Oxford Stud Poker
Though called "stud," this poker game is a combination stud/community
card poker game that was popular at MIT in the 1960s, in which
players receive individual down cards, individual up cards,
and community cards. Many variations on this poker game are possible by
changing what kinds of cards and how many are dealt in various rounds.
One difficulty with such a combination is deciding the
betting order. In stud poker games, the player with the best up
cards showing bets first in each round (except sometimes the
first, where the worst up card is forced to begin the
betting with a bring-in). In
community card poker games, each
betting begins with the same player (because there generally
are no up cards), making it more positional. Oxford stud
poker chooses to use the players' individual up cards for this
purpose, which makes it play more like stud poker.
First, each player is dealt two down cards and one up card
as in seven-card stud poker, followed by a first betting round.
Like stud poker, the game is usually played with
a bring-in, the
lowest up card being forced to pay it, and betting follows
after that. After the first round is complete, two community
cards are dealt to the table, followed by a second betting
round, beginning with the player with the highest-ranking
incomplete poker hand (as in stud poker) made from his up card
plus the two community cards.
For example, if one player has a K up card, and a second
player has a 7 up card, and the community cards are 10-7,
the second player bets first (since he has a pair of 7s, and
the other player only has K-high). Then a second up card is
dealt to each player, followed by a third betting round,
again beginning with the player who can make the best
partial poker hand with his two up cards and the board.
Finally, a third community card is dealt to the table,
followed by a fourth betting round and showdown. Note that
as with Mississippi Stud Poker, each
player has five cards of his
hand exposed at this point (two of his own plus three on the
board), so it is possible for a flush or straight to be the
high poker hand for the purpose of first bet.
At showdown each player makes the best five-card poker hand he can
from the four cards he is dealt plus the three community
cards, in any combination. This poker game is usually played
high-low split.
Billabong Poker (and Shanghai)
Just as Oxford stud poker is a mixed stud/community card version
of Texas hold'em poker,
Billabong poker is a mixed version of
Manila Poker. Each player is dealt two down cards and one up card. Low up
card starts the betting with a bring-in if you are playing
with one, otherwise high card starts the betting.
Next, two community cards are dealt, followed by a second
betting round, beginning with the player with the best
exposed partial poker hand (counting the community cards, as
in Oxford stud poker).
Then a third community card is dealt, followed by a third
betting round. Finally a fourth community card and fourth
betting round and showdown. Each player plays the best
five-card poker hand he can make from the three in his hand plus
the four on the board in any combination.
Shanghai poker is the same poker game with an extra hole card, but no
more than two hole cards play. That is, the game begins with
each player being dealt three down cards and one up card;
each player must discard one of his hole cards at some point
during the game as determined ahead of time. The most common
variation is to discard immediately as in Pineapple Poker; the
second most common is to discard just before showdown as in Tahoe Poker.
Guts
Despite having the aptest name of any poker game, this nasty
little game has the ability to rob you of weeks of pay at a
time.
Each player antes a predetermined amount, usually 5 times a
regular ante. Each player is given two face down cards. The
players each then take a poker chip underneath the table to
declare in, or out. All poker hands are declared at the same time.
The out players may throw in their cards and have nothing to
fear for now. The in hands are compared. Two aces is the
highest hand followed down by pairs, then high card. The
highest in hand takes the pot, while the other "in" hands
match the pot (that is, if the pot was $50, each losing "in"
player puts $50 in the pot).
The cards are gathered, shuffled, and dealt again. Should
there be a tie, (i.e. two aces vs. two aces) all in players
are considered to have lost. Should nobody be "in", the pot
stays and the cards are dealt again. Should nobody else be
"in" to replace the pot, the "in" player receives what is
called a leg, an arbitrary way of keeping track of how many
times a person was in unopposed. The first player with
three legs wins the pot and the game is over.
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