Basic playing Strategies:

1. Never fold your small pairs.
This is a common mistake made by most novice players. Almost half of the time you'll be dealt a small pair and in the long run it should be much more profitable to play these hands out to the end.

2. Don't bet with a weak hand.
The odds are simply not in your favor to do so. If you're betting with a weak hand (i.e. a non-Candidate Hand) you're betting the dealer has less than a Candidate Hand as well. Winning this way only pays you on your ante bet, 1 to 1. Therefore if you lose, both your ante bet and your full bet are foregone. This can really add up in the long-run, and the disadvantage is much greater in the long-run. In my opinion you should always fold if you have less than an Ace-King.

3. Ace-king (Candidate Hand) should only be played when you have another card in your hand matching the dealers face card. Over half of the time the dealer will qualify, so you'll want to make extra sure you can beat him. By matching face cards you're eliminating another card from his hand and increasing your chance of winning.

There you have it. Caribbean Stud Poker in a nutshell. It seems pretty easy and it is as long as you play wisely and follow the basic rules laid out for you in this article. Remember to never fold on a small pair, never bluff a weak hand and always go for the progressive. It's only a buck and you wouldn't want to be left in the situation where you're saying "if only..."