7 Card Stud Hi-Lo Help

A game of Seven Card Stud Hi/Lo is played out the same as normal 7 Card Stud, but at the end of the hand the player with the best regular poker hand splits the pot with the player who holds the best qualifying low hand. A low hand must 'qualify', meaning not any low hand can be played. A player's low hand must consist of 5 cards that are each valued 8 or lower (not including pairs). Aces can be played low, and straights and flushes do not count in a low hand.

The Game:

A game of 7 Card Stud Hi/Lo is played just like regular Stud, until the round is complete and the pot is split:
  • Initially, every player antes up at the start of the game before any cards are dealt (the ante is usually determined by the table with the normal ante rate being 10% of the betting limits, i.e. a $5/$10 game would have a 50 cent antes).
  • Everyone is dealt three cards, two cards face down and one card face up. Common names for the first face-up card are the 'door card' or "Third Street".
  • Betting takes place. Usually the person with the lowest 'door card' has to bet first (some rooms make the highest 'door card' player bet in a pot limit game), this is referred to as the 'bring-in bet'.
  • Every player is dealt another face-up card (known as "Fourth Street").
  • There is another round of betting.
  • Every player is dealt another face-up card (known as "Fifth Street").
  • More betting, with the betting amount raised.
  • Every player is dealt another face-up card (known as "Sixth Street").
  • There is another round of betting at the same level as the Fifth Street.
  • The last card is dealt this time face down (called the "River" or "Seventh Street").
  • Final bets are placed.
After the final round of betting is complete, the person with the highest five card hand takes half of the pot, and the player with the best low hand takes the other half of the pot. In the event that no player has a 'qualifying' low hand, the entire pot goes to the high hand winner. With the right cards it is possible for a player to 'scoop' the pot, taking both the low and high halves of the pot.

The Betting Rounds

During each round of betting, players still in the hand have 4 actions they may take:
  • Fold - if a player does not lot the cards they have, and does not wish to continue paying to play in the hand, they can fold and sit out the remainder of the hand with no more cost to them.
  • Check - if no-one has bet before them, a player may "check", meaning they will stay in the hand but do not wish to bet at this point.
  • Call - if someone has bet before a player and they still wish to stay in the hand, they must match the bet(s) that were made before their turn.
  • Raise - to increase the bet amount by not only matching, but then raising the number of chips other players must call to remain in the hand.

Betting continues until all but one of the players have folded or until no-one wants to increase the bet. With the betting round over the next sequence in the hand takes place.

Betting Note: Stud is different than Hold'em games, in that the player with the highest ranking hand face up always bets first for that round, regardless of their position. The bet then continues clockwise around the table.