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The Basics of Badugi
Online games have brought poker to the masses and popularity is at an all time high. This has in turn lead to the popularity of previously little known variations such as Badugi to be searched out and found as people look for new games.
Badugi is a game for 2 up to 6 players and the game is a low card game, getting used to this can be strange at first especially if you have been used to playing the more popular games such as holdem which is a high card game. As well as been a low card game Badugi is also a draw game, meaning as the game is played out, players have the opportunity to exchange some of their cards with cards from the pack. To begin a game the player will have to make a choice of table to play at, the table can be one of three kinds, limit, pot limit or half pot limit; this refers to the betting structure of the game.
Players receive 4 cards face down from the dealer at the start of each hand. The aim of the game is to have 4 cards that are neither paired or suited, share the same number or suit, ideally the numbers will also be as low as possible. An example of one of the best possible hands would be 4 of H, 3 of C, 2 of S, A of D. If a player has a hand like this it is called by the same name as the game, the Badugi hand.
There are 3 rounds or draws during which you have the option to call/check, raise or fold just as in any other game of poker. You also have the opportunity to replace cards during each draw. Get rid of any matched cards and receive new cards from the stack. If ever player draws cards and the deck runs out of cards, usually the discarded cards are re shuffled and used again.
The pre draw round starts with the player to the left of the big blind, if no blinds the dealer, and goes clockwise. Big Blind is usually placed by the player to the left of the small blind and is usually the size of the minimum bet. The small blind is placed by the player to the left of the dealer and is half the size of the big blind.
Those still remaining at the end having not folded reveal their cards in the showdown. Any paired cards left in the hand at showdown must be discarded.
How To Play Badugi Poker
The game of Badugi poker originated in Asia and is a variant of draw poker. It shares many similarities with Lowball, as it is the lowest hand that wins. It differs significantly from most popular poker variants since hand ranking system is different. The strongest hands are those that have no pairs and four low cards, one of each suit. This is known as a Badugi.
How to Play
Blinds
Badugi poker is played using forced bets known as blinds. The Badgui poker player sitting to the left of the dealer button posts a small blind, while the Badgui poker player to the left of the small blind poster will post the big blind. The small blind is usually half the size of the big blind.
The Deal
Each Badgui poker player is dealt four cards face down. The first round of betting then takes place, where you can call, raise or fold. Badgui poker players still left in the hand after this first betting round now have the option to draw. The idea of the draw is that you can choose to discard any cards that you do not want, and have them replaced with new ones that you hope will improve your hand. You click the cards that you want to discard, and then click the “discard” button. The Badugi poker player at this point can opt to discard all four cards if they want. A second round of betting in Badugi poker then takes place, with players having the option to bet or fold, unless there are no bets, in which case the Badugi poker player can check. Once this round of betting is complete, another draw and betting round takes place. Finally, there is a final draw and betting round, after which a showdown occurs if more than one Badgui poker player remains. The player with the best hand takes the pot.
Basic Strategy Of Badgui Poker
The object of the game is to make a Badugi – a four-card low hand with four different suits, and no pairs. The best possible starting hand therefore is 4-3-2-A (with each card a different suit).
Badugi poker hands are ranked by their highest card, with aces always playing as a low card, and straights ignored. A Badgui poker player holding 9-8-4-3 of different suits (a “Nine Badugi”) would lose to an opponent holding 8-7-3-2 (an “Eight Badugi”) of different suits. Likewise, 6-3-2-A (a “Six Badugi”) would lose to 5-4-3-2 (a “Five Badugi”). If the top cards in the hand are tied, then the next-highest card is considered, and so on. Therefore, a 6-5-4-A (a “Six-Five Badugi”) would lose to a 6-4-3-2 (a “Six-Four Badugi”).
If a hand reaches showdown and no Badgui poker player has a Badugi, the player with the best three-card or two-card hand wins the pot. An example would be, if you hold 6h-4d-3s-Ah, you have two hearts, so the highest one is ignored, leaving a 4-3-A-x. That hand is known as a “Three Card Four”, and would lose to any Badugi, but it would beat 7h-5d-4d-3s (the highest diamond is ignored, making a “Three Card Seven”, 7-4-3-x),. All three-card hands, in turn, beat all two-card hands. For example, Ad-As-2d-2c is a “Two-Card Deuce”, 2-A-X-X, because there are two pairs). In the game of Badgui poker, it is even possible to have a “One Card” hand; for example, Qd-Jd-8d-4d has four cards of the same suit, so three of them are ignored, leaving just the 4d, a “One-Card Four”.
It is important to think about position when playing Badgui poker, as the player last to act is able to gain information on what hands their opponent may have, based on the number of cards they have discarded. If a player who acts before you does not discard any cards, it is likely that they already have a strong hand.