7 Card Stud Rules

7 Card Stud is a sophisticated and subtle form of poker. Before the great Holdem boom, Stud was the game of choice for most players. Now, it’s become something of a hobby for poker eccentrics. Nonetheless, it’s fun and extremely profitable, especially online. Here’s how to play. It’s just like every other form of poker: in 7 Card Stud, you’re aiming to make the best 5-card poker hand at showdown. It should be said, though, that it isn’t necessary to have the best hand to win; you can also try to get everyone else to fold, in which case you’ll take down the pot. But if you can’t force villains to fold out, you want the best high hand you can possibly have. Below are the rules of Seven Card Stud poker. To learn how to get the best bonuses at the best Stud poker rooms please visit my Poker Bonus Code site.

How 7 Card Stud Betting Works

7 Card Stud requires every player at the table to post what’s called an ante—an enforced bet—before the hand starts. If a player wants to play, he’s got to post the ante.

Every player who posted the ante is dealt three cards to start. The first two are dealt face-down; these are called hole cards. The third card is dealt face-up, for everyone to see; this is called the door card.

Once the cards have all been dealt, the player with the lowest ranking door card will be forced to pay a bring-in. The bring-in is just a bet that kicks off the action, and its size depends on the game’s limits. The bring-in is generally half of the lowest posted limit. For example:

• In a $2/$4 7 Card Stud game, the bring-in is $1.
• In a $4/$8 7 Card Stud game, the bring-in is $2.
• And so on.

Round #1: Third Street

Here’s where the action begins. The player to the left of the bring-in must decide whether or not to complete the bet. Completing is just raising the betting to the game’s lower limit; in our $2/$4 game, this would be $2. If the player chooses not to complete, he can also simply call the bring-in (in this case, $1). Alternatively, the player might choose to fold his hand, removing him from play.

The action moves counter-clockwise around the table, with each player getting a turn to act. Players call, raise (in increments according to the lowest game limit), or fold accordingly. Once betting is complete, third street ends.

Round #2: Fourth Street

Each player is dealt a 4th card face-up. The player with the highest upcard showing generally starts the action. The player chooses to check, bet, or fold, and the action continues counter-clockwise from him.

The bet amount on fourth street holds fast at the lowest limit of the game, as it was on third street. After the action’s over, the 7 Card Stud action continues…

Round #3: Fifth Street

If two or more players make it past fourth street, another card is dealt face-up to each player. Again, the player with the highest ranking card on the board starts the action. Action continues counter-clockwise from him, as in previous rounds.

An important feature of fifth street is that the bet amount doubles from previous rounds; the standard bet will be equal to the game’s highest limit. So in our $2/$4 game, the bet amount on fifth street would be $4.

Round #4: Sixth Street

The action continues on sixth street, if there are two or more players left. Another face-up card is dealt to all players. The player with the highest upcard starts the action, and action continues clockwise from him.

The bet amount remains equal to the game’s highest limit.

Round #5: Seventh Street

This is the final round of action. You’d better have a good hand if you’ve made it this far! A final face-down card is dealt to each player. The player who acted first on sixth street begins the action once more.

After all remaining players have acted, we move on to the…

Showdown!

Here’s the fun part. We get to figure out who wins. Online, it’ll happen automatically. But in a brick and mortar game of 7 Card Stud, players need to flip their hands face-up and compare.

The player with the highest 5-card poker hand wins the entire pot. If two players have the same hand, the pot is split in half. After the money is shipped to the winner(s), it’s shuffle up and deal once more. That’s all there is to a game of 7 Card Stud!

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