Although Texas Hold ‘em has become the most-played game on online poker sites, many people enjoy other variations of the game.
And for some, it’s hard to beat draw poker.
Texas Hold ‘em rewards players who are experts at betting strategy, but there is nothing anyone at the table can do to actually influence which cards they have. You get two hole cards at the start of the deal, and you just have to make the best of them.
Draw poker is more of a game of skill, in that it allows players to make decisions based upon how they feel they will be able to improve their hands.
At card tables around the world, draw poker is often played with an ante, and betting always begins with the player to the left of the dealer. In casinos, however, blinds are common. The first betting round begins with the player who is to the left of the big blinds, then the button is passed on the next hand.
There are a number of variants on draw poker, including Jackpots, where a player can only open the betting in the first round if their hand contains a pair of jacks or better. If no player is able to open, a new deal begins and everyone antes into the same pot.
This is also called Gardena, named after the city in California where it was particularly popular from the 1930s.
Another game originating in the same state is California lowball, played using ace-to-five low hand values, with a single joker in the deck.
Kansas City lowball is a five-card draw game using deuce-to-seven low hand values and no joker.
There are also double-draw and triple-draw games, which allow two or three draw phases and therefore three or four betting rounds.
Not all draw games are five-card. Badugi, sometimes called Padooki, is a four card ace-to-five lowball variant which uses a different ranking of poker hands.
Written by Alex Corcoran, an online content writer who enjoys everything social online. She likes to Play Bingo, Poker and Casino Games found through sites like this one.
