Razz Poker
Razz is effectively Seven card stud played low, as follows:
Seven card stud is played with a regular 52 card deck.
How to Play Razz Poker
The deal moves clockwise, to the left, player by player, in turn on each hand.
Typically an ante of a set amount is entered by each player to start the pot before cards are dealt.
In casinos, the cards are not dealt by the actual players, but by the casino dealer, and a “button” is placed in front of the player who would be the dealer in turn, clockwise, hand by hand.
After the ante, cards are dealt one by one down around starting with the player left of the dealer and this is repeated so each player has two down cards, then one up card is dealt around to each player.
Betting then begins with either the player with the highest card showing, with suit being taken into consideration, and Aces are low in Razz.
Players then either check, call, raise, or fold in turn starting to the left of the player who placed the opening bet.
Another up card is then dealt to each player who has not folded. Now, the lowest poker hand of the up cards determine who bets. Suits (flushes) at this point do not matter, nor do straights (cards sequentially next to each other in rank. As an example on the second up card, an Ace Deuce would bet first, with players to the left of the bettor calling, raising or folding in turn.
This is repeated for a third up card and the same rules of worst poker hand for the three up cards determine which player bets.
Likewise, this is repeated for a fourth up card, same rules, with another round of betting.
The seventh card, called the “River” card, is then dealt down to each player. This used to be called “down and dirty,” but that term has fallen out of use except perhaps in home games.
After this final down card is dealt, the player again with the worst poker hand showing of his or her up cards bets, checks, or folds. The players still in the hand follow in turn, either calling, folding or raising.
After all raising is over and called, each player makes his worst five card poker hand with any of the seven cards dealt to him. Low hand takes the pot. Straights and flushes have no meaning, so Ace, Deuce, Three, Four, Five would be the best Razz hand. That’s called “the Wheel,” and sometime “the Bike.”
Razz Poker Rules
Other differences between Seven card stud High are that in Razz, an open pair does not affect the betting limit. Also, the dealer will announce pairs, but not pairs of face cards.
Razz can be fun and frustrating and also profitable, as not as many players are familiar with and thus highly skilled at it. It also is good to become skilled at if you intend to play in mixed games such as HORSE.