Five-card draw fans can add another variation to the list. This popular game takes on the mold of the traditional five-card draw and adds a slight twist, given the name.
Double draw follows along just as the traditional five-card game does. With more betting opportunities and the potential of a bigger pot, you will see why this game is heating up in popularity.
Tips For Double Draw
Before you start with this variation, it would be best if you could have some tips to get you ahead of the competition. This means that if you can stay one step ahead of your opponents, you can likely have the upper hand.
These tips can also be used for many other games. For this one, you will want to understand the rules, look for good hands, use the bluff to your advantage, and keep your eyes on your money.
Understanding The Rules
As noted, the game flows like a five-card draw. There is an ante before the cards are dealt. Next, everyone will be dealt five cards face down where players can then look at their hands.
At this point, players must decide to either fold their hands or be ready to discard up to 4 of their five cards. To discard 4, the player must show an Ace. The dealer will pass out however many cards the player wants to discard and exchange them out, putting the unwanted cards in a discard pile.
It would be handy to keep those cards in a discard pile simply because if you have too many players, you can reuse those cards and shuffle them. So remember this if you have around six players or so.
Once the first round of discarding begins, players will start another betting round. Players must bet to stay in or fold their hands. Note, the folded players’ cards must not be added to the discard pile unless the table agrees on something like this.
Once the round of betting ends, players can choose to discard more cards if they desire with the same rules as before with up to 4. After that ends, one more round of betting will continue.
Finally, there will be a showdown. The best five-card hand wins, and the winner takes the pot.
Best Hands and Bluffing
This game uses the same hand rankings as most poker games do. So the high card is the lowest hand while the royal flush is the best hand.
Keeping this in mind, if you can make the best hand possible, then that is the goal. Since you have two rounds of discarding that you can do, you have the opportunity to make your hand significantly better.
This will ultimately make your hand better, but remember, everyone else has the same opportunity as well. So if you can make a hand that is somewhere in the middle of strength, that would be ideal here.
Bluffing can become a good strategy here if used correctly. If you see many players folding and are left with just a few people, this would be a good time to stay if your hand is not that bad.
Bankroll
Since this game has two rounds of discarding, you will have an extra round of betting too compared to five-card drawers. This means bigger pots and more money from each person.
With that being said, you are more likely to run out of money a lot sooner if you do not win a hand every now and then. So definitely keep a watch on your money as it relates to your bets.
