No-pair hands are compared starting with the highest ranking card, just as in high poker, except that the high poker hand loses. In ace-to-five low, straights and flushes are ignored, and aces play as the lowest card.

For example, the hand 8-5-4-3-2 defeats 9-7-6-4-3, because eight-high is lower than nine-high. The hand 7-6-5-4-3 defeats both, because seven-high is lower still, even though it would be a straight if played for high. Aces are low, so 8-5-4-3-A defeats 8-5-4-3-2. Also, A-A-9-5-3 (a pair of aces) defeats 2-2-5-4-3 (a pair of deuces), but both of those would lose to any no-pair hand such as K-J-8-6-4. In the rare event that hands with pairs tie, kickers are used just as in high poker (but reversed): 3-3-6-4-2 defeats 3-3-6-5-A.

This is called ace-to-five low because the lowest and therefore best possible poker hand is 5-4-3-2-A, called a wheel or bicycle. The next best possible hand is 6-4-3-2-A, followed by 6-5-3-2-A, 6-5-4-2-A, 6-5-4-3-A, 6-5-4-3-2, 7-4-3-2-A, 7-5-3-2-1, etc.

When speaking, low poker hands are referred to by their highest ranking card or cards. Any nine-high hand can be called “a nine,” and is defeated by any “eight.” Two cards are frequently used: the hand 8-6-5-4-2 can be called “an eight-six” and will defeat “an eight-seven” such as 8-7-5-4-A.

High-low split poker games with ace-to-five low are usually played cards speak, that is, without a declaration. Frequently a qualifier is required for low (typically 8-high or 9-high).

Some poker hands (particularly small straights and flushes) may be both the low and the high hand, and are particularly powerful (or particularly dangerous if they are mediocre both ways). Winning both halves of the pot in a split-pot poker game is called scooping or hogging the pot. The perfect poker hand in such a game is called a steel wheel, 5-4-3-2-A of one suit, which plays both as perfect low and a straight flush high.

Note that it is possible – though astronomically unlikely – to have this hand and still lose money! If the pot has three players, and one other player has a mixed-suit wheel, and a third has a suited 10-9-8-7-6 for a higher straight flush, the higher straight flush wins the high half of the pot, and you and the other wheel split the low half of the pot, so you have won only a quarter of a three-way pot. Strange things can happen at poker tables.

Ace-to-five lowball is often played with a joker added to the deck. The joker always plays as the lowest card not already present in the hand (in other words, it is a wild card): in 7-5-4-Joker-A, for example, the joker plays as a 2. This can cause some interesting effects for high-low split poker games.

Let’s say that Alice has 6-5-4-3-2 (called a “straight six“) – a reasonably good hand for both high and low. Burt has Joker-6-5-4-3. By applying the rule for wild cards in straights, Burt’s joker plays as a 7 for high, giving him a seven-high straight to defeat Alice’s six-high straight. For low, the joker plays as an ace – the lowest card not in Burt’s hand – and his poker hand also defeats Alice for low, because his low hand is 6-5-4-3-A, lower than her straight six by one notch. Jokers are very powerful in high-low split poker games.

Play begins with each player being dealt five cards, one at a time, all face down. The remaining deck is placed aside, often protected by placing a chip or other marker on it. Players pick up the cards and hold them in their hands, being careful to keep them concealed from the other players. The first betting round occurs at this point, starting with the player to the dealer’s left. If more than one player remains after this round, the draw phase begins.

Each player specifies how many of his cards he wishes to replace, and discards that many from his poker hand. The remaining deck is retrieved and, after a burn card (a card dealt from the top of a deck, and placed aside unused) is dealt, each player in turn is dealt the same number of cards he discarded, so that each player again has five cards. It is important that each player discards the cards he wishes to replace before he takes any replacements, and that he take the same number of replacements as he discarded. A second betting round occurs after the draw phase, followed by a showdown if more than one player remains.

A common house rule in some places is that a player may not replace more than three cards, unless he draws four cards while keeping an ace (or wild card). This rule is only needed for low-limit social poker games where many players will stay for the draw, and helps to avoid depletion of the remaining deck. In more serious poker games such as those played in casinos, it is unnecessary and generally not used.

A rule that is used by many casinos is that a player is not allowed to draw five consecutive cards from the deck. If a player wishes to replace all five of his cards, he is given four of them in turn, the other players are given their draws, and then the dealer returns to that player to give him his fifth replacement card (if no later player drew, it is necessary to deal a burn card first). Another common house rule is that the bottom card of the deck is never given as a replacement card. This avoids the possibility of someone who might have seen the bottom card using that information.

If the deck stub is depleted during the draw before all poker players have received their replacement cards, the last players can receive cards chosen randomly from among those discarded by the previous players. For example, if the last poker player to draw wants three replacements, but there are only two cards remaining in the deck stub, the dealer gives the player the one top card he can give, then shuffles together the bottom card of the deck, the burn card if any, and the earlier players’ discards (but not the three discards of the last player!), and finally deals two more replacement cards to the last player.

Example: Alice deals five cards to each player and places the deck stub aside. Bob opens the betting round by betting $1. Carol folds, David calls, and Alice calls, closing the betting round. Bob now declares that he wishes to replace three of his cards, so he removes those three cards from his hand and discards them. Alice retrieves the deck stub, deals a burn card, then deals three cards directly to Bob, who puts them in his hand. David discards one card, and Alice deals one card to him from the deck stub. Alice now discards three of her own cards, and replaces them with three from the top of the deck stub. Now a second betting round begins. Bob checks, David bets $3, Alice calls, and Bob folds, ending the second betting round. David shows a flush, and Alice shows two pair, so David takes the pot.

Here is a list of some of the best online poker rooms we can recommend for practising your poker skills at for free or for playing for real money:
> Royal Vegas Poker
> 7 Sultans Poker
> Virtual City Poker
> Party Poker

Number of Players: 2 to 8

Five Card Stud is the original stud poker game. Its popularity was unsurpassed until the invention of Seven Card Stud early in the Twentieth Century. But it is still a very popular game, especially among the purists at heart.

Terminology

Betting Structure (Example for $10/$20 game)

*When a pair is showing.

Starting a Game

To begin playing Five Card Stud, you place an ante on the table. The amount of the ante varies with the stakes of the game. There is no ante in $0.50/$1.00 games.

Each player is then dealt two cards; one face down and one face up. The player with the lowest face-up card by suit starts the betting with a bring-in bet that is half the lower full bet. Subsequent players may then either fold, call or raise the amount to a full bet.

Second Round

Another card is then dealt, face up, to all players at the table. Another round of betting begins. The player who has the highest combination of cards showing acts first and may either bet or check. If two players are showing equal cards, the one nearest the dealer’s left acts first. If a player is showing a pair, any player may opt to bet at the higher limit in which case all subsequent calls and raises must be at the higher limit.

Third Round

Another card is then dealt, face up, to all players at the table. Another round of betting begins with the player who has the highest combination of cards showing. Bets are at the higher limit.

Fourth Round

With all the cards dealt, one down and four up to each active player, a final round of betting begins. When the betting is finished players show their hole cards and the highest five-card hand wins the pot.

A final round of betting ensues, ending in the showdown.

Players have four exposed and three hidden cards by this point. They then create the best five-card hand from their total of seven cards.

Note: Occasionally (rarely), there will not be enough cards left in the deck to deal everyone an individual seventh card. In this event, the dealer will turn up one card on the table that is common to all remaining active players.

Tips

• Watch your opponents’ exposed cards. Not only can you see when you are on a losing hand and fold early, you can also see if any cards that you need are already taken by someone else.
• Trying to make straights and flushes in 5 Card Stud can be very expensive and risky – it hardly ever happens. Staying with low connectors or low suited cards is usually a losing play.