7 Card Stud Rules

Seven card Stud is just as popular as any of the other poker games you may see on internet poker rooms. Playing seven card stud poker is pretty simple, and the best part is that you can get all the practice you need from the internet, and you can play at any time of the day or night for free. Once you get the hang of the game then you can start winning money online.

7 Card Stud Rules
A seven card stud poker game usually has up to 8 players. After a dealer is chosen, the player to the left of the dealer is dealt the first card, the cards are dealt clockwise from that position. There are no blinds in this game, but you are required to ‘ante’ before starting the game. The ante is smaller than the minimum bet. It is usually between 10 to 20% of the smallest bet, then all the players ‘antes’ are placed in the center of the table.

Third Street Card
All players have set a previous betting limit and let’s assume that for instructional purposes this limit is set at $1 to $2. Every player is then dealt two cards face down and then one card face up ( The face up card is known as the “third street”). The player who has the lowest “third street card” has to “bring in (this means he has to bet at least the minimum of $1 but can bet the maximum of $2). When two players have the same low card then the player with the lowest suit rank is chosen. The suits from highest to lowest rank: Spades, Hearts, Diamonds, and Clubs (notice that they are in reverse alphabetical order), the next bet needs to be placed by the player on the left of the lowest card, and then continue on to the next player.

You can raise by as much as the same amount of the last bet. So if a bet of a dollar is made, then the next person can raise by $2, and the following person can raise by as much as $4 etc, but you can’t raise after the fourth bet.

The key to winning in poker is not only knowing how to play the game but when to continue betting, when to raise and when to fold. Those decisions depend on the cards you draw by the “third street”. If for instance you have a “trip” whether Aces, or deuces, then you want to continue raising throughout the game. There are certain decisions you should make by the “third street” card.

*If you have high pairs, then you usually want to continue to bet. These are pairs of Aces through tens. When you have one part of your pair down and the other face up, then this is an even better hand than exposed pairs because the other players don’t know. You can raise on these hands, of course you should be cautious because if you have a pair of tens, but another player shows a king, and another an Ace, then they may have a higher pair than yours.
* The next best hand is the starting three straights, like a 8,9,10 or a Q, K, A of the same suit. Bet as cheaply as you can on these, until you see if you are going to continue getting more to the straight. If you do have a straight then you should raise and re raise.
* The last good starting hand is a small pairs hand. A pair of numbers between 2 and 9, but don’t raise with this hand. If you don’t have any of these by the third street, then its probably in your best interest to fold.

Fourth Street Card

Then another card is dealt face up (this is known as the “fourth street”), so now all the players have four cards, two face down and two face up. After the fourth card is dealt, the player with the highest showing cards bets first. If there happen to be two players with high cards, then the one closest to the dealer gets to bid first. Afterwards this player will always be the first bidder.

If there is a pair showing then the player can choose to double the raise. Lets assume the betting is at $1, but a player has a pair and chooses to double the raise. He has now changed the raise from $1 to $2 making the total $3. Once the bet has been raised then all bets have to be in that amount ($2 in this case).

By the fourth and Fifth street if you are still playing you need to decide on whether you are going to continue or not. By this time you have an idea of what other players have. It is important that you pay attention to what cards are being folded, so you know whether the people that are still in the game have that needed card or not.

*If you see that the cards you need are held by more than one player then its probably not a good idea to continue playing.
* If you notice someone else going for a straight, but yours is a good straight then you need to try to drive them out of the game by raising and re raising. You don’t want them to get any of the cards you need.

Fifth & Sixth Street
When everyone is finished betting, then a “fifth street” card is dealt, and the betting continues again. Then another card (sixth street) is dealt face up and a round of betting again.

Finally 7th Street

The seventh card is dealt face down (this card is called ‘the river’), a final round of betting takes place and whoever has the best five cards wins the pot.

When to Bluff?
Bluffing can be beneficial in this game. If for instance you have four hearts showing, you can start raising as if you had a flush. Other players get scared when they see four cards of the same suit.
In conclusion, while you get the hang of the game you should bet minimally as betting can add up quickly and later set a limit for yourself and don’t go beyond that unless your hand is exceptional. By following the above rules and raising if you have the above hands and folding if you have none of the above, then you should be ok for most games. Avoid staying in the game, just to stay in it. Seven card stud is about patience, so you will be doing a lot of folding.