are at least three players left in the game, then the current player can request the previous player for a sideshow. The asked player can accept or deny the sideshow request. If the sideshow request is accepted, the two players compare their cards, and the one with a lower-ranking hand must fold. In case the hand rankings are equal, then the player who asked for a sideshow needs to fold. If the sideshow request is denied, the betting process continues as usual.
The Teen Patti hand rankings, from high to low, are as follows:
Trail/Trio/Three of a kind: Three cards of the same rank. For example, A-A-A or 8-8-8 of a heart, diamond, or clubs.
Pure Sequence/Straight Flush: Three consecutive cards of the same suit. For example, A-K-Q of clubs or K-Q-J of diamonds.
Sequence/Normal Run/Straight: Three consecutive cards not all in the same suit. For instance, A-K-Q or K-Q-J of a spade, diamond, and heart.
Color/Flush: Three cards of the same suit that are not in sequence. For example, A-K-10 or hearts or A-K-J of diamonds.
Pair: Two cards of the same rank. For example, A-A-K, A-A-Q, or 2-2-3.
High card: The hand that doesn’t belong to any of the above types is referred to as a high card in Teen Patti.
यदि एक सीन खिलाड़ी किसी अन्य सीन खिलाड़ी के बाद खेल रहा है, तो वर्तमान खिलाड़ी पिछले खिलाड़ी से साईडशौ के लिए का अनुरोध कर सकता है।
Step 7: Make a showdown request(शोडाऊन का अनुरोध करे)
Whenever players have folded or there are only two players left in the game, one of the players has the option to call for a final showdown. In case of a showdown, the two players compare their cards and the one with the highest-ranking hand will win the pot.
शोडाऊन के मामले में, दोनों खिलाड़ी अपने कार्ड की तुलना करते हैं और उच्चतम-रैंकिंग वाले हाथ से खेल जीत जाएगा।
Ranking of the hands in Teen Patti
In order to make strategic bets at the table, it’s important for you to have a knowledge of the hands you’re dealt. Here are the various hands you can hold, which are ranked from highest to lowest.
Trail (three of a kind) – These are three cards of the same rank. When playing Teen Patti, three aces are the highest and three 2’s are the lowest.
Pure Sequence (straight flush) – A pure sequence is when you have three cards of the same suit.
Sequence (straight) – These are three consecutive cards not all in the same suit.
Colour (flush) – A colour is when all three cards of the same suit are not in sequence. If two players both have flushes, the player with the high card wins. If they also match, then the next highest cards are compared and so on. Highest flush in Teen Patti is A-K-J and the lowest flush is 5-3-2.
Pair (two of a kind) – Two cards of the same rank. Between two pairs, the one with the higher value is the winner. If it happens that the pairs are of equal value, then the kicker card determines the winner in the game. The highest pair in Teen Patti is A-A-K while the lowest is 2-2-3.
High card – A high card is when the three cards are not in sequence and not of the same suit. Also, no two cards have the same rank here. If two players at the table have a common high card, the next highest card is used to determine the winner. The best high card is A-K-J and the worst is 5-3-2.
A quick guide to the important terms in Teen Patti
Chaal – The total bet in Teen Patti can be divided into two components – the call and the raise, both being usually called chaal.
Call – Call is when you match the bet of the previous player.
Raise – Raise is when you decide to increase the bet of the previous player.
Pot – The game of Teen Patti has a boot amount (minimum amount of cash at stake) which is kept in the pot. The pot builds up over the game until the winner collects it at the end.
Ante – In Teen Patti, an ante is a forced bet that each player has to put at the beginning of the game. This is a fixed amount which all competing players must pay.
Blind – The blind bet is usually a forced bet placed into the pot by one or more players before the deal begins.
Fold – Fold is when you choose yourself to remove from the game.
Sideshow – Sideshow is the side bet where you can invite another player to show each other your cards. If you have a better hand, you win the bet and stay in the game. If the other player has a better hand, you fold.
Popular Teen Patti variations
The best part of Teen Patti is that there are numerous variations of the game that takes its enjoyment factor to the next level. Let’s take a look at the most popular variants of the game.
999 variation
In this variation, the player must make the hand closest to figure 999. Best hand in this variation is 9-9-9 of any suit.
Joker variation
Here, 3 cards from a well-shuffled deck are distributed to all the players. After that, the dealer pulls out one card randomly and nominates all other cards of the same rank/strength/numbers as jokers (wild card).
Muflis
In Mulfis, the player with the weakest hand will win the game. All rules are like the standard Teen Patti game except the player with the weakest hand wins the game.
AK47
In this variation, cards with rank A, K, 4 and 7 are considered Jokers. Here, the player with the strongest Teen Patti hand will win the game. All other rules and betting remain the same.
4x Boot
4x Boot is played like a traditional Teen Patti game, the only difference being that the starting boot value will be 4 times the normal boot value.
Faceoff
Here, cards 10, J, Q, K and A are faceoff cards. Each player on the table will get these cards from the deck, and the player with the best Teen Patti hand will win the game.
Two-lowest Wild
In this variation, each player is dealt with 4 cards. The 2 lowest-ranking cards are considered as the wild cards in the hands of the player.
High Wild
Here, the highest-ranking cards are considered as wild cards. The other things are the same as the low wild.
Card Color Burst
Here, after the dealer distributes 3 cards each to all the players, he draws 3 face-up cards on the table. Out of these, the first card is the one that defines the number which becomes Joker. The second is the colour card and as the name implies, all cards dealt with the same colour in this variation will be a joker. And the third card is the burst. If any of the players at the table are dealt with this card, then they have to fold.
Closest to 555
When it comes to closest to 555 it's again players are dealt with three cards. Every player can exchange one of their cards with one from the pack during the first two rounds. All the A, K, Q and J cards in this variation are counted as 0, and the number cards from 2 to 9 have their face value. The player with the hand closest to 5-5-5 wins the game.
Along with these, there are various other exciting variations of Teen Patti. Playing with real cash is one of them. Yes, Teen Patti can also be played with real cash in India, one site I reference I would suggest is www.teenpatti.co.in to learn more about it if you're not playing just for timepass.
Winning potential of various hands in Teen Patti
If you want to master the game of Teen Patti, you must have the knowledge of the winning potential of each hand type. Here is a brief idea of winning a hand in Teen Patti.
| Hand Type | Probability | Frequency | Odds | Cumulative Probability |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| High card | 74.39% | 16440 | 0.34:1 | 100.00% |
| Pair | 16.94% | 3744 | 4.90:1 | 25.61% |
| Flush/color | 4.96% | 1096 | 19.16:1 | 8.67% |
| Run/straight/sequence | 3.26% | 720 | 29.69:1 | 3.71% |
| Straight flush/pure sequence | 0.22% | 48 | 459.42:1 | 0.45% |
Teen Patti Online
With the advancement in technology, it’s now possible for players to play Teen Patti from the comfort of their home. In fact, playing Teen Patti is fast becoming the way people want to enjoy this popular game.
When playing online, there are numerous variations of the game for players to choose from. You can choose to play on your own or you can opt to play against real players. Also, have the option to play against a live dealer in real time.
Tips and strategies to improve your winning chances at Teen Patti
Whether you’re a novice or experienced player, these tips and strategies can help you in improving your chances of winning at an extended level.
Play with free chips – Many online Teen Patti sites give plenty of free chips to both new and experienced players. Take advantage of them as they can give you the chance to practice the game without risking your real money.
Start slow – Don’t place a big bet at the start of the gameplay. Take your time to get good cards that can improve your chances of winning. If you make strategic bets right from the start of the game, players with weak cards at the table will fold early. That way, you have the chance to win a decent amount of money.
Be Alert – Pay attention to other players at the table. Notice their patterns and expressions as your ability to read them can improve your winning chances.
Use the slideshow option – As mentioned earlier, the sideshow option allows you to ask the player who has played just before you to show their hands. This option can help you in improving your winning chances, preferably while minimizing your losses.
Pack when you’ve got a weak hand – If you want to be successful at Teen Patti, it’s important for you to know when to pack. When you have small chances of winning, it’s always good to pack and wait for a better round. Always observe your cards betting as it will limit your losses.
Use bluffing – This is a vital part of Teen Patti and a strategy that successful players need to employ at some point. Basically, bluffing is the art of persuading other players that you have got a strong hand even if you have a comparatively weak hand. Also, bluffing involves persuading other players that you have a worse hand than you actually do.
Playing blind – You can choose this option if you want to avoid someone taking a sideshow bet with you. If you opt to play blind, you choose not to see the cards dealt with you at any point in the game.
That's a wrap, we hope you enjoy the game to the fullest.
If you're interested you could check our guide on why fantasy games are legal in India and also our most popular pieces on Amazon sales and our Flipkart sales checker.
What is Teen Patti?
Teen Patti is a casino card game that is played using a standard deck of 52 cards. As a player, your objective in the game is to form the best three-card hand as per the hand rankings.
Is Teen Patti a game of skill or chance?
The outcome of a Teen Patti game is strongly influenced by the element of luck. So, Teen Patti is considered a game of chance.
Is Teen Patti legal in India?
The legality of Teen Patti varies from state to state in India. It’s legal to play real-money Teen Patti with licensed operators in states like Goa and Sikkim, while it’s banned in other states.
Can I play Teen Patti online?
The Indian gambling laws restrict playing games of chance like Teen Patti for real money. However, these laws don’t apply to international gaming sites, so it’s possible for you to play Teen Patti online with licensed operators.
