7 Card High/Low Rules and Basic Strategies

Seven card stud eights or better, also known as seven card stud hi lo, is a split pot game, played with two to eight players.  As in regular seven card stud, every player is dealt a total of seven cards, three of them face down, and the other four face up. Each player forms a high hand and, if possible, a qualifying low hand, using any five of his seven cards. Both the high hand combination and the low hand combination can use the same set of cards, but they don't have to. As in 7-Card Stud, aces play both high and low. You may use an ace as a high card for one hand, and as a low card for another.

Stud is one of the most demanding games, with a lot of cards on the table, each street demands a different approach, and betting can move from modest to sweat breaking in a matter of minutes. It is a game that requires a lot of skill, a good memory and strategy to be on the peak of the winners circle consistently.

Our rules and strategy guide will help you enjoy more of 7 Card High/Lo

Seven-Card Stud is a HIGH card game. More winning hands are decided by the highest pair of two pair or just the highest pair, than by straights, flushes and other big hands. So if you start with a straight or flush draw, it should have at least two high cards or at least one card that is higher than anything up on the board. These draw hands and low pair starting hands need to improve or turn a high pair quickly to justify continued play. When your high hand is beaten on the board, fold, unless you think you still have the best draw hand.

A maximum of four bets is allowed, which includes one bet, and three raises are for each betting round per player. 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 term cap is used to describe the final raise in a round since 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 the game. The action of folding basically shows the player cards being moved to the dealer. The player from then on would not be considered as part of the game. He/she would not have any rights over any pots created on the table.

Poker is typically 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 get additional funds while he is in the midst of a game. 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.

The First Round of Betting :Third Street

A new game on an active table starts with all the players at the table posting antes.  There are five betting rounds in a complete game of 7 Card Stud, not including the ante.

For Seven-card stud poker, players are dealt a total of seven cards, three "down" cards and four "up" cards. On the first round of betting, the low card by suit is required to initiate action with a "bring in bet" equal to half the lower limit. Suits are ranked: spades (highest), hearts, diamonds, clubs. On subsequent rounds, the high hand on board initiates betting action. If hands are tied, the player to the left of the dealer acts first. In all cases, the dealer will inform the players as to who acts first.

The dealing starts with each player being dealt ( 1 )two down cards and one up card. The up card is known as the "door card" or "Third Street".

For each betting round every player is allowed one bet and three raises. 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 of Betting :Fourth Street

Another card is now dealt ( 2 ) face-up to the players who haven't folded in third street. Fourth Street is the second round of betting. From "Fourth Street" on, the highest hand showing begins the action by checking or betting. If a pair is showing on "Fourth Street", players have the option to make a single or double bet. If a player makes a single/double bet, the other players may call, raise the single bet, raise the double bet or fold. In case of a double bet, only an equal amount can be raised (to the extent of the double bet).

The Third Round of Betting :Fifth Street

Upon completion of the betting on "fourth street", another card is ( 3 ) dealt face-up to those who remain in the pot. This is called "Fifth Street" (the third round of betting - which doubles (the value of each bet is double of what was available in the first two rounds) - and continues at this amount for the remaining betting rounds). The highest hand showing again starts the action by checking or betting.

The Fourth Round of Betting :Sixth Street

( 4 ) Another card is now dealt face-up. This is "Sixth Street" (fourth betting round).

The Fifth Round of Betting :Seventh Street

The final card is  ( 5 ) dealt down. The last card is also known as the "River Card" or "Seventh Street" (final round of betting).

The Showdown:

Players may now use 5 of their 7 cards to make the best poker hand.
Note: Very seldom a situation occurs where there are not enough cards in the deck to give each player their own "river card". In this case the dealer must turn one boardcard face-up and it will be used as a community card.

The highest hand wins 50% of the pot and the lowest qualifying low hand wins 50% of the pot. If no low hand qualifies then the highest hand wins the entire pot.

To qualify for a low hand, you must have five distinct cards (no pairs), with no card higher than an 8. Straights and flushes do not count against you. The best 5-card low hand is A-2-3-4-5 of any suit. The hand is "ranked" by starting with the highest low card. 7-4-3-2-1 would be considered a 7-low, and would lose to 6-4-3-2-1, a 6-low. If two players each have low hands with the same highest card, the next highest card determines the winner. 7-5-4-3-2 loses to 7-4-3-2-1. If there is no qualifying low hand, the high hand wins the entire pot.

How the Online Game Differs from Home Games

Home games often feature unusual variants of seven stud high-low, sometimes involving wild cards and replacements. You won't find these online or in b&ms. Another home game variant you won't see is the declaration, in which players indicate at the showdown whether they're going high or low-or both ways. That home game variant never has a qualifier, and a player has to win the half of the pot for which he "spoke." A player can win the low half, for example, without actually having the best low hand-if the holder of the best low does not declare properly. Any hand can win the low half of the pot-even a pair or worse-as long as it is the lowest hand to declare low.

Online and in b&ms, "cards speak." What this means online is that at the showdown the software determines which hand is best for high and which for low-providing a hand qualifies for low-and awards the pot accordingly.

We recommend you try the Poker School at the Poker Room. There you can try out a few lessons that could help to improve your game. Get the confidence you need to play low limit poker for real money and enjoy the excitement of it.