7 Card Stud Poker Overview
The most popular and most talked about the variation of stud poker is the 7 card stud poker. This game can be played between two to eight people. In 7 card stud poker, each player is dealt with seven cards, and the aim of the game is to form the best five-card combination using any of the seven cards dealt. The player to form the best combination is declared as the winner.
Unlike the Texas Holdem and Omaha variations of poker, the 7 card stud poker variation is only played with bet limits. In this variation of poker, there are no Pot Limit or No Limit games.
Features of Seven-card stud poker:
All cards dealt are individual cards, this means there are no community cards or common cards
Few cards are dealt face up, few cards are dealt face down (minimum one) and is only visible to the player it is dealt to
All players have to bet an Ante before the hand begins – there are no blinds in stud poker
Seven-card stud has two variants – Seven-card stud (also known as Seven-card stud High) and Seven-card stud High-Low
Rules of 7 Card Stud Poker
- In Seven-Card Stud, to begin with, each player is dealt 2 face-down cards (hole cards) and 1 card facing up.
- If a player remains in the game until the end, a player will end up with 4 cards facing up and 3 cards facing down (the last card will be dealt facing down, similar to the first two cards).
- The main aim is to use the 3 Hole cards and 4 face-up cards to make the best five-card combination that is possible.
- A player can use any of the 7 cards dealt, to make the best five-card poker hand.
- Most stud poker games are very well structured and have bet limits.
- The initial 2 betting rounds include a lower amount of bets whereas, the last 3 betting rounds include a higher bet amount.
- Every player is required to put an Ante before the cards are dealt.
- Players who choose not to put their Ante are dealt out.
- After the players put their Ante, players are dealt 2 cards face down and 1 card face up.
- The lowest card (face up) will have to initiate the betting round, the lowest card is the 2 of clubs, and if more than one player possesses the same low card, the lowest card is determined alphabetically (2C, 2D, 2H, 2S).
- Every player has the option to fold, call the bet, or raise.
- At this point, all bets and raises will be the same amount.
- A player must decide basis his first 3 cards, if he should continue i.e. stay in the pot or fold and exit the round.
- A player has 3 choices at this point – Call the opening bet, raise the bet, or fold the hand.
- If a player decides to stay in the game, another card is dealt face up, the action then begins from the high card with another round of betting at the same limit.
- If a player still remains in the game at this point, another card is dealt face up and all bets and raises increase to twice the initial bet amount (all bets and raises here on will be made at a higher limit).
- The last and final card is dealt face-down, following which the last round of betting begins.
- After all bets are placed, all players in the game turn over their cards and the best five-card hand will be awarded the pot.
- If a player runs out of money or chips during any play of the hand, the player still gets to stay in the pot for the remainder of the hand and get to be a part of the pot that they did bet in.
