Other Games – Card Stud High Low

Rules

Seven Card Stud Hi/Low is played exactly like 7 card stud, with one key difference - the lowest hand wins half the pot. The qualifier is that the low hand has to contain 5 cards that are 8 or less (straights and flushes don’t count). Thus, A2345 is the best low hand option and 87654 is the worst possible low hand option. The even is a tie for the low or high hand, so part of the pot is split between the two winning hands. Also, if there is no qualifying low hand, the high hand wins the whole pot.

Basic Strategy

In Stud 8, you want to scoop the whole pot. Your main goal is winning both the low and high hand from 3rd street on. Winning half of the pot is considered to be ‘escaping.’ When you escape with half the pot, you generally don’t win a lot. For example; take a three handed pot where you split with another hand. Therefore, your profits are half of one person’s bets. If you scooped the same pot, your profits would have been both people’s bets, which is four times greater. As you can see, escaping with half the pot means that you don’t lose money, but it’s not a way to make money. We recommend you to play hands that will give you a chance to win both sides of the pot.

If you are a stud 8 beginner, you should take full advantage of this concept. Many beginners simply call all the way, hoping to win half of the pot. This is a losing approval because they put in a lot of money, hoping to walk out with a little return.

Starting Hands

Your main focus should be to start with hands that have a potential to win the whole pot.
Here are some examples of excellent starting hands to play;

Trips:
(A  A  A )
(5  5  5 )
(2  2  2 )
(8  8  8 )
(J  J  J )
These Trips are a very strong hand to start with; they have a chance of scooping the pot without improvement.

Low straight flush:
(4  5  3 )
(6  4  3 )
(7  5  3 )
(8  5  6 )
These small straight flush draws have a lot of potential.

Two aces and a low card:
(A  A  3 )
(A  A  5 )
(A  A  6 )
To start with two aces and a low card you are working for both sides of the pot.
Possibly aces up, trips or to manufacture a low hand.

Here are examples of good starting hands.

Three small straight cards:
(5x 4x 2x)
(7x 5x 4x)
(8x 7x 6x)

Two small cards with an ace:
(Ax 7x 2x)
(Ax 8x 3x)
(Ax 6x 4x)

Aces with a high card
(A  A  K )
(A  A  Jc )
(A  A  10 )

Here are examples of fair starting hands:

Three small straight cards double gap
(2x 4x 6x)
(7x 5x 3x)
(8x 6x 4x)

Three cards to a flush
(J  9  A )
(K  9  4 )
(Q  6  8 )
(A  7  9 )

If you are holding three cards to a flush, you are better off having your up card a low card where the other players might think you are drawing for low. Then you might get more action if you hit your flush.

Large pocket pair with low card:
(J  J  / 3 )
(Q  Q  / 4 )
(K  K  / 5 )

The large pocket pair has good value because if you hit trips, the other players would probably think you missed your low and you might win a monster pot.

High pocket pair:
(K  9  K )
(Q  6  Q )
(J  3  J )

These high pairs need to be played with extreme caution. Be willing to get rid of them if you think someone else can beat them. Remember, when someone is going for low and catches an ace, the ace either helps their low or gives them a pair of aces.

Selective and aggressive: It is extremely hard to bluff at the lower limits, as people are shooting for both the high and low pots. The key for winning is to be selective with the hands you do start with and when you get the premium hands, play them aggressively.

If you hit bad, toss it: by Fifth Street you should already know if you need to plan on calling all the way to the river. This way you don’t invest any big bets into a losing hand. If you have 345 (all of spades), you have a great starting hand. However, if the next two cards are JQ of hearts, your hand doesn’t worth anything.

Practice Hands

Which of the following are raising hands?

1. 4  3  2 
2. A  4  5 
3. Ac  A  2 
4. 5  5  5 

These hands are all premium hands. They are all raising hands.

Which one Of the following hands would you fold?

1. A  7  3 
2. 4  5c  3 
3. 9  5  2 
4. A  4  2 

All of the hands are playable except hand C.

Suppose your hand is K  K  / 3 , the Tight player was low with a 2  and brought it in for the minimum. Everyone else folded and you are last to act. What is your play?

1. fold
2. raise
3. call

because of the low up card, Your hand is a bit deceiving. The play is B. raise, for a low draw. You might win here if they fold, or you might hit a King for a monster hand.

Suppose the Reckless player was low with the 3  and brought it in for the minimum, he is showing the Kd raises. You are next to play with A  A  / 3 . What is your act?

1. Fold
2. Raise
3. Call

You have two aces and one low card up. It looks like the reckless player might have a pair of kings. Your best play is B. raise, and tries to get it heads up with the reckless player.

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