Patent ID: 7815189

Claim:
A method to play continuous draw poker, the method comprising: presenting a playing card handler, where the playing card handler includes a housing, a controls areas supported by the housing, where the controls area includes a controls area top on which is positioned a control panel and a monitor, a distribution area supported by the housing and positioned adjacent to the controls area, where the distribution area includes a distribution area top and a distribution area bottom, where the distribution area bottom and the controls area top are at the same height defined as the first height and the distribution area top is at a second height positioned above the first height, where the distribution area includes an operator wall, a player wall, and a first sidewall and a second sidewall positioned between the operator wall and the player wall, where the operator wall, the player wall, the first sidewall, and the second sidewall meet together to form a distribution tray, where an area of the distribution tray adjoined by the operator wall, the first sidewall, and the second sidewall for a deck tray and an area of the distribution tray adjoined by the player wall, the first sidewall, and the second sidewall form a card tray, and electrical components, where the electrical components include a memory and a processor configured to be in communication with the memory, the monitor, and the mode screen; receiving playing cards in the distribution tray; providing power to the playing card handler; entering the number of players in the playing card handler; determining whether the weight of the playing cards in the distribution tray substantially equals the weight of the card deck; if the weight of the playing cards in the distribution tray substantially equals the weight of the card deck, then determining whether each playing card in the card deck is valid; if each playing card in the card deck is valid, then shuffling the playing cards; distributing an initial five cards to each player by passing one set of five cards from the deck tray to the card tray for each player; distribute at least one but no more than four cards to each player until all cards in the deck tray have been passed to the card tray and removed from the distribution tray; illuminating an showdown image after all cards in the deck tray have been passed to the card tray and removed from the distribution tray; revealing all the hands; identifying as a winner the player with the best hand according to the poker variant being played; and where if the weight of the playing cards in the distribution tray substantially does not equal the weight of the card deck, then illuminate the insert deck image on the monitor and where if one playing card in the card deck is not valid, then illuminate the invalid card image on the monitor.