Ace to 5 Lowball
The most common version of Lowball online poker room is A-5
triple draw.
Play works the same as 5 card draw but with players trying to
make the best possible low hand, and there are three draws instead
of one. Straights and flushes don't count so the best possible hand
is A-2-3-4-5 regardless of suit.
Before the cards are dealt the two players to the left of the
dealer button (a small D in a circle identifies the current dealer
position) must make forced bets, called blinds. The first person
left of the dealer pays the small blind, and then the next person
pays the big blind, which is double the small blind. These amounts
are the table limits. The minimum bet in a hand is the amount of the
big blind.
Once all the players have their cards there is the first of 4
betting rounds and players have the 3 options: fold their hand, call
the big blind (bet equal to the big blind) or raise (bet a higher
amount).
After all players have acted, the players who stay in the hand
for the have a chance to change or improve their hand by discarding
up to 5 of their cards and getting the same number of new cards
back. They also of course have the option to keep all their cards in
their hand.
There is a second round of betting (where players have the option
of checking, raising or folding) followed by another opportunity to
draw, followed by a third round of betting and the third and final
draw.
There is then a final round of betting followed by a showdown, at
the showdown the player with the lowest hand takes down the pot.
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