3-2-1 Drop
3-2-1 Drop is a simple poker game that only uses three-card hands. Like Iron Cross and 3-5-7 (which it greatly resembles), players are not directly betting against each other, but instead risking the amount in the pot for a chance at winning it.
Object of 3-2-1 Drop
The object of 3-2-1 Drop is to accurately judge whether you are likely to have the best hand, thereby winning money when you do and avoiding losses when you don’t.
Setup
3-2-1 Drop, like most poker games, requires the use of a standard 52-card deck of playing cards. As always when such a thing is needed, choosing Denexa 100% Plastic Playing Cards is an excellent option.
You will also need something to wager with. Chips are the best thing to use, but you could also bet with coins, Monopoly money, matches, or whatever is handy.
All players ante. Shuffle and deal three cards to each player, as well as an extra three-card hand to the pot.
Game play
All players examine their hands to determine what they hold. As this is a three-card poker game, straights and flushes do not count, and the highest hand possible is three of a kind. Additionally, the two red kings are wild. Players then decide whether to play or fold.
Now, each player holds their hand, face down, about an inch or so above the table (low enough that none of their cards are exposed but high enough that it’s clear they are not on the table). The dealer then calls “3…2…1…drop.” On “drop”, players wishing to fold drop their hand to the table; any player that keeps hold of their hand is playing it. The hands are exposed, with the highest hand taking the pot. Losing players pay the amount of the pot into the pot for the next hand, and players that folded are not required to pay anything.
In the event that only one person plays their hand, the extra hand dealt to the pot is exposed, with the lone player hoping to beat it. If the player wins, they take the pot, and all other players ante. If the player loses, they pay the amount of the pot, and the money remains there for the next hand.
Game play continues until the cows come home. The losers of the last pot of the session pay only half the amount of the pot directly to the winner of the final hand.
