7 Card Stud 8-or-Better Poker Game Rules
7 Card Stud 8-or-better (also known as Stud Hi/Lo or Stud/8) is a popular, well-known form of poker. The game is very similar to 7 Card Stud in structure, with the only exception being that it is played as a split-pot game, with half going to the high hand and half going to the low hand. It is played with up to eight players at the table.
The Game:
To ensure fairness, PartyPoker.net uses a Random Number Generator (RNG) to shuffle a deck of cards for each new hand. The RNG gives the most complete shuffle possible. The system generates a random set of numbers that are used to place a card of the deck in a particular position. Once the complete deck is created, the deck is only used for that particular hand. At the start of a new hand, the random numbers previously generated are discarded and a new set is generated before the shuffle.
The First Round:
A fresh table (where no hands have been played) starts off with all the players posting the ante (a pre-determined amount to be placed in the pot before the cards are dealt). This amount is based on the size of the game. While the ante amount is not based on a set rule, it is usually decided upon by the prevailing game trends. For example, the ante amount for a 1/2 limit stud game table is 0.25 chips, while in a 3/6 limit stud game, the ante is 0.50 chips. A new game on an active table starts with all the players at the table posting antes.
In 7 Card Stud/8, players receive a total of seven cards: three down cards and four up cards.
After the antes have been placed, each player is dealt three cards (two down cards and one up card). The up card is also known as the 'door card' or 'Third Street'. The lowest up card must initiate the action with a 'Bring-In' bet. (If two or more players have the same lowest card, the person who brings it in is determined by suit order progressing from clubs, diamonds, hearts, and spades.) Note that a very simple way to remember the suit rankings is that they are in alphabetical order, lowest to highest.
Each player is allowed one bet and three raises in each betting round. To continue to play, players must take an action from what is displayed to them on each 'street' or betting round (unless they are all-in).
The Second Round:
After the first round of betting, another card is dealt face-up to each player still in the hand (those who didn't fold on Third Street). This is 'Fourth Street' (the second round of betting). From Fourth Street on, the highest hand showing begins the action by checking or betting. If a player makes a bet, the other players may call, raise or fold.
The Third Round:
Upon completion of the betting on Fourth Street, another card is dealt face-up to each player still in the hand. This is 'Fifth Street'. It is the third round of betting, and the amount of the bet is double the value of each bet from the previous round. This amount continues for the remaining betting rounds. The highest hand showing again starts the action by checking or betting.
The Fourth Round:
Upon the completion of betting on 'Fifth Street', another card is dealt face-up. This is 'Sixth Street' (fourth betting round). The highest hand showing again starts the action by checking or betting.
The Fifth Round:
The final card is dealt down.
The last card is also known as the 'River' or 'Seventh Street' (final round of betting). The highest hand showing again starts the action by checking or betting.
The Showdown:
After the last betting round is concluded, all players remaining in the hand will show their cards (this is optional for the player, but to win the hand, a player must show his or her cards).
Each player uses five of his seven cards to make his best poker hand. The best hand wins the pot.
On the final round of betting, the player who bets first (or checks first if no one else bets) is required to show his cards first at the showdown. If that player has the best hand, the remaining players may or may not show their cards as they wish. The aggressor's hand is only turned over first if he was the last to initiate action on the river.
There is no qualifying needed for the high hand side of the pot - the best high hand automatically wins half the pot (and may win the whole pot if there is no qualifying low hand).
To win the low hand side of the pot, however, you must qualify (see below). This is why the game is called 7 Card Stud 8-or-Better (an 8-low is needed to contend for the low hand side of the pot).
To qualify for low: It takes a five-card hand with different numerical values from Ace through eight (with the Ace being the lowest) to qualify for the low half of the pot. The best low hand is A, 2, 3, 4, 5 (also known as the 'wheel' or 'bicycle'). The winning low hand goes to the player with the lowest high card. For example, a player with a 2, 4, 5, 6, 7 would have a better low hand than someone with an A, 2, 4, 6, 8, because the first player’s highest card is lower in rank than the second player’s highest card.
If two or more players have the same high card, the player with the second lowest card (or third, fourth, or fifth if necessary) in his hand wins the low side of the pot.
If there is no qualifying low hand, the player with the best high hand will win the entire pot.
There is a set rank of cards, which is used for deciding the winning combination.
Ties: In case two or more players tie for one side of the pot, they will split that half into equally divided portions. If there is an odd chip(s), it will go to the person(s) closest to the left of the 'button. (One player winning the high side and two players who tie for the low side is not uncommon in Omaha 8 or Better.) Players who win one half of one half of the pot are said to be 'quartered'. The suit order of the cards is not taken into account when deciding on the winning cards.
Split Pot: Any leftover odd chip goes to the high hand. If two or more players tie for the high side of the pot and there is an odd chip, the player with the highest card is awarded the odd chip. (If two or more players have the same high valued card, the suit takes precedence, with the highest-to-lowest ranking being spades, hearts, diamonds, and clubs.) If two or more players tie for the low side of the pot and there is an odd chip, that chip is awarded to the player with the lowest card in his hand. (If they have the same lowest card, the suit takes precedence with the lowest-to-highest ranking being clubs, diamonds, hearts, and spades.)
PartyPoker.net follows the standard rules of poker. Should poker hands be absolutely identical in ranking, the pot will be split evenly between the two or more winning players. If there is an odd chip, the winning player to the left of the button/dealer will receive it.
Some things to remember:
- Straights and flushes do not count against you when qualifying for a low hand
- You are permitted to use different cards in your hand for the high side and different cards for the low side or the same cards for both the high and low sides
There is a set rank of cards, which is used for deciding the winning combination.
If two or more hands are of the same rank, the pot is awarded to the player with the higher cards. For example, an Ace-high flush beats a King-high flush. If the poker hands remain tied, then the highest card not being held in common (the kicker) determines the winner. The suit order of the cards is not taken into account when deciding the winning cards.
Some Standard Rules
A maximum number of four bets, which includes one bet and three raises, is allowed for each betting round per player.
The term cap is used to describe the third and final raise in a round, since the betting is then 'capped' and no one can make another raise. Once capped, players will have the option of calling or folding only. Folding can be done at any stage of a game. The action of folding basically shows a player's cards being moved to the dealer. These cards are not exposed to the other players. Once a player has folded, he is no longer in contention for the pot.
Checking, as described above, is simply passing one's option to the next player in turn. A player who has checked is still in the hand but has elected not to bet. If there is a bet after a player has checked, all players who have checked will have the option to call the bet, raise the bet, or fold. This option would not always be available to the player, and it depends on the actions taken by the previous player in the hand. Each player must contribute an amount equal to the amount placed by any other players for each round in the hand.
At PartyPoker.net, poker is played 'table stakes', meaning only the chips in play at the beginning of each hand may be used throughout the hand. This means that the player cannot add additional chips to his stack at the table from his account while he is involved in a hand. If a player wishes to add chips, he must do it while out of a hand or between hands.
The table stakes rule has an application called the 'all-in' rule, which states that a player cannot be forced to forfeit a hand because the player does not have enough chips to call a bet (see below).
Exceptions to the Value of Betting in Each Round:
A player who does not have enough chips to call a bet is declared 'all-in'. The player is eligible to win the full amount of the pot at the point that his final wager was placed. All further action involving other players takes place in a 'side pot', which is unavailable to the player who has already gone all-in.
When a player goes all-in, the pot currently at the center of the table, which has contributions from that player as well, is treated as the main pot. The all-in player can contend for this pot only. The all-in player does not have rights over any side pots that might have been created. The side pot is awarded to the best hand of all other players in the pot (not including the all-in player, regardless of the value of his hand).
As this is a multi-player game, the players are expected to complete their actions within a set amount of time during their turn. At PartyPoker.net, players are given approximately 30 seconds to make each action. Initially, the player is given 10 seconds, after which there is a timer countdown. This timer is displayed on the table for 20 seconds.
If the player runs out of time, he is considered all-in if he has contributed some chips to the pot; otherwise, his hand is folded if he does not respond in time. The system can detect that a player has been disconnected. This means that if a player gets disconnected during the hand and is able to reconnect with several seconds left for his turn, then he is given an additional 20 seconds to make his decision. However, if the player is not able to reconnect and return to the table before the time elapses, then the player is considered all-in.
When a player is considered all-in, the player is still in contention for the pot, but would not be an active player (placing any bets) for the remainder of the hand. All betting action after a player is declared All-in will be placed in a side pot that the all-in player cannot claim. As noted above, whatever pot is collected up to this point in the hand is referred to as the main pot, and the all-in player has rights (if he wins) to this pot only. The side pot is awarded to the best hand among those players still in the hand who have not been declared all-in.
Please check PartyPoker.net's disconnection policy for more details.
These rules are just a starting point. Any poker pro will tell you that the best way to learn poker is to play poker, so why not download our free software now and give it a try? Good luck – we look forward to seeing you on the tables!
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