Variant of card game poker
Seven-card stud, also known as Seven-Toed Pete or
Down-The-River,[1] is a variant of stud poker. Before ♠ the 2000s surge of popularity of
Texas hold 'em,[2] seven-card stud was one of the most widely played poker variants ♠ in
home games across the United States[3] and in casinos in the eastern part of the
country. Although seven-card stud ♠ is not as common in casinos today, it is still played
online. The game is commonly played with two to ♠ eight players; however, eight may
require special rules for the last cards dealt if no players fold. With experienced
players ♠ who fold often, playing with nine players is possible.
In casino play, it's
common to use a small ante and bring-in. ♠ In home games, using an ante only is
typical.
Seven-card stud is the "S" game in HORSE and similar mixed game ♠ formats.
Rules
[ edit ]
The game begins with each player being dealt two cards face down and one card
face up. ♠ The player with the lowest-ranking upcard pays the bring-in, and betting
proceeds after that in normal clockwise order. The bring-in ♠ is considered an open, so
the next player in turn may not check. If two players have equally ranked low ♠ cards,
suit may be used to break the tie and assign the bring-in (see high card by suit). If
there ♠ is no bring-in, then the first betting round begins with the player showing the
highest-ranking upcard, who may check. In ♠ this case, suit is not used to break ties. If
two players have the same high upcard, the one first ♠ in clockwise rotation from the
dealer acts first.
After the first betting round, another upcard is dealt to each
player (after ♠ a burn card, and starting at the dealer's left as will all subsequent
rounds), followed by a second betting round ♠ beginning with the player whose upcards
make the best poker hand. Since fewer than five cards are face up, this ♠ means no
straights, flushes, or full houses will count for this purpose. On this and all
subsequent betting rounds, the ♠ player whose face-up cards make the best poker hand will
act first, and may check or bet up to the ♠ game's limit.
The second round is followed by
a third upcard and betting round, a fourth upcard and betting round, and ♠ finally a
downcard, a fifth betting round, and showdown if necessary. Seven-card stud can be
summarized therefore as "two down, ♠ four up, one down". Upon showdown, each player makes
the best five-card poker hand they can out of the seven ♠ cards they were dealt.
Seven
cards to eight players plus four burn cards makes 60 cards, whereas there are only 52
♠ in the deck: in most games, this is not a problem because several players will have
folded in early betting ♠ rounds. In the event that the deck is exhausted during play,
the four previously dealt burn cards can be used, ♠ but if these are not sufficient, then
the final round will have a single community card (which can be used ♠ by everyone) dealt
into the center of the table in lieu of a downcard to each player. Discarded cards from
♠ a folded hand are not reused.
Unlike draw poker, where no cards are ever seen before
showdown, stud poker players use ♠ the information they get from face-up cards to make
strategic decisions. A player who sees a certain card folded is ♠ able to make decisions
knowing that the card will never appear in another opponent's hand.
Variants [ edit
]
There are several ♠ variations of Seven-Card Stud Poker in which each player is dealt a
set number of cards. Not all of these ♠ variations can be found at poker rooms but they
can be fun to play at home.
"Down the River" is the ♠ basic variation of Seven-Card Stud
Poker and this is the game played in poker rooms. "Mississippi" removes the betting
round ♠ between fourth and fifth streets, making only four betting rounds. This game also
deals the fourth and fifth cards face ♠ up. This makes the game more closely resemble
Texas Hold'em by having the same betting structure and the same number ♠ of down and up
cards. Another is "roll your own", in which four rounds of two cards each are dealt
♠ down, and each player must "roll" one card to face up, followed by a round of betting.
Except for the ♠ first round, the card rolled may or may not be from the round just
dealt. "Queens and after": in this ♠ variant, all Queens are wild, and so is whatever
card that is dealt face up that follows the Queen. All ♠ cards of that kind are now wild,
both showing and in the hole. The fun part is that if another ♠ Queen is dealt face-up,
the wild card will change to whatever follows this Queen. The former card is no longer
♠ wild. "Baseball": in this variant 3s and 9s are wild, and a 4 dealt face up gets an
extra card. ♠ "Low Chicago": Low spade in the hole gets half the pot. Similarly, "High
Chicago" means high spade instead of low. ♠ Just "Chicago" can mean either. "Acey Ducey":
aces and twos are wild. One-eyed Jacks or Suicide King can be specified ♠ as wild. Razz
is a lowball form of Seven-Card Stud, with the objective being to get the lowest hand
possible. ♠ In the variation called "Seven-Card Stud High-Low", the pot is split between
the holder of the highest and lowest hand ♠ if the low hand is topped by at least an 8.
Alternative names to this variation are Seven-Card Stud/8 and ♠ Seven-Card Stud
Split.
Sample deal [ edit ]
The sample deal below assumes that a game is being played
by four players: ♠ Jimmy, who is dealing in the examples; Larry, who is sitting to his
left; Craig to his left; and Katherine ♠ to Craig’s left.
All players ante 25¢. Jimmy
deals each player two downcards and one upcard, beginning with Larry and ending ♠ with
himself. Larry is dealt the 4♠, Craig the K♦, Katherine the 4♦, and Jimmy the 9♣.
Because they are ♠ playing with aR$1 bring-in, Katherine is required to start the betting
with aR$1 bring-in (her 4♦ is lower than Larry’s ♠ 4♠ by suit). She had the option to
open the betting for more, but she chose to bet only the ♠ requiredR$1. The bring-in sets
the current bet amount toR$1, so Jimmy cannot check. He decides to call. Larry folds,
indicating ♠ this by turning his upcard face down and discarding his cards. Craig raises
toR$3. Katherine folds, and Jimmy calls.
Jimmy now ♠ deals a second face-up card to each
remaining player: Craig is dealt the J♣, and Jimmy the K♥. Jimmy’s two ♠ upcards make a
poker hand of no pair, K-9-high, and Craig has K-J-high, so it is Craig's turn to bet.
♠ He checks, as does Jimmy, ending the betting round.
Another face up card is dealt:
Craig gets the 10♥ and Jimmy ♠ gets the K♣. Jimmy now has a pair of kings showing, and
Craig still has no pair, so Jimmy bets ♠ first. He betsR$5, and Craig calls.
On the next
round, Craig receives the 10♦, making his upcards K-J-10-10. Jimmy receives the ♠ 3♠.
Jimmy’s upcards are 9-K-K-3; the pair of kings is still higher than Craig’s pair of
tens, so he betsR$5 ♠ and Craig calls.
Each player now receives a downcard. It is still
Jimmy’s turn to bet because the downcard did not ♠ change either hand. He checks, Craig
betsR$10, and Jimmy calls. That closes the last betting round, and both players remain,
♠ so there is a showdown.
Since Jimmy called Craig’s bet, Craig shows his cards first: Q♠
2♥ K♦ J♣ 10♥ 10♦ ♠ A♦. He can play A-K-Q-J-10, making an ace-high straight. Jimmy shows
(or, seeing he cannot beat Craig’s straight, mucks his ♠ cards): 9♥ 5♦ 9♣ K♥ K♣ 3♠ 5♠.
The best five-card poker hand he can play is K-K-9-9-5, making two ♠ pair, kings and
nines. Craig wins the pot.
In popular culture [ edit ]
At the end of Tennessee
Williams' play A ♠ Streetcar Named Desire, the minor character Steve says "This game is
seven-card stud," seemingly a reference to the narrative's transactional, ♠ game-like
nature and its lack of propensity to change.
