7 Card Stud
This game is played with a maximum of 8 players (plus the virtual dealer). The most important difference between this and the other games is that in 7 Card Stud, there are no "community" cards. Each player has his own individual hand, and in fixed limit games, there are two bet limits.
The first two cards (hole cards) are dealt face down, and the other players can't see them. The next cards are called Streets (3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th Street), and they are dealt face up. The last card, the River, is dealt face down.
At the start of the round, the players must place Antes. The Ante is a fraction of the low bet limit and serves the same purpose as the Blinds in Hold'em games.
After the 3rd Street has been dealt, the player with the lowest face-up card starts the betting. (If two players are showing cards of the same value, the order is determined according to their suits. The suit order is, in descending rank: Spades, Hearts, Diamonds, Clubs.)
The starting player can either place a complete bet, or place a Bring-In. This is smaller than the complete bet, and again like the Blinds in other varieties, the player only needs to add the difference if the bet is completed and he decides to call. The other players can call, complete the bet, or raise.
Once the bets have been placed, the 4th Street is dealt. This time the player with the highest card or combination shown starts the betting, and there is no Bring-In. At this stage, any player can bet at the high limit, which will be applied to all subsequent bets.
The same cycle is used for the 5th and 6th Streets, and the River, except that the high limit is now applied regardless of whether it was used for the 4 th Street or not. After the River bets are placed, the highest five-card poker hand is formed from each player's cards. The highest ranking hand wins.
5 Card Stud
This is very similar to 7 Card Stud, and played by the same rules (but with up to 10 players). The difference is that only one card is dealt face down to each player; there are 2nd, 3rd and 4th streets, plus the River. |
