Pokervariations: Draw Poker

As you all probably know, the most popular poker variations can be divided into three groups:

♠ Community Poker Games

♠ Draw Poker

♠ Stud Poker

Draw poker is the basic form of Poker and probably the oldest poker variation there is.

The Five Card Draw is the predecessor of the modern poker and has spread around the world since the time of the Mississippi steamboats and cowboys in the Wild West.

In essence, at Draw Poker the player builds a hand from 5 cards. It is very common in home games although it is now quite rare in casino and tournament play. The game is limited for two to eight players.

When it comes to Draw Poker there are two things to learn. The first is Poker's 5-card hands and their ranking. The second is when and how to bet.

The best arrangement of five cards is named a poker hand and the ranking highest hand first:

Royal Flush:

A-K-Q-J-10, all same suit

Straight Flush:

any five consecutive cards, all same suit

Four-of-a-Kind:

four cards, same value (eg. four 10's)

Full House:

three-of-a-Kind and a Pair

Flush:

any five cards of the same suit

Straight:

any five consecutive cards

Three-of-a-Kind:

three cards, same value

Two Pair

two cards of the same value plus another two cards of the same value(different then the first two)

Pair

two cards, same value

No Pair:

five dissimilar cards, mixed suit

How to play:

The Dealer, once assigned, takes the deck and starts to shuffle the cards. All players have to pay the ante, a small fee you pay, to buy in your right, to play that round. You can choose not to pay, but automatically it means you are sitting out. All the money collected, will be put in the center of the table, that being the pot. The Dealer will deal, one card at a time, face down, to each player at the table, beginning on the Dealer's left, once the antes are in. It will repeat with the second card dealt to each player, and continue until each player receives 5 cards, all facing down.

After picking up the cards, the player to the Dealer's left opens the betting round by indicating a Pass by placing no bet or placing a Bet, or just Fold, by discarding his hand.

The next player to the left, has the same opportunity: Pass/Bet/Fold. If the previous player Passed, then they can Pass too or place a new Bet. If the rest of the players wish to stay in the game, they must Call by matching any outstanding bets and only then, the players can Raise, by placing a bet of their own.

The betting is moved to the player in the left, then the next one, and so on, the Dealer being included in this too.

Once the Dealer has placed a bet, the other players have to Call any outstanding bets, or simply Fold.

Normally, no Raises are allowed once the betting have passed around the Dealer.

Players are now allowed to Discard any or all of the cards and with the use of strategy/luck they will develop the best hand they can. The cards are discarded face down and collected by the Dealer.

In some games, you may only discard up to three cards unless you have an Ace, case in which you can discard all cards except the Ace. But in most games, you may discard as many cards as you wish.

The Dealer will deal each player, starting on the left, their replacement cards, face down.

As before, the Player on the left of the Dealer will begin the betting around the table, and once again the Dealer will get the final Raise.

Everyone must Call/Fold and the remaining players in the game, are ready for the Showdown.

If only one player is left in the game, he takes the pot. In this case the player is encouraged to keep his cards hidden and pass them to the Dealer, face down.

After the final betting round, the players that have reached the Showdown must reveal their hands (the best hand wins and the winner takes the pot).

In case of a tie, then the rank of the individual cards determines the winning hand. For example a Full House of Aces with Jacks is better then a Full House of Kings with Jacks. If it's still a tie and there are no kickers (spare cards not used to build the final hand) then the pot is split.

If the rank of the individual cards doesn't determine the winner, then the kicker(s) of higher rank determines the winner. If it's still a tie, the pot is split.

If there are no name hands (all players have No Pair), then the highest ranking single card is declared the winning hand. If it comes to a dead tie (no clear winner, all cards same rank) then the pot is split.

Suit will never determine a winner in Poker.

It is not enough to know the basic rules about hands and betting. There are much more to being a successful Poker player. Poker is not about having the highest ranking hand, it's about winning the biggest pots.

Other Draw Pokervariations:

Gardena jackpots ("Jacks to open" or simply "Jackpots"), California lowball, Kansas City lowball, Double-draw and Triple-draw, Badugi, Baduci, California high/low split, High/low with declare, Four-before, Johnson (and "Jacks back"), Q-Ball, Shotgun ("Roll 'em out" and "Skinny Minnie"), Spit in the ocean, Anaconda ("Pass the trash"), etc.