7 Card No Peek Rules
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One of the simplest variants of poker, and one that is many poker player's first introduction to the game of poker, is 5-Card Draw.
More common in home games than it is in casinos, 5-card draw has been overtaken in the popularity by games such as Texas hold'em and Omaha poker.
But there are still plenty of 5-card draw fans around the world — particularly in the online world where several online poker sites offer cash games and tournaments.
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How to Play 5-Card Draw Poker
If you have played any other form of poker, 5-card draw rules are similar in that the aim of the game is to make the best five-card poker hand.
Like Texas hold'em, the poker hand rankings, from weakest to strongest, are as follows:
- High card
- One pair
- Two pair
- Three-of-a-kind
- Straight
- Flush
- Full house
- Four-of-a-kind
- Straight flush
- Royal Flush
When it comes to preflop betting, there are two different methods used in 5-card draw.
Either all players pay an ante before receiving their cards (this is more common in home games), or there is a small blind and big blind similar to hold'em and Omaha games (this is the most common on online poker sites and in casinos).
Three different betting structures exist for 5-card draw, too.
You can play 5-card draw poker as:
- Fixed-limit
- Pot-limit
- No-limit
While all three formats play to the same poker rules, the different betting structures mean your strategy needs to be adapted.
For example, some hands that you wouldn't play in fixed-limit 5-card draw become playable in no-limit 5-card draw because in the latter you can bet enough to force your opponent to fold.
Regardless of the betting structure, this is how to play 5-card draw.
Five-Card Draw Basics
Once everyone has paid the ante or the blinds, each player receives five cards face down.
A round of betting then occurs.
If more than one player remains after that first round of betting, there follows a first round of drawing.
Each active player specifies how many cards he or she wishes to discard and replace with new cards from the deck.
If you are happy with your holding and do not want to draw any cards, you 'stand pat.'
Once the drawing round is completed, there is another round of betting.
After that if there is more than one player remaining, a showdown occurs in which the player with the best five-card poker hand wins.
As you can see, the rules for 5-card draw are simple and make for a fast-paced game, which is why the game is popular with new, less experienced players.
Basic 5-Card Draw Strategy
The fact you can learn how to play five-card draw poker in a few minutes doesn't mean that you will not need to practice to go from beginner to pro.
The best way to do that, is to practice online — possibly with some free games. If you have a few minutes to try a game or two, have a look at 888poker.
You can play with a no deposit bonus on signup that you can use to discover 5-card draw poker and master all the basic and advanced strategy tips that follow.
One trap lesser-skilled 5-card draw players often fall into is playing far too many hands, particularly hands drawing to a straight or flush.
In many cases, the saying 'tight is right' applies when it comes to starting hand selection in 5-card draw.
As in games with community cards, your position in relation to the button is also important in 5-card draw poker.
The closer to the button you are, the wider the range of hands you can play profitably.
Regardless of your position, you should almost always enter the pot with a raise because limping in usually results in several other players limping behind, which in turn means you need a much stronger hand to win the pot.
Play tight from early positions and raise with hands such as aces or kings.
As your position improves, you can add other high pairs such as queens, jacks, tens, and nines, so long as the latter has a good kicker to back it up.
Those of you fortunate enough to have been dealt two pair or three-of-a-kind should always come out raising whether you're under the gun or on the button.
Meanwhile be wary of holdings such as four to a straight or flush, because these are hands with which some players bleed away their bankroll.
With one card to come, you're around a 4-to-1 underdog to hit your hand, and often you won't have the correct pot odds to attempt filling your straight or flush, particularly in a short-handed game.
What Should I Discard in 5-Card Draw?
Knowing what cards to discard during the drawing round is what makes and breaks a 5-card poker player.
On a basic level you should consider the following:
What you hold | What you should do |
---|---|
One pair | Draw three cards |
Two pair | Draw one card |
Three-of-a-kind | Draw two cards |
The above list is only scratching the surface of what you should draw in 5-card draw. Adhering to it, particularly in low-stakes games, should yield positive results.
Advanced 5-Card Draw Strategy
Once you have a grasp of the basics and are feeling more confident with how to play 5-card draw, you can start applying some more advanced strategies to your game.
There is a large psychological element to 5-card draw thanks in large part to the drawing element of the game.
For example, while it is statistically the best play to draw three cards when you hold a pair, if you always make this play your opponents will be able to read your hand easily and alter their strategy to defeat you.
You need sometimes only to draw to one or two cards with a pair in your hand — or even to stand pat — in order to represent a holding stronger than what you actually have.
Unlike in games such as hold'em, there is rarely any stone cold bluffing in 5-card draw.
Players usually have at least a playable hand when betting even if they are indeed bluffing. This is why it is vitally important to take detailed notes when playing 5-card draw because they are extremely helpful.
Should you make a note that a player only opens with a pair of jacks or stronger on the button, you can easily fold a pair of nines in the blinds instead of calling.
Where Can I Play 5-Card Draw Online
As mentioned at the start of the article, 5-card draw is not a game that enjoys as much popularity as the likes of hold'em, but there are quite a few websites where you can play 5-card draw online.
The safest option is to try one of three sites below and play some games there.
These poker sites are your best bet for finding both 5-card draw cash games and tournaments at a variety of limits.
It is also possible to hone your skills at the play money tables there and play 5-card draw online poker free of charge with no risk to your bankroll.
The Best Five-Card Draw Sites OnlineFind the best games and play 5-card draw online for free or real money. The first bonus is on us!
'>Photo: Flush Poker Hand - Hearts, Guts Gaming. Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic.
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cash game strategytournament strategyfive-card drawother gamesbeginner strategyrules
- Baseball - variants
- No Peek - variants - Mexican Sweat
- Night Baseball - variants
Baseball
Baseball is a popular home poker variant based on seven card stud. All threes and nines are wild and fours give the player an extra card. The numbers are chosen because of their significance in the American sport - three strikes, three outs, nine innings, four balls for a walk. Because of the extra cards dealt after fours, this game cannot be played by more than six people without the risk of running out of cards.
The deal is as in seven card stud: two cards face down, four face up and the last face down. There are five betting rounds, one after each round of face up cards and one after the final card is dealt. Each betting round is begun by the player with the highest hand showing at the time. If the cards run out in a seven-player game, it will be necessary to deal the last card as a face up community card instead of dealing a down-card to each player.
In the showdown the highest five-card poker hand wins. All threes and nines are wild and can be used as any card not already present in the player's hand, or as a fifth card of any rank to make five of a kind, which is the highest hand type - see also poker ranking with wild cards.
If a player is dealt a four face up, the player is immediately dealt an extra face up card before the next player receives a card. Such players will have eight, nine or more cards at the showdown.
Variants
Some play that a player who is dealt a three face up must immediately either match the pot or fold. Some only require a fixed payment to the pot as an alternative to folding.
Some play that face down fours also entitle the player to an extra card. Practice varies as to when the player should reveal the four and claim the extra card, and whether the extra card is dealt face up or face down. Possible rules for claiming extra cards for face down fours are:
- the four must be revealed as soon as it is dealt, and the extra card is dealt immediately;
- any concealed fours are revealed in clockwise order and extra cards given immediately before the next betting round;
- concealed fours may be revealed whenever the holder wishes, and an extra card is given as soon as the four is revealed.
Some play that the extra card given when a four appears must be paid for. The price may be a fixed amount paid to the pot or may vary according to whether the extra card is face up or face down, and how late in the game it is dealt.
The wild cards and the card which entitles the player to an extra card can of course be varied. For example in Football threes and sixes are wild and you get an extra card for a two. In Woolworth fives and tens are wild and you get an extra card for a two.
No Peek
The dealer deals seven cards face down to each player. Players must not look at their cards.
The player to dealer's left flips his or her first card face up, and starts the first betting round.
The next active player in clockwise order then flips up cards until showing a hand that beats the first player's card, and then begins a second betting round. For example if the first player flipped a 9 and the second player a jack, the second betting round starts immediately. If the first player flips a 9 and the second player a 5, the second player must flip another card. Suppose it is a seven. 7-5 still does not beat the 9 so a third card must be flipped. If this is another 5, the second player now has a pair, which beats the 9, so the second betting round starts.
This continues clockwise around the table. At your turn, if you have not folded, you must flip cards until you have the best poker hand showing, and then begin a new betting round. If you flip all seven of your cards and still do not have the highest hand showing you must drop out: there is no betting round and the turn passes to the next active player.
This continues until all cards are face up or there is only one player left in. The highest hand wins the pot.
When comparing hands, any kicker beats a missing card, so for example 7-3 beats a 7 by itself. Flushes and straights must have five cards to count. See poker ranking - incomplete hands for details.
Variants
Some begin by turning up a card from a second deck. The player to dealer's left must start by flipping cards until able to beat this card, before beginning the first round of betting.
Some play with back betting. When a player flips all seven cards without beating the best hand, and is thereby knocked out, there is a round of betting begun by the best hand showing before the next player begins flipping cards.
Mexican Sweat
In this variant of No Peek, seven cards are dealt to each player and one face up in the middle of the table. The first player must beat this face up card before the first betting round begins.
If any player flips one of the three cards of the same rank as the face up card in the middle, that player must immediately fold. By prior agreement there may or may not be a betting round before the next player starts flipping cards.
Night Baseball
This game, also known as Midnight Baseball or No Peek Baseball, is a combination of Baseball and No Peek.
The deal and the procedure for flipping cards are the same as in No Peek, but as in Baseball, all threes and nines are wild.
Any player who flips a four is immediately dealt an extra card face down from the deck.
Variants
All Baseball and No Peek variants can be used here too. For example players may have to pay or fold when flipping a three. They may have to pay for the extra card dealt when a four appears. The first player may have to beat a card truned up from another deck before the first betting round. 'Back betting' may or may not be included.
The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
The deal and betting are the same as in seven-card stud, with the following modifications.
After the initial deal of two down cards and one up card to each player, three cards are dealt face down to the table.
After the fourth card is dealt to each player, the dealer turns one of the table cards face up. This is The Good: all players' cards which are the same rank as this card are wild.
After the fifth card is dealt, the second table card is turned face up. This is The Bad: all cards of the same rank as this card must be discarded.
After the sixth card is dealt, the final table card is turned face up. This is The Ugly: anyone who has an up card of the same rank as The Ugly must immediately fold.
After the seventh card is dealt, the final betting round and showdown take place as usual. Note that the three face up cards on the table are not shared (community) cards - they cannot be used by players to complete their hands.
Sequence
The deal and betting are same as in seven-card stud.
- If a two is dealt as a face-up card, all twos become wild.
- If a three is dealt face up when twos are wild, twos cease to be wild and threes become wild instead.
- If a four is dealt face up while threes are wild, threes cease to be wild and fours become wild instead.
- And so on...
Note that for the wild card to be created and changed, the upcards must appear in increasing order, starting with the two. If a three is dealt face up before a two appears, there is no wild card yet. If a two appears subsequently, twos are wild, not threes, despite the presence of the previously dealt three. The wild cards do not have to be consecutive: if the upcards are 6, 2, Q, 5, 3, 9, 4, A in that order, 4's are wild.
At the showdown, the high hand wins the pot.
Alternatively, the game can be played high/low with declaration.
Second Hand High
The deal and betting are the same as in seven-card stud, but if there is a showdown, the second highest hand wins.
If all but one player fold, the surviving player wins as usual.
The Game Report site, which described this variant, did not specify how to deal with ties. I suggest that if there is a tie for first place, none of those equal hands wins but the next highest hand takes the pot. If there is a tie for second place, the equal hands should split the pot.
Jack the Shifter
For this game to work, the group must have an agreed list of seven-card stud games that they normally play. The game begins as ordinary seven-card stud played for high, but whenever a jack is dealt as an upcard, the player who receives the jack can change the game to any seven-card stud game on the agreed list.
7 Card No Peek Rules
An explicit or implicit agreement on the list of allowable games is needed to prevent a player who receives a jack inventing a new game on the fly to favour the particular hole cards he has been dealt.
In addition, a player who is dealt a face-down jack may reveal it at any time before the final round of betting and name a game. Immediately before the final betting round, the dealer offers each player in turn a final chance to reveal a jack, after which no fiurther changes are possible.
7 Card No Peek Rules
The high hand wins the pot, unless the winning condition has been changed by a player with a jack.