It is said that the Seven Card Stud Hi/Lo game is a technically demanding version of poker wearing the best traditional ‘high’ poker hand as well as the best Ace to Five low-ball hand to divide the pot at the Showdown. In this version of poker, players are provided seven cards through the course of the game but only the best five-card hand possible for every single player is factored in to determine the winner.
In Seven Card Stud Hi/Lo, the low hand is usually played with an ‘eight or better’ qualifier. It implies that a low hand must, in a worst case scenario, be at an eight-low in order to stand a chance to win the low portion of the port. The low hands in Seven Card Stud Hi/Lo are identified similar to how it is done in the game of Omaha Hi/Lo. And in case there is no qualifying low hand in the game, the high hand wins the entire pot on the table.
In Stud Hi/Lo, the ‘Ace of Five’ or the ‘California’ system are used for ranking the low head. Here, the straights and flushes do not count against the hand, and aces are always low, which means that the best possible hand is a wheel: 5, 4, 3, 2, A.
What are the rules of playing Seven Card Stud Hi/Lo?
Ante: Before the start of a game in Seven Cards Stud Hi/Lo, all the players ante a nominal amount. This amount is dependable exactly on the game and is also displayed in the title bar of the table.
Third Street: Every single player is initially given three cards, which have to be hidden whole cards and one face-up. The player who has the lowest exposed card is the one 'bringing in’, which means that he is required to start off the action. The players must also make one between, either a nominal bet, or, a full bet of the lower betting increment. The action continues on the table clockwise until the batting is completed for the round.
Fourth Street: The Fourth Street is an exposed card which is overall the fourth that a player receives at this stage. The first player here is the one who will act, only if he or she has the exposed card with the highest poker value. According to the rule, the player can either check or bet. Unlike in the Seven Card Stud, there is no double-sized bet allowed if a player makes a pair on the Fourth Street, i.e., all the bets are in lower increment.
Fifth Street: St this stage, the players get another exposed card which is also called the Fifth Street. As per the rule, the first player here to act is that individual whose exposed poker hand carries the highest poker value. There is another round of betting. At the start of the Fifth Street and for the rest of the hand, all the bets and raises here are in the big bet increments. For example in a 1/2 game, the better will be 2.
Sixth Street: As has been the trend, the Sixth Street is also another exposed card and the first player to act in this round is that individual whose exposed cards have the highest poker value. There is another round of betting.
Seventh Street (also called the River): In this stage, every single player now receives a seventh and final card, which is dealt face-down and known only to the player to whom it has been dealt. The first player to act here is that individual whose exposed cards have the highest poker value. There is a final round of betting, and in case there is more than one player left in the contest, the board gets to the stage of the showdown.
The Showdown: If there is more than one remaining player after the completion of the final round or the last person to have a bet or raised his or her cards first. If there were no bets placed in the final round, the player in the earliest or the first seat shows their cards and this process is followed in a chronological order.
The player with the best five-card hand for the high wins is the first half of the pot and the player with the best hand for low wins the other half of the pot. As it is in the case with other variations of this game, in event that no and qualifies for the low, the best hand for high wins the entire pot.
It must be remembered that in this variation of poker, there is an eight or better requirement to win the low. It implies that a player must have an unpaired five-card hand which also consists of all cards which are less than or equal to an eight. If there is no player who can meet this requirement no low qualifies. In case of two or more players having the same high or low cards, the pot half will be split among them equally.
