Until recently 7 Card Stud was America’s favourite poker game – and it’s still a huge favourite in home games and bars around the world.
A long dealing structure involves a round of two downcards and one upcard being dealt to each player, followed by further upcards with the fourth, fifth and sixth community (or “board”) cards and one last downcard to each player. Players can use any five of their seven cards to make the best five-card poker hand they can.
As a betting game, 7 card stud can feature some big action, generated by an ante followed by five betting rounds. But up to half the deck can be on view at any one time, so if you’re going to bluff, you’d better be good.
For fans of multiple variants of poker, 7 card stud is the S in H.O.R.S.E, a tournament format involving five different varieties of the game, so anyone intending to become a good poker all-rounder should familiarise themselves with it quickly.
