7 Card Stud

7-Card Stud: Not Quite Holdem

For many poker players, 7-card stud is not as important as Texas Hold’em, if they know the game at all. 7-Card Stud is a  traditional version of poker which is still found in a small number of live and online poker rooms: here it usually attracts players from an older generation.

7 Is the Magical Number

Both Hold’em and this version of stud use seven cards, with the primary difference being how the cards are dealt and displayed. There are no “community” or shared  cards in stud. The cards that everyone can see are personal cards with individual players, usually four cards out of the seven that each player receives.

7-Card Stud Basics

The basics of the game are:

• Each player antes up and is dealt two cards face down and one card face up.
• In traditional seven-card games the player with the lowest up card has to “bring in” an amount that is decided before play commences. This applies to games in which the high hand wins. There are variants in which the high up card may bring in – this might be applicable in a low-ball game or split game.
• When the first round of betting is concluded,  the play continues with a fourth card dealt face up. The player with the best hand of the two exposed cards starts the betting.
• Play continues with a fifth card up and a sixth card up. Betting rounds come after each individual round of cards.
• The last card is dealt face down and one more round of betting occurs.At this point 7-Card Stud is markedly different from Hold’em – each player has three “hole” cards and four “up” cards.

7 Players Maximum?

Because each player receives a full hand of seven cards, this version of the game must usually be limited to seven players. If there are 8 or more players, the deal continues one card at a time and additional cards can only be dealt if some players drop out of the hand. These cards may be reshuffled and dealt to the remaining players.

With just these few basics, almost any group of friends or family members can have a great time playing 7-card stud. Experienced players make their decision to stay after three or four cards, in most cases. For example, the best players will drop out immediately if they don’t have three cards to a flush or straight, or a pair with an Ace or King – in the first three cards!

More advanced 7-card stud play is possible with help from such pros as David Sklansky, Mason Malmuth and others. The game is still included in many major tournaments and poker rooms worldwide.