Razz Rules
Razz is a form of stud poker that is normally played for ace-to-five low. It is one of the oldest forms of poker, and has been played since the start of the 20th Century. It emerged around the time people started using the 52-card deck instead of 20 for poker. The object of Razz is to make the lowest possible five-card hand from the seven cards you are dealt. In Razz, straights and flushes do not count against the player for low, and the ace always plays low. Thus, the best possible Razz hand is. Having three of a kind goes against your hand even more than a pair. Having three of a kind plus a pair (for example 9, 9, 5, 5, 5) is the worst possible hand combination you can get in this game. Remember, there are no straights or flushes in Razz poker. Razz poker is a stud poker variation of lowball poker. It is essentially a variation within a variation, which is part of the game’s charm. The poker hand hierarchy is inverted for razz poker games. Therefore, the best hand is five high hand that is a 5-4-3-2-A hand. Card suits are not of importance in razz poker.
Table Of Contents
Razz Poker Rules. Razz poker is a lowball poker game meaning the rank of the poker hands is inverted. Therefore, the highest-ranking hand is 5 4 3 2 A. Straights and flushes do not count in razz poker; therefore, card suits are completely disregarded in what makes the best hand. After a winner (or winners) has been determined and the pot awarded, the cards are shuffled, antes reposted and then a new hand of razz dealt. What Hands Win in Razz Poker. The winning hand in razz is the hand that is the lowest.
Introduction
Razz poker variation (sometimes referred to as “seven-card razz”) is a stud variant first made popular several decades ago alongside other “lowball” games. Its popularity waned somewhat during the 1990s and early 2000s, but the rise of mixed games and H.O.R.S.E. (of which razz is the “R” variant) helped reintroduce the game to a new generation.
Razz can be played with two to eight players. Like seven-card stud, it does not involve a flop (like hold’em or Omaha) nor any community cards. Unlike seven-card stud, the object in razz is to make the lowest possible five-card poker hand out of the seven cards.
Game Play
Game play for razz is very similar to that of seven-card stud. To begin each player is dealt the first two cards face down and a third facing up. As in stud, this first deal and the betting round that follows it is commonly referred to as “third street,” with each subsequent deal/betting round referred to similarly (“fourth street,” etc. through “seventh street”). The two down cards are referred to as “hole cards” with the third card facing up called the “door card.”
As in seven-card stud, in razz a player will decide on the basis of these first three cards whether or not to continue in the hand, with starting hand selection again being a key element of the game’s strategy.
Each player who doesn’t fold prior to seventh street eventually will be dealt a total of seven cards — the first two down and one up, then three more up, then the last card down. From these seven cards the player has to make the best possible five-card combination, only instead of making a high hand the player is trying to make the lowest possible hand with the ace always counting as the lowest ranking card.
Flushes and straights don’t count in razz, meaning the best possible razz hand is 5x4x3x2xAx with suits being entirely inconsequential. The second best hand is 6x4x3x2xAx, the third best is 6x5x3x2xAx, and so forth following the same procedure used for ranking low hands in other “lowball” or split-pot games.
Also there is no “eight-or-better” qualifier in razz — the lowest hand at showdown wins, regardless how low it is.
Antes, bring-in and betting
As in seven-card stud, antes and bring-in bets are employed in razz in order to stimulate action. We’ll use the example of a $10/$20 razz game with an ante of $1 and a bring-in of $5. (Like most stud games, razz is most typically played as a fixed-limit betting game.)
Each player wanting to be dealt in to receive a hand would have to post the $1 ante, creating a pot worth competing for. The first three cards are then dealt to each player before it is determined that one player must post the bring-in. Whereas in seven-card stud the player with the lowest-ranking door card must post the $5 bring-in, in razz it’s the opposite — the player with the highest door card must pay the bring-in, with the Kx being the highest-ranking card in the game.
If multiple players have a king showing on third street, this becomes the only instance in razz where suits matter, with the player having the highest ranking king being the one forced to post the bring-in according to the following ranking: K♠ (highest), K♥ (next highest), K♦ (third highest), and K♣ (lowest).
As in seven-card stud, the player posting the bring-in has an option to “complete” the bet to $10 (the small limit of the game). From there betting clockwise around the table, with each player having the option to call, raise, or fold. Once the betting is complete, every player left in the hand is dealt a fourth card (i.e., “fourth street”).
In seven-card stud, the first player to act from fourth street on is the player displaying the highest-ranking hand. Meanwhile in razz the first player to act on fourth street and on subsequent rounds is the one with the lowest hand showing.
In a $10/$20 razz game, the limits of betting on third and fourth street would be the smaller limit, or $10, then on fifth, sixth and seventh streets the limits would increase to $20.
Strategy
The best starting hand in razz, then, would be Ax2x3x. Often in full-ring razz games (i.e., with eight players), experienced razz players will fold three-card starting hands containing any card higher than an 8x. Also worth noting — pairs count in razz, making hands undesirably higher. That means any starting hand that has a pair is a bad one, and that pairing up on subsequent rounds is also detrimental to players making strong razz hands.
That said, it will often happen that a table might fold around to the player sitting to the left of the one who was forced to post the bring-in with a high card showing. In that case, a player will want to complete the bet with what will necessarily be a lower door card showing, a move which will often win the antes and bring-in.
Say a player showing the Q♦ posts the bring-in and it folds around to the last player who has K♠J♥ in the hole and the 7♥ showing. That player should complete even with those face cards in the hole, because the player with the queen showing will very likely be unable to call and continue in the hand. Stealing the antes and bring-ins is a key component of solid razz strategy.
From there razz strategy involves understanding when it is worth continuing to draw to a strong low hand as well as keeping track of opponent’s up cards to know which cards have been used and which remain as “outs” with which to complete a hand. Sometimes even a good starting hand like 7x3x2x becomes less attractive if several fours, fives, and sixes are showing up as other players’ up cards, thus making it harder for you to draw to that 7-low.
In razz players with low cards showing as their up cards often will be aggressive with their betting and raising, although sometimes it can be correct to bet and raise with an especially strong draw that is concealed by the fact that your lower cards are face down.
It is possible sometimes in razz to have a “lock” on a hand where you know with certainty your opponent cannot draw to a better hand than yours. Say on sixth street you have 4♦2♥ / 3♣A♠K♥6♠ and you see your opponent with XxXx / 5♣6♠J♦7♣. You know that whatever card your opponent ends up drawing on seventh street, the very best that player can make will be 6-5-3-2-A, a hand you already have beaten with your current 6-4-3-2-A.
Conclusion
While not everyone finds razz the most exciting poker variant, it is a favorite game among many, and definitely worth learning how to play. Often in H.O.R.S.E. games razz is one of the lesser known variants in the mix, meaning just a little bit of study can make you considerably better at the game than your opponents, thus potentially making the razz round a profitable one for you.
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Rules Of Razz
Razz Poker is probably the most profitable game being played right now. With basic Razz knowledge and a little practice, it’s an easy game to win. The best part about Razz is that there are so many players who have no idea how to play the game. After you read through the rules, read a couple of our beginner strategy articles and go play some micro-limit games. It won’t take long before you have a solid grasp on how to play. Practice Razz at Full Tilt Poker or Pokerstars.
For more information about the best sites for Razz, check out our Pokerstars Razz or Full Tilt Razz pages.
Rules of Razz Poker
The rules of Razz Poker are just like 7 Card Stud, except the lowest (worst) hand wins. Razz is played as a fixed limit game, with four cards dealt face up and three cards face down. Instead of blinds, Razz Poker utilizes antes and bring-ins to create action. Antes are typically 20% of the lower betting limit. At Pokerstars however, the antes are between 10-20% of the lower betting limit. Depending on where you’re playing, the bring in can be anywhere from 1.2 – 5 times the size of the ante. At Pokerstars, the antes are low, but the bring in’s are big. At Full Tilt Poker, the antes are more standard. Razz is played with no more than 8 players, as the 52 card deck cannot support more.
- The lowest 5 card hand wins.
- Aces are low, kings are high.
- The best hand in Razz is 5, 4, 3, 2, A, also known as a ‘wheel’ or ‘bike’.
- Straights and flushes do not count and have no effect on your hand.
- Unlike 8 or better games, there is no ‘8 or better’ requirement – every hand qualifies.
- Pairs do not help your hand. Only one card in any pair can be used towards your low hand.
- Razz hands are counted from the top-down, with the lowest five cards playing. So, a hand of 9, 7, 6, 4, 2 beats 10, 7, 6, 4, 2. If the highest cards are the same, move to the next card down. If those cards are the same, move to the next card down. Example; 9, 7, 5, 4, 2 beats 9, 7, 6, 4, 2.
Example Razz Hand – $5/10 Game ($1 ante, $1.50 bring in)
Poker Game Razz Rules
Ante: Before any cards are dealt, each player must post a $1 ante.
Third Street – The first three cards are dealt; 2 face down (hole cards), and one face up which is called the door card. The player with the highest door card must ‘bring in’ for $1.50. If two or more players share the highest door card, the player who must bring in is based on card suits in the following order; spades, hearts, diamonds, clubs. So, if three players have door card kings, the player with the king of spades is required to bring in. If none have the king of spades, the player with the king of hearts is required to bring in.
After the bring in, players have three options. They can fold, call the bring in, or ‘complete’ to $5. If someone ‘completes’, players must call $5 or raise in $5 increments to stay in the hand.
Fourth Street – One card dealt face-up. The player with the lowest hand showing is first to act. He can either check or bet $5. Play then moves clockwise around the table. If the first player has checked, the next player can either check or bet $5. If the first player has bet ($5), the second player can fold, call, or raise $5. Play continues around the table, with a maximum of 1 bet and 3 raises. (If two players have the same low hand after fourth street is dealt, the player closest to the left of the button is first to act)
Fifth Street – One card dealt face-up, round of betting at the $10 limit. Once again, the player with the lowest hand showing is first to act. This time he can either check or bet the higher limit, in this example $10. All bets and raises are now $10. Play continues clockwise around the table the same as it does on fourth street.
Sixth Street – One card dealt face-up, round of betting at the $10 limit. Action is the same as it is on fifth street.
Seventh Street – One card dealt face-down, final round of betting at the $10 limit.
The player with the lowest 5 card hand wins the pot. Playing online, the last player that bet or raised will automatically show his/her cards first. In a clockwise direction, any player with a losing hand has the option to fold their hand face-up or face-down. Winning hands will automatically be shown face-up.
In total, there are 5 rounds of betting. While Razz Poker is a limit game, 5 betting rounds can generate sizeable pots.
Razz Card Game Rules
Since very few players understand the rules of Razz Poker, it’s a game that can be very profitable. There are situations where you can plainly see that your opponent can’t beat you, and yet they call and raise you anyway. Learn the rules, practice Razz, and build your bankroll by winning at Razz Poker.
Play at the best room for Razz -Full Tilt Poker
Play at second best room for Razz -Pokerstars