Badugi poker can be quite exciting. Badugi poker is a variant of triple draw that has many unique aspects that differentiate it from its cousin. The biggest difference between Badugi and triple draw is that you will have only four cards in your Badugi hand at any one time instead of the five that you would have in triple draw. Additionally, hands are ranked differently in Badugi poker than in other more traditional poker games. Becoming a good Badugi player only happens when you are aware of the Badugi rules that govern play. Let's look at those rules:

Badugi Poker Rules: Game Structure

Badugi is played with as few as two or as many as eight players around the Badugi poker table. More than eight players would ?exhaust the deck? which means that there would not be a sufficient number of cards for all players. Badugi is a fixed limit game that does not use an ante system, but instead is played with ?blinds?. A $5/$10 Badugi table means that the small blind (who makes the small bet) would bet a minimum of $5, while the big blind (who makes the big bet) would bet a minimum of $10. Small blinds are played before and after the first draw, while big blinds are made after the second and third draws in Badugi poker.

Badugi Poker Rules: Dealing

Once the blinds have been posted (two forced bets, pre-draw, at pre-determined limits), the deal begins. The small blind is posted by the player to the dealer's left, and the big blind by the player to the small blind's left. The small blind can bet one-half of the size of the small bet, and the big blind is twice that of the small blind. On a $1/$2 table, for example, the small blind would bet fifty cents, and the big blind would bet one dollar, and so on.

Once the blinds have been posted, each player is deal four cards face down (also called ?down and dirty?). These cards are dealt one at a time in a consecutive, clockwise fashion around the Badugi poker table. After each player has their cards, betting for the first round begins.

Betting Before the First Draw in Badugi Poker

Betting in the first round begins with the player who is seated to the exact left of the big blind player. This player may fold, call, or raise. Once that player has acted, each player can fold, call, raise, or re-raise if the player in front of them had raised the bet. There is a maximum of four raises, after which Badugi players may only fold or call.

Drawing Rounds in Badugi Poker

Once the first betting round is over, the first draw commences with the player seated to the exact left of the dealer. Players can discard unwanted cards from their hands. Players can draw as many as four cards or may choose to stand pat (drawing no cards). The first draw is followed by more betting, and the second draw. All bets are at lower limits. The next two drawing rounds go about as the first, only betting will be at the maximum limit only for rounds two and three.

Badugi Poker Rules: the Showdown

Once all drawing and betting is complete, the showdown occurs. All players who are remaining in the action will flip their hands over to reveal their cards. The person holding the best four card Badugi hand will win.