Before Texas Hold’em Poker, Bitcoin poker players played 7-Card Stud Poker. You can play it with two to eight players. If you find 7-Card Stud Poker Rules confusing, that is what this short guide is for.
In stud, you’re remembering cards and hands. It’s different from Texas Hold’em poker, where you’re playing the players and practicing creative betting. If you’re into math and cards, you’ll do just fine. You can read the 7-Card Stud Poker Rules over and over, but it’s best to play poker with Bitcoin and learn that way.
7-Card Stud Poker Rules
When looking at 7-Card Stud Poker Rules, you might feel a bit daunted. There are a lot of small rules, but it’s a simple game.
You can break down a whole game into sections:
- Setup
- Bring-in
- Betting Rounds
- Showdown
Setup
Before anything else, decide what your betting limit will be. 7-card stud usually has a betting limit structure. The bets are in fixed increments. If it’s a $4/$8 limit game, bets will be in increments of $4 in the first two rounds. For the last three rounds, it’ll be $8.
Then the dealer will shuffle the cards. After shuffling, everyone has to ante. The ante is dead money; it goes straight to the pot. If you want to bet more, it’ll be in addition to the ante. The game will start with the player on the dealer’s left. Then the game moves clockwise. You’ll get two faces down cards, followed by one face up card.
Bring-In
Every poker game will have a way of determining who starts. In Omaha, the action starts to the left of the big blind. For Stud, it starts with the bring-in. whoever has the lowest value card needs to “bring it in.”
If you have the lowest card, you have two options: make a nominal bet or a full low increment bet. The game continues clockwise until betting is complete.
Betting Rounds
If you’re to the left of the bring, you’re up next. According to the 7-Card Stud Poker Rules, you have three options.
- Fold: You don’t add to the pot and discard your hand.
- Call: Match the amount of the bring
- Raise: If the first player makes a minimum bring, the raise will complete the bet. If the player made a full small bet, adding a raise doubles it.
Showdown
Lastly, it’s time for the showdown. Out of 7 cards, players make the best 5-card hand they can. The other two cards are “dead” and don’t have value. Your goal is to have the best hand and win the pot.
It’s always toughest to learn the 7-Card Stud Poker Rules when you start. But after a few games, you’ll find it easier to remember.