Online Poker

Compiled by online poker guide

Cut-Throat Bridge

Many suggestions have been made to make bridge suitable for three players. The most satisfactory is townie but what has become known as Cut-throat Bridge is the original and the simplest of the three-handed variations.

The players take seats at random and after drawing for deal, shuffling and cutting in the regular way, the dealer deals thirteen cards each to the three players and to a fourth hand that is temporarily set aside.

The auction, beginning with the dealer, is conducted as in the parent game, and when a player’s bid, double or redouble has been passed by the other two players, the player on his left leads to the first trick. The player who has obtained the final contract then sorts the fourth hand, spreads it in front of him on the table, and plays it as his dummy, against the other two players in partnership with each other.

Play poker bridge and scoring are the same as in the parent game, except that if a player loses his contract both his opponents score the penalty points. The winner of a rubber receives a bonus of 700 points if neither opponent has won a game, but 500 points if either has.

Very clearly the game is a gamble, because the players must bid in the hope of finding the cards they need in the dummy hand.

A variation designed to make the game less speculative is for every player to be dealt seventeen cards and the fifty-second card face downwards to the dummy. After looking at their cards, and before bidding them, every player contributes four of them, face downwards, to the dummy. This way, every player knows four out of the thirteen cards that he is bidding for.

In another variation, instead of bidding for the dummy, an agreed number of deals (that must be divisible by three) are played, and, in turn, every player plays the dummy against the other two playing in partnership.

In this variation rubbers are not played, but the player who bids and makes game scores a bonus of 300 points. There is no vulnerability.

Five-Card Stud

Two cards are dealt to each player, one face down and the ither face up. There is a round of betting, starting either with the lowest cards or the highest card on board, depending on the betting rules. A third card is dealt face up, and there is a round of betting, starting with the best high hand on board. A fourth and fifth card are dealt face up with a round of betting after each. After the final round of betting, the best high hand in the showdown wins the pot.

Razz

Razz is seven-card stud lowball with A,2,3,4,5 the best hand. Straights and flushes are ignored.

Two cads are dealt face down and one face up to each player. Usually the high card on board (Excluding the ace up, and counts as low) starts the action. A fourth card is dealt face up, and there is a round of betting, beginning with the best two-card low on board. A fifth and sixth card are dealt face up with a round of betting after each, starting with the best low hand on board. A seventh and final card is dealt face down, followed by a final round of betting. In the showdown the best low hand wins.

Five card Draw After the ante each player is dealt five cards face down. Starting with the player to the dealer's left, each player checks, bets or raises. to open, a player must usually hold a pair of jacks or better. In many games a joker is used, usually as a bug but sometimes as a wild card.

Once the first round of betting is complete, each active player, starting to the dealer's left, has the option of discarding from one to five cards and receiving replacements from the dealer. Sometimes the rules of a game restrict to three the number of cards any player may replace.

After the draw, there is final round of betting, usually starting with the player who opened the pot. In the showdown the best high hand wins.