Badugi Poker

Badugi has a fantastic edge to it with fierce betting and encompasses some of the more fascinating aspects of poker. Badugi is a triple drawing 4 card, and the low and wins the game! The ideal low hand is comprised of four cards, with none of the same suit, and none of the same rank: i.e. ace, two, three, four all of different suits is the best possible hand!! When you find yourself holding 4 cards of different rank and suit then you are holding a…..BADUGI.

Essential Guide to Badugi Poker

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Badugi is a new game taking the live poker world by storm. It is an action packed game combining the most exciting elements of poker with a new spin on hand values and psychology. Badugi is a triple draw four card low-hand wins game! The best low hand is comprised of four cards, with none of the same suit, and none of the same rank: i.e. ace, two, three, four all of different suits is the best possible hand!! When you find yourself holding 4 cards of different rank and suit then you are holding a…..BADUGI.

How the Dealing Works:

Each player is dealt 4 cards in a clockwise direction starting from the player on the Small Blind. Cards are dealt to each player one card at a time. Once everyone has their 4 cards the action begins with the player to the left of the Big Blind and continues around the table in a clockwise direction.

How the Betting Works:

Badugi can be played as either a Limit game, a Pot Limit game or even a Half Pot Limit game. No matter what level of action mixed with skill you like best there is a game to suit you!

Limit Badugi:

All bets are made in incremental units. On Rounds 1 and 2 a player can bet the lower level bet (e.g. in a $2/$4 game the bet for Rounds 1 and 2 would be $2). On Rounds 3 and 4 players can bet the higher level bet (e.g. in a $2/$4 game the bet for rounds 3 and 4 would be $4).

Betting is capped at 4 bets per round as is standard in all limit games.

Pot Limit Badugi:

In Pot Limit Badugi players can raise any amount at any stage, ranging from the minimum bet (i.e. the big blind amount) up to how much is already in the pot. E.g. if the pot is comprised of the small blind($2), the big blind ($4), and one caller ($4), then the next active player can bet any amount from $4 up to the total value of the current pot (on top of his initial call), in this case the maximum bet would be $18. ($2 + $4 + $4 + $4).

All bettors can raise the pot by the total value of the current pot as it stands when it is their turn to act. So in Pot Limit Badugi there is no limit to the amount of betting allowed on any particular round, as opposed to it being capped in the Limit version.

Half Pot Limit Badugi:

The same rules apply to Half Pot Limit Badugi as they do to Pot Limit Badugi. The only exception is that the maximum a player can raise is the value of half the current pot. E.g. if the pot is comprised of the small blind ($2), the big blind ($4), one caller ($4), the next player to act can bet any amount from $4 up to a maximum of $11. ($2 + $4 + $4 + $4 /2) = 7. So it would be a call of $4 and a raise of $7, making a total bet of $11. So in this case the player can bet any amount from $4 to $11.

How to Play Badugi

Each player is dealt 4 cards, after which the first betting round ensues, based on the strength of each players initial 4 cards. The betting amounts will depend which variation of Badugi you are playing, Limit, Pot Limit or Half Pot Limit.

First bet round: In this round the first player to act is the first participating player clockwise from the big blind. The player may fold, call, or raise. Each player in clockwise order is asked to bet, (call, raise, fold or check). Once everyone has had their turn and all bets are matched you move on to the First Draw.

First draw round: Players are offered the opportunity to draw zero to four cards, clockwise from the first participating seat to the left of the dealer button. Players select which cards to keep and which to replace through a draw. Drawing zero cards is known as 'Standing Pat'.

Second bet round: Once players have completed their first draws, the second betting round is held. Again, the bet increment uses the low stakes.

Second draw round: Same as first draw round.

Third bet round: Same as second bet round, only exception is that on this round the high stake is used for the betting increment.

Third draw round: Same as second draw round, applying reshuffle of discards as is necessary.

Final bet round: The final betting round follows the same rules, using the high stake and leads to a showdown if more than one player remains standing.

Showdown: It's time to show your hand and see who won. The winning player scoops the pot! The showdown rules follow those of Hold'em. In brief, the player whose last bet is called, if there is one, shows cards first. If there is no last aggressor, showdown begins from the first participant holding cards, clockwise from the dealer button. As hands are shown, players with losing hands may muck or show, similar to Hold'em options.

Winner: Once the showdown is complete the winner is announced and awarded the pot. Fingers crossed that player will be you!

Other Points to note:

1. Side pots are accumulated and awarded just as they are in all other games.
2. Make sure you never forget that in this game the lowest hand wins!!

In Badugi the aim of the game is to hold a lower hand than your opponent holds. Aces are considered the lowest card in the deck; therefore A234 (all off suit) is the best possible hand in the game.

Badugi

A Badugi is a 4-card hand with no pairs and none of the same suit. Examples of Badugi's would be 2345, 2467, A358, all with none of the same suit. The best possible Badugi is A234 all off suit as there is no other possible hand lower than this.

Paired Hands:

If you hold a hand such as A244 (all different suits) then your hand value is really A24 as you can only use one of the cards you have paired. This is known as a three-card hand.
Other examples would be A224 that is finally A24, KKQJ that is finally KQJ, KJ55 that is finally KJ5. A Badugi beats any 3 card hand.

Similarly a hand such as A222 would only hold a final value of A2, a two-card hand, as the other 2 cards are counterfeited. A three-card hand beats any 2-card hand. Other examples of 2 card hands would be A444, AA88, 7766, 5666 etc.

Suited hands:

Suited hands work similarly to paired hands. If you hold a hand such as A456 (where both the 5 and 6 are hearts) then you should choose to play the lower of the two suited cards. In this example then you would hold A45 as the 6 is counterfeited. Other examples would be As9d5s8h where the final value would be A98 as the 5s is dropped. 3h4s9dKh where the final value would be 349. JhQdK2d where the final value would be 2JK.

Suited and paired hands:

Occasionally you may be dealt a hand containing both pairs and suited cards. This is usually not a good situation to be in as it means your final hand value will be very weak. For example, KhKc9cTs would have a final value of 9cTsKh as the King of clubs is counterfeited. Other examples would be:
· 2h3h4s6d where the final value would be 246 as the 3 of hearts is counterfeited.
· Td9s7s5s where the final value would be T5 as the 7 and 9 of spades are counterfeited.
· JsQh3s9s where the final value of this hand would be Q3 as the 9 and J of spades are counterfeited.

Therefore double suited double-paired hands are not good starting hands.

Another rare example would be when you hold 4 of a kind, e.g. 4444 or 9999 giving you a final hand value of either 4 or 9 respectively. This is known as a 1-card hand and is the worst possible type of hand to hold.

Furthermore, you could be dealt a hand such as KdKcJdJc where the final value would be either KcJc or KdJd. NB: there is no ranking of suits. So for example you could hold KhJhKcJc versus your opponent's KsJsKdJd, whereby both of you have a final value of KJ, therefore resulting in a split pot.

Order of hand value from best to worst:
1) Badugi
2) 3 Card hand
3) 2 Card hand
4) 1 Card hand

NB: If at a showdown there are 2 Badugi's or 3 card hands or 2 card hands or 1 card hands obviously the lowest one will win. E.g. Ah2s3d4c beats 3h4d5s6c, and 3c3s7d9c beats 3d8d8s9h, and 4c4d6c6d beats 5s8s8h5h, and 4444 beats 5555.

Multi-way pot example:
Player 1 holds 3h5s7d9c
Player 2 holds 7s7h5c6d
Player 3 holds 3h4s7c8d
Player 4 holds AhAs4dTs

Player 3 would win this pot as he/she holds the lowest hand with a 3478 Badugi. Although player 1 also holds a Badugi 3579, player 3's is lower.

ALL BADUGI HANDS ARE TO BE CONSIDERED "RAINBOW" HANDS.

Iv been hitting a few bad beats lately playing Hold'em, so instead of throwing my PC out the 3rd floor window of my apartment I decided to try out the new poker craze. The game is called Badugi which originated in Asia but is now rapidly becoming mainstream in America. The game is quite simple but the betting can be intense & exciting. Its a triple draw game. 4 cards to make the hand. Lowest hand wins the pot, pairs do not count, i.e. A-2-3-4 of different suit is the nuts. The betting is fascinating and game is filled with bluffs & chasers. I played a game last night. Quick trip to the loo & I timed out on my hand. So it showed up as a no draw. The other 2 players took 2 cards each so I put in max raise. Next draw I decided not to take the draw ( although I never had a hand) Player 1 takes 2 cards again, player 2 takes 1 card. Again I put in max bet. Player 1 folds. Player 2 calls. Next draw I decide to stay where I am, the other player takes another card. Again I hit max bet & hope he hasn't hit anything. He folds, phew..... I win a decent sized pot from a stone cold bluff. The moral of the story is that bluffing is a major & exciting factor in bagudi. If you see players taking several cards & you decide to take no cards & bet it can often be a deciding factor in winning the hand. If you are playing a chaser, they will often take it right to the river, build up the pot nicely & if they haven't hit a hand it is generally an automatic fold if they have not landed by the last draw, assuming you are brave enough to max bet it. Sure you can get stung occasionally but a re-raise or a player indicating that they want no further cards is usually an indication that you are onto a loser. The swings in the game are wild & erratic but this is an awesome game. easy enough to learn & one day badugi will probably become more popular than texas Hold'em.

Badugi Poker is a fantastic game and one of the very few sites that host the game is Carbon Poker . They are open to USA players. Badugi is a must try for anyone who is feeling a little jaded with their Hold'em

FURTHER READING : DRAW POKER

Draw Variants - A quick overview to the different variations of draw poker.

5 card draw - A useful guide to 5 card draw poker. Avoid making basic mistakes.

Gardena Jackpots - One of the other forms of poker played in some casinos in the United States.

Anaconda - Watch a few short videos explaining how to play Anaconda Poker.

Low Ball - This is a form of poker where the low hand wins the pot.