Tournament Strategies
After receiving pocket cards, you are immediately faced with a choice: play your cards and either raise or call the blinds, or fold.
Practice Matters
Stripped Decks
Stripped Decks In a game where there are only a few players (2, 3 or 4) or where faster action is desired without the use of "wild cards," it may be decided to strip a deck, i.e., to remove certain low cards and play without them. Generally the twos, threes and fours are stripped, making a 40-card deck. If the players so desire, twos, threes, fours, fives and sixes can be removed from the deck, making a 32-card deck. In England's gaming clubs, Five Card Stud with a 32-card stripped deck is widely played, and for big stakes I might add.
Rank of Low Hands in Poker
Rank of Low Hands in Poker Low or High-Low Poker differs from other forms of the game in that either low or both high and low hands bid for the pot. This one variation in Poker rules has such a great effect on the play of a hand and provides so many unusual and interesting situations and strategies that it has replaced many other forms of Poker. The rank or value of high hands is the same as in any Poker game; however, low hands are the reverse. The Scarne rule that follows is to count aces as high and low. Therefore, the cinch, or perfect, low is six, four, three, two, and ace of mixed suits. If they are all of the same suit it counts as a flush and in effect becomes a disaster when playing for low. Similarly, straights including ace-two-three-four-five are considered high and disastrous for the low player. Treating the aces as either high or low adds extra zip and skill to both Low Poker and High-Low Poker.