Badugi is a very unusual draw poker variation, unlike any other poker game. The first thing to note is that each player only gets 4 cards, and the second is that it is a poker game played for low, not high hands. The third thing to know is that like triple-draw poker, there are 3 drawing rounds.
The final and most confusing thing is what makes a winning Badugi hand. The best Badugi hand is Ace-2-3-4 of 4 different suits. In Badugi, straights do NOT count against you for low, but matching suits does. We'll talk more about it when we get to the section on evaluating Badugi hands.
Lets get started learning Badugi poker rules.
The final and most confusing thing is what makes a winning Badugi hand. The best Badugi hand is Ace-2-3-4 of 4 different suits. In Badugi, straights do NOT count against you for low, but matching suits does. We'll talk more about it when we get to the section on evaluating Badugi hands.
Lets get started learning Badugi poker rules.
Difficulty: Average
Time Required: 30 minutes
Here's How:
- Each player is dealt four cards face-down. After each player checks their hand, a round of betting occurs.
- After the betting is complete, each player is allowed to choose 0-4 cards to discard and draw new cards. In other words, players can exchange either all or none of their cards.
- After each player has received their new cards, another round of betting occurs. This is followed by a second round where players can draw cards, and a third round of betting. There is then a final round of draw and a final round of betting.
- Players reveal their hands and a winner is determined.
- What makes a Badugi Hand?
The most important thing to remember when playing Badugi is that to make a 4-card Badugi hand you need to have 4 cards of different suits and ranks. In other words, if you have A-2-3-4 but the ace and 2 are both spades, only one of those cards will count -- your final Badugi hand would be just 3 cards: A-3-4. If you have A-A-2-3 of all different suits, the pair still counts against you and you can only use 3 of the cards for your final hand. So your goal is to get the 4 lowest cards of different suits possible. A 4-card hand -- known as a "badugi" -- always beats a 3-card hand, no matter how high the cards are. - What beats what in Badugi: Examples
- If both players have four-card hands, the player with the lowest "high" card wins. For example, player one has Ace of hearts, 2 of spades, 3 of clubs, and 10 of diamonds. Player two has 4 of spades, 6 of clubs, 7 of diamonds, and 8 of hearts. In this scenario, player two wins because their highest card is only an 8, while player one has a 10.
- What beats what in Badugi: More Examples
- Scenario 2: Player one has 2 of hearts, 3 of spades, 4 of clubs, and 5 of hearts. Player two has 4 of spades, 6 of clubs, 7 of diamonds, and King of hearts. Player two wins because he has a four-card hand, albeit with a king, because player 1 has two hearts, therefore only has a final 3-card hand.
- Scenario 3: Player one has 2 of hearts, 2 of spades, 4 of clubs, 6 of diamonds. Player two has Ace of spades, 3 of diamonds, 8 of diamonds, 9 of clubs. Both players here have 3-card badugi hands since player one has a pair and player 2 has two of the same suit. But Player one's 3-card hand is lower, since his highest card is a 6 to Player two's 9.
Tips:
- Remember that getting a four-card hand is better than any three-card hand, so think carefully about trading a high card in a four-card hand in hopes of getting a lower card, especially in later drawing rounds.
- By "staying pat" and drawing no cards, you will appear to have a "badugi" -- a four-card hand, which is a smart way to bluff opponents.
- The worst hand that is still a "badugi" is K-Q-J-10 of different suits. The very worst hand of all in Badugi is K-K-K-K.
What You Need
- 52-card deck
- chips
- patience