Poker Variants
Me and my friends get together every now and then to play poker. We play a lot of trash poker, which is to say that we like wild cards. Here's a listing of poker variants we play with. Some of these we made up, some of them we got from other play groups, and some we got from Scarne's Guide to Modern Poker (by John Scarne, pub. Simon & Schuster, ISBN 0-671-53076).
Note that monetary values are based on nickel ante, quarter max games. Also, order of hands is listed from lowest to highest.
Anaconda Variants
Anaconda is a high-low game where each player is dealt seven cards down. Each player passes three cards to their left, and then picks up the three cards passed to them from the right. Players then pass two, and then one, in the same way (don't pick up until you've passed).
Then each player picks five cards. They go in a stack in front of the player, and each player flips over the top card (don't look at the down cards once cards have been flipped). There's a betting round, starting with the highest hand showing. Then flip the next card and have a betting round. This continues until there is one down card. Declare high and low simultaneously, and flip over the last card to determine the winner.
Most of these variants are just different names for wild card variants listed below. 8s and 9s are popular wild cards in Anaconda.
Australian Rules
Pass to the right instead of the left.
Basketball
Bet after the cards are dealt, and after each pass. There is no flipping over cards, have the high/low declare and showdown.
Craw Worm
Magic Anaconda. Craw Worm is a snake in the Magic trading card game.
Cross Eyes
Pairs of different colors are wild. Note that any three of a kind is wild.
Howdy Doody
If you declare high, your 3's are wild. If you declare low your kings are wild.
Monty Priscilla King Snake
Monty Python, Priscilla Queen of the Desert, and Rodney King.
Monty Python
The highest and lowest card showing after the first flip are wild for everyone.
Slider
Baseball Anaconda. Drawing with a four is done starting with the dealer's left.
Snake Eyes
Pairs of the same color are wild.
Five Draw Variants
Circle
Five cards dealt to each player, eight dealt face down in a circle. Bet after the deal. Reveal two cards (opposite on the circle) at a time, betting after each pair is revealed. At the showdown, you can use any adjacent cards in the circle as if you had made a normal draw and drawn those cards.
Double Draw
There is a second draw, with a third round of betting. Four player game.
Monkey Love
Players declare how many cards they want to draw simultaneously. The player to your left gets the cards you discarded.
Psycho
After the second round of betting each player reveals three cards simultaneously. There is another round of betting, and then play proceeds as in seven stud (one more up, one more down). Other variants include Psyco Pepper (Dr. Pepper).
Five Stud Variants
Note that many seven stud variants can be played five stud.
Canadian Stud
Introduces two new hands, the four card straight and the four card flush. The order of hands is high card, pair, two pair, four card straight, four card flush, three of a kind, etc.
The Game
Each player is dealt one card down and one card up, five times, with a betting round after each deal. Before the betting, a player may pay to switch a card from his down hand with one from his up hand (nickel first round, dime second and third, quarter fourth and fifth). The up hand is the player's low hand, and the down hand is the players high hand. Highest high hand and lowest low hand split the pot. Control of the bet, and the declaration of switching cards, starts with the lowest low hand showing.
Mexican Stud
Also Mexican Sweat. Each player is dealt two cards. All players simultaneously reveal one card. Your down card is wild for you. Each subsequent deal is face down, with simultaneous reveal. You may choose which of your two down cards to reveal each time. Other variants include Illegal Alien (Low Chicago).
With a Twist
Your low hole card is wild. You may pay a quarter to get your last card down.
Guts Variants
In guts you are betting the pot. You either go in or out, if you go in and lose, you match the pot. Play continues until only one player goes in.
Balls to the Wall
Five Card Guts. If you go in and draw, you have to match double the pot. Other variants include Voodoo (Magic).
Circle Jerk
Five Card Guts, no draw. One card is dealt face up to the player to the dealers left. He can either pass the card to his left, or put it in his hand and pass a card from his hand face up to his left. Once a card has made it all the way around the table without getting picked up, declare in/out and have the showdown. This is a slow game and usually requires a double ante.
Full Monty
Three Card Guts. The highest and lowest cards, in the hands that went in, are wild.
King Little
Five Card Guts, simultaneous declare, beat the deck. Kings are wild, and the lowest card in your hand is wild for you. Played with the usual Five Draw betting rounds after the declare, but you only have to match what the pot was when you went in.
Three Card Guts
Each player is dealt three cards. After in/out declare, each player may draw one card. For the order of hands, switch the order of straight and flush, and three of a kind counts as four of a kind.
Two Card Guts
Each player is dealt two cards, no draw. Order of hands is high card, pair.
Weenie Rule
If everyone checks, the person with the highest hand matches the pot.
Seven Stud Variants
Baseball
3s and 9s are wild, if you get a face-up 4 you can buy an extra up card for a quarter. Other variants include: A League of their Own (Follow the Queen), Night Game (Roll Your Own), Rainouts (natural pair of 7s face up forces redeal), and Wrigley Field (Low Chicago).
Buck Seventy-five
Low Chicago. Cards are dealt one at a time face up. You may pay a quarter to get any card face down before it is dealt.
Football
4s and 6s are wild, if you get a face-up 4 you have to match the pot or fold, if you get a face-up 2 you can buy an extra down card for a quarter. Other variants include: Ditka (Low Chicago) and Earthquakes (natural pair of 8s face up forces redeal).
High-Low
Simultaneous declare before the showdown, lowest low hand and highest high hand split the pot.
Just a Buck
Buck Seventy-Five, except for a normal seven card stud deal. Any card that would normally be dealt face up can be dealt face down for a quarter. (Craig O'Brien)
Low Ball
Low hand wins the pot.
Low Chicago
Low spade in the hole splits the pot with the winner.
Wild Cards
These are different sets of wild cards that have names of their own.
Balls
Pairs of the same color are wild.
Dr. Pepper
10s, 2s, and 4s are wild. Named after an old advertising campaign.
Follow the Queen
Queens and the card dealt after the last face-up queen is wild. Note that this means that if the queen is the last card dealt face-up, only queens are wild.
Magic
Consecutive cards of the same suit are wild.
Mao
Hearts and diamonds are wild.
Menage a Trois
One eyed jacks, the suicide king, and the bed post queen (queen of spades) are wild.
Rodney King
If you have a king, all of your clubs are wild.
Priscilla
If you have a queen, all of your hearts are wild.
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Created 8/29/98