Play Triple Draw Lowball A-5 or 2-7 Online

Carbon Poker offers both 2-7 Triple Draw and A-5 Triple Draw, although traffic to this game is low with these lowball games having not really caught on online just yet. This game, especially the “Deuce to Seven” variety, is a great bankroll builder for micro limit players capable of playing it well heads up. If you’re a low to high stakes player you’re best sticking to a larger room like PokerStars to play you’re Deuce to Seven Lowball. As far as Ace-Five go there are not many other viable options online.

If you’re not familiar with Triple Draw here’s a quick run down of the game:
1) The game is played a maximum of six handed.
2) The object of the game is to make the lowest possible hand.
3) The betting structure resembles Holdem as the dealer button rotates around the table and there are two blinds – the order of action is the same.
4) There are 4 betting rounds. The first betting round starts after players receive their 5 card starting hand. After this betting round players can discard/draw any number of cards or stand pat (discard none). This process repeats two more times as there are 3 total draws with a betting round after each. At showdown the best low hand wins.

The difference between Deuce to Seven and Ace to Five Triple Draw:

* In 2-7 Triple Draw the best hand possible is 23457 as long as it’s not a flush. Ace is always high in triple draw so while A2345 is not a good hand it’s also not a straight so it will beat a paired hand or a worse Ace low hand.

* In A-5 Triple Draw the best hand possible is A2345 regardless of suit. In Ace-5 flushes and straights are ignored and Ace is always the lowest card.

Ranking the hands: Hands are ranked using all five cards if necessary, its simple when one player’s 5 card low hand is say a ten low and the others lowest 5 card hand is a 9 low obviously the nine low wins. If both players had a nine low we’d then need to examine the second card to see who has the better nine low, For example: 9-7-5-3-2 beats 9-8-4-3-2 because 9-7 is lower than 9-8. If both players had a 9-8 their third lowest card determines the winner, if their 3 cards are the same the fourth lowest card would be used etc. Remember though in 2-7 Triple Draw (unlike A-5) a straight or flushes count against your hand so if you have 23456 you do not have a six low you have a straight which is a horrible hand. In both games pairs are bad: 22347 is not a seven low it is a pair of Deuces and will lose against any non paired, non straight or non flush hand.

Quick 2-7 Triple Draw Strategy

As a poker player Triple Draw is a great game to have in your arsenal. It’s an action game so therefore it attracts a lot of fish and gamblers. My suggestion is to learn the Deuce to Seven variety first as this is the most commonly played version and it’s the one novice players tend to make the most mistakes at.

This is only a quick guide to help players get started at the lower limits and soft Triple Draw games. For players looking to learn this game in more depth, I strongly recommend Daniel Negreanu’s Triple Draw section in Doyle Brunson’s book “Super Systems 2”.

The first thing to understand is that 2-7 Triple Draw is all about position. In Texas Hold’em and Omaha position increases edge, but not nearly as much as position increases edge in 2-7 Triple Draw: The player to act last has much more information to use in when making decision what to draw to. For example if in a blind vs blind hand on the first draw you both took 3 cards. You happen to catch a hand such as 9-8-7-6-2 and first to act you bet and your opponent raises: what do you do now? It’s a tough decision you’ll probably call and draw one to an 8-7, but say your opponent draws one also and he just raised. He might already be drawing to a seven low or drawing to a clean 8. Now look at the same situation while you’re in position: You both draw 3 your opponent checks you bet your 9-8-7-6-2, your opponent calls and draw 2. Here you might consider just staying pat and betting the next street. If your opponent calls and draws one on that next street, on the final draw you can always check behind and showdown. As you start playing the game you’ll begin to realize more and more how important position truly is in Triple Draw.

2-7 staring hand recommendations: As a beginner, the key to beating these wild and crazy Triple Draw games is to play a bit tighter than your opponents at the table. In a ring game with 4-6 players you’ll rarely, if ever at all, want to voluntarily entering a pot with a hand that does not contain a deuce. Remember in this game the nuts are 2-3-4-5-7. In a full ring game (6 handed): when on the initial betting round you’re the first or second player to act you’ll only want to enter the pot with the following starting hands: a) A made seven or eight low b) a deuce with two or other cards to the nuts c) the hand of 2-6-7. If you pick up any of the starting hands mentioned you’re coming into the pot with a raise, otherwise you’re folding. A golden rule for beginners is: Never open limp in Deuce to Seven Triple Draw.

On the button you can open your game up a little bit and come in for a raise even with a hand like 9-8-7-2. You’ll have the benefit of seeing how many cards your opponent draws and be able to make a decision on what you’re going to draw too. If he re-reraises and draw one, you’ll most likely need to call and draw three keeping your deuce and seven. If he calls and draws 3 you might keep your hand or draw one and bet the next street no matter what. The reason you can open your game up a lot on the button is your position gives you a lot more information to make decisions with.

From the blind you’ll have to open your game up a little to prevent players from stealing your blind every time. Here you might consider taking the draw to a late position raiser if you have a deuce and one other card to the nuts – if the raise comes from early position stick to the same starting hand requirements as you would have raised in early position with yourself.

Triple Draw is a much more complex game at higher stakes, even if you end up mastering the lower limit games – be sure to read a book or two and seek some other training before moving up – as the players in higher stakes understand position a lot more and are likely to draw and stay pat with air much more often if they feel they can get away with it.

By now you should be ready to at least give low stakes Triple Draw a chance. To get started head on over to Carbon Poker and if you can’t get a game going there you will for sure find several running at the World’s largest online poker room PokerStars.