Razz
If you hate your "bad"
hands, you're going to love
them with razz because it's
a poker game in which the
low poker hand wins the pot
at showdown. Part lowball,
part 7-card stud, the goal
is to make the best
five-card low hand from
seven cards.
In razz poker, players
are dealt seven cards
throughout the course of the
hand, but only the best
five-card hand possible for
each player is used to
determine the winner.
Each player starts with
two hole cards and one
upcard; there are then three
more rounds of upcards, with
betting after each card, and
a final downcard, just as in
stud. Each player ends up
with seven cards: four face
up and three face down.
The game begins with a
small ante from all players
at the table and each player
is dealt two cards face down
and one card face up.
The player with the
highest up card begins the
betting with forced bet
(called the bring in) and
play moves in a clockwise
direction with players
either calling the bring,
completing the bet (raising
to the lower limit) or
folding. There is a limit of
three re-raises in all
betting rounds.
Next each player still in
the hand is dealt another
upcard, followed by another
betting round that begins
with the player whose
upcards make the best hand.
Since there are less than
5 cards face up no straights
flushes or full houses will
count for this.
Next a third upcard is
dealt followed by another
betting round, then a fourth
upcard is dealt again
followed by a betting round.
Finally a downcard is
dealt followed by the final
betting round and then a
showdown.
The player with the best
five-card razz hand wins the
pot. Remember that (unlike 7
card stud hi-lo and Omaha
hi-lo), there is no
"qualifier"; the hand with
the best value in razz order
wins the entire pot. After
the pot is awarded to the
best hand, a new game of
razz is ready to be played.
Razz follows the 2 down,
4 up, 1 down pattern of
seven card stud.
