How
to Play 7-stud/8
Winning the entire pot by making both the best high hand
and the best low hand - scooping the pot - is your goal.
Short of that, your hand at showdown should be either the
best low or the best high, since you're guaranteed at least
half the pot. (If there's no low, the high scoops.)
Procedures are nearly identical to seven-card
stud, with just two differences: In 7-stud/8, you can't
make a double bet when there's a pair showing on Fourth
Street, as you can in seven-card stud. And, of course, the
pot is split whenever there's at least one acceptable low
hand at showdown.
As in Omaha/8, you can always make a high hand. But in order
to have a low hand, you must have five unpaired cards with
the rank of eight or lower. That's called an "eight-qualifier."
For example, if your
seven cards were A?J?9?7?5?4?2?, your high hand would be
an ace-high flush, composed of A?J?9?7?5?.Your low hand
would be called a "seven-low," made up of 7?5?4?s2?A?.
If you've been alert, you've just learned
something very important about 7-stud/8. Aces can be used
as both the highest and lowest card in the deck. When you're
dealt an ace, it's like receiving two cards for the price
of one, and that's worth remembering. Aces are valuable!
7-stud/8 has five rounds of betting, just
like it's high-only cousin. This often creates large pots,
since some players are trying to make a high hand, while
others are hoping to make the best low hand. As in seven
card stud, the best players are alert, staying aware of
both live cards and those already folded.
This games requires
a lot of patience. Many people love playing high-low split
games because, with two ways to win, they think they can
play more hands. But the best 7-stud/8 players play few
hands, and generally look for those with two-way possibilities.
After all, the objective of this games is to scoop pots,
not split them. Skilled players release many, many hands
on Third Street.
